Toronto cheap eats
I'll be taking my maiden voyage to Toronto this Thursday and am looking for some good, but reasonable (cheap to moderate) places to eat. Suggestions from all areas of town are great, but we are staying in Yorkville and will be around the University and the Annex quite a bit I suspect.
Thanks in advance!
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26 Comments:
Pho Hung - One right across the street from the Royal Ontario Museum on Bloor Street. Vietnamese food.
Greg's Ice Cream - Best ice cream in the city. Bloor and Spadina.
Caplansky's - Unreal smoked meat. Unfortunately he is changing locations and won't be open for another week. How long are you staying?
http://www.blogto.com/toronto/the_best_new_cheap_eats_in_toronto_2008/
That website lists top cheap eats. If you look on the right hand side you will see a drop down menu. It has a ton of "best ofs" for Toronto with reviews and a lot of good info.
lexophile at 7:42PM on 08/18/09
Also, I noticed your post about macaron (mah-ka-rohn). I've done a fairly exhaustive macaron tasting in Toronto. Hands down the best are at La Bamboche. They are a little pricey at $2.50 each but they are also double the size of most macaron. The ginger, sesame, strawberry and caramel sea salt flavours are out of this world.
http://labambochepatisserie.blogspot.com/
lexophile at 7:47PM on 08/18/09
One last thing, this weekend is the opening of the CNE (the exhibition) and there will be a Rib Fest. If you don't wan to go on any rides you can just buy an entrance pass... If you buy it Thursday at Shopper's Drug Mart before the Ex opens (Friday) you get 30% off.
http://www.theex.com/
Ribfest
August 21 to 23, August 25 to 30 and September 3 to 7, 2009; 11:00 am to 10:00 pm; Bandshell Park
Back by popular demand, a succulent rib fest takes over Bandshell Park every weekend of the CNE! Ribbers from everywhere won’t want to miss this fabulous feast as a multitude of rib masters compete to win “best rib recipe”!
lexophile at 7:52PM on 08/18/09
Future Bakery and Cafe near Bloor St. and Bathurst has all day breakfast and lunch/dinners for fairly reasonable prices. It's very popular with students. Nothing fancy.
ag3208 at 8:13PM on 08/18/09
'Sushi on Bloor'--on Bloor Street. is also great for quality reasonably priced sushi, and is walking distance from UofT.
If you don't have a large Chinese community where you're from, take the opportunity to go to Chinatown and have some good cheap eats. Lobster is in season--any restaurant in Chinatown that is full of chinese folks and has a lobster special out front is usually a great bet and the prices are very reasonable compared to a fancy pants continental cuisine restaurant. You haven't lived until you've had black bean or ginger and onion lobster. *drool*
Have fun! Toronto is a fun city, and the month long garbage strike has been over for a few weeks, so the city smells not like a dump anymore.
BananaMonkey at 8:36PM on 08/18/09
Ali Baba! I forget where it was...near High Park...but on Tuesdays they have a special- $4 for 2 Falafel pitas!
machellebelle at 8:43PM on 08/18/09
@lexophile....thanks for the macaron tip as well, I can't wait to eat everything in sight for 5 days. I should probably just wear maternity pants for the whole trip...
I was planning to go to The Ex as well because I am going to a concert at the Amphiteatre anyway, and was planning to make a day of being around that area. My husband loves ribs, but we are from the South (NC and GA), and he just make quite a face at the idea of "Canadian Ribs". Hopefully, he can be swayed!
Thanks for the tips so far.
cdp1223 at 9:26PM on 08/18/09
@cdp1223 - you are so lucky! We did a Savannah/Raleigh/Manhattan road trip for our honeymoon (though we went in May and were married in June) and we haven't stopped talking about going back.
As for the ribs, I haven't gone to rib fest at the Ex before so I can't vouch for it. I'm intent on going this year though. Just tell him to expect something different. Also, if you want to try poutine there are two decent places in your area. Smoke's and Craft Burger both of which are listed on that cheap eats website.
lexophile at 10:08PM on 08/18/09
Usually at the Ribfests there are some American vendors as well as Canadian ones. I've been to a couple, you can get some good stuff.
I work at U of T. Wave to me! Heh. Things I like to eat nearby: sandwiches at L'Espresso Bar Mercurio on the south side of Bloor near St. George Station. There is Bar Mercurio on the north side a little west but it is mainly pasta and pizza and it seems to damn hot to eat there right now. http://www.barmercurio.com/ On Spadina just south of College there is Saigon Princess for cheap tasty Vietnamese, clean kitchen. Agreed on Pho Hung above. Vegetarian food at Fresh on the corner of Bloor and Spadina, I enjoy the Powerhouse bowl, nom nom. Greg's ice cream, mentioned above, is kitty-corner from there.
Got any other specific wants?
@lexophile thanks for the macaron tip :D
wellred at 10:10PM on 08/18/09
Ugh. Saigon PALACE. I'm tired.
wellred at 10:13PM on 08/18/09
@wellred - We go to La Bamboche once a month to treat ourselves to macaron. At first my husband thought I was nuts to pay $2.50 a cookie but he's stopped complaining. Haha.
lexophile at 10:15PM on 08/18/09
I can't help myself...
There's an interesting thread on Chowhound (yes, I know, ew Chowhound) about all the different ethnic treats you can find and which places are the best for them...
http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/602251
lexophile at 10:23PM on 08/18/09
Yorkville itself is pricey but there are tons of places in the Annex. I'd suggest grabbing coffee and a salad or sandwich - they're not your typical cafe type - at aroma espresso bar (Bloor and Bathurst) and then sitting on the patio. I recommend their "iced aroma" beverage, which is similar to an iced latte.
The food at Pauper's Pub is decent.
I find the Annex sushi joints overrated. One of my favourite sushi places is Sushi Island on College Street/Little Italy and they have an all-you-can-eat. Little Italy is also a mecca for cheap ($5) martinis and good patios.
I second Greg's Ice Cream. One of my other favourite ice cream places in the city is Summer's at 101 Yorkville. Next door to Summer's you can get a good and inexpensive mani/pedi. It doesn't look like an upscale place but there's autographed photos of celebrities on the wall. It was one of my regular places when I lived nearby, and I'm picky about my nail salons.
From Yorkville you can wander over to Church Street. My favourite thai place near there is Just Thai.
Kensington Market (a neighbourhood) has some great places to eat. Jumbo Empanada comes to mind, as does Big Fat Burrito. If you want to splurge on French food there's La Palette on the same street. They're all on Augusta Ave.
CanadianFoodieGirl at 12:36PM on 08/19/09
Oh, Big Fat Burrito, how I love thee! Try the yam burrito, it has a really soft texture which may not be for everyone but it is SO delicious - you can have meat and yam together if you want the meaty texture. The pork is extremely tasty too. I haven't tried the ground beef yet but it is intriguing - have you had it CFG?
I just finished a Powerhouse from Fresh. It may have inspired me to never eat another prepacked asstastic university cafeteria sandwich again.
wellred at 2:20PM on 08/19/09
Anyone tried Mission Burrito in the Grange food court?
lexophile at 2:23PM on 08/19/09
Oh, also, can anyone tell me where the closest Tim Horton's is? I mean, I know they are pretty ubiquitous, but I'm still curious. :)
We are staying on Bloor St W near Avenue Rd. Right across from the ROM cubey thing apparently.
cdp1223 at 5:56PM on 08/19/09
@lexophile I haven't tried Mission Burrito, but I do love Manpuku (also in the Grange at Dundas & McCaul). They have comfort Japanese like Udon and Curry Pork Rice. Can eat for around +/-$5, but all pretty tasty.
jlunar at 5:59PM on 08/19/09
Nearest Timmie's is probably the one on the corner of Bloor and Bedford, a tiny bit west of the hotel.
wellred at 7:10PM on 08/19/09
Yep, I'd say nearest Tim Horton's is Bloor and Bedford.
lexophile at 7:38PM on 08/19/09
Okay, not "cheap" but delicious: http://www.donatellorestaurant.ca/index.html
Menu is reasonable if you want to treat yourselves. The service and atmosphere are great, as is the food!
We spent a week at the Toronto Hilton for our honeymoon two years ago, and this was one of our favorite nights out.
We also enjoyed TUNDRA in the Hilton, but it's pretty $$.
We always hit up places like Shopsy's and the Kensington Market. There is a great mexican place near the flatiron building down there that I can't recall the name of.
Follow your nose - if it smells good, go in! I've never really disliked a restaurant in Toronto...
omnomnom at 8:59PM on 08/19/09
If you want deli I'd recommend Wolfie's or Centre Street Deli over Shopsy's any day of the week. Truly, I'd recommend neither but Caplansky's is closed as I mentioned before.
lexophile at 10:10PM on 08/19/09
Hmm, I miss living in Toronto (did my undergrad at U of T). A really good Chinese BBQ place is Kom Jug Yuen, very close to U of T. Hole-in-the-wall place but seriously quick and cheap and good. Other places in Chinatown used to be very good, but don't know how it is now.
honeybaby789 at 9:32AM on 08/20/09
I haven't been in years (due to living far far away), but Green Mango near Yonge and Bloor was my first taste of Thai, and I've been in love ever since!
psychsarah at 12:55PM on 08/20/09
Are you staying at the Intercontinental? Their vodka bar does good martinis. One block north on Prince Arthur between Avenue and Bedford there's some good pubs. The Bedford Academy is one. The other is a Rose and Crown or Heart and Crown or something like that.
CanadianFoodieGirl at 1:36PM on 08/20/09
There is a good people watching bar called The Pilot in Yorkville (located on 22 Cumberland St.)
Definitely try the chinese buns at Ding Dong Bakery on Spadina, north of Dundas. I think the cross street is either St. Andrews or Baldwin. If you buy 6 buns, there is no tax.
Anything in Kensington Market is a safe bet. If you're a coffee/tea lover, check out Moonbeam coffee. My Market is a great bakery too.
janiceeats at 5:22PM on 08/20/09
I actually feel a bit shocked that no one's mentioned the Pomegranate restaurant on College St, near Bathurst St. Incredibly delicious and authentic persian food, in an interesting room, and the most expensive item on the menu is 14 bucks.
kololo at 1:24AM on 08/24/09