Reasons to Love Toronto: No. 5, because these 21 new businesses opened on Roncesvalles

By Rachel Heinrichs | Photo illustration by Bradley Reinhardt | Photographs by Hudson Hayden

Every weekend, the sidewalks of Roncesvalles Avenue are jammed with strollers, tethered dogs and couples in heated debate over which of the six new brunch spots is worth the lineup. It’s a frenetic scene few west-enders could have imagined a year ago, when construction cut off transit to the strip and struggling businesses seemed to close every other week. The sewer mains and streetcar tracks were finally replaced last spring, and the empty spaces left behind filled up in a whirl of openings. The new low-key restaurants and shops blend in effortlessly with the old-school produce stands and Polish butchers. And promising, papered-over windows spark constant neighbourhood speculation. Here, a tour of a street in triumphant transition.