There are places to eat during TIFF if you want to foster your parasocial relationships with celebrities or befriend a high-powered executive who might finally read that script you’ve been working on. But for festivalgoers who just want a decent meal from a non-chain restaurant before or after a screening, there are some good options around festival central where the focus is more on the food than the scene. Here are four of my favourite places to grab a bite, regardless of when the movie starts.
El Pacho Coffee Roasters
40 University Ave. Unit 8
Starbucks and Tim Hortons are plentiful around Roy Thomson Hall, but in the spirit of supporting Canadian independent cinema, get your morning buzz from an independent café. Open every day from 7 a.m. to 6 p.m. — unlike many cafés in this area, which close on weekends — El Pacho serves the requisite lattes and espresso shots, along with house-baked pastries that include the less commonly seen poppyseed-stuffed croissant. It’s just a block east of David Pecaut Square and within walking distance of St. Andrew and Union subway stations, but far enough from festival central that you can grab a table and recharge for a few minutes.
RaviSoups
When it comes to institutions in the Entertainment District, RaviSoups should be one of them. The soup, salad and wrap restaurant has been feeding a generation of harried office workers at lunch and dinner, long before the arrival of food-court grain bowls (and Ravi’s are much tastier). Since its founder and head chef, Ravi Kanagarajah, died, the restaurant’s multiple locations have dwindled to just this one, still owned and operated by Kanagarajah’s surviving family. The menu remains unchanged. The curried apricot and lentil soup is a comforting hug, while the Ravi Raw Salad — spinach, napa cabbage, mango, pineapple, cilantro, crispy shallots and green aioli — makes for a filling but light lunch that won’t put you to sleep when the theatre lights go down.
Sumaq Iraqi Charcoal Grill
The Scarborough shawarma destination became even more crowded after American TikTok food creator Keith Lee highlighted the spot in 2024, much to the dismay of regulars who were already accustomed to long waits. (The Star also included Sumaq on its Top 100 Under $100 Restaurants list this year.) To their relief, a larger downtown outpost opened this summer, serving lunch, dinner and food well after dinner: until 1 a.m. most days and 3 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays. The ultra-juicy chicken shawarma, served with house-made, delicately stretchy and blistered tanoor bread, makes for an ideal affordable meal — especially if you’ve already blown your money on premium movie tickets.
Mizzica Gelateria & Cafe
Just a short walk from the heart of TIFF on King West, this Italian gelato shop has an origin story worth of a cinematic meet-cute: its owners first clashed over who made better pistachio gelato while working at two different gelato shops, then fell in love and opened their own store. It’s one of the few late-night dessert options in the area, with summer hours extending until 11 p.m. and midnight on Fridays and Saturdays, making it ideal for evening screenings. (They’re also open as early as 7 a.m. on weekdays.) The menu incorporates Ontario produce, but also try their signature Sicilia: luxurious ricotta gelato with chocolate chips, crushed pistachios and a layer of pistachio crème.
