Plans for new high-end restaurant unexpectedly teased at TIFF premiere in Toronto

It’s not always the movie itself that piques the viewers’ curiosity, but the discussions that take place afterwards. 

But that’s not to say the movie isn’t memorable. 

In fact, before we delve into the “gossip,” we must start at the beginning. 

In this case, the story begins in 2019, when a talented chef with a one-of-a-kind skill set and palate opened what would soon become the only restaurant in Canada to boast two Michelin stars. But while the story starts long before then, the documentary about the man himself begins with footage of the Michelin ceremony in which Chef Masaki Saito, the focus of the film and the owner of the $780-a-head Sushi Masaki Saito restaurant in Toronto’s swanky Yorkville neighbourhood, accepts the rare honour of two stars with an unforgettable, self-depracating quip: “I’m still single. I don’t know why.” 

One thing that becomes quickly apparent is that Saito isn’t still single because he’s demure—quite the opposite. While people in Saito’s life (including his own mother) call him cold, his aloofness is sporadic and his personal style is flashy–think glittering jewels, designer jackets and pants with wild patterns. While his work demands much of his time and attention, he doesn’t eschew play. He frequents karaoke bars, regular bars and casinos.

However, while he’s never alone, he has few close friends (other than one with whom he tragically loses touch) and openly admits to disliking his sister and not feeling connected to his parents. 

A true work-hard/play-hard type, Saito mastered the art of perfect sushi long before moving to Toronto. When he was head chef at Sushi Ginza Onodera in New York City, he received his first Michelin star in 2017 and then received two stars in 2018. 

In the film, he says he eventually became tired of NYC and started Sushi Masaki Saito in Toronto with William Cheng, a Chinese-Canadian businessman and the chairman of a successful candle-making operation. 

Not unexpectedly, Saito is tough on his staff and doesn’t hesitate to criticize, correct or admonish someone who doesn’t meet his standards, but doesn’t–at least on camera–throw verbal punches or menace cooks like a Japanese-Canadian Gordon Ramsey. The Hokkaido-born chef knows his omakase is a cut above and that customers paying top dollar for top-tier sushi have expectations. His staff understands this–even if they don’t always enjoy Saito’s brash approach. 

Now, onto the food news.

One staff member who features prominently in the film is Tsuyoshi Yoshinaga, Saito’s former sous chef. Quiet and slightly awkward, Yoshinaga smiles coyly while politely telling filmmakers Jamal Burger and Jukan Tateisi that he isn’t quite sure how to answer some of their questions. 

An accomplished chef in his own right, the film explores the complicated dynamic between the two men, with Yoshinaga appearing uneasy when asked why he’s the sous chef when he’s older than Saito. 

Frustrated when he learns that he won’t be helming the kitchen of a new Saito-created restaurant solo, he heads home to open his own restaurant in Kagawa, a Japanese prefecture in the northeast of Shikoku Island. Delays and complications push the project further and further into the future, forcing Yoshinaga to take on work that pays the bills but does little to elevate the chef’s profile. One heartbreaking moment in the doc shows the exhausted chef staring blankly while plating sushi on a conveyor belt at a generic tourist eatery, watching his dreams float away on the gimmicky contraption. 

His story seems like the saddest one, but perhaps–much like Saito’s renewed focus on his health after years of partying too hard–the possibility of a new beginning is never far away.

During the Q&A following the premiere, Cheng took the mic and invited Yoshinaga, who was in the audience, on stage to make a huge announcement (with caveats). 

“Tsuyoshi went back to Japan for…he couldn’t say on screen, but a lot of the main reason is his family. His family wanted to go back to Japan and he has to follow them and go back,” Cheng said, before telling the audience that following a dinner (and a lot of sake) at Sushi Masaki Saito a few nights ago, he worked up the courage to ask Yoshinaga to FaceTime his wife so he (Cheng) could propose something to her. 

“I wanted to talk to his wife directly and I said that Saito-San and I are opening a new restaurant in the Hazelton Hotel, specifically for his top student and it will be sometime next year in summertime. We really wanted Tsuyoshi to have that. Without his wife or his family’s permission, we could not do that. I was brave enough to say, ‘Can you call her and let me talk to her?’ After just five minutes of talk, his wife said yes.” 

The news of the new (not yet named) restaurant in one of the city’s top five-star hotels was met with cheers and applause. 

Yoshinaga, all smiles, demurred–but didn’t say the new project isn’t proceeding. 

“Actually, this is not decided yet. But yes, something’s happened.” 

After watching Yoshinaga’s heartbreak at essentially going from Canada’s equivalent of The French Laundry (which has three stars, but still) to (what must have felt like, to him) a basic chain restaurant, the news–unconfirmed, to be fair–couldn’t be better. 

Toronto is indeed a great place for ambitious chefs.

And we’re lucky they never forget us.