8 Winterlicious restaurants for people who’d rather skip Winterlicious, Canada Reviews

If you’ve sworn off Winterlicious because the menus feel a bit watered down, here’s your reason to come back this year. Toronto’s annual winter culinary festival runs Jan 30 to Feb 12, 2026, with three-course prix-fixe menus across the city (dinner tiers range from $25 to $75). While some diners have complained about limited menus and smaller portion sizes, there are quite a few spots that offer great value and creativity, even with a prix-fixe menu (think full-sized portions and not the “same old” dessert options!) Here are eight restaurants to check out during Winterlicious that won’t feel like an afterthought

1. Kiin

Kiin’s Winterlicious menu offers a curated selection of Royal Thai-inspired flavours! For the $75 dinner, starters include choices like wing bean salad (with tamarind, roasted coconut, and palm sugar), tom kha pla soup with Arctic char, or royal dumplings with pork, tiger shrimp and peanuts. Mains are even more impressive: think boombai short rib curry with roti, scallop khao soi, or grilled chicken with tomato chilli chutney and coconut sticky rice (plus vegan options like a massaman curry)! Dessert is where Kiin really refuses to be boring. Try the pandan coconut cream, cashew toffee cake or mango sticky rice. 326 Adelaide St W.

2. R&D

If you’re looking for modern Asian flavours this winter, head to R&D. Their $65 dinner menu offers delicious starters like kung pao wontons (pork & cabbage with Szechuan peppercorn and cashews), scallop ceviche built around tom yum and kaffir lime leaf, or lamb spiducci with tamarind and puffed rice. For mains, indulge in comfort foods like kare kare with braised short rib and roasted peanuts, mie goreng made with tagliatelle and ibérico pork, or Korean fried chicken with gochujang and tteokbokki. End your meal with a mandarin creamsicle panna cotta, honey toast with Thai tea ice cream or Valrhona chocolate cake with miso caramel and calamansi. 241 Spadina Ave.

3. AGO Bistro

At AGO Bistro, lunch and dinner both run as a three-course prix fixe (with multiple choices), including starters like roasted cauliflower soup with crispy chickpeas and yogurt, or a spring greens salad with smoked cheddar, egg and sunflower seeds. Mains range from spaghetti all’Amatriciana to salmon with roasted carrots, salsa verde, and orange-butter sauce, plus chicken breast with wild rice, Brussels sprouts and cranberry. Dessert is a non-negotiable “yes”: try the dark chocolate pistachio cake with sour cherry sorbet, blood orange crème brûlée or a praline cheesecake with caramel sauce. 317 Dundas St W.

4. Maison Selby

Maison Selby is one of the best spots in the city for timeless French comfort (with a modern touch). You’ve got two prix-fixe options: $48 lunch or $65 dinner. Start with the Duck Liver Mousse, or go the savoury-pastry route with the Truffle & Mushroom Tart. For mains, indulge in the Salmon Meunière or Coq au Vin if you want classic French technique, or Aged Beef Striploin with frites for pure comfort eats. Wrap your meal up with a Café au Lait Financier, a Crêpe Brûlée, a Cantal Vieux cheese course with truffle honey 592 Sherbourne St.

5. The Dorset

The Dorset’s three-course prix fixe menu ($41 lunch or $55 dinner) is built around British pub classics and winter comfort cooking (bonus: their iconic Dorset Fish & Chips is available at both meals)! For dinner, the Ginger Glazed Beef Short Ribs come with sweet potato & coconut gratin, crispy Brussels sprouts and sweet & sour jus (gluten-free), while the Wiltshire Pork Chop arrives pub-style with pork scratchings, smoked cheddar and cider apple cream sauce. Seafood fans can indulge in the Crispy Skin Salmon, finished with cod roe, crushed new potatoes, sautéed greens, nori cream and lobster oil (also gluten-free)! For dessert, go for the super-satisfying ‘After Eight’ Chocolate Mousse with peppermint cream and caramelized cacao nibs 457 Wellington St W.

6. The Rabbit Hole

Head to The Rabbit Hole for elevated British pub fare ($41 lunch or $55 dinner). At lunch, opt for the Hillside Gardens beet soup with horseradish cream and a caraway lavash crisp, before moving into mains like ale-battered haddock & chips with mushy peas and charred lemon! Dinner keeps the same type of comfort-food energy. Start with the treacle-glazed crispy pork belly over celery root purée, plus mains like a petit roast dinner built around slow-roasted picanha with mashed swede, Brussels sprouts, a Yorkie and deep gravy. For dessert, indulge in steamed ginger pudding with rhubarb and vanilla custard, peach crumble with hazelnut ice cream and macadamia nuts, or a chocolate banoffee cheesecake topped with banana brûlée and chocolate-toffee sauce. 21 Adelaide St W.

7. Canoe

This is an upscale spot that won’t compromise on delicious food! The three-course $55 lunch and $75 dinner menus offer contemporary Canadian cooking with seasonal ingredients. For lunch, try the artichoke soup with rosemary custard, carrot, and crispy sunchokes, followed by mains like Atlantic salmon with cauliflower, fennel and Pernod cream sauce. Dinner turns up the refinement with starters like beef tartare (with smoked heart, rosemary custard and crispy sunchokes) or a smoked trout tostada with pil pil, birch syrup and salmon roe, followed by mains like brown butter roasted chicken with savoury porridge, braised leeks, and vin jaune, Alberta beef with parsnip and cultured butter pomme purée, or Atlantic salmon finished with caviar. For dessert, you can’t go wrong with the chocolate tart with blood orange and cream cheese. 66 Wellington St W, TD Bank Tower, 54th Flr.

8. Patois

Patois’ $55/person dinner menu offers some of the restaurant’s most comforting faves. Start with a choice of JunePlum Cocktail Patties (either smoked brisket in oxtail gravy or a vegan corn & callaloo version), or go for Kingston Calamari tossed in jerk butter with garlic sauce and fried zucchini. Mains include Juicy Jerk Chicken with rice & peas and Jamaican coleslaw, their Famous Fried Chicken with mac & cheese and that same slaw, or the signature-sounding “Pineapple” Bun Burger, served with shrimp chips and smashed cucumbers for crunch and contrast. Dessert doesn’t fall into the usual Winterlicious rut. Try the Cookie Butter French Toast “HK style” with golden syrup, a Coconut Panna Cotta topped with sorrel-soaked strawberries and mint or a Rotisserie Pineapple Sundae finished with brown sugar butterscotch and ice cream! 794 Dundas St W.