Toronto has a lot of new tables worth talking about right now, but the best ones aren’t the over-designed “concepts” with huge marketing budgets. The spots actually worth a visit in 2026 are the ones with a bit of a story — people rebuilding after a disaster, family legacies getting a modern rewrite and tiny storefronts that do one thing better than anyone else.
If you’re looking for where to eat next, these 12 new restaurants are the ones getting it right.
12. Eloise
Graham and Dan Hnatiw, the brothers behind the Old Spaghetti Factory, trade kitsch for burl walnut at this polished new opening on the Esplanade, Eloise. Rewriting their family legacy, the pair has launched a sophisticated dining room that proves they can do much more than sling red sauce.
The Vibe: The room is a study in softness, defined by curves, silk accents and cosy nooks. It’s elegant and airy, and through a hidden door at the back is Bar Cart, a moody, railcar-inspired speakeasy that’s perfect for a post-dinner nightcap.
Eat This: The menu balances light starters with high-ticket mains. The hamachi crudo is precise, dressed with a shiso emulsion and watermelon radish, and the ravioli — filled with honeynut squash and topped with chestnut and comté — offers seasonal comfort. The Dover sole is the star, served luxuriously in a chicken velouté with spinach. Finish with the citrus parfait, featuring layers of grapefruit, meringue and Earl Grey.
The Verdict: The Hnatiw brothers have successfully stepped out of their own shadow to create something timeless. 42 The Esplanade
Fun Fact: Bar Cart, a hidden speakeasy, crafts cocktails using a $20,000 rotary evaporator.
11. Sal’s Pasta & Chops
For owners Michael Sangregorio and Fabio Bondi, Sal’s is a homecoming to the strip where their families first settled. Named after their fathers (both named Sal), the restaurant focuses on unpretentious classics that originally put Little Italy on the map.
The Vibe: The room feels lived-in, with pressed-metal ceilings, olive-green banquettes and walls lined with black-and-white family portraits. It hits a sweet spot between a Sunday family dinner and a Friday night out.
Eat This: Nostalgia drives the menu, so the tagliatelle alla parm wheel — tossed tableside in a flaming cheese rind — is the necessary spectacle. If you skip the theatrics, go for the bone-in veal chop parm, massive and perfectly fried, or the whole butterflied branzino topped with a bright, herbaceous salsa verde. Wash it down with a citrusy negroni sour, but save room for the coconut cream pie, a towering, cloud-like finish.
Final Verdict: Sal’s isn’t trying to reinvent the wheel — they’re just serving pasta out of it. 614 College St.
Fun Fact: Penny the wild boar, a longtime good-luck charm, is mounted near the front window.
10. Radici Project
Taking over the former La Bartola space, husband-and-wife team Emiliano Del Frate and Kayo Ito blend their Italian and Japanese heritages into Itameshi — an inventive, deeply personal culinary dialogue rooted in Canadian soil.
The Vibe: The room is split into two distinct moods. The front operates as a casual natural wine bar for walk-ins, and the back houses an intimate chef’s table. The design mirrors the menu: earthy, unpretentious and welcoming, like a dinner party in the couple’s own home.
Eat This: The menu bridges the gap between Italy and Japan using local ingredients. The cappellacci is filled with Genovese ragu and served in a house-made dashi. The karaage is equally clever, swapping the standard thigh for a chicken wing filled with roasted potatoes, and the veal gets a hit of sweetness from charcoal-charred parsnips.
The Verdict: Radici Project proves that “fusion” doesn’t have to mean confusion. It creates a space where high-concept technique meets genuine, neighbourhood warmth. 588 College St.
Fun Fact: Emiliano Del Frate trained at Noma, one of the world’s most celebrated restaurants.
9. Jamil’s Chaat House
Let’s get this out of the way immediately: you will not find butter chicken here. Founders Jalil Bokhari and Emma Tanaka have no interest in playing the hits. Instead, they’ve tapped chef Eric McDonald (formerly of Bar Sakai) to create a menu focusing on the snacks and street foods that usually play second fiddle in Toronto’s Desi restaurants.
The Vibe: The space is a cosy, low-lit hideaway that feels personal rather than produced. Walnut banquettes are wrapped in a crushed red velvet that feels delightfully retro — like a 1970s living room transplant – and vintage Bollywood records and family photos line the walls.
Eat This: The menu is built on chaat, so the dahi puri — crispy shells flooded with tamarind and yogurt — are mandatory. Follow that with the lamb nihari, a rich shoulder stew finished with house-made chili crisp, or the karahi chicken bun, a messy Pakistani Sloppy Joe on a potato roll. End with the cardamom-spiked gulab jamun.
The Verdict: Jamil’s is modern without being gimmicky. It fills a massive gap in the city’s dining landscape, serving food that is spicy, complex and deeply communal. 1086 Queen St. W.
Fun Fact: Plays timeless Bollywood tracks from the golden era.
8. Bar Eugenie
Taking over a legendary space (the former Harbord Room) is a risky move, but if anyone has the chops to pull it off, it’s this team. Ronnie Fishman, Lee Bonds and chef Rebekah Bruce all cut their teeth within the Alo empire, and their new venture, Bar Eugenie, feels like a graduation.
The Vibe: The room strikes a balance between practical and polished, dressed in a palette of chef’s whites and leather, anchored by a whitewashed stone bar. But the real asset is out back: a 35-seat patio that offers rare privacy in the downtown core.
Eat This: Chef Bruce’s menu is rooted in local ingredients but is defined by her Filipina heritage. The green peppercorn squid is a sharp, acidic tangle of garlic and soy, and the lamb tartare uses briny olives and flatbread to ground the dish. The shrimp risotto delivers garlic-chili heat that sticks to your ribs, but the smart money is on the bone marrow followed immediately by the chocolate cake — especially if you order the hojicha soft serve as a sidecar.
The Verdict: Small, focused and technically sound, it honours the address’s history while carving out a distinct, delicious identity. 89 Harbord St.
Fun Fact: Named for Eugénie Brazier, the first chef in history to earn six Michelin stars.
7. Taberna LX
The Paris Paris team joins forces with industry veteran Kelly Amaral to bring a modern, design-forward slice of Lisbon to Dundas West. Taberna LX, located in the neighbourhood where Amaral’s parents settled in the 1950s, is a personal project 15 years in the making.
The Vibe: Designed by Lisbon-based architect Joana Astolfi, the space features hand-painted tiles from the legendary Viúva Lamego factory and mosaics that evoke the streets of Lisbon. The real draw is the rooftop — the largest in the west end — anchored by a 26-foot mural of the Douro River.
Eat This: Chef Jonathan Poon honours tradition while injecting his own heritage into the menu. The seafood rice is the standout, overflowing with shrimp and cuttlefish but spiked with XO sauce — a nod to Poon’s Hong Kong roots. Start with the salt cod fritters or the tempura (a technique the Portuguese introduced to Japan), which are light, crisp and perfect for sharing. The piri piri skewers deliver the requisite heat, and the sea bass offers a simple, expertly cooked alternative.
The Verdict: Taberna LX manages to be both a neighbourhood anchor and a destination, treating Portuguese cuisine with the nuance it deserves. 1161 Dundas St. W.
Fun Fact: Co-owner Kelly Amaral has Nelly Furtado in her inner circle.
6. Ariete e Toro
If you’ve seen a line snaking down Keewatin Avenue recently, this is why. Ariete e Toro isn’t just another deli; it’s a shrine to schiacciata, the thinner, crispier, chewier cousin of focaccia. Inspired by a summer trip to Tuscany, the shop has quickly reached cult status, with daily sellouts becoming the standard operating procedure.
The Vibe: The space is functional and frantic in the best way. It’s a grab-and-go operation that smells of fresh yeast and imported cured meats. The shop feels efficient but warm, bustling with the kind of midday urgency you usually only find in Italian piazzas or midtown office towers.
Eat This: The bread is the foundation, but the Enzo is the masterpiece. It layers mortadella di Bologna with rich pistachio pesto and creamy stracciatella, finished with chopped pistachios and a lemon-basil oil that cuts through the fat. For a savoury-sweet alternative, try the prosciutto di Montagna, which pairs 16-month aged ham with Gorgonzola and fresh pear crudo.
The Verdict: Ariete e Toro proves that you don’t need a complex menu to win over the neighbourhood. You just need really, really good bread. 12 Keewatin Ave.
Fun Fact: Ariete e Toro is named after the owners’ astrological signs — Aries and Taurus.
5. N.L. Ginzburg
Zachary Kolomeir and Carmelina Imola (of Dreyfus, Bernhardt’s) have opened a buzzy Italian-Jewish spot in Little Italy behind a bright red, nameless storefront. N.L. Ginzburg is a cultural fusion more than a culinary one, and it feels like dinner at a family home.
The Vibe: From the street, textured glass blurs the scene into warm lights and fuzzy shapes. Inside, it’s cinematic but cosy, with walls decked out in 1970s Milanese crime movie posters and a bustling energy that feels lived-in.
Eat This: Dishes land on scalloped-edge plates you might find at your nonna’s or bubbe’s. The zucchini fritti are essential, served as onion ring–style rounds with a fluffy, buttery dip of taleggio and piave. The beef cheek ragu, good enough to transport you to Italy, is done up in a Sangiovese wine sauce. The bar serves a Figroni — a negroni with a sweet twist of fig syrup in a frosty glass — while the Jerusalem artichoke gelato flies out of the kitchen all night.
The Verdict: A seamless blend of backgrounds serving Italian staples elevated by quality ingredients that might surprise you. 548 College St.
Fun Fact: Guests sit on original 1980s Italian Simonetti chairs in the dining room.
4. Bisteccheria Sammarco
Rob Rossi and David Minicucci have spent years dominating the west end. With Sammarco, they have finally planted a flag downtown. The duo has taken the tired tropes of the genre (the “old boys’ club energy’) and filtered them through a distinctively Italian lens.
The Vibe: The 90-seat room is designed to impress without feeling like a museum. It’s a mix of gold accents, marble and heavy linens — luxurious, yes, but with personality, catering to both the Bay Street crowd and the pre-theatre set.
Eat This: Although the headline is the exclusive Cumbrae’s prime beef — dry-aged in-house for sixty days and best experienced via the massive Fiorentina — this isn’t just a chop house. Chef Rob Rossi demands you pay attention to the pasta, specifically the fettuccine alla scrofa, a rich, tableside spectacle of 100-egg dough and 24-month Parmigiano. Start with the sausage-stuffed olive all’ascolane and absolutely end with the torta di cioccolato.
The Verdict: Sammarco is sophisticated, expensive and incredibly polished. It respects the tradition of the Italian steak house while modernizing the script. 4 Front St. E.
Fun Fact: The walls are home to one of Canada’s largest restaurant art collections.
3. Seahorse
Summerhill is waking up. Behind Seahorse is a team with a serious pedigree: Simon Bauer (formerly of Union), Eamon Clark (son of oyster legend Rodney Clark) and a kitchen led by Federico Garcia, the former second-in-command at Quetzal.
The Vibe: The room is loud in the best possible way. A massive white stone bar anchors the space, evoking a pocket-sized Grand Central Oyster Bar, and the crowd skews younger than the usual Summerhill demographic. With Bauer working the floor and a playful Hats & Caps cubby by the door, it feels like the energy of Ossington has finally crept north of Bloor.
Eat This: The kitchen sources through Oroshi Market, so the raw bar is solid, but the menu has range. The real surprise is the runner beans — charred to hell and finished with balsamic, they somehow steal the show from the fancier plates. For groups, the Ice Boxes (seafood towers served on metal baking trays) are the obvious move, but if you’re splitting a main, go for the bouillabaisse loaded with crab, prawns and mussels.
The Verdict: It’s not a cheap night out, but for the sourcing and the scene, it’s the most exciting opening the neighbourhood has seen in years. 1226 Yonge St.
Fun Fact: Eleven-time oyster-shucking champ, Eamon Clark knows his way around a shell.
2. The Lunch Lady
There is always a risk when a restaurant icon moves into a massive space that the soul gets lost in the renovation. That didn’t happen here. The Lunch Lady brings the famous recipes to Toronto but tweaks the format to fit the neighbourhood.
The Vibe: The footprint is huge — spanning a main dining room, bar, patio and the private Rickshaw Lounge upstairs — but it’s designed to feel intimate, like a stylized Saigon alley with hand-painted signs, textured floors and hanging greenery.
Eat This: Your strategy depends on the time of day. Lunch is for the purists: it’s soup-forward, featuring the rotating heavy hitters like tamarind fish, chicken phở or the crab-loaded bánh canh cua. Dinner is where the kitchen gets to play with Toronto-exclusive dishes, like wagyu phở or the unexpected short rib rigatoni with a slow-poached egg. On the drink side, skip the standard lager for a pandan-infused cocktail or the rich peanut butter coffee.
The Verdict: Precise, energetic and generous. You leave full, satisfied and impressed by the deliberate thought evident in every dish and every corner of the room. 93 Ossington Ave.
Fun Fact: Anthony Bourdain put this tiny Saigon stall on the global map.
1. Liliana
When Vela was forced to close after a devastating fire, chef Marvin Palomo didn’t scatter. Instead, he took his dedicated crew to Queen West and opened Liliana. The result is a 30-seat, low-lit stunner that feels like a dinner party thrown by industry vets.
The Vibe: On a recent Thursday, the place was packed. The esthetic is “vintage warehouse chic” — think exposed brick and low lights — but the real draw is the service. The team (many ex-Vela) treats you like royalty. Ask for Nick, who navigates the menu with breezy expertise.
Eat This: Palomo describes the food as Italian with Asian “creative touches,” but that undersells it. The beef carpaccio is a standout, finished with furikake and pearl onion for a crunch-forward take that outshines standard versions. The stuffed chicken wings are non-negotiable: deboned and packed with truffle risotto, they sit squarely in high-low comfort food territory. For mains, the octopus with tamari and shishito is clean and precise. Save room for the panna cotta: spiked with yuja cha and calamansi, its tangy acidity cuts straight through the cream.
The Verdict: An intimate local restaurant with ambition — and execution — to match. 1198 Queen St. W.
Fun Fact: Chef-owner Marvin Palomo greets every table and often runs the food himself.
