Best Toronto restaurants

Everybody searching for the best. 100 dinner freaks,  will name you 99 different restaurants. So which one?

Best Toronto restaurants

Some new restaurants in Toronto

Scarpetta (at Thompson Hotel): 550 Wellington St.

Scenesters have been flocking to the stylish Thompson Hotel since June. The luxurious boutique hotel has King West dwellers hooked with The Counter, a 24/7 diner, Wabora restaurant and New York super chef Scott Conant’s third Scarpetta. When he’s not judging new chefs on Food Network’s Chopped, Conant is creating remarkably simple Italian faves like the popular spaghetti with tomato and basil. Locally sourced and traditionally inspired, dishes also include loaded pastas and hearty mains like the slow-roasted beef sirloin.

La Bettola di Terroni: 106 Victoria St.

As if a fritter isn’t delicious enough, La Bettola di Terroni splits the pastry open and fills it with Nutella! La Bettola (which literally means hole-in-the-wall in Italian) is the latest addition to the Terroni family of restos. Sharing an entrance with sister resto Osteria Ciceri e Tria, the eatery is serving popular Terroni pastas, pizzas and salads. Hungry downtowners and tourists pack the joint midday for a grilled spicy Italian sausage or deep-fried eggplant panini. Take a leisurely lunch and try the dessert!

Brockton General: 1321 Dundas St. W.

Local hipsters couldn’t be happier to have Brockton General on the scene. Open until last call, the snack bar is perfect for late-night cravings and includes small portions of almonds, olives, pickled veggies, cheeses and mousse. With only a handful of apps and mains, the menu changes either weekly or monthly and includes dishes like boiled pork shoulder, house-made maltagliati, raw turnip salad and duck liver. The old world décor and the summertime bourbonade (freshly squeezed lemonade, soda and bourbon) are definite wins.

Carisma: 73 King St. E.

Best known for his success with Forest Hill’s Il Mulino, Michael Pagliaro was all set to retire. It was his wife and daughter that convinced him otherwise and we’re sure glad they did. Opened in late September, Carisma is a King East Italian gem. Simple dishes are plated elegantly like the trio carpaccio di pesce with ahi tuna, octopus and smoked salmon, and the unpretentious pumpkin raviolini stuffed with veal. A lengthy wine list and warm, knowledgeable staff will have you lingering late into the evening.

Best Toronto restaurants

Those are new one . Well known are

1 Mideastro Here they break through the Middle East street food barrier — falafels, dips, flatbread — with a sophisticated menu that includes chestnut gnocchi and hand-rolled couscous. The chef is Benny Cohen, an Israeli whose go-to dish is Kofta, meatballs bathed in spicy hot yogourt and tahina sauce, under a roof of thin focaccia. 27 Yorkville Ave., 416-477-2427, mideastroyorkville.com

2 Acadia Virtuoso chef Matt Blondin retrieves Acadian cooking, which began in Canada, from Louisiana. A new flavourmeister’s in town. Chicory salad mixes blackened fingerlings, celery root, sunflower seeds and  the most disgusting-sounding vinaigrette — coffee and molasses! Scrumptious. 50 Clinton St., 416-792-6002,acadiarestaurant.com

3 Elle M’a Dit Greg Furstoss makes over fabulously rich Alsatian cooking into something seductively light, a gentle choucroute garnie and that splendid non-pizza, tarte flambée. 35 Baldwin St., 416-546-3448, ellemadit.com

4 Volos The healthy thing about Greek food is that it trends tart — exemplified by chef Reza Parsia’s excellent Exohico, lamb braised in its jus, mixed with spinach, slightly sour feta and bundled in phyllo pastry. 133 Richmond St. W., 416-861-1211, volos.ca

5 Keriwa Whitefish and bison dominate chef Bear Robe’s short menu. Palate pleasers include whitefish crisped with bacon, braised bison tail with polenta.
1690 Queen St. W., 416-533-2552, keriwacafe.ca

6. Vecchio Frak -  Italian cousine, authentic Italian menu. 690 College street  416.516.3725   vecchiofrak