• Home
  • About Carol
  • About us

Luxury Travel Magazine

An unpretentious guide to luxury travel, culture and adventure

  • About Luxury travel
  • Destinations
  • Spas
    • The Spa and Spa Travel
    • Hot Springs Spas and Thermal Baths: Why You Should Visit One
    • Spa Towns in Europe – 8 Reasons You Should Visit
  • Popular Articles
    • Things to Do in Canada
    • Top European Destinations
    • Things to Do in the South of France
    • Travel and Art: Artistic Cities, Art Fairs and Painting Holidays
  • Privacy Policy
  • Contact
Luxury travel blog » Places » North America » Canada » Ontario » Toronto » East Toronto restaurants, where to eat in Riverside and Corktown

East Toronto restaurants, where to eat in Riverside and Corktown

November 2, 2018 by Carol Perehudoff 2 Comments

This post may contain affiliate links.

If you’re wondering where to eat in Toronto’s East End, check out the happening areas of Riverside and Corktown. Here’s a bit about the area and a selection of East Toronto restaurants to visit.

pastries from roselle east toronto restaurant

 

Toronto’s East End

“I’m carrying a birthday balloon and I just peed my pants,” a woman says as she speed walks by on Queen Street near Broadview, a blue balloon bobbing behind her.

Okay, I’m thinking. Toronto’s east side hasn’t lost its edge.

But, as I walk into the Broadview Hotel, a luxe boutique hotel that has emerged from the husk of Jilly’s Strip Club in Toronto’s Riverside district, it’s clear that up-to-the-moment restaurants and hipster hangouts are now co-existing with the neighbourhood’s ‘earthier’ character.

Where are the Toronto areas of Riverside and Corktown? Riverside is between Corktown and Leslieville on Toronto’s East Side, roughly ringed by Gerrard St to the north, Booth Avenue to the east, Eastern Avenue to the south and the Don Valley to the west. Corktown is south of Regent Park, north of the Gardiner Expressway, east of Parliament and west of the Don River.

Where to eat in Riverside and Corktown

With a bit of grit, a bit of gleam, and a growing number of restaurants where locally-sourced produce and premium ingredients are the rule not the exception, Riverside and Corktown are two of the burgeoning food areas on Toronto’s East Side, two revitalized neighbourhoods where new condo developments rub shoulders with former working-class row houses that now can go for over a million a pop.

Did you know? You can do a Toronto food tour including Riverside and Leslieville with Culinary Adventure Co.

Today, Riverside and Corktown have a buzzing food and drink scene, and if you’re wondering which East Toronto restaurants to try, here are some places to check out.

Where to eat east side Toronto Broadview Hotel

Broadview Hotel cafe

 

The Broadview Hotel

The Broadview Hotel at Queen and Broadview (106 Broadview Ave) makes an easy focal point for any food exploration of Riverside. A red brick landmark that combines historic architecture with the hum of today, the Broadview has been meticulously restored.

Its terra cotta relief sculptures gleam, brass and black tones in the lobby add an elegant Art Nouveau splash and the cheeky No Vacancy sign on the rooftop terrace and pink neon outline of a woman’s face in the street-level Cafe proclaim the hotel’s sense of whimsy.

Where to eat at the Broadview

There are three places to eat and drink in Toronto’s Broadview Hotel. On the pricy side is the Victorian-era Civic Restaurant that offers a contemporary take on traditional cuisine. In the more informal Cafe you can nibble a flaked warm smoked salmon salad or sip a latte, while the rooftop bar is the place to enjoy year-round skyline views.

Merchants of Green Coffee, where to hang out in Toronto's east side

 

Merchants of Green Coffee

Did you know roasted coffee beans go stale after a week? I didn’t, not until I visited Merchants of Green Coffee at 2 Matilda Street. Located in a former jam factory, this cafe and coffee shop elevates the art of drinking coffee to a cult-like extravaganza.

In fact, I almost feel I should be bowing down to the drip as I watch the freshly-roasted coffee make its way through the organic cotton filter and into my cup.

Between the rich aromas wafting about the room, freshly-baked scones and rustic wooden floor and beams, it’s clear to see why Merchants of Green Coffee attracts a hyper local crowd as well coffee devotees from around Toronto who like their fair trade single-origin beans roasted daily. It’s addictive.

It’s also has a nice stay-awhile vibe if you’re looking for places to go and things to do in Toronto in winter.

East Toronto restaurants Dominion Pub and Kitchen

Dominion Pub and Kitchen

 

Dominion Pub and Kitchen

Dominion Pub and Kitchen at 500 Queen Street East, is a solid stop for craft beer (and cocktails), with 24 different beers on tap and another 20 by the bottle. While I enjoyed my Queen Street 501 cider, made with a blend of Ontario heritage apples, it was Henderson’s Best that grabbed my tastebuds, an amber ale with an almost floral aftertaste.

Dominion’s menu also offers snackable foods such as Buffalo cauliflower bites, hand-cut fries with parmesan and truffle oil, and Fish n’ Chips battered in Mill St. organic beer.

Where to eat in East Toronto Impact Kitchen

Impact Kitchen

 

Impact Kitchen

If I could get my husband to skip going to Impact Kitchen at 573 King St East just once after our regular Saturday workout, I’d be able to check out a lot more East Toronto restaurants. But for a healthy lunch, Impact is one of Toronto’s best East Side stops and, not surprisingly, was founded by a former personal trainer. This casual counter-service eatery has plenty of seating, a gluten-free menu and straight-up simple dishes such as Macro Bowls and Lean Bowls with or without added meat or fish.

My go to option is Wild, a dish of wild rice, grilled asparagus, marinated red cabbage, radish, pumpkin seeds, and ‘sweety’ drop peppers, though it gets pricy once you add salmon, a Summer Greens smoothie and gluten-free donut on the side. (And, okay. Maybe a slice of banana bread too. I get hungry.)

Where to eat in Toronto east side Tabule Riverside

Tabule Riverside

 

Souk Tabule

Known for its falafels that stay crispy on the outside and soft on the inside while being the size of savoury snowballs (okay, not quite that big), Tabule is a fav with fans of Middle Eastern cuisine. Overlooking Corktown Commons, a new 18-acre waterfront park, Souk Tabule at 494 Front Street East is part of the Canary District, a newly-developed lakeside land of glass condos, street art and young urban professionals.

East Toronto pastry shop Roselle

 

Roselle

Roselle Desserts is the local destination for French-inspired pastries. Best relished slowly, they’re as good to look at as they are to eat.  This tiny pastel-coloured pastry shop at 362 King Street East is the love child of Bruce Lee and Stephanie Duong, who bonded over a love for culinary arts (and probably eclairs, if their signature banana cream eclairs are anything to go by), honing their craft in Paris and Hong Kong.

So there you have it, a few East Toronto restaurants that are sure to get your taste buds dancing and give you a feel for the vibrant districts of Riverside and Corktown. You can visit the Toronto Tourism website for more local foodie destinations or read Top 10 places to hang out in Toronto.

Filed Under: Culinary Tourism, Toronto

About Carol Perehudoff

A former freelance travel columnist for the Toronto Star, Carol has won more than 20 writing and blogging awards and honours. A spa and luxury travel expert, she's written for top travel publications around the globe.

Comments

  1. Carol Perehudoff says

    November 13, 2018 at 1:23 pm

    Thanks for your insightful comments, Jan. Really helpful. I’ve put White Lily on my list of places to try.

  2. Jan Vogels says

    November 13, 2018 at 12:42 pm

    Very nice article — I’m always happy when people shed some light on my part of town!

    I would urge you to try White Lily diner and add it to your list if you love it, which I think any sensible person would.

    In my opinion White Lily is the best restaurant in Riverside and Corktown by a comfortable margin.

    Core (896 Queen St E,) was also quite good the one time I went there.

    Roselle is also amazing.

    Souk’s falafel are delicious. Get them fried, not baked.

    The Dominion Pub & Kitchen is a FAB concepts pub (Murphy’s Law, Foggy Dew, Pogue Mahone, etc). It was previously an independently owned pub called The Dominion on Queen from 1998 – 2014 before FAB took it over. The building itself originally opened as a hotel in 1889.

    The Dominion is fine for beers and tater tots, but I don’t fancy it for a place to have a meal.

Talk to me! Leave a comment Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Search

Subscribe and you won't miss an article!

About Wandering Carol

circle profileIn my 10+ years as a travel writer and columnist I've seen the best of what the world has to offer and written for some top publications around the globe - and now my goal is to bring this expertise to you. For more blah blah blah, visit my
About page.

Connect with me online

  • Facebook
  • Google+
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest
  • RSS
  • Twitter
Carol Perehudoff published in top media, logos for newspapers and magazines

Categories

How to use this adventure and luxury travel site

  • Click on the ‘DESTINATIONS TO TRAVEL TO’ tab on the menu bar to go to my destinations page.
  • The CATEGORIES drop down menu above will point you to locations and travel themes such as hotels, outdoor adventure and tours.
  • SUBSCRIBE to keep up with the latest articles and get tips to make your next journey inspiring.

Recent Posts

  • The Benefits of Travelling
  • Killarney National Park
  • Best Spas in Ireland
  • Best Beach Resorts in South Africa: Top 9 Luxury Stays for 2021
  • A Chocolate Christmas in Switzerland

Recent Comments

  • Eileen Flaherty on 15 best things to do in Nice, France
  • Michele on Best Spas in Ireland
  • Emam on Conwy Castle, North Wales: why you should visit
  • Tee on Bad Kreuznach – the German Spa Town You Probably Never Heard of
  • Carol Perehudoff on A Tropical Island Cocktail Cure at Paradisus Palma Real

Terms of Use

Terms of Use

Copyright @2020 WanderingCarol.com Luxury Travel Blog