Toronto is home? I’ll call it my second home. But I am getting to know it better than my first home (Shanghai). I’m a foodie and I want to try all the amazing places in Toronto, and discover all the hidden gems to share with you guys! This definitely won’t be my last food post for Toronto.
Toronto is known for its multi-culturalism (if that’s even a word), so here are my top rated restaurants from 10 different cultures!
1. Chinese: Gou Bu Li
Website: Gou Bu Li, My Yelp Review
Price Range: CAD15.00 – CAD20.00
Cuisine: Chinese
Attire: Casual | Dressy | Business Casual | Casual Elegant | Formal
Highlights:
- Authentic Chinese food
- Offers a variety of different dishes from different parts of the country
- Clean, upscale environment without being pricy
- Offers take out – just call 15 minutes in advance!
- Accommodates small parties as well as huge parties
Lowlights:
- If you go during dinner time on a weekend, most likely there will be a line
2. Japanese:
Website: KINKA IZAKAYA ORIGINAL, My Yelp Review
Price Range: CAD20.00 – CAD25.00
Cuisine: Japanese
Attire: Casual | Dressy | Business Casual | Casual Elegant | Formal
Highlights:
- Very traditional, authentic Izakaya style restaurant
- Non-sushi Japanese food
- Big menu, plenty to choose from
- Always using the best, freshest ingredients
- Service is superb
Lowlights:
- You will most likely need a reservation
3. Thai: Pai Toronto
Website: Pai Northern Thai Kitchen, My Yelp Review
Price Range: CAD15.00 – CAD20.00
Cuisine: Thai
Attire: Casual | Dressy | Business Casual | Casual Elegant | Formal
Highlights:
- Best Thai food, perfecting every Thai dish you can name
- Lovely decor
- Reasonable price
- Portion is huge!
Lowlights:
- You will need a reservation, or else wait time can go up to 3.5 hours
4. Indian: Utsav
Website: Utsav, My Yelp Review
Price Range: CAD15.00 – CAD20.00
Cuisine: Indian
Attire: Casual | Dressy | Business Casual | Casual Elegant | Formal
Highlights:
- Elegant Indian restaurant, not something you see every day
- Traditional music playing in the background lightly, and everyone talks in a soft indoor voice
- Small, cozy environment, perfect for date nights
- Good portions, reasonable price
- Amazing naan
Lowlights:
- None
5. Spanish: Rasa
Website: Rasa Bar, My Yelp Review
Price Range: CAD18.00 – CAD25.00
Cuisine: Spanish / Tapa
Attire: Casual | Dressy | Business Casual | Casual Elegant | Formal
Highlights:
- Tapa style, amazing food
- Perfect date night restaurant
- You probably never seen any of the dishes on the menu!
- Superb customer service – goes over the menu and explains in each dish in detail when it arrives
Lowlights:
- Even thought it’s tapa style, bring a date instead of your whole family
- Need a reservation
6. Italian:
Website: Grazie Ristorante, My Yelp Review
Price Range: CAD15.00 – CAD20.00
Cuisine: Italian
Attire: Casual | Dressy | Business Casual | Casual Elegant | Formal
Highlights:
- One of those Italian restaurants that will not break the bank
- Amazing selection of pizzas and pastas, and they all taste amazing (at least the ones I’ve tried)
- The owner/manager tries to befriend everyone even thought it’s a relatively large restaurant
- They sell their house made chilli oil, and it’s amazing
Lowlights:
- No reservations for small parties, and you got to wait at the door!
7. Mexican: Playa Cabana
Website: Playa Cabana, My Yelp Review
Price Range: CAD15.00 – CAD20.00
Cuisine: Mexican
Attire: Casual | Dressy | Business Casual | Casual Elegant | Formal
Highlights:
- Toronto does not offer great Mexican food, Playa Cabana on Dupont is the closest it gets to awesomeness
- Adorable patio for the summer
- Their margaritas are to die for
Lowlights:
- Non
8. Korean: Buk Chang Dong Soon Tofu
Website: Buk Chang Dong Soon Tofu, My Yelp Review
Price Range: CAD10.00 – CAD15.00
Cuisine: Korean
Attire: Casual | Dressy | Business Casual | Casual Elegant | Formal
Highlights:
- Best Soon Tofu I’ve ever had
- Low price point for a bunch of food you probably cannot finish
- It comes with multiple “parts”
- The Soon Tofu
- Rice
- The congee that they make with the rice remaining in the bowl
Lowlights:
- Cash and debit
- There are always flies flying around (??)
9. Caribbean: Chris Jerk Caribbean Bistro
Website: My Yelp Review
Price Range: CAD8.00 – CAD15.00
Cuisine: Caribbean
Attire: Casual | Dressy | Business Casual | Casual Elegant | Formal
Highlights:
- Lovely people making their local foods
- Their jerk chicken poutine is to die for
- Super generous with their portions
- Lots of choices to choose from, chicken to beef, to oxtail
Lowlights:
- The wait can be pretty long (~10-15 minutes)
10. Middle Eastern: Tabule Restaurant
Website: Tabule Restaurant, My Yelp Review
Price Range: CAD15.00 – CAD20.00
Cuisine: Middle Eastern
Attire: Casual | Dressy | Business Casual | Casual Elegant | Formal
Highlights:
- Did someone just say BEST FALAFELS IN TORONTO? -Yes
- Lovely service, nice date evironment
- They set up the atmosphere to be suitable for dinner dates as well as family meal
- Street parking right outside
- Great selection of Middle Eastern food
Lowlights:
- None
Attire standards:
Casual
- Women: yoga pants, sweatpants, hoodies, graphic Ts, and overalls are acceptable
- Men: sweatpants, track pants, hoodies, overalls, and graphic Ts are acceptable
- Comfortable
Dressy
- Women: jeans, sweater, sweatshirts, and simple Ts are acceptable
- Men: jeans, sweater, sweatshirt, and simple Ts are acceptable
- Put together
Business Casual
- Women: cardigans, dresses, skirts, flats, and jeans + blouse are acceptable
- Men: jeans + dress shirts, button ups, and khakis, are acceptable
- Dress to impress
Casual Elegant
- Women: light jacket/blazer, heels, panty hose, blouse, dress pants, dress skirts are acceptable
- Men: Dress pants, dress shoes, dress shirt, and jacket are acceptable
- Sophisticated, elegant
Formal
- Women: blazer, dress pants, formal dresses with jacket are acceptable
- Men: Full suit, dress pants, and jacket are acceptable
- Serious and determined
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