All of Toronto’s Michelin-recommended restaurants participating in Summerlicious and what to order at each

Summerlicious kicks off today, the second time of year when savvy diners can try some of the city’s best restaurants without breaking the bank. This year, we’ve cross-referenced the food festival with the Toronto Michelin Guide to find out which of the 220 participating restaurants are flaunting shiny red plaques. Below are some of the city’s top kitchens and what to order at each.

Related: These are Toronto’s best new restaurants of 2025

Alder

51 Camden St., aldertoronto.com

Dinner: $75

Although Toronto’s Michelin guide is chock full of commendations to the Alo Restaurant Group, Alder—located in the Ace Hotel—is the only one of chef Patrick Kriss’s enterprises taking part in Summerlicious this year. The kitchen’s wood-fired grill is the powerhouse behind the Mediterranean-inspired menu.

Highlights: Cut through the heatwaves by starting with the delicate hamachi crudo. As mains go, the short rib—grilled to smoke-kissed perfection and finished with a green peppercorn chimichurri—is a must. This dish has been reworked to feature seasonal produce enough times that it’s practically an Alder specialty. And for dessert, rich, chocolatey gelato and caramelized bananas make the coppetta a luxurious end to the meal.

Canoe

66 Wellington St. W., canoerestaurant.com

Lunch: $55; dinner: $75

Trek to the top of the TD tower to take in the Toronto skyline from one of the country’s best restaurants. The crown jewel of the O&B empire, Canoe showcases the best of Canadian ingredients across its rotating menu, prepared and plated at the (literal) highest level.

Highlights: Produce doesn’t get much more local than the Holland Marsh, so the creamed Holland Marsh onion soup is the place to start. This elevated classic is finished with leek ash, laurel oil and parmesan custard. Keep the Ontario produce theme going with the wild leek risotto. Or try the duck leg, sourced from King Cole Ducks in Stouffville and paired with stewed white beans and spicy ’nduja sausage. The pear compote with two Ontario cheeses is a sweet and savoury finish to eating your way through the best of our province.

The Ace

231 Roncesvalles Ave., unit A, theacetoronto.com

Dinner: $55

This Roncesvalles diner first opened in the 1950s and has had a slew of owners since, but husband-and-wife duo Rafael Badell and Maggie Stackpole are the ones who clinched the Michelin Bib Gourmand in 2022. They still serve some classic diner fare, but it’s elevated with fine-dining techniques and seasonal, locally sourced ingredients.

Highlights: To start, a perfectly executed classic, steak tartare, made with local beef and served with paprika potato chips. The simple pleasures continue with the PEI mussels in tomato cream, a house staple. But save room for the sticky toffee pudding, the knockout punch for the comfort-food division.

R&D

241 Spadina Ave., rdspadina.com

Dinner: $55

After his win on MasterChef Canada, chef Eric Chong partnered with celebrity chef Alvin Leung to open R&D, a modern Asian restaurant named for its innovative and experimental menu. With fusion back and bigger than ever, it’s no wonder that this high-energy Chinatown spot is Michelin-selected.

Highlights: Start with the po’ boy bao, a delicate and fluffy bun stuffed with crunchy Cajun-style popcorn shrimp and a creamy aïoli made with prawn heads. Then up the decadence with the khao soi, a pasta dish that combines coconut curry and duck confit with chewy tagliatelle—this is what happens when Nonna takes a trip to Thailand. For dessert, you could stay close to Italy with the guava, lychee and ube panna cotta or go full circle and head back to New Orleans with the pandan beignet—there’s no wrong choice.

Kiin

326 Adelaide St. W., kiintoronto.com

Dinner: $75

Executive chef Nuit Regular brings her mastery of Thai flavours to Royal Thai Cuisine, a culinary tradition whose intricate techniques and fresh ingredients were historically reserved, as the name suggests, for royalty. But this Michelin-selected spot is bringing the cuisine’s refined, beautifully plated dishes to us regular people with its Summerlicious menu.

Highlights: Start with one of their crispy, sour-spicy salads, then tuck in to the house-made egg noodles swimming in a creamy coconut curry (with either seared scallops or crispy tofu). Round it out with a slice of delicate taro-pandan chiffon cake with egg custard and crispy fried shallot garnish for good measure.

George

111 Queen St. E., unit C, georgeonqueen.com

Lunch: $55; dinner: $75

Located inside a refurbished 19th-century chocolate factory, this Old Toronto bistro has been recommended by Michelin every year since the guide came to Toronto in 2022. Make the most of Summerlicious by dining on their secluded courtyard patio.

Highlights: Start a dinner here with something light, like the delicate ocean trout, then go all in with a main of beef tenderloin, and finish strong with the strawberry coconut pavlova or lemon meringue tart. Those who want to splurge can pay extra for wine pairings curated for each course by George’s house sommelier.

Indian Street Food Co.

1701 Bayview Ave., indianstreetfoodco.com

Lunch: $34; dinner: $45

Punchy curries and crispy chaat earned this Leaside restaurant—which is inspired by the coffee shops of Delhi and Mumbai—a coveted Bib Gourmand.

Highlights: You can’t go wrong with any of the street-food-style apps, like the palak ki shami with apricot chutney. Follow this up with the meen moilee, a creamy fish curry. Finally, sweet and tender gulab jamun in a floral syrup will send you into a blissful food coma.

Sara

98 Portland St., sara.restaurant

Dinner: $75

Sara’s soothing minimalist aesthetic, steepled ceilings, pale wood and neutral tones make a perfect clean slate for savouring their flavour-packed, globally inspired dishes. Take advantage of your table’s hidden phone compartment to stash your cell and be fully present.

Highlights: To start, we’d suggest either the vegan chopped salad or the Wagyu reuben with gruyère and truffle mustard. Then go for the fried chicken—as much for the harissa hot sauce and honey sumac as for the actual protein. Finally, take advantage of the tail end of rhubarb season with the frangipane tart and frozen sweet cream. (And don’t forget your phone on the way out.)

Taline

1276 Yonge St., talineto.com

Dinner: $75

In 2023, three brothers came together to found this Yonge and St. Clair kitchen, named after their late mother as a tribute to her and her cooking. Since then, Taline has earned a Michelin recommendation for its modern twists on traditional Armenian and Lebanese dishes.

Highlights: Start with the trio of bright and savoury dips—hummus, baba ghanouj and banru. From there, go for the kaghamp, a wedge of seared and braised cabbage with caramelized fennel tahini and pumpkin seeds for texture. Round it all out with some nutty tahini halva and an Armenian coffee.