Toronto Restaurants: Celeb Recommendations, Local Faves Closing Down & New Fast Food Spots

It's been a busy start to the year, with many neighbourhood Toronto restaurants saying goodbye while others plan to bring new flavours to the city.

With the constant changes to the food scene in Toronto, it could be hard to keep up. But luckily for you, it's what we're here for. Even though some restaurants close their doors, it also allows new favourites to be brought to life.

Here's what's new with Toronto restaurants this week.

Closing Toronto restaurants

Let's start by mentioning some of the restaurants that are leaving Toronto behind and have said goodbye to its members of the community.

• Founder on Dundas Street West, known for its delicious food and cocktails, has decided to say goodbye after serving Torontonians for five years. They officially shut their doors on December 29 but have left a hole in people's hearts.

• Headspace is a Toronto coffee shop that opened nearly a year ago, serving coffee during the day and wine at night. After almost 10 months of being in the city, it has already called it quits.

• For people who live close to Yorkdale Mall, you'll be sad to know that Craig's Cookies closed that location after being a part of the community for two years. The famous cookie shop shared in an Instagram post that "due to renovations in the mall and lack of retail space, we are not able to extend our lease." However, they hope to be back once all the renovations are complete.

• The famous Starbucks kiosk at the Eaton Centre is also putting an end to its time there but plans to open two other locations in exchange for that space. Meanwhile, the Japanese coffee franchise, % Arabica, will take its spot in the atrium and fill in their shoes.

• Mark Wahlberg's famous burger restaurant, Wahlburgers, has decided to part ways after nine years in Toronto's Entertainment District. "The decision to close presented itself organically as an evolution of business and lifestyle in our beloved city; it just feels like now is the right time to say goodbye," the company shared in an Instagram post. But, if you're ever travelling, you can still grab a burger from the Toronto Pearson Airport location.

New fast food chains opening in Toronto

• A sandwich chain called Jimmy John's plans on opening its first Canadian location in the Greater Toronto Area in 2024. With over 2,000 restaurants opened in the U.S., this fast food chain is "the largest owned delivery sandwich brand," the company stated in a press release.

• Another sandwich chain called Jersey Mike's Subs plans to expand in Canada. It's a fast-casual sub-sandwich chain with over 3000 locations in the U.S., and it plans to open 300 locations in Canada by 2034. They have two restaurants open in London and Kitchener but hope to have more Ontario spots in 2024.

A former Toronto Maple Leaf's restaurant recommendations

If you want to dine like a pro athlete, former Toronto Maple Leaf Nazem Kadri recently shared his top spots to eat in the 6ix with Narcity and his favourite restaurants include:

• Harbour 60
• AP
• Sotto Sotto
• One Restaurant

Which restaurant are you most upset about closing down?