JP Karwacki
Jan 21, 2026
Love this spot already. :)
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Japanese restaurant veterans Hiroshi Kitano and Hideyuki Imaizumi bring the fire, united by the grill and hip-hop.
January 16, 2026 · 5 min read
Japanese restaurant veterans Hiroshi Kitano and Hideyuki Imaizumi bring the fire, united by the grill and hip-hop.
January 16, 2026 · 5 min read
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Love this spot already. :)
Hiroshi Kitano and Hideyuki Imaizumi have been best friends for a decade. They met at Kinka Izakaya, where Hiroshi was working the line after moving from New York and Hide was a regular customer. Someone pointed him out—same age, same era, also about to open his own place. Hiroshi went to visit Hide's then-new spot in Old Montreal, Marusan, was invited upstairs, and saw the drum kit and the record collection. They've been inseparable since.
For years, they talked about building something together. But Hiroshi had Otto Yakitori to run, then Kitano Shokudo, then Ohayo. Hide had Marusan at Time Out Market Montréal, then Osmo x Marusan. The timing was never right.
Create a free account to read this story and access 3 articles per month, plus our weekly Bulletin.
Hiroshi Kitano and Hideyuki Imaizumi have been best friends for a decade. They met at Kinka Izakaya, where Hiroshi was working the line after moving from New York and Hide was a regular customer. Someone pointed him out—same age, same era, also about to open his own place. Hiroshi went to visit Hide's then-new spot in Old Montreal, Marusan, was invited upstairs, and saw the drum kit and the record collection. They've been inseparable since.
For years, they talked about building something together. But Hiroshi had Otto Yakitori to run, then Kitano Shokudo, then Ohayo. Hide had Marusan at Time Out Market Montréal, then Osmo x Marusan. The timing was never right.
Create a free account to read this story and access 3 articles per month, plus our weekly Bulletin.
A fire-driven culinary experience and all-day festivities frame are cherries on top of this year's justifiably weekend-consuming National Bank Open.
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A fire-driven culinary experience and all-day festivities frame are cherries on top of this year's justifiably weekend-consuming National Bank Open.
Every year produces bars and restaurants worth tracking, and Montreal's latest is a strong showing.
The WILLS Director of Operations on hospitality, leadership, and creating the kind of space he never saw when he entered Montreal’s restaurant industry.
An Old Montreal bar where hi-fi sound, curated records, and conversation take precedence. There are still plenty of highballs, though.
Years of studying Roman tradition led Giuseppe Sacchetti to an unexpected conclusion: the pizza he wanted to make wasn’t purely Italian, but it was unmistakably Montreal.
Between flooded inboxes, ghost interviews, and AI-spam CVs, hospitality hiring has been broken for years. A new app wants to fix it.
From our archive.
A modern Vietnamese bistro from three longtime hospitality veterans, where diaspora identity and Latin American influences shape a distinctly Montreal menu.
Owner Jermaine learned to cook from his grandmother in Jamaica at six years old. Everything at Boom J's still carries those teachings.
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From our archive.
A modern Vietnamese bistro from three longtime hospitality veterans, where diaspora identity and Latin American influences shape a distinctly Montreal menu.
Owner Jermaine learned to cook from his grandmother in Jamaica at six years old. Everything at Boom J's still carries those teachings.
What's taken shape on Montreal's Sainte-Catherine West is something entirely distinct from the old Chinatown.
Chef Chouchou Jia spent years cooking in French and Italian kitchens before opening their first restaurant, and the result is unlike anything else in town.
Michelin’s second Québec selection adds four new One Stars while continuing to push the guide beyond Montreal’s usual fine dining conversation.
Inside the warehouse where four bakers shape everything by hand, all night, every night to make 2,000 loaves a day.
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Love this spot already. :)