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Rebecca Gao

Rebecca Gao is a journalist and lifelong Torontonian writing about food, culture, TV and film, tech, and health. She has bylines in publications including Bon Appétit, Chatelaine, Toronto Life and Reader’s Digest. She is currently the associate editor at Best Health magazine.

Latest from Rebecca Gao

Sort-of Secret: Comma, a Korean restaurant on Queen West serving raw marinated crab

Sort-of Secret: Comma, a Korean restaurant on Queen West serving raw marinated crab

And pairing it with scotch whisky

Thirteen must-see movies at TIFF this year

Thirteen must-see movies at TIFF this year

From buzz-worthy flicks to indie picks, you’re going to want to snag tickets to these

Sort-of Secret: Java Bali Kitchen, a delivery service and pop-up specializing in Indonesian dishes

Sort-of Secret: Java Bali Kitchen, a delivery service and pop-up specializing in Indonesian dishes

Unable to find the tastes of home in Toronto, Zulfikar Fahd decided to do something about it

“It’s designed to make the diner feel like the main character”: A visit to Toronto’s first solo-dining restaurant

“It’s designed to make the diner feel like the main character”: A visit to Toronto’s first solo-dining restaurant

Yunnan Noodle Shack in Baldwin Village serves up steaming bowls of noodles and alone time

Sort-of Secret: Delicacy Kitchen, a new Chinese restaurant at Dufferin and Lawrence with an award-winning Cantonese chef

Sort-of Secret: Delicacy Kitchen, a new Chinese restaurant at Dufferin and Lawrence with an award-winning Cantonese chef

Wenqiu Kuang is famous for his qingxin chicken

Ring in the Lunar New Year with special menus from these Toronto restaurants

Ring in the Lunar New Year with special menus from these Toronto restaurants

Including dim sum feasts, afternoon tea and everything you need for at-home hot pot

Order in the Court: Fish Ball Place, Pacific Mall's go-to stall for Hong Kong–style street food

Order in the Court: Fish Ball Place, Pacific Mall’s go-to stall for Hong Kong–style street food

Including all kinds of snacks on sticks

A look inside Toronto’s Bridgerton Experience

A look inside Toronto’s Bridgerton Experience

Including stunning decor, acrobatic performances, period garb and a chance to be noticed by the Queen

Ciao, Frankie Tomatto’s, you delicious, affordable, bonkers buffet

Ciao, Frankie Tomatto’s, you delicious, affordable, bonkers buffet

We lost more than just a restaurant when Markham's all-you-can-eat Italian institution died

Thirteen A-list stars you can expect to see this year at TIFF

Thirteen A-list stars you can expect to see this year at TIFF

Stargazers, take note!

Private School Guide

The Private and Independent School Directory Spring 2025

The Private and Independent School Directory Spring 2025

Big Stories

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

Dividing Line: How the Bloor Street bike lane turned the city into a battlefield

Dividing Line: How the Bloor Street bike lane turned the city into a battlefield

A few kilometres along Bloor has become Toronto’s most contested strip of concrete, igniting fights over congestion, safety and the future of downtown

The Chosen One: At just 23, Scottie Barnes is the new face of the Raptors—and the team’s best chance of salvation

The Chosen One: At just 23, Scottie Barnes is the new face of the Raptors—and the team’s best chance of salvation

Barnes is shouldering the weight of an impatient, basketball-mad city, a hit-and-miss team, and his own colossal ambitions. Does he look worried?

Almost Famous: Inside the Beaches’ rise to rock stardom

Almost Famous: Inside the Beaches’ rise to rock stardom

A viral earworm about a breakup turned the Beaches into Toronto’s hottest export. Now, the panty-throwing, stage-diving, all-girl rock band is seducing fans around the world

"I was nearly beaten to death by my partner. The case was dismissed because it took too long to get to trial"

“I was nearly beaten to death by my partner. The case was dismissed because it took too long to get to trial”

How an overburdened justice system is failing survivors of intimate partner violence

Brave New Year: The ultimate try-anything-once bucket list for 2025

Brave New Year: The ultimate try-anything-once bucket list for 2025

For inspiration on wonderful, wild and even some slightly reckless experiences to enjoy in the year ahead

The stars of the PWHL’s Toronto Sceptres on finally having a league of their own

The stars of the PWHL’s Toronto Sceptres on finally having a league of their own

After kicking off a new chapter for hockey with the PWHL, Natalie Spooner, Sarah Nurse and Blayre Turnbull are blazing a trail for women in sports

The 50 Most Influential Torontonians of 2024

The 50 Most Influential Torontonians of 2024

Our annual ranking of the people whose courage, smarts and clout are changing the world as we know it

Buy Canadian

The US tariffs are coming for your espresso martini

The US tariffs are coming for your espresso martini

With Kahlúa no longer available at the LCBO, Toronto bartenders are getting creative

These Ontario-made booze collaborations are coming to a restaurant near you

These Ontario-made booze collaborations are coming to a restaurant near you

Toronto bars and restaurants are partnering with their favourite distillers, winemakers and brewers to produce custom-made drinks. Here, nine crushable new concoctions

"We have over 100 cases of American wine trapped at the LCBO": Toronto's Grape Witches on what it's like to run a bottle shop during a trade war

“We have over 100 cases of American wine trapped at the LCBO”: Toronto’s Grape Witches on what it’s like to run a bottle shop during a trade war

It’s not as simple as taking sides when you’re a small business

Six Toronto restaurants serving up all-Canadian menus

Six Toronto restaurants serving up all-Canadian menus

With a trade war upon us, our city’s chefs are taking a stand