In case you missed it... check out Beauty and Fashion Expert John-Paul Ricchio's fun, frank and extremely personal interview with David Furnish, in support of the Elton John AIDS Foundation.
Spotted... brown paper in the windows in Mimico at 2385 Lakeshore Blvd West! Barrel House Korchma is a family-run Eastern European restaurant offering a selection of traditional menu items based off of their grandma's recipes. Just in time for Ukrainian Easter! Rosie :)
Katz's Deli closed on May 31st, 2019 after 49 years in business. Driving past the Cinespace productions studios on Kipling recently I noticed the iconic sign in the lot; it's been moved around the building a couple of times. I'm sure we will see it pop up in a film or TV show at some point. I was happy to see it there- it's destined for another adventure. Scroll down for a full review of one of my favourite delis ever. Miss those pickles! Rosie :)
**Originally published January 2019**
My dad and I have been eating our way through Toronto and the GTA since I was a little girl. Trying new restaurants was always a wonderful way to explore the city and discover new delicious places to eat. Recently we decided to embark on a deli crawl and check out every. single. deli. in. the. city. Where better to begin than Katz's on Dufferin?
The perfect deli lunch... corned beef on rye, pickles and a Vernors gingerale:
Knish special:
The deli salads and pickles all look so good. Coleslaw, potato, macaroni, carrot, cucumber, bean salad...
It's been there since before I was born and it's great. They have all the meats including beef tongue and they only use Canadian beef. They also only use Ontario cucumbers to make their amazing dill pickles. And they are good at the pickle-making- Katz's cranks out over 7000 pounds of pickles every year. The perfect way to start our Toronto deli crawl. Katz's is open Monday to Saturday 8:30am to 8:30pm at 3300 Dufferin Street. Rosie :)
The brown paper has been removed from the windows... On The Move Fresh Kitchen is about to open on the Queensway! It takes the place of Lucky's Cafe which did not survive 2020; it closed not long after the first pandemic lockdown. This corner has been dreary for awhile so it's wonderful to see a new restaurant about to open its doors.
On The Move Fresh Kitchen used to be a very popular food truck serving absolutely amazing Caribbean food. Just take a peek here at their Instagram feed to get an idea of their mouthwatering dishes like honey spicy shrimp and lemon pepper wings mac & cheese. Good luck getting yourself off that page, the food pics are fantastic. On The Move Fresh Kitchen is located at 715 The Queensway just east of Royal York. Rosie :)
Well this is exciting. There is the original, beloved Gus Tacos in Kensington Market, on Augusta. Then owners Emilio Morales and Augustine Morales opened another Gus at Bloor and Dufferin, on Gladstone (this location opened last year in the middle of the pandemic, with a focus on takeout and food delivery.) Now a third location is coming to Parkdale, on Queen West just east of Roncesvalles. There's the brown paper. It's happening!
The Gus Tacos Instagram page is an glorious feed of colourful taco joy, check it out if you need a distraction and a reminder of better things to come... chilaca tacos, beer and margaritas on a sunny patio. Rosie :)
Toronto restaurants that opened their patios a couple of weeks ago had to quickly close them again as the third wave of the pandemic fills up ICUs. It's a terribly uncertain time, and tough to watch so many businesses close down in the city. On a hopeful note, there's also many "coming soon" signs spotted in windows. It's always exciting to see that encouraging brown paper, signaling something fun and new is on the way to the neighbourhoood:
With that in mind, the Scoop is going to highlight new restaurant openings in Toronto, so these new businesses are on our radars and we can support them when it's time. Meza Resto Bar is a Mediterranean restaurant that will be serving up seafood, steaks and live music at 664 The Queensway. The exterior of the building was recently painted a beautiful white with blue accents, replacing Luci restaurant that closed in 2020. It already has a great vibe, can't wait to visit. Rosie :)
Contributed by Beauty & Fashion Expert John-Paul Ricchio
@johnpaulricchio
