Toronto is about to lose one of its most iconic diners. Patrician Grill, the King St E greasy spoon that’s been serving the neighbourhood since 1953, will close this spring after a 73-year run.
The owners announced the closure in a video posted to the restaurant’s Instagram page on Monday, noting that the decision was “not easy to make” and confirming a final service date of Sat, May 9. In the video, co-owner Terry Papas, who has been working at the diner full-time since the mid-1980s, traces the diner’s family chapter back to 1967, when his parents bought Patrician Grill.
“We are now coming onto our 59th year,” Papas said in the video. “So, with mixed emotions and sadness, I am announcing that we will be closing for good.”
Papas’ brother-in-law and head chef, Chris Slifkas, who also appears in the announcement, said that the decision came with deep gratitude for the people who kept the place going for decades.
“We just want to take this time to say thank you to all our customers, past and present, for coming in so frequently,” he said, adding that many regulars “have become friends and family members over the years.” He also thanked the diner’s staff for their hard work and support.
The Instagram post doesn’t state why they are closing, but according to the Toronto Star, the closure comes after the family accepted an offer to sell, something Papas said they’d resisted doing for years despite repeated interest.
“We’ve had people coming in and we always said no, no, no,” Papas told the Star. “But we finally got a reasonable offer, so we sold the building.” He added that it was a “painstaking decision” made with his sister, and while he declined to name the buyer, he said the choice came down to a combination of price and fit.
The closure also lands amid broader pressure on the restaurant industry, leading to closures and a vanishing diner culture. A forecast from the Dalhousie University Agri-Food Analytics Lab estimates that about 7,000 restaurants closed across Canada last year, with another 4,000 closures projected in 2026. The Toronto Association of Business Improvement Areas has also cited mounting pressures on independent restaurants, pointing to, among other issues, higher rents and less foot traffic.
In the meantime, you still have time to grab a signature club sandwich or homemade soup at Patrician Grill before it closes on May 9! It’s located at 219 King St E, one block west of Sherbourne.
