For a certain generation of Torontonians, the Zellers in-store diner — known at various points as The Skillet or the Zellers Family Restaurant — occupies the same nostalgic real estate as the long-gone IKEA ball pit. With Zellers’ return to Ontario, that piece of retail history is officially back too, at least for a limited […]
Playa Bowls has nearly 400 locations across 30 U.S. states, and for its very first move outside the country, the New Jersey-born chain chose Toronto. The brand’s international debut opened at The Well, the mixed-use development at Spadina Avenue and Front Street, in a 1,700-square-foot flagship shop built around the chain’s signature superfruit bowls — […]
Not every great restaurant story starts in a kitchen. Hayden’s Cheesesteaks started at a funeral. Max Solomons, a full-time corporate lawyer with zero professional cooking experience, grew up travelling to Philadelphia with his father, Hayden, a die-hard Philadelphia Eagles fan. Every trip ended the same way: with a cheesesteak, usually from Angelo’s Pizzeria, the South […]
Some restaurants announce themselves. The Gemini, tucked above Caldense Bakery on Dundas West, does the opposite — accessed by an unmarked stairway, with just 35 seats inside. The restaurant comes from hospitality veterans Jenny Warne, Mike Couvillon, and Craig Spence, whose collective résumé includes stints at Bernhardt’s, Dreyfus, Jamil’s, and Midfield Wine Bar. Warne led […]
Cumbrae’s has been synonymous with high-quality meat in Toronto since the mid-1990s, growing from a single shop on Church Street into a full-scale fine-food operation. Its latest expansion, though, isn’t happening in the city — it’s happening an hour outside it, in Dundas, Ontario. Founder Stephen Alexander purchased the original Dundas location back in 1999, […]
Charles Khabouth and Danny Soberano, two of the most prolific names in Toronto hospitality, have opened Bar Romy in the Entertainment District — a casual Italian restaurant taking over the former home of Figo, which was also Italian, just considerably more formal. The shift in tone is intentional. Where Figo leaned into fine dining, Bar […]
Some of the best restaurant stories start with someone just trying to watch a game. That’s exactly how Maria’s Sports Bar in Brockton Village ended up under new ownership. Last summer, sous-chef Mikel Nieces brought Graham Pratt — one of the minds behind Bar Bowie and Milou — to Maria’s to catch a game. Pratt […]
Since opening on Queen West in 2018, Agora has built a loyal following as the go-to stop for picnic-lunch staples — puffy pita, charred kebabs, and a lineup of decadent dips. Now, from the team behind Mamakas and Bar Koukla, the brand is opening a second location in Yorkville. The new spot came together in […]
The Esplanade has quietly built a reputation as one of downtown Toronto’s best-kept secrets — a strip with a genuine neighbourhood feel despite sitting minutes from the core. This July, that strip is about to get a lot louder. Dolly’s, a massive new country bar inspired by Dolly Parton and opening where Bier Markt stood […]
The bookstore-meets-bar concept has already taken off in several major North American cities, and Toronto’s version has officially arrived: Book Bar, the latest addition to the city’s newly developing Mirvish Village, is open. Located at 600 Markham St. — just a few doors down from the recently opened Badiali pizzeria location — Book Bar describes […]