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Papa Ceo
Papa Ceo seems to be winning its age-old pizza war with Cora Pizza two doors away. Gourmet slices here are enormous - grab a chunky slab of 'Marlon Brando' (mozzarella, pesto, ground beef, onions and mushrooms) and retreat to the back tables where Italian Serie A soccer dances across TV screens beneath air-conditioning vents.
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Phil's Original BBQ
'Real smoke. Real slow. Real good.' American barbecue-belt immigrants, these folks are passionate about 'cue. Order up a mess of heartbreakingly tender beef brisket and dry-rub smoked meats and smother the lot in homemade sauces. On the down side, service can be a little 'northern' (brrrr…).
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Phõ' Hu'ng
Clipped service and infernally busy tables are the price you pay for Phõ' Hu'ng's awesome Vietnamese soups. A few dishes may be a touch too authentic for some (what, don't you like pig's intestines and blood?). There's another branch in Bloor-Yorkville.
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Pier 4 Restaurant
Sit inside if you want to, but the place to be on a muggy summer day is on Pier 4's lakeside patio, strewn with timber-topped tables like God's spilled Scrabble board. Patio food offerings are cheap and cheerful (burgers, wings, salads, sourdough chowder etc). Inside the faux-nautical restaurant - a landlubber's spoil of wicker and wood - the menu extends to pastas, soups, steaks and seafood.
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Pop Bistro
This exquisitely designed, narrow bistro just east of the Don River is a shining light of class on an otherwise uninspiring strip of Queen St E. A simple menu of half a dozen appetizers and as many mains is balanced and well conceived, embracing the likes of beef and chevre salad with pork shallot reduction (around C$10 ) and lamb meatloaf with blue cheese and sweet potato (around C$17 ). Sunday brunch features eggs any which way but loose.
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Pure Spirits
The best of the upmarket eateries in the Distillery District, Pure Spirits' superb brick-lined vault fills with theatre-goers, international tourists and affluent locals enjoying plates of oysters on ice (from around C$2 ) and delicious seafood and meat meals, like the Arctic Char - a mussel and clam bourride (soup) with toasted pine nuts, basil, vegetables and pesto tapenade (around C$27 ). Live jazz on the patio in summer; reservations essential.
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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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Rashnaa
Raashna, which means 'tasty' in Sanskrit, fills an out-of-kilter, cinnamon-colored Cabbagetown bungalow with wonderful surprises. Try the South Indian beef devil curry (around C$7 ) or Sri Lankan 'String Hopper Kottu' (around C$8 ). Service can be reluctant, but the prices are unbeatable - only a dollar or two for appetizers like deep-fried lentil dumplings with coconut chutney.
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Real Jerk
You'd have to be a real jerk not to like this sunny Caribbean kitchen, serving classic jerk chicken, oxtail and goat curries, 'rasta pasta' and Red Stripe beer. Inside it feels just like a huge beach bar, with reggae beats, tropical decor and Jamaican flags hanging everywhere.
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Real Thailand
Truly authentic Real Thailand must have T.O.'s tiniest patio, but locals still flood through the doors here, looking to sate their chili and coconut milk addictions. The menu features over 100 items including standards like tod mun pla (fish cakes; around C$9 ), tom yum goong (spicy soup; around C$9 ) and larb (salads; $8). Lunch specials are monumental.
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Rectory Café
Propped up next to the boardwalk on Ward's Island, this cozy art gallery café serves light meals, apple cider and weekend brunch in the garden with views over the seawall to Tommy Thompson Park. Reservations are recommended for brunch and dinner, although you can always stop by for a quick snack and some liquid refreshment. Try the tuna melt (around C$10 ).
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Red Tea Box
The jewel-like Red Tea Box has genuine South Asian flair. Handwoven Thai textiles drape the walls and locals queue for their monthly changing bento boxes (around C$25 ), a fusion world of taste-bud temptations. Everything's gorgeously presented, and seasonally inspired. Exotic and inviting afternoon teas are held Monday to Saturday from , and noon to Sunday.
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Rice Bar
Create your own rice bowl at Rice Bar: choose your rice (basmati, jasmine, rice noodles or a daily infused-rice special), add protein (tofu, chicken, beef or shrimp), sauces (everything from coriander to miso BBQ), garnish to taste then hurl your chopsticks into the bowl. They also do salads, sandwiches, organic tea and coffee and a sensational vegan stew.
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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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Rodney's Oyster House
A classic underground oyster bar run by a PEI oyster boy made good, Rodney's flies in a dozen types of fresh oysters from both Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. Dungeness crabs, lobsters, Fundy scallops and seafood chowders swim their way onto the long daily menu, which ends at a N'awlins-style banana flambé. Well-chosen beer and wine pairings are available.
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Saffron Tree
Readers rave about Saffron Tree, an unmissable saffron-hued bastion of spicy delight in the dull hospital wastelands north of Dundas St. Service is utterly polite, and classics like butter chicken and lamb vindaloo won't let you down. There's a 10% discount if you want to get take-out and impress your hotel's management with curry aromas.
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Saigon Sister
Hey sista, you sure are lookin' sharp! Head straight for the gorgeous garden patio, or position yourself amongst potted cacti to dine on soups, salads and stir-fries, memorable fruit drinks, teas and cocktails. A stylish retreat from the subwoofer chaos on Yonge St.
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Sassafraz
With a red carpet parade of celebs trotting in and out on a regular basis (Jude Law, Matthew McConaughey, Joan Collins and the like), Sassafraz feels more like LA than T.O. Jazz combos serenade weekend brunches, while sassy receptionists distribute the clientele between the sun-drenched sidewalk tables and indoor garden courtyard. The food? Predictably good.
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Scaramouche
Scaramouche, Scaramouche, do you do the fandango? Lording over a hilltop south of St Clair Ave, this classy restaurant offers top-notch modern French cuisine with a dash of tasteful invention, and views through tall oaks to the downtown skyline. Porches and Beamers swing into the circular driveway; don't forget your gold credit card. Benvenuto Pl is off Edmund Ave, which runs west off Avenue Rd.
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Senator Restaurant
One for architecture buffs, this '30s art deco luncheonette features curved glass windows, a fluted aluminum counter-face, archaic coffee urns and original booths and lighting - what a time warp! The menu has shifted marginally upmarket, but the service is still very 'diner.'
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Serra
Serra is an unassuming neighborhood joint with funky retro lighting and cute staff, managing to be hip without straying too far from classic Italian stylings (on the walls and on the plates). Try a wood-oven pizza with grilled tiger prawns, scallops, artichoke hearts and ricotta (around C$14 ) or a herb-rubbed free-range chicken breast with sweet potato, spinach and mustard jus. Perfecto !
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Siddhartha
Siddhartha's special chicken korma (vegetables cooked with Indian spices and garnished with dried fruit; around C$9 ) may sound a little weird, but it's utterly delicious. So too are their classic curries, served with the humility of Siddhartha himself. They're also south of Queen West.
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Spiaggia
A contemporary Italian bistro lifting the tone of far Queen St E, Spaggio delivers its fare in a homely interior or on the front patio, perfect on a balmy summer eve. Starters include simply prepared mussels and calamari plates and light salads moving on to grilled meat, chicken and fish mains. The wine selection takes some beating.
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Spices Café
Lost in a realm of fat wallets and million-dollar deals closed with the snap of a cell phone, Spices presents an incongruously affordable and atmospheric option for lunch or an early city dinner. A sitar soundtrack twangs seductively, and there's a homemade feel to the food, served buffet-style or packaged up for a quick-fire take-out. Grab some samosas and a mango lassi and head for the Cloud Forest Conservatory down the street.
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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.
