168 Best Restaurants in Toronto, Ontario

When you're having a late-night craving for Vietnamese food, this is the place for authentic bowls of pho or hearty curries with a crusty baguette to sop up the sauces. To drink, savor a slow-drip coffee with sweetened condensed milk or an exotic fruit milkshake in flavors like soursop or avocado.

Pilot is known for roasting some of the city's finest beans and running a growing mini-empire of cafés; this spacious, laid-back location was their first. (Be sure to peruse the bags of beans on display and grab a couple for your suitcase.)

A pink sky at night makes for dining delights at this extravagant eatery with surrealist schooner elements and wall-sized wood carvings. The captain's bounty of a menu features a gooey eight-cheese lobster mac with oversized rigatoni, tuna tartare prepped tableside scooped into Bibb lettuce leaves, and succulent octopus that bursts in the mouth like pomegranate candy.

No matter what day or time, Pizza Banfi is usually busy for two reasons: it doesn't take reservations, and the classic Italian food is really good. While the decor is slightly cliché, with Renaissance-style wall paintings over light-color bricks, the pizzas are the real attraction. Thin-crust pies are tossed in full view of the appreciative crowd, then baked to perfection.

Authentic thin-crust pizzas are fired in an imported wood-burning oven at this pizza joint that adheres to the rules set by Naples's pizza authority. Go classic with the Margherita D.O.P.---with San Marzano tomatoes, fresh basil, and fior di latte mozzarella---or branch out with nduja (spicy salami) or duck confit pies.

If you love Italian cuisine, this Toronto institution serves authentic sourdough Neapolitan pizzas and a selection of traditional antipasti to discerning locals. It caters to all dietary restrictions, including gluten-free, dairy-free, nut-free, vegetarian, and vegan. The King Street location is a great date spot, too.

This traditional pub will make you feel like you're in Dublin the second you step inside. Tuck into an authentic meal of Irish Kilkenny Ale–battered fish-and-chips, beef-and-Guinness stew, and bread pudding steeped in whiskey and custard, just like Gran made. The bar upstairs is even cozier than the one on the main floor.

The upscale-yet-whimsical take on vegan food at Planta caused quite a stir when it opened in 2016, and the restaurant (now one of four in the city) is still a favorite of the Yorkville crowd. Menu standouts include satisfying thin-crust pizzas with plant-based mozzarella, an excellent veggie burger, and a queso dip that will fool even the pickiest cheese lover.

Chef Shawn Adler prepares dinner-plate-covering native "tacos" at his rustic 12-seater café and similarly sized front patio. Mains include piles of toppings for fusion brunch--focused dishes that incorporate everything from Indian curries, poached duck eggs, and edible flowers. If your main dish does not include fry bread, it can always be ordered on the side for the traditional experience.

This industrial-chic space with dark wooden floors and tables is all about authenticity when it comes to Neapolitan-style pizza. Perennial favorites include the classic Margherita, topped with tomato sauce, mozzarella, and basil, as well as the Dominator, with rapini, fennel sausage, and smoked mozzarella.

Queen Street West is lined with cafés and restaurants, and one solid choice is the Queen Mother Café, a neighborhood institution popular with art students and broadcast-media types. Serving Lao-Thai and Italian cuisine, the "Queen Mum" is open until 1 am (Sunday until midnight) for wholesome meals and rich desserts at reasonable prices.

A laid-back neighborhood institution, the Queen Mother has been popular with art students and broadcast-media types since the 1980s. The food is international, leaning toward Southeast Asian with European accents.

The idea here is that traditional Asian street food can exist side by side with modern haute cuisine, against a backdrop of fiery open kitchens and cavernous dining rooms. Experimental entrées borrow European ingredients like cauliflower couscous, maple syrup, and pan-seared foie gras on brioche. The cocktails make use of unconventional ingredients like spiced chamomile mist, bee pollen, and curry-infused gin.

Dishes at this zero-waste, locally foraged, alchemical eatery are on the smaller side but pack the complexity of lead freshly turned to gold. Mainstays on the often-changing menu include a risotto accented with wild Ontario ramps, al dente sweet peas, and pureed asparagus stems (that would otherwise end up in the bin), adding an extra dimension of vegetalia. Or consider an aged garum-loaded venison tartare with house-made miso focaccia.  Dessert might be a deconstructed bowl of vegan rhubarb cake soaked with oat-based crème anglaise, hiding a foamy meringue treasure nested inside.

If you want your latte made by a robot, this is the spot to get it. The first location of a new automated coffee kiosk concept that's slowly creeping across the city, the Robo Café makes the specialty espresso-based coffee drinks like cappuccinos, cortados, and flat whites---complete with ice or oat milk---you'll find at indie coffee shops throughout the city, but taking the barista out of the equation. A step above vending machine coffee (they actually don't use the "v" word), it's a blue window with a screen where you press in your order, pay with a tap of your debit card, and then you're on your way.   

Repurposed wine bottles and wine glasses assembled as giant chandeliers hover above the tables at Reds Wine Tavern, offering a nod to the lengthy list of international wine picks. The menu is global, skipping from seared tuna tostadas with guacamole and daily curries to comfort foods like lobster grilled cheese and a variety of steaks.

Experience the future of food service at this all-you-can-eat Japanese joint where most items are brought to your table by real robots with storage compartments for bellies.

A den of oceanic delicacies, this playful basement raw bar is frequented by solo diners and showbiz types. Among the options are soft-shell steamer clams, a variety of smoked fish, East Coast lobster rolls, plus a rotating list of more than 20 varieties of oysters (including perfect Malpeques from owner Rodney Clark's own oyster beds on Prince Edward Island). A zap of Rodney's in-house line of condiments or a splash of vodka and freshly grated horseradish are eye-openers.

Ask about the daily "white-plate" specials.

Located where the Annex's western edge blends into Koreatown, this quirky café offers spins on Vietnamese sandwiches and mains, plus coffee and baked treats.

One of the city's fave ramen joints, Ryu's has the distinction of being one of a select few eateries invited to serve their wares at Yokohama, Japan's prestigious ramen museum. The "pork blaster" ramen with eight slices of chashu is the crowd favorite—but if you're feeling particularly extravagant, there's also a version topped with Angus roast beef.

A long-running favorite for students and shoppers looking for a budget-friendly meal, Salad King occupies a second-floor dining room above Yonge Street. Mains hover at the C$15 mark, including a variety of curries and stir-fries. Favorites range from classic pad Thai to the Islamic noodles, a secret menu item that features coconut penang curry sauce layered over a massive platter of noodles and veggies.

In a city filled with independent "third wave" coffee bars, competition-trained espresso guru Sam James is a pioneer of lovingly made cappuccinos and lattes. The big, open, black-and-white styled Parkdale shop is filled with friendly local characters, a laid-back vibe, and an on-site bakery.

Tucked just behind its big-brother restaurant Fat Pasha, Schmaltz is a love letter to the Jewish appetizing shops of yore, turning out fresh bagel sandwiches with traditional toppings like smoked lox and whitefish salad.

Try adventurous, rich ice cream and vegan sorbetto flavors such as Mango Passion Fruit, Cajeta Swirled Goat Cheese, or Roses of Paradise at Scooped by Demetres. This spot is owned and operated by beloved Toronto dessert shop Demetres, which has been creating artisanal, handcrafted ice creams for more than 30 years. Their creations are made with the finest ingredients sourced from around the world, such as chocolates from Belgium and vanilla from Indonesia, resulting in a rotating menu of 20 decadent and memorable flavors. Make sure to get your scoop (or two) in their famous waffle cone, which is freshly made in-store.

This Malaysian street food spot is a hidden gem on the busy Ossington strip. There are a variety of sharing-style plates like kapitan chicken tacos, rendang beef, and delicious stuffed roti---but a popular option is the C$55 "feed me" tasting menu. The once-separate vegan concept Fat Choi is now incorporated into the regular menu, so there are plenty of plant-based options as well.  

Yorkville is filled with ice cream and gelato shops, but Summer's is the most beloved. A family-run shop since the '80s, this ice cream parlor doesn't do anything fancy or trendy but excels with the classic, made-in-house flavors. There are always at least 26 of them, with favorites like chocolate fudge brownie, pralines 'n' cream, and Toronto Pothole (a little bit of everything) often seen on cones throughout the village. 

If there is an equivalent to a fast-paced, casual Hong Kong–style diner in Chinatown, this would be it: the food is inexpensive and honest, and the setting is bright and spare. Diners enjoy heaping bowls of congee and customized noodle soups, including the best fish ball and shrimp dumpling bowls in town.

Open shelving lined with Italian provisions decorates this cool pizza joint, but it's the thin-crust pies, bubbled and blistered to perfection, that keep diners coming back. The menu suits all pizza lovers—from the simple Margherita to extravagant options like the Bruma, a white pizza with pancetta, egg, and black truffles. Daily pasta specials can be hit or miss, but desserts—like a warm, oozing round of flourless chocolate cake—are universally delicious.

Local Italian mini-chain Terroni has several locations around the city but this one, with the ground-floor Bar Centrale wine bar inspired by Italian train stations, is especially popular. Head upstairs to the bi-level Terroni for locally beloved thin-crust pizzas, seafood spaghetti, and Italian cheeses and mushrooms, along with stunning views.

Service is particular: no substitutions, no cheese on seafood dishes, and they won't cut your pie for you. Some find it a deal breaker; others say it adds to the Italian authenticity.

If you're craving a specific ice cream flavor or topping, chances are this long-standing ice cream parlor will have it ready to go.