Underwhelmed experience for first try of Tanuki Restaurant. Two stars for friendly service. Was there for a late lunch, ordered their squid ink Japanese style pasta and the picture was what I got. It was nori covering on top - which was fine - then more dark noodle underneath - okay expected though almost hard to tell apart from nori as they were both dark - and dressed with thin pale white cream sauce and colorless tobiko? ...what. Visually it was less than appealing. Taste was nothing better, unfortunately - the noodle was soggy in texture and surprisingly bland in flavor. Nori and tobiko were like non existent: they were rather delicate and were quickly swallowed by the heavy, oily swirl of noodles as I stirred. Cream sauce had a somewhat sticky texture without adding proper creamy flavor, therefore being another unfortunate to eat down as I was sitting outside enduring a 30+ degree Celsius temperature. The combination of ingredients - including the choice of noodle shape - was bizarre in so many ways. I'm usually a fan of Japanese pasta but this does not taste like Japanese food nor would I call this noodle "pasta". Any amateur home cook can easily beat that with even the most plain home noodle dish. I'd be hesitant trying any other food here given how terrible the first experience was. I did miss Shiso Tree's Japanese pasta. read more

Tanuki Restaurant - That squid ink noodle - Japanese Near Me - Markham, Ontario

Been wanting to give this place a try for a while now, and on Mother's Day we got the opportunity to try here with the FAM. This place as mentioned by other yelpers is in the centre of J-Town beside the supermarket. Parking is quite full so you'll have to navigate and find areas maybe further walk and this place is first come first serve no reso kind of place. There's seating inside and outside, but on this day it wasn't particularly warm especially when you have a baby with you, so we sat inside. Here was what we ordered: Grilled Shishito Peppers w/ togarashi, salt, lemon ($8)- I'm always a sucker for ordering these peppers even with not much taste in general, but you can get hit with a spicy one by chance. The seasoning and grilling of this peppers match nicely and the pricing and portion is fair. Shrimp & Clam Chower Soup w/ dashi, cream, potato, peas and corn ($10)- A nicely taste chowder with decent portion with a nice thickness to the broth. Omurice w/ chicken fried rice, shitake, edamame and of course the omelette on top...Comes with a sort of gravy to pour over ($20)- Portion is decent, but pricing I think is a bit high side, but that's the cost of brunch...Although this place is not bougiee but the pricing seems like it. - It tasted alright, the omelette wasn't runny and all, but that's about all I can recall from this dish. Tonkatsu Curry w/ curry sauce ($21)- Nice fried pork cutlet w/ 2x sunny side egg I recall. Taste is good and portion is good as well. Hayashi Beef w/mushroom, gravy, sour cream on rice ($29) - Its oxtail on the description and you get 2-3x pieces where one looks good size and the others are smaller portion... Nice melt off the bone type meat and seems more meat than the usual oxtail you get at a caribbean shop. This may be similar curry gravy like the Tonkatsu... Soft Shell Crab w/Egg benedict w/toast, japanese sweet yam ($29) - This dish I felt was probably the biggest inflated pricing out of all... You get one small soft shell crab cut in half and everything else is normal I'd say... Not sure how the pricing match the oxtail to be honest... Service here based on our experience is hit n miss. You have to flag your server down to take your order or get anything in general. Decent brunch spot, but based on the pricing and limited menu options, I'd say we pass on this... Btw: This place not friendly for babies for washroom changing...I recall the washroom area is quite cold and their hot water seems to not be working in the washroom while washing hand... Food : 3.5/5 Service: 3/5 Ambience: 3/5 read more

If you want to go somewhere that is filling... come to Tanuki! Situated in J-town in Markham. Always wanted to try this place, and finally got to check it out last weekend. Ordered the Gentle Blade Omurice (soft omelette, chicken fried rice, salted duck egg, demi glace) and the Seafood Croquette. Both items were super delicious. I'm not a big fan of runny egg or super soft eggs, but this reminded me of japan a lot. The rice was flavourful (stir fried) and the overall presentation and portions were quite big. The croquette does have cheese, so if you can't eat it like me then you are SOL. However, if you want a croquette filled with shrimp, squid, and fish with lots of cheese... you won't be disappointed. For apps, we got the fried oysters with tartar sauce! Crunchy and hits the spot. They are generous with the tartar sauce too :) Also ordered the hojicha latte, love the creaminess with a hint of soy bean kinako powder. Overall, amazing experience! read more

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DON'T come to this restaurant if you don't want to ruin your entire day. The food is mediocre level(especially karaage, tastes like overnight leftover...), but the service is terrible and slow, and the waitress and waiter are ridiculously rude. The waitress in grey sweater is a racist and so rude that I couldn't believe she's actually a server. She looked very pissed the moment we came in, and even rolled her eye when we asked for sharing plates no mentioned everything is so slow, we waited half an hour for coffee, and another half an hour for food. If the owner see this comment please make your sever got trained and educated to be polite. No one wants to be treated like this. read more

Tanuki Restaurant - Karaage - Japanese Near Me - Markham, Ontario

We just had our first patio dine-in in a year and first brunch outing in almost 2 years at Tanuki! Tucked away in the alleyway of J Town, we were so glad we came here for brunch because the food was amazing. Service was also really good. Bonus point: it was pet friendly on the patio for our little dog. We got the Pork belly Eggs Benedict from the brunch menu and the Tonkotsu Curry with a side of Karaage. The pork belly was really tender with a crispy side. Exactly the way I liked it! The Tonkotsu Curry was also super delicious and flavourful. As for the Karaage - we ordered as a side instead of a main dish and it was soooo worth it! The portion was enormous for the amount of food. The only complaint I have is that the food can get really heavy (all those carbs and fat lol). But you can always pack it up to take it home ;) Overall I enjoyed the experience and would go again if I'm in the area! read more

Tanuki Restaurant - Brunch - pork belly eggs Benedict, karaage (as a side), Tonkotsu curry - Japanese Near Me - Markham, Ontario

This was my first time visiting Tanuki! I really enjoyed how they change up their brunch menu every week. When I went, I got the Crispy Collective Fried Chicken which was so flavourful and crispy. Really enjoyd the shishito peppers which gave it a nice spice Every week, they always have an eggs benedict. I got the My Mycelium Eruption Portobello Egg Benedict which was perfectly balanced with Portobello mushrooms and brie cheese all topped with a tomato hollandaise. The taro hash finished things off all on a nice buttered brioche bun. Overall, will come again because they keep changing their menu. read more

Tanuki Restaurant - My mycelium eruption portobello egg Benedict - Japanese Near Me - Markham, Ontario

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Cute brunch with place in j-town and the pancakes were the bomb. They always have a different menu every week which is cool and the service was great. I would go back for sure! read more

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This spot used to be shared with Shisho Tree Cafe, however they have closed down and Tanuki has taken over the spot. They specialize in Japanese food but adding their own twist as well! Dine in and patio is available, but mind that during peak hours (dinner and brunch) will be busy on the weekends, so it's best to make a reservation, especially for larger groups. One unique aspect that I learned from one of the chefs named Chris is that every weekend, they try to change up their brunch menu to make each visit exciting and fresh for customers. So whatever they have in stock is what they have and usually sells out fast. Chris and his partner John love to experiment with different ingredients which is what I feel among restaurant chefs should aspire to do as well! Service was alittle slow when we were outside in the patio as it took a while for us grabbing the attention of the server so we could order. Overall, despite during busy during dinner, all our dishes came out promptly and everything was presented nicely as well. We ordered: - Arlong Park Alaskan Code Cake ($12) - Pig of Sea Scallops ($15) - A couple of cocktails Everything tasted delicious, and the staff was friendly. Will I come back again? Of course, and I recommend you to visit too! read more

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I've long wanted to try omurice at a place in Japan where they serve it with a deliciously runny filling and an entertaining chef ‍ to boot (Kichi Kichi in Kyoto). I saw it on the menu here and hoped it would be similar! I was disappointed that the first cut, the egg was not runny at all, but the server was great and asked the kitchen to make a runnier and less cooked one however it turned out almost the same as the first one . It was essentially a fried egg on top of bland rice. The karaage was pretty good, decently crispy and very generous portion (could be a bit crispier tho). The menu said it was supposed to come with a fried chicken foot however I think our foot ran away The tonkatsu curry was a huge portion as well however i found the curry to have more Indian flavors vs. having a lighter and more traditional Japanese curry taste. However regardless of this experience I might still come back and give it another shot and try their brunch offerings. read more

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I usually get the Tonkastu Curry rice dish when I'm here. It's quite filling. Prices are a little high though.

Loved that its owned by young local chefs! They have a great patio space but it can be a wait during the weekends Love the rotating brunch menu - their eggs benny always sound fun. the week i went was a house cured beet trout eggs benny. I love also that its taro hash! a fun asian spin on regular potatoes and the bread is from the bakery next door For dinner the tarako cream sauce with squid ink pasta is good - creamy and a good portion. Things are on the saltier side though. I also saw a lot of people getting the sandos which look huge The omu rice was a little disappointing - I wish the egg was runnier and fluffier and the rice was on the salty side and needed to be less moist. Overall the place is a great patio in the area and love the fusion mix read more

Tanuki Restaurant - Japanese Near Me - Markham, Ontario

I feel sorry for anyone who comes here thinking they will be served good "japanese" food. You're better off going across the path and hit up the supermarket cafeteria for better katsu. The curry with katsu tasted bland with a lack of spices and tasted like they squirted a bunch of kewpie mayo into my curry. Adding kewpie mayo into things doesn't immediately make it japanese fusion. The katsu was tasteless and the batter on the outside was soggy, without any real redeeming quality. My friend had the omurice with no luck also, leaving his bowl half eaten. Their use of beets in every dish is a little offputting as well as the yam they put onto both our dishes (im assuming it comes with every dish), just doesn't make sense. It's as if they didn't know how to make their boring dishes pop so they just added the first two things they google searched "trendy ingredients" and say fuck it. "Watching too much anime" and being "only given two choices in careers from his career counsellor" is not a very promising backstory in a chef; and no, watching too much anime is not a personality trait, just because you watched a couple episodes of shokugeki doesn't mean you're an expert on Japanese food, it just makes you a weeb trying to cook. I genuinely wanted to ask the waitress (who were actually japanese) how they felt about serving this kind of food in JTown, if this is what is replacing Shiso Tree.. yikes, Jtown is going downhill. read more

I was honestly so excited to try Tanuki that recently replaced Shiso Tree Cafe, but unfortunately everything was way below my expectations. We came on a weekday lunch and service here was so slow even though they had quite a few servers - took over half an hour for even an app to be served. We ordered four items, but for some reason, one item was missed and we didn't bother reordering as the food took too long to come. Food wise, presentation is nice, but taste isn't that great. Everything is on the salty side. For example, this cod cake pictured was super salty and I couldn't taste any cod at all, only potato. Also, the size of this cod cake is pretty big, probably double the size of my fist. If they were half the size it would've been easier to eat and more crispness. I ate about one bite of this and couldn't stand it any further. The karaage is very crispy, but there was way too much sauce on top and below. The first piece was good, but it became so heavy I couldn't eat another piece. The egg on the omurice was very smooth, but it was basically a plain fried rice underneath with edamame beans. No chicken to be found. Also super salty. Also, I tried to make a reservation, but unfortunately they don't accept reservations. I think with covid currently, it would be better for reservations to avoid large amounts of people waiting for a table. They open at 11am on weekdays but no one picked up till noon. Overall, prices and portions here are decent, but probably a one time visit for me! read more

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I've visiting a few times and each time received great service and tasty food. My favourite part about this place is their rotating brunch which is served every weekend until 3pm. Portion wise they are pretty generous and I always leave stuffed to the brim lol Highly recommend: -hayashi beef: this is an oxtail stew which has now replaced the Hamburg steak -omurice: theirs is served with a Demi-glacé sauce and it's comfort in a bowl -seafood croquette: this is HEFTY the filling changes depending on what seafood they have on hand but it's delicious -eggs Benedict: this is my go to at brunch. My favourite so far as been their salmon that they cured in house. Not my favs but worth a try: -chicken sando: definitely a crowd fav but personally was not for me. Taste-wise it's nostalgic as it reminds me of Filipino spring rolls but had me wishing for more sauce -kaarage: now this was delicious but I loved the other dishes more The only thing I probably wasnt a fan of was the soy glazed corn. It was too salty for my taste and the char became bitter instead of a smoky taste. read more

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Tanuki in markham specializes in Comfort Japanese food which describes each of its dishes perfectly. Luck would have it my friends and I came just as they wee launching their new menu. We ordered the chicken karaage for an appetizer which comes with a giant chicken foot sticking out (great for photos). The chicken was super crispy and delicious. As someone who likes chicken feet, the foot I would say is more for garnish than for eating as there isn't much meat. For mains, we ordered the deep fried skate fish (my fav dish of the night), oxtail and pork jowl and a side order of their tanuki slaw. The latter 2 dishes tasted very similar to one another, likely because they use a similar sauce or marinating method and the slaw reminded me much of the Singapore slaw served by Chef susur lee, mainly for its fresh flavours and the fried taro on top. Yum! The slaw was a nice accompaniment as the sourness of the pickled vegetables helped cut through the fat of the other dishes. All in all, a very solid meal but I wouldn't have ordered the two oxtail and pork jowl dishes together in the same meal. Note: if uncomfortable with dining in, they have ample of tables outdoors on their patio. read more

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Honestly, a little underwhelming I really wanted to like tanuki but I felt like everything fell a bit short. The place itself is minimal and spacious. It's a good place for a casual lunch or dinner. I came in on a Friday night for dinner and the restaurant was about 70% full. Although the waitress was kind, she was a little slow throughout the entire dinner. But,the food was probably the most disappointing part. Maybe it was an off day, because there have been so many good reviews. Maybe I ordered the wrong items? Or maybe there was too much hype. Beets by J The beets were cooked to a good bite. But the sauce they used was a bit weird. I think it masked the earthiness of the beets too much and didn't pair well. 2/5 Seafood Croquette I ordered this as a main and enjoyed it. The slaw? At the bottom paired well with the croquette. Overall the croquette was fried nicely but the taste was on the salty side. 3.5/5 Tonkatsu curry Unfortunately the pork cutlet was reaaaaallyyy dry. I know that pork is hard to cook but it was pretty over cooked. The sauce itself was okay but they were a little heavy on the kewpie Mayo. The rice was also on the mushier side... which didn't help since the curry made it even mushier LOL... Deff skip this 2/5 I feel super sad that I didn't enjoy my dinner here. I'm definitely gonna give it another shot for brunch. From what I have read it seems like the Karaage and slaw are very good, so maybe go for those! read more

Haven't been at this place for a while. Wanted to dine at a relaxing place. This restaurant has changed quite a bit since my last visit, when this restaurant was newly opened. I ordered a Seafood Croquette and my husband ordered a hamburger steak/ Hambagu. Seafood Croquette (score: 5/5) The presentation was so elegant and beautiful. It had seaweed at the bottom and cherry tomatoes all around and on top of the croquette. The outer layer or the skin of the croquette was thin and was skillfully cooked. It's crispy on the outside and yet it was not over cooked. The inside was creamy and I could taste shrimps and scallops inside the croquette. I love the mayonnaise added all around the plate and I could taste wasabi inside the mayonnaise. Excellent work! Hambagu (score: 5/5) The hamburger steak was sitting on top of white rice and there was a scrambled egg on top of the hamburger steak. There were orka and a kind of thin fungi all around. The sauce had some cheese mixed in it. It's quite a filling meal. Taste was not bad, just a bit heavy to my personal taste. A great dish to try. read more

Tanuki Restaurant - Hambagu / Hamburger Steak - Japanese Near Me - Markham, Ontario

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First time walking in to order take out from Tanuki. The fusion menu looks amazing. Today ordered the seafood croquette and tonkatsu curry - both dishes was delicious. Will come again. Yup - Recommending pre ordering or else there maybe a long wait. read more

Tanuki Restaurant - Tonkatsu curry - Japanese Near Me - Markham, Ontario

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I've been here 3 times since it opened, a few months apart. Overall, hit or miss in consistency and the constant menu changes (not necessarily seasonal).. I'm not sure about. This replaced Shiso tree cafe which sold mainly yoshoku style pasta. Tanuki keeps this fusiony aspect going but without the pasta. Some of the servers are still working there :) The first time I had the omurice which was delicious - soft egg covered in a demi glace covering a savory rice and Prince mushrooms and edamame. interesting flavors and it worked and it was super filling. However the next time we got it the egg was more rolled up into an omelette (not as soft) and the demiglace was in a little cup (as in not enough sauce). It was just ok this time - I don't think it was just the visuals but it was missing whatever impressed me the first time. The karaage is cooked well. First time I had it, great. A bit on the salty side but good. I had it again as a meal all on its own (I really liked it). This week we tried it again and they covered it in this spice mix and it is just crazy salty now along with the sauces they add. Too much. We didn't eat much. The croquette... Again the first time I had it was nice! Light crispy breading with a tasty and light relish. It paired really well together. Last week I had it again and so much had changed and it was definitely not my cup of tea. The roe was noticeably fishy tasting. The croquette had medium sized shrimp and small scallops in it which was new but really didn't work texturally with the rest of the dish. The slaw... Unfortunately I seriously hate raw onion and celery. I will not touch them. The relish and slaw is now FULL of it. To the point that my home office smelled of raw onion and it completely overwhelmed the dish leaving the main part of the dish tasteless (except fishiness from the roe). my dad ended up eating it instead and I could smell it from across the table. The hambagu (Hamburg) steak we ordered was also not worth it. The meat was likely frozen. Chewy, overcooked and underseasoned all at once. It came with plain white rice. He did not finish it. He had the original iteration of it close to when tanuki opened and enjoyed it. I'm happy to support local businesses especially during these times - Tanuki is not cheap though and I'm hesitant with these frequent recipe changes to their regular menu items and unluckily these changes have not been for me. They seem relatively successful even with a pandemic which is awesome. I just hope for more consistency in the future. P.s. the names are very confusing if you look at the menu. A lot of it is anime references that have maaaybe something to do with the dish. It's somewhat cute (and somewhat cringey) but starts getting annoying because the names of the dishes tell you nothing about it and I think it hinders more than helps customers. some of the names also just don't work that well. My own two cents and I'm sure some people enjoy it. read more

Tanuki Restaurant - A lot of onion and celery. - Japanese Near Me - Markham, Ontario

It was okay, nothing to write about. The chicken karaage was probably the best thing there. The hamachi Benny was on a very thick break that was not ideal to eat, and the omurice was not as flavourful, didn't really like the sauce it came with, however the amount mushrooms were good. Lastly I had the cold hojicha latte and it Tasted nothing like it. In fact it tasted like watered down milk, which was super annoying. Overall 5/10 would recommend read more

Still my go to restaurant. Still one of the top fusion restaurants in the GTA! Absolutely love the different menu items each week and the creativity in the different names of the dishes. Love love love! read more

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Decided to try their tonkatsu curry, because it was BOGO on uber eats and it was pretty good. The meat was thick and they gave a ton of curry sauce that included potatoes and carrots. The rice was just a bit mushy for my liking. I also really liked their taro chips, there was a light dusting of spice and they were really crispy. The food held up well in transit too. read more

Tanuki Restaurant - Japanese Near Me - Markham, Ontario

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Alright Brunchies we've got a new place for brunch at J-town (sad to see Shiso Tree gone :( but who doesn't love brunch?!) So, similar to shiso tree the restaurant uses bread from Nakamura and that's why I ordered the Thicc Brick Toast because nothing would be as fresh as being next to the japanese artisan bakery itself and it definitely did not disappoint! For the quality of their food they're reasonably priced and if you're working in the area, you can enjoy this new spot for small gatherings too! they are also open for dinner so we'll go back again :) read more

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After my friends raved about going to Tanuki for brunch for weeks, I finally decided to try it for myself. I was impressed that they change up the brunch menu every week so you always have a reason to go back. Food 5/5 Everything on the menu sounded delicious but we settled on the Blushing Koi Eggs Benny, Gifu Mountain Pancakes and Thankful to be Open Turkey Special as they were the brunch specials. The beet cured salmon was a spin on traditional eggs Benedict as it wasn't salty/smoked salmon. The egg was a little overcooked for my liking but great nonetheless. My favourite thing on the plate was the taro cake as it was a gratin with layers of cheese and béchamel sauce. It was crispy on the edges and soft on the inside. I had the turkey special as it was Thanksgiving weekend and it was SO SO GOOD. Simply put, Tanuki put a Japanese take on a classic Thanksgiving meal. The citrus turkey was juicy, tender, full of flavour and was perfectly complimented by the savoury gravy and tart cranberry sauce. The seasonal vegetables were sesame-flavoured beets and miso pumpkin which gave both the perfect combination of sweet, savoury. The Gifu Mountain pancakes were matcha flavoured with macerated blackberries, cranberry compote and whipped cream. The pancakes were crispy on the edges and fluffy on the inside but I do wish that they had more green tea flavour. The cranberry compote was a little sour on its own but was a good balance if all the components on the plate were eaten together. Service 4/5 The staff were super friendly and attentive. We went around 1:30PM on a Sunday afternoon and the staff handled the steady amount of clients well. They regularly topped off the drinks at our table and the chef even came out to ask us how our meal was. Overall I had a great first experience at Tanuki. I love that they consistently use creative ways to transform classics and use unconventional ingredients. read more

For a Friday afternoon, this restaurant was packed both inside and out. The patio is set up very nicely and tables are decently far apart, not the best scenery but very comfortable. Service was good but food was a little slow coming out, maybe because they were a full house. Would definitely come back! We started with the Bathing Phoenix Karaage. The chicken foot (i guess to represent the "phoenix") was a little weird tbh and I wish they cut off the nails, that was a bit of a turn off. Presentation lacks a little greenery but it all comes down to taste! The chicken pieces were so so crispy and the seasoning was a little different than traditional but still very good! The slaw underneath also paired well with the crispness of the chicken. The cod cake was so light and fluffy. It was quite a large cake too! It has the same slaw underneath as the karaage but again, it worked well. The cake was crispy on top but because of the slaw the bottom became a little soggy. The omurice was very filling. It came with chicken, mushrooms, yam, and some very very creamy scrambled eggs. I was really hoping for the traditional style where I could cut into the egg and it unfolds dramatically (anyone know where I can find this?!) but this was more deconstructed. Boy I could have multiple servings of the egg, it was so so good. The demiglaze was also quite tasty and had a rich beefy flavor. read more

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I did a take out order of the Memories of Harambe Tonkatsu Curry from Tanuki a while back and it was fantastic! The curry was very tasty and unique. I usually don't like potatoes in curry very much but I crave the ones in this dish randomly from time to time. Having a nice crispy texture is huge for tonkatsu. By the time I got home after running some errands, the tonkatsu itself was understandably a bit soggy, but MAN that curry was so flavourful it blew me away! Was I having a Shokugeki no Soma moment? QUITE POSSIBLY. Harambe would be proud. Honestly I think it's one of the best tonkatsu curries in the city because it's so flavourful compared to some of the other places. Apparently they also do buck-a-shuck on Mondays and half-priced sake + $5 cocktails on Wednesdays too which is really exciting. I would highly recommend Tanuki's food, it was seriously tasty! I can't wait to be able to try that Tonkatsu fresh next time, while it's still crispy. read more

The food never disappoints. The service is always excellent and, mostly important, their patio is super dog-friendly.

Super disappointing. I'm reviewing about their bento box that they sold next to nakamura bakery. I was so excited when I first saw the hot bento and immediately grabbed the seafood croquette and the tuna quinoa salad. As a Japanese, without knowing the chef of tanuki or whoever made it, I can 100% tell you that this was not made by a Japanese and has no authenticity in the flavour whatsoever. In fact, I would take it further to say they don't know how to cook. They cook like total amateurs who don't know how to prep meals. Reason for this: 1) seafood croquette: the seafood had a strange aftertaste and smelled bad and i only tasted soggy, salty potato and soggy because the sauce is prepoured on the crispy croquette... 2) the Okra side dish was very brownish colour and super bitter. They clearly didn't rub salt (you usually massage the salt into the okra before boiling to remove the bitter flavour and make sure the colour is vibrant.) This is basic cooking skills guys... 3) tuna quinoa salad: there no dressing so it tasted bland AF lol imagine tuna with no sauce or anything like am i a cat? Is this cat food? Lol I asked the guy at the register (at the bakery) if there's supposed to be any side dressing and he was clueless and said the salad is already flavoured........... Appearance wise it looks good, but I'm really questioning if these guys behind the kitchen are legit cooks? Or just fan of Japanese anime? Lol I did see the blogTO interview and looks like they are not trained in Japan but just are simply "fans" of Japanese food. How the hell did they get into the Jtown establishment? Who approved this mediocre bland amateur food?? This makes me sad and I would never recommend anyone to buy their bento or eat at their restaurant it's honestly embarrassing as a Japanese person. read more

Went there for team dinner. Everything was excellent and in huge portion! I had the hambagu which is definitely not regular one person portion. Pork shank is exceptionally huge and soft. We shared 6 cakes: sesame, chestnut, lemon, chocolate, tiramisu, green tea. All of them equally good so just pick your favorite flavor. read more

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Located in the heart of J-Town in Markham, Tanuki Restaurant serves up Japanese comfort food with a fusion twist. In addition to their standard menu, they also have a weekend brunch menu which changes every week. Although I like the concept of the restaurant and was intrigued by their menu, the food itself was subpar. Both the sweet potato cake and popcorn shrimp were decent, but the brioche bun took the flavors away from the eggs Benedict overall. The chicken patty from the sando doesn't really taste like chicken, as it was combined with various ingredients and had the texture of a croquette. Kappa's Cache Eggs Benedict ($16) Samurai Samaroo Chicken Sando ($15) @Tanuki.Restaurant Price Range: $7 - $22 IG: #The_Yum_Report read more

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According to the ever 'credible' Wikipedia, Tanuki is a Raccoon dog significant in Japanese folklore reputed to be mischievous and jolly, a master of disguise and shapeshifting. I'm guessing the choice of name is supposed to be reflective of what the establishment hopes to offer which is some form of Japanese inspired/fusioned western food. Tanuki's food was definitely shapeshifting but to the point where you are not sure what it's trying to achieve. Unfortunately the entire experience at Tanuki is neither here nor there. The disappointing meal was kicked off with an uninspiring Tanuki Caesar salad. In order for the kitchen to pull off an appetizer like this, two things must happen: the vegetables has to be Uber fresh and the dressing has to be the heart and soul of the dish. Neither was the case. The combination of napa cabbage, carrot and daikon made one feel like a bunny chewing on semi fresh veggie at a petting zoo. Honestly the daikon should be replaced with something like Asian pear that would at least give the dish some dimension. The dressing was supposed to have anchovies but I found it quite nondescript. I suggest a sweeter dressing with perhaps some sort of sesame base. Next up, the primordial pearls oyster and scallop chowder, was ok. I personally find the soup not creamy enough and a bit over the top with the sweetness. For ten dollars you get plenty of soup but I was hard pressed to find pieces of scallop and oyster in the chowder. I'm not a fan of the edamame in the soup. Next came the Memories of Harambe tonkatsu curry. The curry I think was meant to be a hybrid of Japanese and Indian curry, which was not as sweet as your typical Japanese curry but more spice infused. At the end of the day it was not enjoyable at all because you don't get the satisfaction of getting either. With their curry, you would never complain about not getting enough curry sauce. They totally overdid the sauce and basically flooded the plate to the point where the pieces of tonkatsu were no longer crunchy. For a $17 tonkatsu curry, I expect better overall quality and I certainly expected pork that was more tender (it was not dry or hard but just not quite there). Finally, one of their signature, the Buddha palm pig knuckle. It's not a bad dish but it does leave you wanting for more. The dish reminds one of the iconic Chinese braised pork belly (dong po rou), but is missing on the sweetness and the wine and much too heavy on a dark soy taste. The skin of the big knuckle was fall off the bone type of texture and was probably achieved through some form of deep frying. The meat was not tough but I expected more of a fall off the bone texture. I think some level of corner cutting was done here. They should stick to some form of stewing or slow cooking in order to achieve the proper texture. The dish also came with three large pieces of baked sweet potato and rice. Consider how heavy the pig knuckle is already, the dense and heavy sweet potato is just not a good combination. The service was friendly but may lack some attention to detail since she was forgetting some serving utensils considering that I expressed that I would be sharing some of the food with my wife and I noticed that she forgot to bring a guest from another table spoons for their coffee. Clearly, they also tried to name their food based on an anime theme, but the plating nor the furnishing was done to reinforce the theme. The furniture that they are using were inherited from their predecessors and all the seat portions on the chairs were peeling off. The washroom remained unfurnished and looks pretty beaten up. Considering the price points they are charging even during lunch time, I think that's just not acceptable. On the way, to the kitchen I also noticed a chef with no mask down on their chin. Let's just put it this way, I miss Shiso Tree (their predecessors) very much. I rarely walk away from a Japanese restaurant totally dissatisfied with the experience, but Tanuki would be one of those places. read more

Update** wait times are VERY long. Each time I've been, I've waited 30-40 mins for my food with no acknowledgement from staff. It's disappointing because the food is delicious! This would be a 5/5 review had they addressed this issue each time. read more

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The food is ok but not really authentic Japanese food. The curry is definitely not Japanese curry. It might be Indian curry but definitely not Japanese curry but it taste good for Indian curry. The omurice was very good and the chicken fried rice underneath taste like the teppanyaki fried rice. The seafood croquette was good. The sauce underneath is a seaweed mix with mustard sauce. Don't get the Hamburg. It was hard and has no taste mushed ground beef. It is not suppose to taste like this. It's supposed to be soft with cheese inside. The menu idea is good but the execution could be better. There a small place called Demiya by Cupertino, California that has almost the same menu but their food is so much better than this place. We were hoping to find a place like that one in Toronto but this place does not come close. read more

I debated with writing this review. I came a few weeks ago for an early dinner on a Friday night. My husband and I dined and showed our vaccine passport to dine in restaurant. There were a few red flags - there was someone outside who came in to use the rest room, their table mate came in to wait for them but that person did not have a mask. No one asked for him to put a mask on and he roamed the dining room looking around without a mask. The servers wore masks but would repeatedly take them off when chatting with others in the restaurant. Finally, I saw on multiple occasions, people come out from the kitchen into the main dining room without a mask on. It made me super weary and I was disappointed as this was my first dine in experience in over a year and a half and I was expecting more diligence. read more

Disclaimer: Don't let this opinion to deter you from checking these guys out and developing your own opinion. Alright here it goes. Honestly everything here is a miss. I can understand the general idea of maybe where the concept is going for but I just feel like everything is a mess. First off the food is not that desirable to me. Why is there a chicken feet with the karaage? It doesn't add anything to it. Katsu curry tasted like butterchicken... rather than something distinct that reminds you of Japanese curry but with a twist. Tried a bunch of other dishes as well during our time there and it everything was underwhelming. But hey they have sake in a can. Can't go wrong with that. Also what's with the names of the dishes, is it supposed to be something that makes the menu standout. I'm puzzled. Service was whatever then pay much attention but our server was nice enough to joke around with us during our dining experience. Do I recommend people to try them out. Yeah. Have your own opinion. I could be wrong and it's okay. I personally wouldn't go back unless something catches my interest. They have a great space. read more

Shiso Tree at J-Town has closed down and in its place is Tanuki, a new Japanese comfort food restaurant elevated to modern Markham cuisine. I first heard about this place during the recent broadcast of DK Lo chat, as brought up by j83y. Intrigued and since this place was close by to me, my three friends and I decided to try it. It almost didn't happened because there was lots of rain on Saturday and being there was no umbrellas on their patio. However, I was quite confident though it won't poured like cats and dogs based on the weather forecast that evening. . Tanuki restaurant was created by two born and raised Markham locals who have travelled extensively through the back alleys of Asia, looking for the most unique and interesting flavours. After many years working in some of the top restaurants and hotels in the city, chefs John-Francis and Chris at Tanuki have returned to their roots to create a modern take on Japanese comfort food, using local seasonal produce and a strong inspiration from Markham culture. . I was only able to try one dish: the Samurai Samaroo Chicken Sando crispy chicken, Nakamura milk bread, kewpie slaw, spicy bulldog sauce. So tender and juicy but yet crispy on the outside. No wonder it is one of their top Signature dish. I can eat this everyday . I wished we could have shared so I could try more dishes because everyone was raving how good their dishes were but completely understand it was not possible due to Covid. In the end, we were a party of 6 sitting under some trees, with rain drizzling on and off. I was not able to take much pics of everyone food since it kept drizzling non stop. My one hand was busy opening and closing my umbrella and my other hand was busy with food . Was told what a great suggestion this new place is even though I never tried them too . Everyone all enjoyed their food and would not hesitate to come back. The pricing is fair too. . Tanuki offcial grand opening is tomorrow: Monday, July 13th. They also offer brunch on weekends only, with a special brunch menu. read more

Shiso Tree Cafe has closed down and Tanuki has taken over. We tried the Thicc Toast, Lobster Bisque and Samaroo Chicken Sando. Everything was delicious and beautifully plated. Service was great as the chef took time to come out and chat with us. The rest of the menu looks quite enticing, and we would love to come back and try their new items. read more

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Brunch available on Sunday all day. Place inside j town and staffs are very friendly. Indoor and outdoor seats are available, but I would recommend to sit outside because the indoor smells like you enter into a public washroom. Their washroom door remained opened at all times. Lot of flies flying around while you are sitting down and I don't see any flytraps. read more

My friends and I were able to have our dogs with us on the patio. When it was dark they gave us string lights that made for an intimate dinner setting. The menu options were plenty enough and the food was delicious. read more

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A really nice Japanese fusion restaurant located in JTown. Their brunch includes western style breakfast such as eggs and bacon but also pancakes and french toast. They have Japanese dishes like ramen and steamed egg. Recommended for sure. read more