“This year’s winners remind us of the bold creativity shaping the Canadian culinary scene today,” said Andy Shibata, Vice President, Brand at Air Canada.

“Whether it is the reinvention of Canadian classics or a chef pouring their heart into an omakase experience, each restaurant reflects its community in a different way.”

Top 10 Best New Restaurants of 2025

1. Mystic (Halifax, NS)

Mystic, a waterfront restaurant in Halifax, offers immersive tasting menus that link Maritime terroir with global technique. Led by Chef Malcolm Campbell and his team, its two primary dining options — Fauna and Biota — present eight-course meals built around Nova Scotia’s seasonal ingredients, with vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free versions available by request.

The interior at Mystic. Photo: Johnny C.Y. Lam/Air Canada

A third option, the Discovery Menu, seats a small number of diners at the Galley, a space between the kitchen and dining room. This features an immersive experience where the chefs prepare an eight-course menu in real time, allowing guests to observe the process from start to finish.

Mystic has earned this year’s first-place honours.

2. Le Violon (Montreal, QC)

Le Violon, located in Montréal’s Plateau, is led by chef Danny Smiles along with Mitch Laughren and wine director Andrew Park, working in collaboration with creative director Dan Climan.

Ranked 2nd in Air Canada’s list, the restaurant draws on Québec’s seafood and seasonal produce, shaping a menu that reflects Montreal’s French influence while establishing its own distinct identity.

Chefs Mitch Laughren and Danny Smiles with a spread of seasonal dishes at Le Violon. Photo: Johnny C.Y. Lam/Air Canada

Dishes focus on integrity of ingredients and the farmsteads and coastal fisheries that supply them. Menu highlights include beef tartare, a plate of Cara Cara orange with shaved fennel and Zacharie Cloutier cheese, and tiramisu affogato, among others.

3. aKin (Toronto, ON)

Dining experience at aKin reinterprets traditional Asian cuisine. Chef Eric Chong combines his Chinese heritage with contemporary culinary methods with a focus on storytelling and experimentation.

Securing this year’s 3rd position, the Toronto restaurant is one of the city’s premier Asian venues, featuring an exclusive blind tasting menu that highlights classic flavours while offering an engaging and immersive experience for the diners.

aKin's signature savoury tart. Photo: Johnny C.Y. Lam/Air Canada

The blind tasting menu presents curated dishes inspired by traditional Asian recipes and modern culinary methods, combining visual detail with layered flavours. Signature offerings include Negroni, Char siu, Wu gok, Lo bak, and Typhoon Shelter fried rice, reflecting inventive approaches across the menu.

4. Sushi Hyun Omakase (Vancouver, BC)

Sushi Hyun Omakase in Vancouver offers a personalized omakase experience led by chef-owner Jy Hyun Lee, combining precise preparation with a warm, approachable dining style. The restaurant emphasizes carefully sourced ingredients, including wasabi from Shizuoka and tuna from Japan’s renowned merchant Yamauki.

Sushi Hyun's selection of seasonal seafood and accompaniments. Photo: Johnny C.Y. Lam/Air Canada

The menu focuses on sustainable Pacific Northwest seafood, presenting dishes such as chawanmushi, red sea bream sashimi from Ehime, skewered barramundi, and anago, with each course reflecting Japanese culinary traditions while incorporating a distinct West Coast influence.

5. Maven (Toronto, ON)

Set along a lively stretch of Harbord Street in Toronto, Maven draws on traditional Jewish and Eastern European cooking, offering dishes that blend nostalgia with a modern approach.

Owner and chef Shauna Godfrey shapes her recipes around warmth and familiarity, giving the restaurant a relaxed, neighbourhood feel.

Godfrey’s dishes reflect memories from her family table while introducing techniques that give them a contemporary edge. Her menu pays tribute to her grandmother Rose, weaving Polish-Jewish roots into plates that are meant to feel familiar yet renewed.

Maven’s sunlit wood-lined bar. Photo: Johnny C.Y. Lam/Air Canada

Among the noted offerings are the Pickletini cocktail and dishes such as skewered half-moon all-beef salami, chicken schnitzel, Seder plate salad, and Spaetzle.

6. Nero Tondo (Vancouver, BC)

Nero Tondo keeps local ingredients at the heart of its cooking. Tucked into East Vancouver, this small, quaint restaurant focuses on highlighting the best of British Columbia.

From the wines, spirits, beer, and cider they pour, to the food they serve on the table — all are sourced directly from local farmers and producers. Chef-owners Devon Latté and Lucas Johnston, together with chef Nikolai Thiessen, craft their dishes around the changing seasons and the wide range of ingredients the region provides.

A tomato and basil dish from the kitchen of Nero Tondo. Photo: Johnny C.Y. Lam/Air Canada

Their take on Italian cooking comes through in handmade pastas, bold sauces, and thoughtful wine pairings, all shaped by the local flavours. The menu, which changes with the seasons, leans towards veg options and includes a little seafood. Meat is rare and when it does appear, it comes only from small-scale farms.

7. Yan Dining Room (Toronto, ON)

Hidden at the back of Toronto’s long-loved Hong Shing restaurant, Yan Dining Room brings together the vision of restaurateur-founder Colin Li and chef Eva Chin.

The name “Yan,” which refers to a banquet feast in Chinese, sets the tone for an experience shaped by Chin’s multicultural background. Her approach to neo-Chinese cuisine is rooted in memory, storytelling, and a strong sense of responsibility towards ingredients.

The dining room itself is small and quietly lit, with booths and a single long table creating a comfortable, intimate mood. The multi-course tasting menus at Yan look to both heritage and modern ideas.

A vibrant, inventive creation of Yan Dining Room. Photo: Johnny C.Y. Lam/Air Canada

Guests will find options that span halal meats, pork, allium, shellfish, dairy, gluten, and soy, and the meal always begins with their signature broth. From there, dishes such as drunken oysters, Suancai albacore tuna, chilled liangban cucumbers, and a Horlick’s ganache bring the experience to a memorable finish.

8. Sumibiyaki Arashi (Vancouver, BC)        

Sumibiyaki Arashi is an intimate 14-seat omakase spot where the art of yakitori takes centre stage, shaped by chef Peter Ho’s Japanese authenticity and Taiwanese roots.

Each skewer is cooked over binchotan charcoal, giving the meal its clean and deep-rooted flavours.

While the menu is grounded in yakitori, it stretches well beyond it, bringing in seasonal fish and vegetable-led dishes that introduce softer textures and gentle surprises.

The kitchen team at Sumibiyaki Arashi. Photo: Johnny C.Y. Lam/Air Canada

Skewers remain the main draw, but the silken chawanmushi and the onsen egg over soboro don are favourites in their own right. An exciting selection of wine, sake, teas, and other pairings rounds out the meal.

9. Pasta Pooks (Montreal, QC)

Pasta Pooks brings a youthful, counter-service vibe to Dinette Triple Crown’s former space, pairing the comfort of handmade pasta with a sense of fun.

The flavours are bold, the plates are playful, and the whole place feels like a lively Montreal hotspot for anyone who loves pasta with a twist.

Pasta Pooks's signature Spinach ravioli with butter and sage. Photo: Johnny C.Y. Lam/Air Canada

Led by chef Luca “Pooks” Labelle Vinci, Victor-Alex Petrenko, and chef de cuisine Kai Borst, the team channels its pop-up roots into a space that’s confident, casual, and fully centred on pasta. The menu is short, supported by a distinct wine list curated by Martin Pariseau. Crowd favourites include the Philly-style cheesesteak, gnocchi in pistachio pesto, spinach ravioli, and the asparagus antipasti.

10. Niwa (Vancouver, BC)

Niwa, meaning “garden” in Japanese, is a small, charming spot tucked along Powell Street, shaped by both the nearby ocean and the industrial edges of East Vancouver.

Its culinary style brings together Pacific Northwest ingredients and Asian techniques, creating food that feels rooted in nature. The restaurant centres its approach on fresh, local produce, working closely with nearby farms so each dish reflects the season.

In keeping with its values, Niwa stays closed on weekends to give its staff and community a proper opportunity in work-life balance.

Robin Corbett preparing cocktails behind the bar. Photo: Johnny C.Y. Lam/Air Canada

Guests can choose window-side booths or seats at the kitchen counter, both offering a close view of the restaurant’s calm, understated style.

The menu leans on simple, expressive flavours, with dishes like a lively plate of pickles, spring cabbage salad, braised Wagyu, and mochi sourdough. Drinks include sake, low-intervention wines, and clarified cocktails that complement the dishes.