Sushi Momo is an ultra modern Japanese restaurant and the only place you can find vegan sushi, plant-based tempura and meatless maki rolls under one roof.

Located across the street from the Theatre Centre, Sushi Momo is the brainchild of Christian Ventura, a Montreal-based chef and restaurateur with a passion for plant-based recipes.

After adopting a vegan diet for health reasons, Christian fell in love with plant-based sushi and made it his mission to spread high quality vegan cuisine across Canada.

The West Queen West restaurant, which first opened in August 2024, is the franchise's first location in Toronto and its third location overall.

The dining room is built around a central bar, where chefs prepare dishes and drinks in full view of the customers. This bar can even be seen from the patio, which wraps around the side of the building.

Wooden tables and navy blue upholstery give the restaurant an elegant but understated vibe. It's clearly an upscale venue, but it's also the kind of place you can share a casual meal.

Sushi Momo's menu takes inspiration from both traditional Japanese cooking and nouvelle cuisine. Though the chefs prepare the sushi using traditional methods, the ingredients and presentation are very different from what you might find at a typical sushi bar.

Momo Salad ($13) is a melange of fresh vegetables — including baby spinach, cucumber and radish — tossed in a flavourful sesame seed dressing. Fried onions are sprinkled on top, to give the salad a more interesting texture.Mushroom Tartare ($18) is a variation on steak tartare that uses king oyster, enoki and shiitake mushrooms in lieu of raw beef. The mushrooms are then mixed with avocado and shiba zuke and topped with teriyaki and truffle sauce.

Taro chips are served on the side and can be used to scoop up bits of sauce and veggies. Their mild flavour and crunchy texture provides the perfect contrast to the soft, savoury mushrooms.As its name might suggest, Sashizza ($16) is what happens when you combine sashimi and pizza.

Crispy dumpling wrappers serve as the base, with avocado, pickled red onions and vegan salmon layered on top. The final touch is a dash of chili oil, which gives the dish a bit of a kick.

Agedashi Tofu ($13) consists of soft tofu, garnished with crispy enoki mushrooms, tororo kombu, green onions, nori, tensuyu and ume sauce.Yasai ($14) is Sushi Momo's take on broccoli tempura, topped with parmesan and ricotta cheese.Of course, with a name like Sushi Momo, it's obvious that sushi is meant to be the main attraction. La Vie en Rose ($14) is a striking sushi roll, whose bright pink colour comes from a combination of red beets and raspberry sauce.

The roll itself is filled with a variety of different ingredients, from green apple and avocado to takana and yuzu ponzu basil.

Mr. Crunch ($18) is stuffed with king oyster mushroom, avocado and shiba zuke, then topped with teriyaki and truffle sauce.

A fine layer of tobiko arare provides the crunch that gives this dish its name.

Truffle Doree ($22) is by far the most decadent item on the menu. This maki roll is filled with truffles, asparagus tempura, tamago, green onion and avocado.

The finishing touches are a dollop of miso parmesan black garlic sauce and dusting of masago arare and edible gold flakes.

Big M ($14) is a sushi roll inspired by McDonalds' most famous burger.

Vegan beef and bacon are wrapped in a sheet of soy paper, with shishito peppers, lettuce, pickled onions, kewpie mayo and Big Momo sauce giving it a unique but familiar taste.

Crispy Avocado ($11) is one of the simpler sushi rolls on offer. Its main selling point is its crispy coating, which brings its two main ingredients — sliced avocado and spicy mayo — to life.Miso Chocolate Pudding ($12) is made fresh at the beginning of every shift, using cacao, oat milk and miso. The finished product is then topped with avocados and seasonal fruit, as well as a sprinkle of sea salt.Poached Pear ($12) lays on a bed of yuzu cream sauce, with fried wontons and chopped nuts giving this cold dessert a little extra crunch.Head in Clouds ($15) is a bittersweet cocktail made with gin, Aperol, grapefruit and thyme. Yuzu and pear juice compliment the sour, citrusy flavours, while a layer of aquafaba gives the drink a smooth, foamy finish.The Queen B ($16) was my personal favourite drink. This beautiful purple beverage is a blend of vodka, sake, blueberries and lavender. The Friendly Mile ($16) combines Jameson whiskey with vermouth, bitters and yuzu, creating a rich, full-bodied flavour. This is only scratching the surface of everything that Sushi Momo has to offer. From imported sake to vegan tempura, there's no shortage of things to try. Sushi Momo is located at 1122 Queen Street West.