Restaurant 3030 Dundas West is a hotbed of culture in the ever-more-happening Junction. The cavernous space is a bit of everything: a bar, restaurant, art gallery and concert hall rolled into one. Paintings from local artists — like cool cat Nick Sweetman — oversee patrons downing local brews and tucking into eats before heading to
Restaurant 7 West serves all around the clock, 365 days a year, so you never have to miss out on good grub in our city. Located on Charles Street in the heart of the Annex, this multi-level restaurant is not only 24/7, but it also changes as you scale the stairs. The first level is
Alobar Yorkville, the restaurant by chef and famed restaurateur Patrick Kriss, is an oasis of elegance tucked into an alley off of Cumberland Street in Toronto. The small 75-seat restaurant is a setting that is part lounge, part dining room, part bar — and all class.
Located just around the corner from BOB in Leslieville, Annabelle Pasta Bar is a comfortable space with a little “old world” feel, featuring a great downstairs bar and open kitchen.
There’s a new French-American bistro and cocktail bar in town, and it comes courtesy of the people behind one of the most popular spots in the city. Astoria is located inside The Great Hall on Queen Street West, and just opened to the public earlier this month. The details are distinctly French, with dainty, decorated plateware
Bang Sue is a cozy 50-seat bar on the second floor above Khao San Road restaurant. The bar’s moniker is a nod to Bangkok’s main train station. If you had ever driven past the restaurant’s former location on Adelaide, you will have seen the line-ups out the door. That's why Bang Sue is a great waiting area where people can nibble on Thai-inspired bar snacks and sip on cocktails before they make their way down to the main event.
Oliver & Bonacini Restaurants’ newest endeavour, Bannock, keeps with the O&B tradition of serving unapologetically Canadian cuisine (à la Canoe) and, as you might expect, serves bannock. Oliver & Bonacini’s chef Michael Bonacini and corporate executive chef Anthony Walsh developed the menu, going back to the basics of what bannock is meant to be: “a round flatbread traditionally cooked on a griddle or stone, brought to Canada through Scottish explorers and traders, adapted by Indigenous people and settlers.”
This family-run Iranian eatery has been turning out some classic Iranian fare for 15 years. Run by the Mohyeddin siblings, Banu is a sleek and stylish restaurant accented with nods to Persian and Iranian culture.
This hotspot should be named Experience Aperitivo because it’s more than just a bar. David Rocco’s Bar Aperitivo will transport you from Yorkdale to Italy with the decorative photos of Napoli that surround the entrance of the storefront. Bar Aperitivo is the type of place you stop for a Spritz on your way home from
Bar Batavia is a midtown cocktail bar located upstairs from Indonesian eatery Little Sister. It claims to have no-nonsense cocktails made with precision, quality ingredients and a smile. The food menu consists of a couple of snacks, including shrimp chips and Balinese spiced chicken, but if you’re looking for dinner, the place to be is
Bar Biltmore is the historic Paradise Theatre’s upstairs cocktail bar. Conceptualized by bar director Robin Goodfellow, this cocktail haven is named after the Biltmore Theatre, where owner Moray Tawse spent his formative years. The bar is built around the cocktail program which Goodfellow has created on a schematic bitterness scale. Meant for guests with a
Reflecting on the Bar Hop ethos — and the beer selection in particular — Pingitore describes the concept as “a craft ale house with mostly local microbrews on tap, and then a wide selection of bottles that range from consignment, imported bottles and hard-to-get stuff, stuff you don’t get at the LCBO.”
For their second home on Peter Street, Bar Hop Brewco. put Mark Cutrara (Cowbell) in charge of the kitchen. The first floor is open for business, and the vibe is warm and welcoming. There are 36 beers on tap, with draught selections updated weekly, and 1,200 litres of Amsterdam’s saison available for vertical tastings.
The group behind Mahjong Bar brings Dundas West another immersive bar concept with Bar Mordecai. Those familiar with Mahjong Bar’s moody, retro vibes will recognize some familiar elements in the Bar Mordecai space, including low, glowy lighting and a design-forward theme. But with Bar Mordecai, co-owners Emily Blake, Joshua LeBlanc, Andrew Perry and Kyle Wong
Greek cuisine gets an Instagram-worthy setting at Bar Neon, which comes complete with a heated back patio. Decorated with bold colours that compliment the traditional blue and white associated with Greek culture, the restaurant also has a private dining space that can accommodate partial or full buyouts. The fare is traditional, with mezes and huge
With its old-world ambience and too-good-to-be-true prices, Bar Poet feels magical in more ways than one. Sparkling fairy lights and sky-high greenery add to the already enchanting architecture of the one-time church space. The bar’s self-dubbed “Toronto-style” pizza is made using stone-ground 00 flour and priced at less than $10 per whole pie. For an
The opportunity to own her own restaurant drove Nicki Laborie out of bed and back to the biz, with her newly open Bar Reyna. Though French by birth, Laborie didn’t want to compete with the swarm of high quality French restaurants in Yorkville, and sought to bring a new flavour to the neighbourhood.
Jen Agg’s retro-styled Dundas West restaurant specializes in pasta and wine. Rather than recreating classic pasta dishes, chef and co-owner James Santon focuses on Italy’s culinary tradition of using local ingredients. The result is a menu of Italian-inspired dishes with Toronto flair, along with charcuterie platters that pay homage to the space’s previous life as
Bar Volo was one of Toronto’s first craft beer bars and has made a name for itself among the city’s ale aficionados. Opened in 1985, this bar was once an Italian restaurant. After relocating and opening a sister location, this bar is considered a stalwart amongst Toronto’s beer-loving community. Located at Yonge and Wellesly, Bar
Boxcar Social is a Toronto staple when it comes to cafes. This coffee shop by day, cocktail bar by night concept exists in four locations across the city. The Harbourfront location was built in partnership with Toronto’s Harbourfront Centre who took their concept to the next level by adding a well-crafted food menu and expanding