AlbertC
Superstar
As per someone who passed through Chinatown yesterday, the new McDonalds is expected to open at 298-300 Spadina Ave, just north of the northwest corner at Spadina & Dundas:
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- Thread starter TOareaFan
- Start date
bAuHaUs
Active Member
torontowest91
Active Member
I wish mcdonalds would enter back in the path again (I miss the TD or exchange tower McCafe)
Richard White
Senior Member
I wonder if they intend to close the Queen and Spadina location given the issues and proximity?
Mihairokov
Active Member
Doubtful. OL station on the horizon and Tim's just opened on that corner. This is probably just another location in a densifying and already busy area.
artyboy123
Senior Member
It’s been a while since downtown Toronto was blessed with a new beer hall, but that changes this weekend, when Everyside Social Eatery and Taphouse opens at the base of the Richmond-Adelaide Centre (and in the shadow of Jaume Plensa’s giant head sculpture).
artyboy123
Senior Member
Name: Susie’s Rise and DineContact: 539 College St., susiestoronto.com, @susiestoronto
Neighbourhood Little Italy
Owners: Adam Lore, Tyler Tanabe and Matthew Chow
Chef: Kelvin NgAccessibility: Not fully accessible
Childhood friends Adam Lore, Tyler Tanabe and Matthew Chow grew up splitting pancakes in neighbourhood diners and gathering around family-style feasts at home. At Susie’s Rise and Dine—a polished, modern take on the greasy spoon—they’re serving up both, with a side of nostalgia.
Named after Lore’s grandmother, the restaurant is meant to feel like a community hub that echoes the sense of welcome he and his friends always found at her dining table. “We wanted to offer something that was very social and something where we could highlight our upbringings,” says Lore.
artyboy123
Senior Member
Name: Daisy May’s
Contact: 968 Bathurst St., @daisymays.to
Neighbourhood: The Annex
Owners: Theo Laan, Charlie Gabriel
Chefs: Charlie Gabriel, Sam Spagn-Shepherd
Accessibility: Fully accessible
Charlie Gabriel and Theo Laan first met when they were students at the University of Guelph. Laan was studying criminal justice and political science; Gabriel was completing a master’s in French literature, followed by a master’s in education. They both worked in restaurants to pay the bills, catching the hospitality bug along the way.
“I’ve cooked since I was a kid,” says Laan, who developed the menu with Gabriel. “My dad was a terrible cook—all he could do was boil chicken. I was shredded because all I ate was protein, but eventually I just wanted to eat good food.” After teaching himself to cook by watching TV shows and flipping through cookbooks, Laan went on to work in kitchens across Toronto, including El Pocho, the Mexican spot next door to Daisy May’s, where Gabriel worked front of house.
artyboy123
Senior Member
The sort-of secret: Terroir Artisan Bakery, a Cambridge bakery run by a former Langdon Hall chef
You may have heard of it if: Your Instagram algorithm is nothing but bread and pastry
But you probably haven’t tried it because: It’s about an hour and a half from Toronto by car, and it’s been open only since June
Daniel Angus had been working at Langdon Hall—Cambridge’s swish hotel, restaurant and spa—for around four years when he finally started experimenting with baking. A savoury chef through and through, his skill set fell short when the pastry chefs needed help. “It was embarrassing,” he says. “I was executive sous-chef at one of the best restaurants in the country, and I couldn’t understand sourdough.”
artyboy123
Senior Member
Tanya Matkivska started selling homemade pierogies in 2019 from the basement of St. Volodymyr’s Ukrainian Orthodox Cathedral, near Kensington Market. The church had played a big role in her life when she moved to Toronto from Ukraine, 15 years before that. Between the pillowy pierogies, the crimson borscht and Matkivska’s warm, welcoming presence at her comfort-food counter, Heavenly Perogy quickly became a word-of-mouth hit. But Matkivska always dreamed of something bigger.
artyboy123
Senior Member
Former Shangri-La pastry chef Steven Tran is poised to wow the city with his most impressive creation yet: a modern French pâtisserie with a Canadian twist. Steven Tran Pâtissier Chocolatier, opening on Roncesvalles in September, will brim with an array of kaleidoscopic bonbons and chocolate bars plus an abundance of butter-based pastries, cookies and cakes.
artyboy123
Senior Member
Name: Makilala
Contact: 105 Church St., makilala.ca, @makilala.ca
Neighbourhood: St. Lawrence
Owners: Nuit, Jeff and Joel Regular
Chef: Nuit Regular
Accessibility: Fully accessible
With Kiin, Pai, Sukhothai and, most recently, Tha Phae Tavern, Jeff and Nuit Regular have built a Thai food empire around Nuit’s heritage. Their latest restaurant, Makilala, turns the spotlight on the other half of the family: Jeff and his Filipino roots.
dob467
Active Member
Does anyone know about the status of their lease at the Queen and Spadina location? Considering all that density you mention on the horizon you'd think that corner would be ripe for development.
Richard White
Senior Member
Agreed and with all the headaches, I can see McDonalds washing their hands of it.
It is right up there with Yonge and Grosvenor.
Jonny5
Senior Member
Throw Queen and Church in that same bucket of both redevelopment potential and lots of headaches with the clientele too.
It clearly does a lot of business on deliveries, as it must cover a huge swath of the east side of downtown, I imagine that's the only reason the franchise there is still going post-pandemic.
If we never normalised paying for delivery of cheap fast food I have to think they would have shut it down already.