The Month That Was: the Toronto restaurants and bars that opened and closed in May

The Month That Was: the Toronto restaurants and bars that opened and closed in May

Buster’s Sea Cove, Toronto’s first seafood truck (Image: Gizelle Lau)

Openings

• Kinton—The owners of the Toronto outposts of Guu opened this summer’s first new ramen bar (there are others on the way). Naturally, there are big lineups but no reservations. Read our Introducing post »

• Raw Bar—The third establishment in the burgeoning Black Hoof empire opened on the sly earlier this month, this one focusing on seafood. Read our Introducing post »

• Lamesa—A contemporary spin on classic Filipino dishes opened on Bathurst, replacing the once-beloved Rosebud. Read our Introducing post »

• The Chickery—David Adjey, of Restaurant Makeover and the ill-fated Nectar, opened this haute rotisserie joint with What A Bagel’s Danny Farbman near CityPlace. Read our Introducing post »

• Arcadian—The Bay officially relaunched its history event space at Queen and Yonge this month, changing the name from Arcadian Court and partnering with Oliver and Bonacini. Read our Introducing post »

• Windows by Jamie Kennedy—The famed locavore chef partnered with a Niagara hotel development to open a new restaurant overlooking the Falls. Read our Introducing post »

• Greg’s Ice Cream—The cult favourite Annex ice cream shop opened a satellite location in the Distillery. [BlogTO]

• Buster’s Sea Cove—The long-time St. Lawrence Market fish fry spawned a new food truck, parked mostly at Queen and Jarvis. Read our introducing post »

• Easy—The popular Parkdale Easy Rider—themed breakfast joint opened a second location in Little Italy [BlogTO]

• Rome’n Chariot—A new food truck serving Italian comfort food has hit the streets. [Rome’n Chariot]

• Le Dolci—This cooking studio (and Weekly Eater regular) now has permanent digs on Dundas West. [Le Dolci]

• Smock Café—A new kid-focused café and “wonder workshop” on Roncesvalles. [Post City]

• The Works—The Ottawa-based burger chain opens its first Toronto location on the Danforth. [The Grid]

• De la Mer—A second location of the Bayview Avenue sustainable fish shop has opened on Roncesvalles, keeping in line with the strip’s furious post-construction gentrification.

• Farina+—A former cook at Mistura and One launched this new fresh pasta shop up in Maple. [Farina+]

• Stazione Centrale—A new Italian restaurant on St. Clair West with a train-station theme. [Yelp]

• LA’s Italian and Bar—The old and somewhat tired Financial District Italian restaurant Little Anthony’s has been refreshed and relaunched, a trick the owners pulled last year on their Greek restaurant Estiatorio Volos. [Post City]

• The Feasting Room—A chef and a manager take over Little Italy’s Orbit Room for a six-month, nose-to-tail pop-up. [Post City]

• City Bar—A new espresso bar in Queen West clothing shop Lavish and Squalor. [Post City]

• Vic Public House—The owners of Church Street’s Fuzion resto-lounge relaunch it as a gastropub. [Eat]

• Prego Restauranti—A new casual Italian restaurant on the Queensway. [BlogTO]

• Dog and Bear—Richard Lambert and Jesse Girard transformed their shuttered The Social into a new pub that’s currently in soft-opening mode. [The Grid]

• I Deal Coffee—The popular Kensington coffee shop opened a new location up at Yonge and Lawrence. [Yelp]

• Grand Electric patio—The taco joint with the improbably long waits now has somewhat shorter waits, due to a patio with 50 per cent more seats [Instagram]

Closings

• Veritas—Brad Long’s “local fare” spot on King East is being replaced by a new pub from the owners of Betty’s. Read our post »

• The Real Jerk—The much-loved Riverside Caribbean eatery finally shut down after a long, drawn-out tenancy saga (although its new location is just up the street). Read our post »

• Fifth Town—The ecologically pioneering cheesemakers have suspended operations while they attempt to restructure, although it’s not clear if they will ever resume. The retail store in Picton remains open for business. Read our post »

• Frankly Eatery—The Leslieville brunch churn continues, with this popular spot calling it quits. [Frankly Eatery]