Showing 1-13 of 13 results
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360°
You don't need to tell us that dining at the top of the CN Tower is an obvious cliché, and it's damn pricey too, but come on, how can you compete with those views?! Even if the food was ordinary (which it most certainly isn't), there's no better place in Toronto, if not Canada, for a high-class meal and a conversation about mankind's magnificent achievements. And the elevator ride is free!
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Beacher Café
Looking like a seaside cottage from a Virginia Woolf novel, this long-standing café has a narrow but eternally sought-after sidewalk patio. Particularly good are the egg and pancake brunches, while as the afternoon loses momentum Beaches wives discuss their husbands' indiscretions over merlot, jazz and seafood. Local artwork changes monthly.
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Bloor Street Diner
Its humble-sounding name belies just how swanky this place actually is, with its banquettes, starched tablecloths, formal table service by attentive waiters and a Parisian-style patio. Steaks and rotisserie fare are as distinguished as the wine list; the buffet brunch (around C$19 ) is an exercise in indulgence. Hit the café section out the front for speedy muffins, bagels and take-out sandwiches.
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Edward Levesque's Kitchen
Inside the front window of a retro-looking diner, chef Edward 's clattering skillet yields nouveau Canadian comfort food with seasonal ingredients, his influences ranging from Asian to Italian. Scallop, leek, lemon and asparagus risotto (around C$24 ), or a slab of chocolate 'nemesis' cake with fennel confit (around C$8 ) guarantee a satisfaction reaction.
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Flow
Catering to a 'money is no object' clientele, slung-low Flow flows seamlessly from gulf prawns with summer berry compote to sour cherry-crusted Australian lamb with grilled asparagus, seasonal mushrooms, potato and passionfruit jus. After dark a sexy crowd moves in, transforming the room into a cocktail lounge.
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Future Bakery & Café
Future Bakery stays busy selling budget dishes like cheese crepes and homemade borsht with sour cream. Out on huge street-side patio, lecture-dodgers slap backs and chug pints or push through all-night study sessions with bowls of café au lait and slabs of caramel cheese cake. Twisted '60s psychedelic pop contorts the airwaves.
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Leslie Jones
If you're not paying attention, you'll walk right past this moody, dim-lit room just east of Jones St in boomtown Leslieville (Leslieville, Jones St, Leslie Jones… oh so pithy). All-day breakfasts draw local arty types from beneath the rocks they've been hiding under, while pasta dishes, meaty mains and sandwiches like jerk pork with mango salsa and chili mayo (around C$9 ) are great value.
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Mildred Pearce
Formerly known as Mildred Pierce and located on Sudbury St, this restaurant may have a new name and location, but its quality continues. Super-courteous staff deliver meaty mains like pan-seared veal liver with bacon-roasted fingerling potatoes, rapini, Roquefort and thyme shallot jus.
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Queen Mother Café
Another Queen St institution, Queen Mother Café is beloved for its cozy, dark wooden booths and excellent pan-Asian dim sum (not a regal cream tea in sight!). Canadian comfort food is also on the menu, and check out the display of weird old stuff they found in the walls the last time they renovated.
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Richtree Market Restaurant
Inside the skeletal BC Place, this rainbow flag-dappled market-style eatery plates up generous serves to satisfy every whim - cakes, freshly-made soups, pizza slices, pasta dishes, roast chicken, fried rice, baked goods, fresh juices and coffee. A soundtrack of contemporary adult Brit-rock (Sting, Clapton et al) lends an air of affluent self-satisfaction to themed eating areas. Most of the pot-plants are real; the parrot in the cage isn't. There's another branch (similar hours and prices) in the Eaton Centre.
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Spoon
Impressive Spoon spoons out a dose of style amongst an otherwise dated row of restaurants. It's a long, thin room with voluminous wine glasses, spoon-shaped chairs and lulling urban jazz. Start with some PEI mussels in green tea, lemongrass, lime leaf and coconut broth (around C$12 ), before moving on to the braised lamb shank with sweet potato mash, sprouts and pomegranate reduction (around C$23 ). Wines by the glass or bottle.
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Susur
Order à-la-carte, or let superstar chef Susur Lee take you on a whimsical journey through his elaborate tasting menus (six courses around C$120 ; vegetarian around C$75 ). Racing from Europe to the New World to Asia and back again, each plate is a magical study in contrasts, complemented by an imaginative wine list. Don't miss the signature Thai green curry rack of lamb. Book several weeks in advance.
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Zelda's
Zany Zelda's has a winning combination of familiar food, crazy cocktails, wailing '70s disco and a spacious outdoor patio. An equally zany Church-Wellesley crowd adores the brash, colorful atmospheria, especially on drag queen and leather theme nights.
Showing 1-13 of 13 results
