Urban living can't be truly complete without easy access to some good places to eat. With about 3 million residents populating Toronto, and both the city itself and greater metro area on track to continue growing, there’s no shortage of wonderful restaurants in the area.
Toronto offers a wide diversity of tastes and cultures, which makes for a fantastic dining experience. Here is our list of the best restaurants in downtown Toronto that will be sure to provide a new, delightful experience every time.
1. George Restaurant
George Restaurant frequently tops lists of the best fine dining restaurants in all of Toronto, and upon entering, it’s immediately clear why. The sophisticated and classy air of the restaurant itself matches perfectly with its elaborate multi-course menus. With dishes that are as visually alluring as they are delectable, it's no surprise that George Restaurant employs one of the highest-regarded chefs in the country, Lorenzo Loseto. It's an excellent choice for a business lunch or an elegant night out.
2. Richmond Station
Head chef Carl Heinrich used his winnings from Top Chef Canada to open Richmond Station. With his talent and the dedication and drive of the staff surrounding him, the restaurant rose to become one of the most consistently celebrated places to eat in all of Toronto. The seasonal variations in the menu at Richmond Station always provide patrons with something new and appetizing, but these are also balanced out by long-standing classics like their famous cucumber salad or Station Burger. Since Richmond Station is located right in the heart of downtown Toronto, you’ll have plenty to do after eating.
If you’re looking for new tastes to surprise and delight your taste buds, Richmond Station is the place to go. This restaurant takes pride in it’s ingredient-focused approach, meaning it finds the most unique and interesting ingredients to build its dishes around. Not only will it be totally delicious, each dish will be a completely new and thrilling experience.
3. Drake One Fifty
Drake One Fifty boasts an enormous facility with eye-catching art plastered all over the walls. The area is so large, in fact, that the restaurant frequently hosts live music and other events. Accommodating weddings, birthdays or other large gatherings is no problem either. Beyond this, Drake One Fifty offers you intricate pastas, salads and other dishes to eat, as well as many wines, cocktails and desserts.
4. Leña Restaurante
As yet another indication of the sheer diversity of restaurant styles present in Toronto, we have Leña Restaurante, a restaurant that blends the elegant and causal with a taste of Buenos Aires. Usually open from early morning until midnight, Leña provides guests with a casual lounge in which to enjoy breakfast and lunch and a sumptuous dining room in which to have dinner. Leña also offers wine-lovers half-priced wine bottles every Tuesday.
5. The Keg Steakhouse + Bar
Though its primary focus is on steaks and seafood such as salmon or shellfish, the Keg offers visitors much else. It mixes a club-like setting with a relaxed and casual air. Salads, shrimp, burgers, ribs, calamari, cheesecake and more can all be had here. As you might expect for a bar, a wide selection of wines, beers, vodkas, martinis, margaritas, bourbons and much else is also available.
6. Byblos
If Mediterranean food is what flares up your appetite, you’ll quickly see that Byblos is difficult to beat in that department. With its elegant two-story layout and wide selection of cocktails and wines, Byblos finds a way to put modern flourishes on classic Mediterranean recipes. The kibbeh, octopus, m’taabal, lamb ribs and more will all leave your mouth watering.
7. Miku
Located right in the middle of the office district south of the Gardiner, this massive 180-seat Japanese restaurant has been a coveted destination since almost the very instant that it opened. Its setting boasts impressively high ceilings. However, the exotic flame-seared sushi is the undisputed centrepiece here. It comes loaded with everything — ocean trout, okra, shima-aji and black truffle.
8. Pai Northern Thai Kitchen
As perhaps the best-rated Thai restaurant in downtown Toronto, Pai serves an impressive series of alluring and delectable dishes. You'll find everything from tom yum soup, pad Thai and panning fish to red curry chicken and green Thai curry on the menu. Wait time can sometimes be a bit long, especially when the restaurant is crammed during primetime, but the wait is well worth it.
9. Carisma
Carisma is a romantic, elegant Italian restaurant with a separate bar area and a deep-seated 1920s-era ambience that can take you back to another world. As is to be expected from a high-end Italian restaurant, it has an extensive list of Tuscan wines to cleanse your palate after you dine on pasta, New York steak and an equate collection of cheese. Carisma is an especially elegant destination for those looking to go on a romantic date.
10. Adega Restaurante
Adega Restaurante is a classy place for seafood lovers to indulge their palates. With its dimmed lighting creating a unique ambience and a list of excellent Spanish and Portuguese wines to wash down your dinner, Adega’s menu will leave your taste buds singing.
Give Each of the Best Restaurants in Downtown Toronto a Try
Whether you’re just visiting Toronto or looking to create a life there, make sure to take advantage of the wide diversity and quality of the best restaurants in downtown Toronto. The culinary scene certainly does not disappoint! For those working or living nearby, the food is definitely one of the shining features of this amazing city.
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