Ukiya Izakaya comes across as a lively, cozy Japanese tapas spot with a wide shareable menu that includes ramen, bao, skewers and sashimi, and drinks ranging from bold cocktails to generous mocktails, with many reviews praising the friendly and attentive service and the value for money. The all-you-can-eat option and happy hour are repeatedly highlighted as appealing deals, though a few notes mention limits on the buffet offerings and some dishes arriving slowly. Diners frequently praise standout items such as grilled eggplant, marinated beef short rib, grilled mushrooms, takoyaki and a flavorful ramen bowl, while a few dishes like certain fried items or miso soup receive more mixed reactions. The atmosphere is described as welcoming and cozy, with a modern pop vibe and a lively bar scene that suits groups and dates. Service is praised for friendliness and speed when not overwhelmed, though there are occasional complaints about slow service during busy times or gaps in water refills. Prices are considered affordable for the quality and the all-you-can-eat tapas concept, making it a popular choice for those seeking variety and good value. Overall Ukiya Izakaya is seen as a reliable, enjoyable spot that many would return to for drinks, tapas selection and consistent flavors, while some reviewers suggest improvements in menu breadth for vegetarians or in keeping menu images up to date.
The restaurant has a nice atmosphere, with pleasant décor & very friendly, attentive staff. Service was quick & the team was welcoming throughout the visit.
However, the food was somewhat disappointing. The beef & lamb were quite overcooked & lacked flavor, so most of the taste came from the sauces rather than the meat itself. The chicken also seemed lightly seasoned, again relying mainly on the sauce for flavor.
The shrimp tempura was overly fried, which made it feel more like eating very crispy batter with a hint of shrimp rather than shrimp tempura.
Other dishes were decent, but nothing particularly memorable. Overall, the food is perfectly edible, but it may not meet expectations if you're looking for very flavorful or high-quality dishes.
Mar 6, 2026
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Takoyaki & grilled mushrooms were good. Lots of cute drinks. Really good happy hour stuff. Fried foods were all very meh (tempura, tofu, chicken wings).
Visited for a late Friday night dinner with some friends & left more than satisfied.
Ukiya Izakaya continues to prove itself as a reliable & consistent restaurant offering a selection of small plates of good flavors at affordable prices.
The grilled eggplant was succulent & lightly smoky. The chicken karaage was juicy & piping hot. The grilled squid was tender with a slight bite.
Our personal highlight was their grilled marinated beef short rib that is slide-off-the-bone tender & covered in a rich sauce that is so delicious you'd want to order a bowl of rice to accompany it.
The staff was incredibly welcoming & respectful, always accommodating to our requests & never shying away from our questions.
Overall, we had an excellent & warm experience with Ukiya Izakaya & we are sure to come back for more.
This was an amazing find during my trip to Montreal! For $25, you can get unlimited tapas & a cocktail of your choice, which is a great deal. My favourite tapas included the salmon tartare, grilled mushrooms, chicken wings, & vegetables dumplings.
AYCE tapas wasn't worth 25$. Chicken wings were sweet which I didn't like. Dumplings were cold & not delicious. Other options were just salads. Cocktail was very good though.
The rice bowls are super good! Especially the chicken one, & their "Summer Purple" drink was super cute & tasty, totally worth it for a cute date night
Oct 27, 2024
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I went here for the Happy Hour special that is going a bit viral & I will say that it was a fantastic deal. Happy Hour is $20 & includes a cocktail that normally costs $15, so you're essentially paying $5 for all the appetizers you can eat. They don't advertise the Happy Hour items so the options are: Edamame, Wakame, Salmon Tartare, Grilled Mushrooms, Chicken Wings, Sweet Potato Fries, Mozzarella Sticks, Octopus Balls, Veggie or Chicken Gyoza. The food itself is not great, it's clearly frozen foods that they prepare in bulk as part of this happy hour promo but it's still worth it, especially if you're into quantity over quality. The drink quality was fantastic, highly recommend the Summer Purple. Our server was also great. I will note that the food takes forever to come out, it was around 35-40 minutes. Considering it's just fried frozen appetizers, that's too long in my opinion. Still worth the try especially if on a budget.
Love it! Drinks are super good! The food is really tasty & fresh! For the price its totally worth it! Only thing is that they were missing some flat chicken wings so we only got drumsticks (which we dont personnally like that much) but it was overall really good!
This was recommended by an IG follower so they could get more clientele yet I was very disappointed when I got there my husband & I . First , they done know who is who , therefore the must be cautious! We got there around 4 pm ish & for some reason the line up was soo long that we didn't really know why . We finally stepped by the front door & the lady told us : sorry you can get in , we are full for the day , even though there are seats available, you won't be able to sit . There is a 4-5 hours waiting list & if you wish to wait you can wait outside for a cheaper meal to be serviced or what ? I done rally know why . While waiting others in the line were asked to be seated with other ladies at a different table to eat altogether which I find very weird yet unprofessional because why would I want to eat with people i don't know nor never met just because I am dying to sample a meal from a new restaurant ? We wanted to leave , yet I decided to order few things from their original menu since I ain't in no mood to try out their cheap buffet everyone was waiting to have with the long line up . I ordered 3 things that came to 47 $ ish which I find too expensive yet I didn't want to wait . The fried chicken was tasteless yet salty , try Dawa chicken in ndg instead . Their cheese stick we waited & got on the spot was cold , therefore the choose was hard inside & their friend dumplings were somehow oook . They hype was to keep people waiting for when others are passing by they would think something is going on yet nothing from the inside . The lady receiving people ans making them wait came back after 10 mins & picked the phone to start calling wooole she out on her waiting list hours ago to come back & eat & those people she refused us waiting there to seat then her down on the phone , then she started crossing out their names out which I find was very disappointing. She told us , next time to come around 2 pm to Make the reservations then come back after 3 hours to eat ...? Then I wonder to eat whaaat? The unsavoury food or the salty cheese sticks I ate in my BMW to save myself the waiting & To still have the same tasting experience ! Very funny experience . Next time , serve the people you have in front of you cause they can also give you review & over 100 people waited there including myself , it's business & that means 100 bad reviews which isn't good for the hype !
Aug 10, 2024
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We were a group of 6 for the happy hour special. Drink & food for $20, great deal. Restaurant was very busy, lineup was 30 or 40 people at some times. We put our phone number down & grabbed a drink next door & came back when we were called. The salmon tartare bites were good. Also the chicken wings. They are so busy during happy hour that service can be a bit slow at times, so plan your orders.
We came for the 3-7 deal, either make a reservation or expect to wait over an hour but it was definitely worth it! The chicken wings were absolutely delicious, crunchy but still juicy, & the tartare was also very tasty. The service was really great, they were really accommodating & patient. Can't wait to come back!
It was really good. i went with friends & the vibe was impeccable. I would recommend the chicken ramen with the mojito passion. There's vegetarian options too, which makes this place even grater, as we have struggled in the past to find food that would fit for everyone in our group!
May 1, 2024
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Staff is very nice, place was cute & clean. We personally had some fried veggies, fried chicken, veggies bao, beef & chicken sticks. Overall food is tasty but be aware, when things are fried, it is simply very oily. You can tell the oil is fresh though. But man it is oily. Not what we expected. So I give the food a 4 start cause you can tell it's all good quality & fresh produce, but the heavy oil is not my thing.
