Top restaurants in Ontario's foodie destinations
Pearl Morissette | Destination Ontario
Locally sourced and globally inspired, the ever-evolving culinary scene in Ontario is as diverse as it is exciting, including a growing number of MICHELIN-recognized restaurants in Toronto and beyond.
From bustling downtown kitchens to rustic farm-to-table dining experiences, explore bold new flavours and innovative dishes created from fresh, regional and seasonal ingredients.
Plan more edible adventures with Culinary Tourism Alliance, a field guide to Ontario's best food and drink.
Here is a selection of Ontario restaurants to add to your must-try list.
Greater Toronto Area
From Chinatown to Greektown, Little India to Little Italy and Kensington Market to St. Lawrence Market, Toronto is a multicultural city with a smorgasbord of flavours.
Restaurants in Toronto frequently feature in the top ten list of Canada’s 100 Best, the definitive guide to everything food-related from across the country. And with the growing number of restaurants featured in the esteemed MICHELIN Guide, this city’s foodie scene keeps getting more exciting.
Explore the vast culinary landscape and hottest food, drink and nightlife spots at Destination Toronto.
A few suggestions to start with are:
Alo
Alo is a sleek, MICHELIN-starred, downtown French restaurant and cocktail bar with a refined tasting menu. From on-point decor to each carefully crafted dish and drink, this is a foodie’s must.
Location: 163 Spadina Avenue, Toronto
Giulietta
Located in Toronto’s much-loved Little Italy neighbourhood on College Street, Giulietta has a lot to celebrate. Top Chef Canada runner-up Rob Rossi’s simple and authentic Italian menu has also ranked in En Route Magazine’s best new restaurants list.
Location: 972 College Street, Toronto
Buca
A member of the Buca family of upscale eateries, Buca Osteria & Bar made the cut for the signature coastal Italian cuisine. Tucked away in the Four Seasons Courtyard in the swanky Yorkville neighbourhood, this is a bucket-list spot for seafood lovers.
Location: 53 Scollard Street, Toronto
Edulis
This intimate bistro in the city’s Fashion District takes an unpretentious approach to upscale Canadian fare, using seasonal, wild and foraged ingredients to prepare five or seven-course chef’s tasting menus.
It only takes one bite to see why the accolades, including a MICHELIN Guide star, keep pouring in.
Location: 169 Niagara Street, Toronto
Mhel
The ever-changing menu features small and shareable plates of Japanese and Korean dishes thoughtfully paired with really good sake.
Location: 276 Havelock Street, Toronto
Bar Prima
Every aspect of this Queen West Italian eatery is a work of art, from the rich colours and luxurious decor to the photo-worthy dishes and signature cocktails.
Location: 1136 Queen Street West, Toronto
Ottawa Region
Iconic charm, top national museums and abundant urban nature characterize Canada’s capital, as does its vibrant culinary scene.
Ottawa Tourism showcases the best of the city’s food and drink highlights, from local brunch hangouts to favourite international cuisines.
Get started with:
Stofa Restaurant
Delightful contemporary Canadian cuisine and a well-curated wine list match the ambiance and service at this popular Wellington West eatery, which is both upscale and unpretentious.
Location: 1356 Wellington Street West, Ottawa
Social Restaurant + Lounge
Located in the heart of historic Byward Market downtown, this restaurant-meets-cocktail lounge is a great spot to discover innovative craft cocktails paired with a main, shared oysters or cheese board “sociable.”
Location: 537 Sussex Drive, Ottawa
Whalesbone Restaurant
Make your way to Whalesbone Restaurant on Elgin Street for some of the best oysters in town. And if you can’t get enough of shucking and exploring the city, enjoy the other locations in town.
Location: 231 Elgin Street, Ottawa
Beckta Dining & Wine
Along with sister restaurants Play and Gezellig, Beckta is one of Ottawa’s finest and most fashionable places for seasonal New Canadian fare and exceptional wine.
Location: 150 Elgin Street, Ottawa
Atelier
Another innovative Canadian eatery, Atelier invites you to sample the 40-course French fusion tasting menu, plated with eye-catching presentation.
Location: 540 Rochester Street, Ottawa
Niagara Region
One of Canada’s finest winemaking regions is also a culinary hotspot where the complementary relationship between winemakers, sommeliers and chefs results in a spectacular taste of place.
Find more of the region’s best spots to eat and drink at Visit Niagara Canada.
Not-to-miss spots include:
Restaurant Pearl Morissette
A sculptured red cardinal welcomes you to this arresting winery and restaurant off a back road outside the village of Jordan, a recent MICHELIN star recipient.
While there’s no traditional tasting room, their acclaimed wines are paired in the restaurant, which also bucks tradition. In the absence of a menu, guests are treated to an ever-changing, blind-tasting, multi-course meal.
Reservations are required, and wine purchases must be ordered online (you can arrange to pick up on-site).
Location: 3953 Jordan Road, Jordan Station
The Winery Restaurant at Peller Estates
From the twinkling chandeliers above to the sweeping vineyard views, the setting at Peller Estates is magical, while the menu celebrity Chef Jason Parsons presents each season is out of this world.
For something extra special, check out the unique private dining options at sister property Trius Winery that include the winemaker’s lookout, the vineyard pavilion or, for groups of twelve and up, dine among the aging wine barrels in the Trius Red Barrel Cellar.
Location: 290 John Street East, Niagara-on-the-Lake
Treadwell Restaurant
Renowned for its farm-to-table philosophy, Treadwell Restaurant in Niagara-on-the-Lake has been setting the bar for fresh, creative, local and seasonally inspired culinary excellence since 2006.
Location: 114 Queen Street, Niagara-on-the-Lake
Hamilton, Halton and Brant
Approximately an hour southwest of Toronto, Hamilton has become a culinary powerhouse and should be on every foodie’s radar. As Canada’s national newspaper The Globe & Mail put it, food is fueling Hamilton’s gentrification.
Tourism Hamilton will help you find great restaurants, eateries and food experiences for your foodie itinerary.
Delicious dining options include:
Quatrefoil
One of the city’s finest dining experiences, Quatrefoil is located in Hamilton’s hamlet of Dundas. Cooking power couple Fraser Macfarlane and Georgia Mitropoulos create contemporary French-inspired fare in a handsomely restored heritage house that redefines date night.
Location: 16 Sydenham Street, Dundas
Born and Raised
Hamilton local Vittorio Colacitti is the driving force behind this aptly named eatery along James Street North’s restaurant row. Harking to his Italian roots, pasta and bread are crafted in-house, the olive oil comes direct from a family friend’s farm in Abruzzo, Italy, and the woodfired oven was transported from Bologna.
Location: 224 James Street North, Hamilton
The French
Tucked away in downtown Hamilton, this elegant, cosmopolitan little eatery delivers big on taste, both in flare and food. Located in a heritage building, the marble bar, open-style kitchen, Parisian bistro-style patio and impeccable service add to the old-world ambiance. New location in Cambridge.
Location: 37 King William Street, Hamilton
Rapscallion & Co.
From brunch to the late-night menu, sharables is the name of the game at this downtown tapas bar and restaurant. Feed your food curiosity with multiple exciting sharable dishes or let the Chef guide your group with the “true rapscallion experience”.
Location: 178 James Street North, Hamilton
Hexagon
Dramatic light fixtures, teak seats and tufted booths provide a warm atmosphere to enjoy this MICHELIN-starred multi-course dining experience.
Location: 210 Lakeshore Road East, Oakville
Stratford
Ontario’s revered thespian town (thanks to the Stratford Festival, North America’s largest Shakespearean theatre event) also pours endless creativity into (and out of) its kitchens.
From foodie tours to more great spots to eat, plan your culinary adventure at Visit Stratford.
Bring your appetite to:
The Restaurant at the Bruce
Perfect for pre- or post-theatre, this luxury hotel invites you to enjoy formal dining in the restaurant or a more relaxed meal in the Lounge, with impeccable service.
Location: 89 Parkview Drive, Stratford
The Common
"Eat without borders" at this eclectic spot that will take you around the world with its cross-cultural fusion menu and back home with locally sourced ingredients.
Location: 80 Wellington Street, Stratford
Prince Edward County
Picturesque, rural-chic and just a two-hour drive from Toronto, this quaint little piece of heaven has been attracting Ontario’s trendiest urbanites for years for its thriving cuisine culture, craft wineries, cideries, distilleries and breweries.
Visit the County to get a taste of more amazing food and drink Prince Edward County has to offer.
See what all the buzz is about at:
Bocado
From the tapas and cocktails to the service ambiance, this Spanish-inspired county restaurant offers a top-notch dining experience.
Location: 252 Main Street, Picton
La Condesa
For those who love la cocina Mexicana, La Condesa’s authentic Mexican food brings colour, flavour and zest to The County.
Location: 298 Wellington Main Street, Wellington
Stella’s Eatery
Stella’s recently relocated from Picton to Waupoos and the chalkboard menu is updated daily with dishes focused on the season, local and forged ingredients. Beverages are also locally supplied and happy hour and Sunday brunches are highly recommended.
Location: 470 County Road 8, Waupoos
The Drake Devonshire Restaurant
Perched on the water’s edge in Wellington, the intimate patio and dining room at the hip Drake Devonshire hotel offers amazing charcuterie and sea-cuterie board selections as well as the wine region’s finest reds and whites.
Location: 24 Wharf Street, Wellington
Southwestern Ontario
As Ontario’s southernmost region, the southwest enjoys the longest harvest season, fertile soil, and naturally a strong farming culture.
Sip, savour, taste and tour in Ontario’s Southwest. Tap into the region’s rich rural roots at one of its many celebrated farm-to-table restaurants, such as:
SixThirtyNine
Tucked away on a side street in Woodstock, the ever-changing menu is a celebration of local flavour. This gem is a credit to chef/owner Eric Boyar (in partnership with his mother, Pauline Bucek), who sources ingredients from their own family farm.
Location: 639 Peel Street, Woodstock
Twisted Lemon Restaurant
Head to the village of Cayuga for a lively and eclectic dining experience. Seasonal cuisine, cooking classes and special events have been attracting ‘flavour junkies’ since 2009.
Location: 3 Norton Street West, Cayuga
Yaya's Kitchen
Set out on a culinary adventure of global Black experience through food. Yaya’s Kitchen explores a fusion of cultures and flavours, focusing on seasonality and local ingredients.
Yaya's Kitchen’s Sahel to Soul is a Southwest Ontario signature experience you won’t want to miss.
Location: 630 Dundas Street, London
Kingston
With a rich live music history, this historic university town (and Canada’s original capital) has a veritable cool factor. It has also cultivated a hip epicurean culture.
Visit Kingston invites you to discover more local places to eat and drink.
Plan to visit:
Woodenheads Gourmet Pizza
Woodenheads proves that pizza can indeed be gourmet with classic and creative wood-fired pies.
Location: 192 Ontario Street, Kingston
Days on Front
Head to Days on Front in the city’s west end for ritzy contemporary Canadian cuisine. It’s a popular go-to for local chefs, always a good quality gauge.
Location: 730 Front Road, Kingston
Atomica
Dive into the tasty Mediterranean-inspired menu, exploring bold flavours from Spain and the Middle East.
Location: 71 Brock Street, Kingston
Miss Bao
A trailblazer in sustainable cuisine, enjoy Asian fusion food at Miss Bao Restaurant + Cocktail Bar, dedicated to creating a zero-waste operation.
Location: 286 Princess Street, Kingston
Grey, Bruce and Simcoe
This region boasts a flourishing and creative culinary scene from the southern shores of Georgian Bay to the orchards, farmlands and county communities. Follow the famous Apple Pie Trail and savour local flavours in Grey, Bruce and Simcoe with stops at:
The Pine
This former gas station transformed into a bright, airy restaurant is one of Ontario’s most recent MICHELIN star recipients for the immersive tasting menu.
Location: 7535 County Road 9, Creemore
The Flying Chestnut Kitchen
Don’t be fooled by the eclectic vibe or erratic hours. This culinary gem, led by Chef Shawn Adler, serves a seriously delicious fusion, seasonally driven menu. Cash only.
Location: 199 Pellisier Street, Flesherton
Down Home Restaurant
Local catering gig, Sumac and Salt has expanded into a boutique farm-to-table restaurant serving a collaborative ten-course tasting menu. This dining experience is offered two to three evenings each week, lasts up to three hours and is available for up to twenty guests per night.
Location: 135299 9 Line, Markdale
Last updated: November 25, 2024