At 1111 Queen Street East, the hum of nostalgia meets the thrill of the new. Fangio Trattoria, the latest addition to Leslieville’s dining scene, is both a love letter to the neighbourhood and a respectful nod to the space’s storied past.
“The concept is, an Italian restaurant, casual like a true trattoria is,” says owner Adam Dolley.“But our menu has hints of Argentinian flair, in respect to Fangio himself.” That namesake, Juan Manuel Fangio, was the legendary Argentinian Formula 1 driver — a fitting homage to Ascari, the beloved Italian spot that was home to this location before, itself named for another racing great.
“As a regular at Ascari, we went with the same idea and named it Fangio out of respect for what was previously here.” Though the name carries forward the racing spirit, Fangio Trattoria is fully Dolley’s vision. “I’ve been in the restaurant game for almost 30 years now,” he says. “I started when I was 12 years old, as a dishwasher working at a lion’s hall, where my grandpa was a member of the lion’s club.” From fine dining to food trucks, he’s done it all, before taking over this Queen East address.
Inside, the space has been subtly reimagined. “We did a minor renovation to it,” Dolley explains. One stand out new feature being the addition of the garage door. “It gives it that open feel. Here we want the customers to be part of the experience.” And experience it is. Walk past the open kitchen, glowing banquettes and intimate bar, and you’ll feel the 39-seat room come alive after dark. “It’s a small space, so it’s got this sexy, cool atmosphere to it in the evening. It’s hard to describe it — you almost have to see it to feel it.”
On the menu, Italian classics meet subtle Argentinian touches: handmade pasta, bistecca with chimichurri and the house favourite, the “Fangio-masu,” a playful fusion of tiramisu and an Argentinian cake. “It’s been selling well beyond what I ever thought it would do,” says Doley.
The kitchen is helmed by two co-chefs — one a returning Ascari veteran, the other a longtime colleague who worked for Dolley fifteen years prior — creating what he calls “yin and yang… you put two great chefs, each with their own vision, with me, being a chef by trade as the third, and you create magic.”
Fangio’s new cocktail program — a fresh addition to Ascari’s former wine-centric offerings — brings a lively finish to the experience, blending Italian elegance with playful modern twists. Among the standouts are the house-made Fangio Negroni, the “Toronto,” a bold mix of Red Bank Whiskey, Fernet, maple syrup and bitters, and the El Diablo, a nod to the bar’s spirited edge. As Leslieville locals fill the small space and chatter bounces off the open kitchen, Fangio Trattoria feels less like a replacement and more like a revival — a continuation of a story that’s still being written.
“We wanted to create a space that carries on what Ascari brought to this community,” Dolley says. “That local spot for the people of Leslieville that they loved forever — just give them that back but try to grow it as best we could.”
