Five Toronto restaurants bringing back the power lunch

When Covid emptied out the core and sent office workers home, lunch was one of the first casualties. As the world reopened, desk sandwiches and grab-and-go salads stuck around, but Toronto’s power lunches—the lingering, booze-soaked midday indulgences—had all but vanished. Now, with dinner prices climbing and diners craving a more accessible sense of occasion, lunch is making a confident comeback. Across the city, restaurants are reviving their lunch menus—some for the first time, others dusting off pre-pandemic programs. The result? Tasting menus, leisurely cocktails and plenty of reasons not to pack a lunch. Here, five of these new menus and what their makers have to say about them.

Bar Isabel

For a sort-of state-mandated Spanish lunch

Back in the ’60s, the Spanish government mandated affordable, fixed-price lunches known as menú del día. Though the law was repealed in 2010 and the tradition has faded, you can still get a taste of it at Bar Isabel. Their $69 Saturday lunch for two is a choose-your-own-adventure spread of Iberian hits: shishito peppers, pan con tomate, and a choice of chorizo ibérico or manchego followed by patatas bravas and one of three mains (octopus with lemony dandelion greens, cider-glazed pork jowl secreto, or maitake and oyster mushrooms with cured egg yolk). Dessert is Basque cake with hot sherry cream. Boozy bonus: classic Spanish cocktails like Tinto de Verano and Rebujito are half price. Served Saturdays only, from noon to 3:59 p.m.

“Toronto doesn’t have a real lunch culture—not like in Europe, where long, wine-soaked midday meals are the norm. Here, lunch is often rushed or skipped, and post-pandemic, with overall drinking down, it’s lost even more ground. Restaurants have long relied on alcohol sales to make margins, but that model doesn’t hold when no one’s ordering a bottle at noon. At the same time, dinner has become prohibitively expensive, and people—especially parents, older diners and anyone who wants to be in bed by 10 p.m.—are looking for something more accessible. Lunch fills that gap. At Bar Isabel, we’ve seen the shift: earlier bookings and a hunger for meals that feel indulgent without breaking the bank. The demand is there—the challenge now is making the economics work. At 12 years old, we don’t need to prove ourselves, but we do need to evolve.” —Alessandro Pietropaolo, operating partner

Enigma Yorkville

For a Michelin-starred five-course feast

Chef Quinton Bennett’s recently launched Friday and Saturday lunchtime tasting menu mirrors Enigma’s dinner, just in a tighter frame: 10 courses becomes five (restraint is relative). The $165-per-person meal toggles between drama and discipline. One dish arrives cloaked in dry-ice mist (citrus-cured steelhead salmon under a beetroot-and-gin gel veil, finished with horseradish snow and a smoky oyster emulsion) while the next keeps it quiet, like slow-cooked Ontario lamb neck, simply plated but rich with umami from twice-preserved capers. There’s a full ABV-free pairing and an excellent sommelier ready with recommendations for the it’s-five-o’clock-somewhere crowd.

“I don’t see much of a lunch culture in Toronto compared with places like London or New York—here, people seem more inclined to quickly grab coffee instead of having a sit-down meal. Introducing lunch at Enigma didn’t mean dialling things down just because it’s daytime. I saw a gap—nobody else was doing a tasting menu at lunch, so we stepped into it without compromising quality or experience. Since we’re not in the Financial District, we strategically picked Fridays and Saturdays to align with retail and shopping hours, when people have the time to slow down and indulge. Lunch isn’t secondary—it’s a chance to innovate, test new dishes and keep pushing the envelope. We’re seeing young parents, who might find dinner challenging with kids, come in to enjoy a luxurious daytime experience that’s more accessible.” —Quinton Bennett, chef-owner

Vinoteca Pompette

For a long lunch and a short espresso (martini)

Since opening in March of 2020, Vinoteca Pompette has had to reinvent itself more times than Snoop Dogg. Its latest iteration swaps its previously French menu for comforting Italian—a fitting shift for its Little Italy address. Lunch brings lighter fare, like a zesty bean-and-grain salad alongside a lineup of excellent house-made pastas. The standout: pappardelle with Venetian duck confit ragù, slow-cooked with warm spices and finished with parmigiano-reggiano. On weekends, the kitchen runs a daytime menu that strays from the boot with classic brunch bangers (curried avocado toast) and throwback favourites (Pompette’s pandemic-era steak-au-poivre burger). Coffee shop staples cater to the breakfast crowd, but those after something stronger can spring for a house cocktail—perhaps an espresso martini with grappa and parmesan syrup for a savoury-sweet sip. Served Friday to Sunday, 11 a.m. to 2:30 p.m.

“When we moved from France, we were surprised to see how little lunch culture existed in Toronto. We haven’t been here long enough to know if this is a recent shift or just part of the city’s DNA, but our impression is that leisurely lunches have never been big here apart from in the Financial District. We decided to open for lunch because we were seeing a growing demand and wanted to bring more life to the neighbourhood. At Pompette, our vision has always been about creating a dynamic, lively space. Opening for lunch on weekends reinforces this identity—completing the full-day journey we offer, from mornings at the bakery to pre-dinner drinks at the bar to dinner at the restaurant.” —Martine Bauer, chef and co-owner

Harbour 60

For unapologetic midday decadence

A steakhouse with gold-rimmed plates isn’t the place to feign virtue by ordering a salad, though even the wedge here—crowned with Bleu d’Auvergne, smoked buttermilk dressing, pickled onions and crisp bacon—isn’t exactly penitent. Harbour 60, fresh from a 10-month-long facelift, runs the same unapologetically indulgent menu all day, making it ideal for luxurious lunches. Sure, there’s seafood, but this is a steakhouse, and nothing says midday indulgence quite like steak frites. Go full throttle with the A5 Kobe strip loin ($275), gilded with truffle fries, or dial it back (a bit) with an impeccably juicy sirloin–short rib blend burger ($40). For those seeking indulgence without totally tanking afternoon productivity, the crudo selection of dry-aged fish offers lighter fare without skimping on flavour. The Japanese sea bream, sliced paper-thin and paired with curry foam, crisp celtuce and young coconut, is particularly fabulous. Served Monday to Friday.

“Leisurely lunches started losing favour even before the pandemic, as health consciousness became more fashionable. But, once Covid hit and the office landscape shifted, lunch habits really fell off. Now, they’re making a comeback, with more restaurants offering health-conscious options, non-alcoholic drinks and time-sensitive prix fixe menus that let diners enjoy the restaurant experience without overindulging. We’re just outside the downtown core, where lunches are faster affairs—our crowd leans in to longer, more indulgent midday meals, often accompanied by wine or cocktails.” —Jeremy Geyer, director of operations

Lucie

Best for liberté, égalité, fraternité (and foie gras)

In a city where everyone is sprinting between meetings, taking two hours for lunch feels quietly radical. Yannick Bigourdan is betting that Bay Street is ready for a soft rebellion—or at least a moment of flânerie, that distinctly French art of purposeful lingering. The midday prix fixe at Lucie comes in two forms: a condensed three-course menu ($75) for those feigning urgency and a four-course tasting ($125) for anyone embracing their inner Baudelaire. It starts with an amuse-bouche, ends with mignardises and in between delivers polished French fare with a modern edge: roasted lingcod with lemon mousseline, squab in port reduction or a show-stopping pithivier—foie gras and Ontario beef tenderloin wrapped in golden pastry (think dialled-up beef Wellington). It’s the kind of lunch that makes the rest of the day’s schedule feel negotiable. Served Monday to Friday until 2 p.m.

“Leisure lunches slowly faded as our fast-paced world began to prioritize efficiency over experience. Remote work, packed schedules and a culture of eating on the go made dining feel transactional rather than meaningful—especially in Toronto’s downtown core, where long, indulgent midday meals became a luxury few felt they could afford. But now there’s a renewed desire to slow down and reconnect. People are rediscovering the joy of sharing a meal, of turning lunch into an occasion.” —Yannick Bigourdan, owner