OPEN/CLOSED: Toronto Restaurant News March 31-April 6, 2022

My iconic OPEN/CLOSED is THE most comprehensive resource of restaurant openings – virtual, brick-and-mortar, pop-ups, allll the things - and food/drink news in the city. No one does it bigger or better. Watch for the drop every Thursday. #ifyouknowyouknow

🕘 11 min read

With the flurry of arrivals and closures, peppered with breaking industry news, there’s a lot happening. For me, that means working around the clock. For you, that translates to a lot of reading.

A lot more if you go back a week. And you should, a lot happened. Pro tip: If you haven't read the edition previous to that, get on it because it's CAPTIVATING. Where else would you find restaurant news covering a massage parlour, historic church, and murder, of all things? In one issue, no less.

Wait 'til you see this week's discoveries with 22 openings. And stay tuned – more news ahead in The Tip Off, available exclusively in the TR Newsletter.

In the meantime, here’s the very latest:

OPEN

I let you in on the arrival of Kome Yogurt earlier this year. Their “secret” speakeasy located in back (10 Stephanie St.) debuted Saturday. The password to After Seven is…

Atlantico Sushi (1154 St Clair Ave. W.) landed at the corner of St. Clair and Dufferin in October. Formerly a bank, it’s now home to Japanese Brazilian fare including AYCE Brazilian-style sushi, cod croquettes, ceviche, traditional coxinha, and petit gateau.

Toronto institution Banjara Indian Cuisine has touched down in Scarborough. The Midland and Danforth location (777 Danforth Rd.) marks the third outpost for the established eatery.

Online bakery Butter and Spice has a new virtual location at Death in Venice Gelato (1418 Dundas St. W.) for pre-order pickup and delivery and a pop-up in Mississauga (The District Kitchen at Square One: 100 City Centre Dr.) until Sunday. To discover more about owner/head pastry chef Marchelle McKenzie, get the At The Pass.

Café Landwer has been around the globe - first in Berlin in 1919, followed by Tel Aviv in 1933, then U.S. in 2018. The eatery known for everything from shakshuka to Legendary Crumbed Cheesecake touched down in Toronto in 2020 and has been expanding ever since. Find the fifth outpost at Yonge and Bloor (33 Bloor St. E.).

Pete’s Corner Grill was a Parkdale mainstay before having to close last fall. Discover the new incarnation in Etobicoke, not far from the water’s edge. Doors opened Monday for Canadiana Grill By The Lake (2454 Lake Shore Blvd. W.).

1 Hotel (550 Wellington St. W.) made a splash in the 6ix last summer, first with 1 Kitchen Toronto with Chef Derek Powers Jr. at the helm. Missing those summer vibez? Introducing Casa Madera. The hotspot by Noble 33, known for their high-energy fine dining spots in L.A., West Hollywood, Las Vegas, Miami, New York and London, makes its Canadian debut with executive chef Olivier Le Calvez (El Catrin). Doors open Tuesday.

GoodGood debuted in December, followed by an outpost last month. The latest café/wine bar kicks off today at St. Clair and Dufferin (1187 St. Clair Ave. W.) with free local goodies.

Gucci’s Garden & Snak Connect (2581 Eglinton Ave. W.) is your hookup for all things sweet, salty, sour and snacky at Keele and Eglinton.

TR Newsletter subscribers were the first to get full deets for HotBlack Coffee’s new outpost at Yonge & Bloor a few weeks back. For those just catching up: Doors for the fourth award-winning café and open tomorrow (15 Charles St. E.). Fun fact: Guests from The Anndore House hotel next door can access the coffee shop directly via a side entrance.

Authentic Tibetan restaurant Mr. Momo has landed at Mimico’s Seaway Plaza (2453 Lake Shore Blvd. W.) with an array of dumplings: Langsha (beef), Phaksha (pork), Jhasha (chicken), Shoko (potato), Tsel (vegetable), and Soya.

The first Myungrang in Canada arrived across from U of T’s St. George campus last month (199 College St.). The largest hotdog brand in Korea and the originator of the cheesy Korean variety shares space in a food court style set up with Chatime, Katachi Coffee Bar and newly opened Hi Yogurt.

The North Corner food truck’s motto: “Asian Inspired, Canadian Made.” Owner chef Ivan Rueda (Hy’s Steakhouse Toronto/Whistler, The Shore Club) created dishes with flavours inspired by Korea, Japan and the Philippines including Nacho Seoul and TNC Pancit Guisado.

Love hip hop? Chinese, Japanese and Taiwanese food? Head to tomorrow’s grand opening of North York Chinese izakaya ON/OFF (5463 Yonge St.). Bonus: Customers enjoy a free item and 20 per cent off tomorrow.

Scarborough got its own Rollz Ice Cream & Desserts (41 Lebovic Ave., Unit A-114), just in time for summer.

The historic brownstones that were once The Office Pub (117 John St. ) are now “upscale casual modern British pub” Saint John’s Tavern, complete with French Onion Soup Dumplings.

I was the first to let you in on Dan Ewing and Brett Feeley's home-based pizzeria  last summer. It's no surprise their new venture was such a success. Psst. Slowhand Sourdough Pizza's soft open mode launched today  in the space formerly home to Billy's Burgers (99 Pape Ave.) p.s. You’d know this already if you were a TR Newsletter subscriber. #iykyk

Universal Carribean Fusion makes its debut tomorrow at Toronto's longest running pop-up food truck stop, Food Truck'n Events. The menu features traditional Caribbean fare with Middle Eastern and Canadian influences. Come through for Corn Soup ($5), Doubles (1/$4.50, 2/$8), and Jerk Chicken Shawarma ($13.50).

VMV's Bar & Grill opens at North York’s Pond Mills Centre (4207 Keele St., Unit 1-2) tomorrow with sports bar classic fare and plenty of spots to watch the game.

Zen Kyoto in First Canadian Place (100 King St. W., Concourse Level) is welcoming back office workers with an impressive lineup of ramen ($14-$15), omakase boxes $37(10 pcs) $45 (13 pcs) aburi sushi ($14) alongside rolls, apps. Etc. Hot tip: Don’t sleep on the uni or Foie Gras Nigiri ($12).

CLOSED

Fugu Bento (199 College St.) has been replaced. See above.

Mexicados Tacos & Burritos Co. landed in Leslieville (1022 Queen St. E.) in Summer '18. Windows are papered over. The Village location (471 Church St.) that debuted Summer ‘21 has also shuttered.

Twelve years ago, Milagro landed at Queen and Euclid (783 Queen St. W.). Doors have already closed, but you can still visit the OG location  Milagro Cantina in the Entertainment District (5 Mercer St.). TR Newsletter subscribers were the first to know, so get on it.

Spielhaus Board Game Café (1187 St. Clair Ave. W.) has shuttered, replaced by a different concept altogether.

The space where Tasty Hut was (5463 Yonge St.) has a completely new vibe. Details above.

The space that was Umeda Hotdog (199 College St.) is still offering links, but a different variety now.

NOT YET

Despite how it sounds, a soft open is not always swiftly followed by a full launch. It can be just a few days of test runs and then closed by up for days, weeks, and even months before reopening, as it were. It’s confusing for sure (and extra work for me). So while Sea Hi Restaurant did some “soft-opening exercises” over the weekend, they’re not in fact open yet.

EVENTS

Canada’s inaugural Filipino Restaurant Month launches tomorrow.

Street Eats Market is back tomorrow with a new series of events.

Sunday’s the last day to get in on Cabbagetown’s MapleLicious.

NEWS

A fire claimed much of Niagara’s historic Hernder Estate Winery Saturday night.

Attn Industry: The deadline to register for CaféTO is Saturday.

Stackt Market is offering a Small Business Grant to an Asian-owned small business.

ICYMI

Looking for ways you can help Ukraine? Discover fabulous fundraisers by local chefs and restaurants now – updated.

Please support local businesses whenever possible.

Life moves fast: I wrote about +100 new arrivals in February alone. Catch up on previous editions of the OPEN/CLOSED.

Things change quickly. Follow Toronto Restaurants on Instagram and Facebook for breaking news, updates, interviews + more.

Hear of a place that’s about to open or just closed? Have an upcoming food or restaurant event? Get in touch.

Enjoy this? Like, follow and comment on Instagram and Facebook. Forward and share with others. Share the love: send a note or testimonial.

Need staff? Help promoting your menu, bottle shop, patio, private event space, gift cards but you’re on a budget? We can help. *Prices have been reduced to help local businesses during this time. Limited space available.