It’s been a year since Canada’s first Nobu Restaurant opened its doors in downtown Toronto, and it has quickly become one of the city’s top dining destinations. Now, Nobu is making headlines as the only restaurant in the city to be shortlisted in the 2025 Restaurant & Bar Design Awards.
The awards recognize and celebrate the world’s most creative spaces (as well as the individuals and organizations behind them), encompassing everything from fine dining destinations to fast casual hangouts.
Nobu Toronto has been shortlisted in four categories: Hotel, Surface Interiors, Lighting and Ceiling. And there’s no question as to why. The restaurant’s interior was conceived by Toronto-based Studio Munge and features a blend of Japanese-inspired concepts and Canadian artisanship.
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The 10,000 square-foot space spans two levels, boasting 278 seats. Upon entry, diners are welcomed by a sleek bar and lounge, two private dining rooms, a sushi bar and an outdoor terrace.
The lounge has an invitingly dark vibe with warmly lit pillars, but the mezzanine level is just as stunning, boasting a 20-seat sake bar and an intimate outdoor terrace reminiscent of a serene Japanese garden! Guests will admire the magically lit 28-foot bronze chainmail Lasvit chandelier, which resembles the folds of a Japanese kimono.
The bar sports a chic blue-and-white palette with a hand-applied plaster finish, artfully curving across the layered ceiling. When it’s time for dinner, guests can proceed to the 140-seat courtyard dining room on the second level, adorned with a porcelain art installation created by Canadian ceramic artist Andrea Braescu.
For a more discrete experience, the restaurant boasts a 10-seat private tasting room decked out in dark cherry wood and an intimate 20-seat dining room hidden behind the cascading chandelier. This room is enclosed in bronze-tinted glass and offers a sneak peek at the bar below!
Nobu will battle it out against restaurants from around the world, including Bangkok, Lisbon, Tokyo and Milan.
The awards ceremony will take place on October 27, 2025, at EPIK Dubai. In the meantime, you can read more about the restaurant’s elements here or, better yet, book a reservation before the summer is out.
