/
1x
Advertisement
Proudly Canadian, obsessively Toronto. Subscribe to Toronto Life!
Food & Drink

The Mad Italian closes its doors after sane moment of epiphany

By Jon Sufrin
Add as preferred on Google(opens in a new tab)
Copy link
The Little Italy location of The Mad Italian (Image: Jon Sufrin)

The Mad Italian Gelato Bar seemed to be on an upward trajectory over the past few years, having expanded twice from its original Leaside location (first to Little Italy in 2011, then to the Danforth in 2012). But owner Eli Turkienicz has confirmed with us that the business is finished, and that all three locations are now closed.

Turkienicz says that a poor economy was a deciding factor in closing the business. “It was losing too much money,” he says.

In addition to its gelato, The Mad Italian was known for its pizza cone (a.k.a the Zazzu), an oddball food item that managed to get a good amount of media attention. As for Turkienicz, he says he’ll likely have some new projects on the go soon, but has nothing specific in the works just yet.

Advertisement
Advertisement

The Latest

Mark Carney hasn't yet formed an opinion on the Ford government's island airport expansion plan
City News

Mark Carney hasn’t yet formed an opinion on the Ford government’s island airport expansion plan

Inside the Latest Issue

The June issue of Toronto Life features the best new restaurants of 2026. Plus, our obsessive coverage of everything that matters now in the city.