The Haifa Room is dishing up Middle Eastern cuisine at 224 Ossington. Operated by a group of partners from the Trinity-Bellwoods community, including Fadi Hakim and Waseem Dabdoub, the restaurant is named after the city of Haifa where both Israelis and Palestinians live and work side by side. While they’re operating as a takeout window for now, Haifa Room is planning on expanding their menu and renovating the space for indoor dining this fall. For now think staples including falafel, sabich, and zaatar fries.
Brazil Box is serving up authentic Latin American street food out of the Loch and Quay’s Harbourfront kitchen (390 Queens Quay West). Owner/Chef Alex Baracat (formerly of Hotel X) has created a menu of familiar favourites (beef, jerk chicken or mushroom empanadas, mini churros) and soon-to-be-favourites like pão de queijo (cheese buns), brigadeiro (bite sized chocolate balls), and tapioca crepes.
The Crave 6ix Charcuterie has opened their first storefront at 2220A Queen Street East. The boards are divided into “moods” ranging from breakfast, lunch, and dinner, to gather, party, sugar, and candy. While most of the boards include traditional snackables like macarons, crackers, breads, dips, cheeses, meats, fresh and dried fruit and veggies, the sugar and candy boards contain an assortment of your favourite chocolates, gummies, and lollipops.
Friggitello, named after the sweet Italian chili pepper, is officially open in Kensington Market (181 Baldwin Street). Specializing in grilled chicken, the small but flavourful menu includes wraps, kebabs, donair, and poutine.
Milkman Creamery is serving Insta-worthy foot-long ice cream cones at 2157-8339 Kennedy Road. Ice cream flavours change bi-weekly, but recurring favourites include mango-passionfruit and raspberry. In addition to their soft serve, Milkman also offers floats, sundaes, lattes, hojicha, and juices.
Patchmon’s Homemade Thai Desserts has moved into 283 Dundas West. Favourites include Thai curry puffs, steamed cassava cakes, Thai taro egg custard, and assorted cookies including fish, Thai shell, pineapple, and pork. Patchmon’s also has a menu of premium desserts, available only through pre-order, including luk chup (mung bean mock fruits) and edible flower bouquets made of coconut jelly.
Sprezzatura Spaghetti Disco is whipping up fresh pasta at 216 Ossington. Inspired by the Italo Disco of the late 1970s and named after sprezzatura, a kind of effortless cool, the full experience features traditional antipasti, followed by fresh pasta, and finally a meat dish with a side of local vegetables. Start with the ultimate antipasto salad (arugula, romaine, grilled radicchio, cucumber, fresh and dried tomatoes, grilled peppers, eggplant, zucchini, olives, artichokes, salami, provolone, parmigiana Reggiano, chickpeas, lemon-olive oil dressing), and then try the fettuccine brisket sugo (fettuccine tossed with hand-chopped, slow-cooked brisket and classic tomato sauce).