Excitement rang out with the announcement of La Canting’s opening in the fall of 2020. The name is derived from both Mandarin and French origins, while the cuisine pays homage to the chef’s Chinese-Taiwanese roots. Drawing inspiration from both family dinners and night markets, look out for dishes like Szechuan fried chicken, Taiwanese beef noodle soup, and grilled lamb. Vegetarian options available.

Doing a mix of Californian and Mexican fare, this eatery has stayed relatively under the radar since opening back in 2010. Owner Serge Landau does all the staples here, including quesadillas, burritos, enchiladas, freshly-made salsa, and tacos, with options running the gamut from classic carnitas to decidedly less-classic kale.

The cozy and cute vibes of Le Petit Sao are guaranteed to please, particularly with its colourful Tonkinese soups and vermicelli bowls. Catering to both lunch and dinner crowds, this family-run Vietnamese stronghold features other highlights such as imperial rolls, papaya salad, or the General Sao — a bowl of fried cauliflower (or grilled chicken) and rice.

This ultra-friendly neighbourhood café and lunch/brunch spot has been consistently hot for several years now. Serving up some of the city’s best French toast, this Centre Street favourite leans local and seasonal to whip up dozens of delicious options throughout the week, with sandwiches, tartines, and simple egg-based breakfasts. Takeout only.

Run by Hakim Chajar, Miel’s standard menu has been put on pause due to the pandemic, but that doesn’t mean operations have completely ceased. In fact, this Centre Street eatery has been serving up gourmet frying chicken under the alias Rubie’s since late 2020.

At a time when many people expect food to stand out aesthetically as much or even more than in taste, two female pastry chefs are doing both. Lecavalier Petrone is best recognized for its wildly colourful chocolates, but the range of confections stretches to bite-size pastries, cupcakes, financiers, éclairs, and even wedding cakes. The boutique shop is open to individuals and businesses alike, but take note of its somewhat limited hours.

While officially listed as a coffee shop, Florence now offers meal salads to-go, as well as their creative flavour-of-the-week swirls. Open every day of the week, from 9 to 5.

A former Mile End favourite recently reborn on Centre Street, Clarke has become an excellent go-to option for locals to grab their fix of affordable Italian pastries, sandwiches, and coffee.

Voted some of the city’s best Caribbean food for years now, this laid-back Jamaican house is famous for goat curry, patties, roti, and jerk chicken. What it lacks in décor is well compensated in intensely flavourful food that’s light on the wallet. Always a solid choice for delivery.

Found on a long stretch of Wellington Street, Mollo pours excellent espresso, with plenty of desserts available, as well. The pandemic forced this café to convert their seating space into a temporary market, thereby becoming a purveyor of local goods. Insider tip: the affogato is a real treat.

If you’ve yet to try the “Spéciale Connie’s,” well, you’ve been missing out. The pie uses meat sauce (as in spaghetti meat sauce) as the base and is the ultimate in greasy, chewy Montreal-style pizza. Other specialties include club sandwiches, submarines, and souvlaki plates, but pizza is the real star. Connie delivers to surrounding neighbourhoods.