Pro: The city has more neighbourhood sandwich shops. Con: They’ll cost you $20. Pro: Funky new matcha drinks are everywhere. Con: So are lattes with 20 g of unnecessary protein. There’s no good news without the bad, and 2025 was a year of both. From “affordable luxury” to cursed transit lines, here is a look at the highs, lows and whoas of Toronto’s culinary scene.
Highs
Bewitched by the sandwich
You might not be dropping $200 on a sit-down dinner, but splurging $20 or $30 on a fancy lunch date is a bit easier to stomach in this economy. Enter the year of sandwich spots proliferating (mostly) downtown neighbourhoods. They’re more high-end than the decades-old, cash-only sub spots and banh mi joints that have achieved loveable-dive status. Rather they’re places where young chefs make breakfast sandwiches with housemade sausage patties and reinterpret Italian-American classics. They match what’s popular in Toronto dining nowadays: casual and comforting flavours, but still in the “affordable luxury” category. Plus, as takeout and food delivery continues to grow, sandwiches fit the bill as something that’s easily transportable and doesn’t require a big kitchen space to produce.
Of the places that opened this year alone, in the east end, Slammie Sammies opened on Eastern Avenue in October. Leslieville, in particular, saw a flurry of new openings, including Masa Deli in May, Elm Street Italian Deli in November, and Ôi Bánh Mì in December.
Westward, Alfie’s Italian sandwiches in Baldwin Village became a hit with TikTokers. Linny’s Luncheonette started serving pastrami on Ossington in May. Tutto Panino dished out red-sauce-style sandwiches in Roncesvalles, also in May. Uncle Pete’s Bread Co.’s focaccia sandwiches popped up in Kensington Market in August. And Micro Italian Sandwiches may be the last focaccia-focused opening of the year, with its giant sandwiches landing on Queen West in December.
Finch LRT finally opens
I’m cautiously optimistic that the Finch West LRT will make visiting restaurants along Finch Avenue West easier in the coming months, assuming these babies run faster sooner than later. A missed opportunity not to name one of the stops after Plaza Latina, the standalone building home to many Latin American restaurants and food stalls that’s one of the most well-known destinations on that stretch.
Won’t you be my neighbour?
Soon there will be more options beyond running to Shoppers Drug Mart for a chocolate bar or a can of pop. In November, the city approved the construction of corner stores on select residential streets for the first time since 1959.
Whether Toronto’s corner stores will ever achieve the magnificence of Japan’s konbinis remains to be seen, but we have a lot of catching up to do.
I Am (Buying) Canadian
Whether out of spite or patriotism, the public is now more aware of where their food is coming from and is wants buy more locally made and owned products. The Star reported independent grocers in the city seeing a spike in first-time visits this past spring as interest in Ontario-grown produce grew, but a lot of other retailers still say while there’s an interest, it hasn’t translated into sales just yet, according a piece from the Canadian Press. Big-chain supermarkets have also responded, putting up Made In Canada signs as fast as Marshall’s rolling in holiday merch in the fall, but be mindful of the maple-washing, as the Star has a handy guide on how to read your labels.
Fahmee reopens in Scarborough
Considering how much Torontonians proved their love for the Jamaican beef patty this year, it’s worth highlighting that the longstanding Fahmee bakery moved from the west-end back to Scarborough in October, setting up in a former McDonald’s at Malvern Town Centre and expanding its menu to include breads and cookies. A beloved local business replacing an international chain? A high!
Lows
Do you even protein, bro?
Everything was low-fat in the ’90s. In the 2000s, it was all about antioxidants. This year, we pivoted hard to protein.
Tim Hortons introduced protein lattes in August. Starbucks followed in September with iced protein lattes containing up to 36 grams of protein. At the grocery store, you can now buy Neilson’s protein milk with 18 grams per cup, along with Silk’s protein soy milk.
For the record: unless your doctor says otherwise, the typical North American diet already meets the daily need for protein, according to the Associated Press. The Star also looked into the protein trend amongst women and found that the benefits of protein wane once you go over a certain amount in a day.
Little Italy gets one less Italian biz
Sure the downtown area has seen an influx of new Italian sandwich places, but one of the OG spots won’t be seeing 2026. The original location of San Francesco Foods at 10 Clinton St. closed for good this month after more than 70 years, back when College Street was swimming with Italian businesses. It’s other location in Mississauga remains open. We love to keep up with what’s new and fresh, but don’t forget to visit the reliable standby spots!
Restaurants? In this economy?
Diners continued to cut back on eating out this year (or lowered the bar on what they consider a splurge) amid ongoing cost-of-living concerns. The latest Food Price Report compiled by multiple Canadian universities suggest the average Canadian family will spend an additional $1,000 on food next year.
At the same time, menu prices kept climbing (remember the $41 roasted cauliflower?) due to rising ingredient and labour costs, higher rents, and delivery apps and credit card companies taking a cut of every sale.
Where are you, Eglinton LRT?
The Crosstown project is so cursed — uh, beleaguered — that the Star’s site has a devoted section to the mess (complete with “Archives” of when the project was first announced in 2009). While the Finch line has finally opened, Eglinton missed yet another projected opening date this year, much to the chagrin of businesses affected by the years-long delay, especially those in Little Jamaica.
Whoas
Delivery apps have changed everything
Ghost kitchens, disappearing dining rooms and delivery bikes crisscrossing the city, what many assumed were temporary pandemic-era fixes have become permanent fixtures.
On one hand, being able to order almost any meal straight to your door has increased accessibility for many diners. On the other, it has reshaped restaurant business models and menus, while creating a class of underpaid workers subsidizing our convenience. Whether you use them or not, delivery apps are changing how we consume food.
Matcha 2.0
Global demand has strained matcha supplies in Japan this year, as green tea drinks saw a resurgence. Matcha lattes have been around for years now, but recently there have been more creative iterations. Neo Coffee Bar introduced a matcha-berry latte. Plearn offers matcha mixed with orange juice, plus a layered drink with cheese foam and butterfly pea tea resembling a Windows 95-era screensaver. Vietnom’s Bathurst location serves matcha lemonade and a DIY option, letting customers layer a matcha latte base with flavoured cream foams like ube, pandan and salted cheese.
Totes and bears takeover
Last year the internet went through Stanley cup fever (the metal tumbler, not hockey). This year, the hottest food-adjacent accessories for us normies were a Trader Joe’s canvas tote bag and, sneaking in last month, a bear-shaped glass tumbler from Starbucks that sold out immediately. Like the Stanley cup, these “it” items have that sweet spot of attainable aspiration. Unlike say, a Birken bag that can cost tens of thousands of dollars and a year-long waitlist, a bear-shaped tumbler can be had for under $50 (still pricey for a cup, but you get my point). In theory anyone can get the cup, but the very limited supply set by the company elevates it to a status symbol. Don’t fret if you couldn’t get a bear cup, I’m already seeing Trader Joe’s bags being discounted on my Facebook marketplace feed.
Sushi Masaki Saito loses a Michelin Star
Since the Michelin Guide started covering Toronto in 2022, the Yorkville omakase restaurant, where a meal costs $780 per person, was the only two-starred spot (three stars is the highest). But this year, attendees were surprised to hear it lost a star, especially since a documentary on chef Masaki Saito premiered at TIFF just weeks earlier. Restaurant Pearl Morissette in Jordan Station, however, moved from one star to two. Most diners won’t be visiting these spots soon, but any Michelin recognition is still a major PR boost in the high-stakes world of fine dining.
