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Caroline Aksich

Caroline Aksich, a National Magazine Award recipient, is an ex-Montrealer who writes about Toronto’s ever-evolving food scene, real estate and culture for Toronto Life, Fodor’s, Designlines, Canadian Business, Glory Media and Post City. Her work ranges from features on octopus-hunting in the Adriatic to celebrity profiles.

Latest from Caroline Aksich

Street Food Block Party recap: a night of food trucks, lobster rolls and very enthusiastic eaters

Street Food Block Party recap: a night of food trucks, lobster rolls and very enthusiastic eaters

In a line that snaked around the Evergreen Brick Works, well over 3,000 street food enthusiasts waited patiently for the first...

Weekly Eater: Toronto food events for April 30 to May 6

Weekly Eater: Toronto food events for April 30 to May 6

Monday, April 30 Tuesday, May 1 Wednesday, May 2 Thursday, May 3 Friday, May 4 Saturday, May 5 Sunday, May 6

Introducing: Marcy, a Roncesvalles Polish restaurant reborn as a cocktail bar

Introducing: Marcy, a Roncesvalles Polish restaurant reborn as a cocktail bar

For the past 15 years, Beata Kowalczyk served up hearty Polish fare at her Roncesvalles mainstay, Lala Bistro. Earlier this spring...

Gallery: the fifth annual Brewers Plate brought Ontario craft brewers together with Toronto chefs

Gallery: the fifth annual Brewers Plate brought Ontario craft brewers together with Toronto chefs

On Wednesday, 450 Torontonians gathered at Roy Thomson Hall for the fifth annual Brewers Plate, a fundraiser that celebrates the...

At this year’s Green Living Show, Toronto chefs teamed up with local suppliers

At this year’s Green Living Show, Toronto chefs teamed up with local suppliers

Toronto’s sixth annual Green Living Show kicked off last Friday at the Ex and continued through the weekend. Ecoholic...

Introducing: Camp, a new camping-themed Junction café from the former owner of the Beaver

Introducing: Camp, a new camping-themed Junction café from the former owner of the Beaver

Megan Whiten, former owner of the Queen West’s The Beaver Café, loves camping. She also loves double-entendres, which is why...

Introducing: Tori’s Bakeshop, a pretty new vegan bakery café in the Beach

Introducing: Tori’s Bakeshop, a pretty new vegan bakery café in the Beach

About this time of year, the Beach starts to wake up from its winter slumber, which makes it a great time for Victoria Vaccher to...

Introducing: Thirsty and Miserable, a new Kensington dive with a nice slate of craft beers

Introducing: Thirsty and Miserable, a new Kensington dive with a nice slate of craft beers

The craft beer renaissance is taking Ontario by storm (about a decade after it hit the U.S.), and this month saw the launch of...

Gallery: This year’s Recipe for Change raised over $50,000 for FoodShare—and served up some impressive plates

Gallery: This year’s Recipe for Change raised over $50,000 for FoodShare—and served up some impressive plates

Last Thursday, 400 Torontonians gathered at St. Lawrence Market for Recipe for Change , the annual FoodShare fundraiser, which...

The red-tape brigade comes to The Pinball Café—but the owners are appealing

The red-tape brigade comes to The Pinball Café—but the owners are appealing

That was fast. We’ve received word from Jason Hazzard that the Toronto red-tape brigade his brand-new Pinball Café. Hazzard...

Introducing: The Pinball Café, a bit of arcade nostalgia on Queen West

Introducing: The Pinball Café, a bit of arcade nostalgia on Queen West

Before the hands of every kid were glued to their iPod touches and Nintendo DSes and before two Italian plumbers fought to save...

Introducing: Via Mercanti, Kensington’s new Neapolitan-style pizza parlour from a pair of Queen Margherita exiles

Introducing: Via Mercanti, Kensington’s new Neapolitan-style pizza parlour from a pair of Queen Margherita exiles

For those tired of Terroni’ s traditionalism, Libretto’ s lineups and the long ride on the 501 out to Queen...

Introducing: The Westerly, a new Roncesvalles restaurant and bar from a pair of West Coasters

Introducing: The Westerly, a new Roncesvalles restaurant and bar from a pair of West Coasters

The churn of restaurants on Roncesvalles continues apace with the addition of The Westerly to the once Polish-dominated strip...

Introducing: The Ace, a classic Roncesvalles diner reborn

Introducing: The Ace, a classic Roncesvalles diner reborn

For almost two decades, the Ace Chinese Restaurant on Roncesvalles has been shuttered. This spring, however, Maggie Ruhl (co-owner...

GALLERY: Our 10 edible picks from this year’s Toronto Christmas Market (mulled wine very much included)

GALLERY: Our 10 edible picks from this year’s Toronto Christmas Market (mulled wine very much included)

You don’t have to be a wide-eyed, rosy-cheeked tot to enjoy the second annual Toronto Christmas Market at the Distillery...

GALLERY: Our 10 picks from this year’s—somewhat kitschy—Toronto Christmas Market

GALLERY: Our 10 picks from this year’s—somewhat kitschy—Toronto Christmas Market

The folks behind the second annual Toronto Christmas Market are trying to bring a touch of Old World European Christmas magic to a...

Introducing: Stasis Local Foods, the new Roncesvalles emporium for all things pickled and jarred (and preferably local)

Introducing: Stasis Local Foods, the new Roncesvalles emporium for all things pickled and jarred (and preferably local)

Up at the northern tip of Roncesvalles, just south of Dundas, sits the neighbourhood’s newest gourmet food shop, Stasis Local...

Q&A with Chuck Hughes: the hunky Garde Manger chef on tattoos, Mexico City and poutine appropriation

Q&A with Chuck Hughes: the hunky Garde Manger chef on tattoos, Mexico City and poutine appropriation

Since Chuck Hughes opened Garde Manger in 2006, he’s been steadily rising in the celebrity chef world (he even bested Bobby Flay...

Q&A with Bobby Flay: the Iron Chef talks to us about comfort food, Toronto dining and his Thanksgiving dinner for 55

Q&A with Bobby Flay: the Iron Chef talks to us about comfort food, Toronto dining and his Thanksgiving dinner for 55

Bobby Flay is a busy, busy man. In between flipping burgers with President Obama and opening up new restaurants (he launches his...

With Bobby Flay at the helm and six celeb chefs on deck, this year’s Chef’s Challenge fundraiser proved a relaxed affair

With Bobby Flay at the helm and six celeb chefs on deck, this year’s Chef’s Challenge fundraiser proved a relaxed affair

At last year’s Chef’s Challenge, the famously potty-mouthed Gordon Ramsay ended up throwing the chefs off the stage after a...

Introducing: Green Light District, a housewares boutique in Roncy with plenty of wood for everyone

Introducing: Green Light District, a housewares boutique in Roncy with plenty of wood for everyone

The Place: Newly repatriated Torontonians David and Deborah Peets have just moved back to Hogtown after two decades of living in...

Less than two weeks until Bobby Flay touches down for the second annual Chef’s Challenge cancer fundraiser

Bobby Flay, the Iron Chef star famous for his devotion to the grill, will be heading north this November to host the second annual...

Introducing: Scout, a fully stocked gift emporium and treasure trove of tchotchkes in Roncy

Introducing: Scout, a fully stocked gift emporium and treasure trove of tchotchkes in Roncy

The Place: While travelling around Australia and Nepal, Scout shop owner Leah Eyles had an epiphany: she wanted to open up a gift...

Introducing: Cold Tea, a new Kensington Market bar that nods to a venerable Chinatown tradition

Introducing: Cold Tea, a new Kensington Market bar that nods to a venerable Chinatown tradition

Tucked into the back of the Kensington Mall, down the hallway past the knick-knack peddlers, is Cold Tea, the market’s newest...

Best New Restaurants

These are Toronto’s best new restaurants of 2025

These are Toronto’s best new restaurants of 2025

This year’s list includes a Korean Ecuadorian diner, a supper club that showcases regional Chinese dishes tweaked with seasonal Canadian ingredients and a Parkdale chaat house that makes a mean Pakistani Sloppy Joe. It’s official: fusion is in

Big Stories

Sex worker and Anora consultant Andrea Werhun’s journey from strip clubs to Hollywood

Sex worker and Anora consultant Andrea Werhun’s journey from strip clubs to Hollywood

Andrea Werhun’s dream was to be a writer, but there was a lot more money in sex work. She told herself she’d quit soon, then spent years working as a stripper. In 2022, Sean Baker hired her as a consultant on his Oscar-sweeping film. Now she’s stepping into her own spotlight

Game Over: Inside fallen Toronto Raptor Jontay Porter’s sports betting scandal

Game Over: Inside fallen Toronto Raptor Jontay Porter’s sports betting scandal

As the pivotal member of a notorious betting ring, Porter was playing for another team. The story of a cheater, his bookmakers and the wager that brought them all down

Megan Savard for the Defence: Meet the lawyer representing a player at the centre of the Hockey Canada trial

Megan Savard for the Defence: Meet the lawyer representing a player at the centre of the Hockey Canada trial

She’s fierce, shrewd and relentless. And she doesn’t just want to win—she wants to dismantle the prison system altogether

These are Toronto’s best new restaurants of 2025

These are Toronto’s best new restaurants of 2025

This year’s list includes a Korean Ecuadorian diner, a supper club that showcases regional Chinese dishes tweaked with seasonal Canadian ingredients and a Parkdale chaat house that makes a mean Pakistani Sloppy Joe. It’s official: fusion is in

Inside the rise and fall of the Vaulter Bandit, the 21st century’s most notorious bank robber

Inside the rise and fall of the Vaulter Bandit, the 21st century’s most notorious bank robber

To fellow tourists he met around the world, Jeffery Shuman was a semi-retired developer with a bright smile, an even tan and a fat wallet. In truth, he was a legendary bank robber on the run from the Toronto police and the US Marshals

Anchor Man: Fox News host John Roberts on Trump, the trade war and the American psyche

Anchor Man: Fox News host John Roberts on Trump, the trade war and the American psyche

If Fox News seems an unlikely landing spot for a guy who got his start pumping out Platinum Blonde on MuchMusic, you probably haven’t heard his thoughts about joining the notorious network, the Canada–US relationship and what he misses most about Toronto

Trump's Loss, Toronto's Gain: Meet the artists, professors, scientists and other luminaries ditching the US and moving north

Trump’s Loss, Toronto’s Gain: Meet the artists, professors, scientists and other luminaries ditching the US and moving north

They’re coming from Big Law, the Ivy League, arts institutes and beyond, brimming with smarts and energy and united by a common cause: avoiding the carnage of Donald Trump. True tales from the brain gain

Dancing Queens: Patrons, staff and performers share their wildest memories of Crews and Tangos, Toronto’s most storied drag bar

Dancing Queens: Patrons, staff and performers share their wildest memories of Crews and Tangos, Toronto’s most storied drag bar

Crews and Tangos has been enforcing the rules of the Village for more than 30 years: wear what you want, kiss who you want, but don’t forget to tip the drag queens. With a condo development looming, we asked around for tales from the iconic spot

The Joy of Sex with Strangers: A Toronto hotwife’s adventures in ethical non-monogamy

The Joy of Sex with Strangers: A Toronto hotwife’s adventures in ethical non-monogamy

Three months ago, I was a suburban mom in a monogamous relationship. Now I’m sleeping with people I meet online—with my husband’s blessing—and we’ve never been happier. Don’t judge us until you’ve read our story

The Scandal, the Firing and the Fallout: Anatomy of a Bay Street fiasco at RBC

The Scandal, the Firing and the Fallout: Anatomy of a Bay Street fiasco at RBC

Nadine Ahn was a high-ranking executive at the bank. Ken Mason, her subordinate, was rapidly promoted. Then someone claimed to see them canoodling at the Royal York, tipped off HR and triggered an inquisition

Edward the Conqueror: The unlikely ascent of Canada’s telecom king

Edward the Conqueror: The unlikely ascent of Canada’s telecom king

Edward Rogers was dismissed as a meddling nepo baby—until he muscled out his siblings, acquired his competitors, cornered the telecom market and became the dominant force in Canadian sports

Lady Parts: Inside Meredith MacNeill and Jennifer Whalen’s new show, Small Achievable Goals

Lady Parts: Inside Meredith MacNeill and Jennifer Whalen’s new show, Small Achievable Goals

The Baroness von Sketch Show alumnae have elevated joking about women’s issues to an art. Their new show takes aim at menopause. How funny is that?

Murder in the Blue Mountains: The story behind the killing of Ashley Schwalm

Murder in the Blue Mountains: The story behind the killing of Ashley Schwalm

Ashley and James Schwalm had what seemed like a fairy tale life—two wonderful children, fulfilling careers and a gorgeous home close to the private ski club where they’d fallen in love. Then Ashley’s remains turned up in a burned-out car at the bottom of a ditch, and all signs pointed to her husband

Dark Horse: Inside the fall of Eric Lamaze, Canada’s most famous equestrian

Dark Horse: Inside the fall of Eric Lamaze, Canada’s most famous equestrian

For years, Lamaze was the world’s top-ranked show jumper, living an enviable life filled with fancy cars, international travel and adoring fans—the kind of life a person might do anything to protect

Buy Canadian

An all-Canadian wine festival is coming to Fort York

An all-Canadian wine festival is coming to Fort York

Elbows Up aims to make it easier (and cheaper) to buy Canadian-made bottles

This Toronto Italian restaurant is launching a pasta tasting menu made with all-Canadian ingredients

This Toronto Italian restaurant is launching a pasta tasting menu made with all-Canadian ingredients

It’s Amano Trattoria’s elbows-up moment

A high-tech greenhouse in King City is sticking it to Trump’s tariffs

A high-tech greenhouse in King City is sticking it to Trump’s tariffs

How to reduce our reliance on American farmers? Rely on robot ones instead

"We felt disconnected from the outdoors before": What St. Lawrence Market North vendors think of their new home

“We felt disconnected from the outdoors before”: What St. Lawrence Market North vendors think of their new home

And what locally made and grown goods they’re selling