There are restaurants that arrive with a concept, and there are restaurants that arrive with a point of view. Brasserie Côte, the new Annex opening from the team behind Côte de Boeuf and Union Restaurant, belongs firmly in the second category. Ranked second on Toronto Life’s 2026 best-new-restaurants list, it’s already being talked about as one of the most complete restaurant experiences the city has seen in years.
The concept is a classic French brasserie — not the fusty, overwrought version that tries to recreate Paris in aspic, but the relaxed, timeless interpretation that understands what makes that tradition so enduring. Brasserie Côte feels like a room that has existed for decades even though it hasn’t, which is one of the hardest things to pull off in restaurant design and one of the most satisfying when it works.
The menu reads like a love letter to French brasserie cooking: steak frites with proper béarnaise, moules marinières that respect the mussel rather than burying it in cream, duck confit prepared with patience, and a charcuterie and cheese selection that could support an entire evening on its own. The wine list is predictably Franco-centric and very good, with a depth of selection by the glass that rewards indecision.
Service at Brasserie Côte has been singled out by early diners as particularly warm — knowledgeable without being performative, attentive without being intrusive. The team from Côte de Boeuf and Union has a track record of getting the hospitality side right, and they’ve brought that sensibility intact to their new venture.
The Annex location, stepping distance from Bloor Street West, gives Brasserie Côte exactly the kind of neighbourhood it deserves — one with enough character and foot traffic to sustain a restaurant that rewards repeat visits. Book your table now and give yourself a reason to love the Annex all over again.