OPEN/CLOSED: Toronto Restaurant News April 15-21, 2021

Photo courtesy of Sakana-Ya, Rolls & Rice

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

🕒 10.5 min read

This week’s 21 arrivals include some pretty exhilarating options. Which is exactly what’s needed while stay-at-home orders are in full effect. So as many celebrate Canada Takeout Day today, I ask that you please support small, local businesses as often as possible.

And to all those celebrating - Happy Gudi Padwa, Baisakh, and Ramadan Mubarak to you and your loved ones.

Aaaaand stay tuned – more news ahead in The Tip Off, exclusively available in the TR newsletter.

In the meantime, here’s the very latest:

OPEN 

Hot tip: add these must-have pantry items to your shopping list this week. avec Jayden, a new line of Korean products by Jayden - junior sous chef at top Toronto restaurant Richmond Station - and his wife Ellen, wasn’t developed to follow any trend. “The more I put myself in this industry, “ says, “the more I want to introduce and share the flavour of my back home.” The lineup is small, for now. “We have always respected classic and authentic foods so started couple of classic items first.” Select from kimchi (OG or Baek) and kalbi sausage - with more items being added soon. The home-based business offers pickup in the Yonge & Eglinton area.  

The Backyard Smokehouse (264 Dupont St.) moved into Live Organic Food Bar’s old digs with a mix of burgers, Nashville hot chicken, and barbecue staples - brisket, ribs, mac and cheese, et al.  

Radar alert: ISO out of this world cakes? Behold Boréal Gâteau’s celestial ice cream creations. And stay tuned: a brick-and-mortar spot is set to touch down in Unionville this summer.

Buono, known for their antipasti, pasta, piadina, and Milano-style pizza, expanded again. Find the third venue in Roncy (413 Roncesvalles Ave.). Buon appetito.

Three friends - Jose and chefs Shada and Steff – banded together to create Canaima Cafe (World Food Market -335 Yonge St.), an exciting new Venezuelan street food destination. While you’ll find delectable must-haves on the menu such as empanadas and arepas, may I direct your attention to their mandocas - cheesy, ripe plantain and cornmeal fried dough rings served with Venezuelan cream cheese – available fried, air-fried or frozen. 

Cheongdam Restaurant (7335 Yonge St., Unit 2) in Thornhill offers endless options, but whatever you do, don’t sleep on their stunning Korean BBQ  dosiraks (boxed sets). Swoon.

It’s been nearly two years since Firehouse Subs debuted in the 6ix. Parth Patel and Pradiptya Banerjee’s satellite at York Mills and Don Mills (865 York Mills Rd., Unit 6) opens Wednesday.

GG's Burgers (1681 Lakeshore Blvd E.) in Woodbine Beach launches today. On the menu: smash burgers, Nashville hot chicken sandos, patty melts, chili cheese dogs, sides, soft serve, milkshakes, turnovers, beer, and beach-friendly canned cocktails.

Tired of the usual takeout? Imlil Moroccan Cuisine (979 O’Connor Dr.) in East York has just the thing to liven things up - including your palate – with sumptuous selections, including Rice Bowl ($10), Couscous ($20), and Tajines ($16): Lamb with caramelized prunes, almonds, sesame seeds; Beef with artichokes, peas, lemons, olives; Chicken with preserved lemon and olives. Even drinks take things up a notch with offerings of fresh juice ($7) and Moroccan Tea ($2) . And don’t forget to add Moroccan sweets onto your order. Bonus: Enjoy a 25 per cent discount for takeout.  

imPerfect Fresh Eats at Queen and Spadina (477 Queen St. W.) is the second healthy outpost by siblings May and Jeff Dang.

Welcome back, Jumbo Empanadas! The Chilean restaurant in Kensington Market (245 Augusta Ave.) reopened earlier this week after being closed for nearly six months due to a fire next door. 

The Library Specialty Coffee softly opened their beautifully minimalist outpost yesterday, right across from Trinity Bellwoods Park (917 Queen St. W.). This is their second shop in Toronto.

Worth. The. Wait. After lengthy delays, Mascot Brewery finally kicked off their Etobicoke location (37 Advance Rd.) yesterday. The new production space (and soonish-to-be restaurant, beer garden and bottle shop) is the latest addition to the downtown Toronto brew bar and beer garden (220 King St. W.) that debuted summer ‘19. 

The MoMo House’s third location – and second during the pandemic - premiered yesterday at Queen and Bathurst (685 Queen St. W.).

Calgary’s Chef Mike Pigot launched his famed Pigot’s Burger Club here in the Big Smoke yesterday in collaboration with The Heartbreak Chef’s Jerome Robinson. Pro tip: Items sold out quickly yesterday, so order early to avoid disappointment.

Psst, there’s a new secret smokehouse in the city. Get your meat sweats courtesy of Riverside Smokehouse, a southern style barbecue ghost kitchen running out of Prohibition Social House (696 Queen St. E.).

Puff Pastes (1672 St Clair Ave. W.) specializes in pastes - a handheld snack that brings together the best parts of Cornish pasties and Mexican empanadas. Visit their downtown pop-up this weekend (Fri-Sun) at King and Niagara (852 King St. W.), across from Stanley Park.  

Just in time for this weekend’s warmer temps. East York’s Roll Me Up Ice Cream unveiled a new shop in Markham (75 Main St. N.) earlier this week. p.s. Get the bubble waffle.

Two words: Omakase takeaway. Okay, three more: Sakana-Ya, Rolls & Rice (Majestic City - 2900 Markham Rd., Unit H8). Chef Tan Hidekatsu, originally from Hokkaido Japan, has been in the seafood industry for over 40 years. His new stellar takeout spot offers a dizzying array of irresistible dishes, featuring freshly flown-in seafood that’s “properly handled and stored.”

SUSHI4U Japanese Restaurant (3423 Lake Shore Blvd. W., 647-344-8877) in Etobicoke does sushi, bento boxes, and udon combos, as you’d experct. But you’ll also discover Korean (bulgogi, hwe dup bap) and Hawaiian (poke bowls) fare. For a limited time, takeout orders paid with cash receive five per cent off on orders of $20 or more.

Eagle-eyed OPEN/CLOSED readers would have noticed my announcement of Tala’s final day at 294 Dundas St. W. last month. The celebrated Filipino eatery known for kamayan kits packed in a pizza box, has moved into Tinuno (31 Howard St.), their other venture, for the time being, until they find permanent digs. 

CLOSED 

Earlier this week, Guy and Kim Rawlings, owners of Montgomery’s (996 Queen St. W.), announced they’re taking a break after five years.

The first location of Toronto Popcorn Company (147 Baldwin St.) has shuttered after eight years. The Beaches location (1948 Queen St. E.) remains. You can also order snacks to be shipped via their website.

EVENTS

Taste of Mississauga is on until May 10.

NEWS  

A Barrie restaurant’s liquor licence has been suspended after remaining open during the province’s shutdown and stay-at-home order. This comes not long after an eatery near Ottawa had its liquor licence suspended after an anti-mask event.

Over 100 people may have been exposed to COVID-19 at a restaurant in Vaughan.

Many outlets were quick to write that the "Kim's Convenience" store was up for sale this week. Unlike the show, this isn’t the end for the beloved shop after all.

Josh Matlow, City Councillor for Toronto – St. Paul’s, has done a tremendous amount of good for the city, especially during the pandemic. Earlier this week, he put forth a motion to implement “a pilot project to allow beer and wine consumption in public parks and beaches” from May to October, to mitigate people gathering indoors. 

ICYMI

Riverside has changed. 

When Alessandra Bustamante isn’t baking up a storm at Blackbird Bakign Co., you’ll find her just as focused on food off the clock too - making pasta from scratch, noshing on addictive snacks (salty, spicy and sweet), and grabbing takeout from some of the city’s top restaurants. Discover more in this week’s sensational At The Pass.

This week’s arrivals got you thinking about ice cream? Discover more in The Ultimate Guide to Ice Cream + Frozen Treats in Toronto/GTA.
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