Advertisement

Food & Drink

The top ten Carib joints

1. One Love Vegetarian

854 Bathurst, at London, 416-535-5683, oneloveveg.com. If it’s jerk chicken you’re after, you’ve come to the wrong joint. But if it’s exceptionally executed island-style grub that just happens to be vegetarian – and vegan to boot – you’ve come to the right love shack. Historical trivia: Ikeila Wright’s take-away was once home to Joyce’s, Toronto’s first Caribbean provisioner. Best: to start, Wright’s legendary spicy corn soup mains like mildly curried bean curd and buttery lima beans paired with sliced avocado, caramelized plantain, organic basmati rice ‘n’ lentils and a heap o’ salad and ripe tomato in sesame ginger vinaigrette whole-wheat dahl puri roti stuffed with spicy Jamaican pumpkin to drink, house-brewed ginger beer organic raspberry lemonade. Average main $10. Open Tuesday to Friday 11 am to 9 pm, Saturday 11 am to 6 pm. Closed Sunday, Monday, holidays. Unlicensed. Cash only. Access: one step at door, no washrooms, minimal seating.


Pam Singh has reason to smile about her Caribbean Cuisine.

Steven Davey

2. Pam’s Caribbean Cuisine

912 Bloor W, at Ossington, 416-533-3588. Back in business after a much-needed renovation, effervescent Pam Singh’s Bloordale hole-in-the-wall still bills itself as “the not-so-fast fast roti resto.” Locally sourced ingredients and an unusual attention to detail – nearly everything’s made from scratch in house – make her Guyanese-style meal-in-one wraps well worth the wait. Best: Pam’s incendiary curried goat complete with marrow-rich bones in garlicky gravy spiked with cumin and red Scotch bonnet peppers sided with slabs of waxy potato, plain ol’ rice and a cooling cucumber salad the best veggie roti in town amply stuffed with either carrots, cabbage, cauliflower, okra, spinach, squash, turnip or long green beans three varieties of house-bottled hot sauce ranging from relatively mild to nuclear meltdown. Average main $9. Open Monday to Wednesday noon to 9 pm, Thursday to Saturday 11 am to 9:30 pm. Closed Sunday, some holidays. Unlicensed. Access: barrier-free, minimal seating.


caribbeanrestos3_large.jpg

Steven Davey

3. Caribfusion

Southeast corner King W, at Bay. If success in the resto biz is all about location, Bridgette Pinder’s sidewalk Caribbean food cart at the crossroads of the financial district has it made. Best under-$10 lunch in the core? Best: gently jerked and grilled boneless chicken breast dressed with two salads – crisp romaine, purple cabbage and carrot, the other sweet ripe mango and bell pepper strips in a spicy Thai vinaigrette – doused with both island-style barbecue and hot sauces, and wrapped in a grilled whole wheat pita or dalpoori roti curried shrimp and sweet pumpkin roti. Average main $8. Open Monday to Friday 11 am to 2 pm-ish weather permitting. Closed Saturday, Sunday, holidays. Unlicensed. Cash only. Access: barrier-free.


Georgina Hamilton's patties are fit for royalty.

Steven Davey

4. Caribbean Queen of Patties

1294 Bloor W, at Lansdowne, 416-538-1732. Now operating out of digs directly across the street from the original location, Georgina Hamilton remains Toronto’s undisputed monarch of the tasty Jamaican turnover. Sure, they’re more expensive than most – 2 bucks a pop – but the considerable payoff is more than worth the price. Best: the epitome of patties, either stuffed with mixed veg (chickpeas, green beans, spinach), quality minced spicy beef or diced shrimp, flaky of crust and tinted with turmeric curried chicken or veggie stew roti Jamaica-stylee for those only somewhat peckish, the half-roti. Average main $10. Open Monday to Saturday 11 am to 11 pm, Sunday 1 to 9 pm. Unlicensed. Cash only. Access: barrier-free, no washrooms.


caribbeanrestos5_large.jpg

5. Gandhi

554 Queen W, at Bathurst, 416-504-8155, gandhicuisine.ca. Everybody’s favourite roti isn’t really a roti at all. Call it East Indian curry osmosed through the Caribbean, then wrapped in a paratha made on a pizza press and you’re closer. Also: Mother India, 1456 Queen W, at Lansdowne, 416-588-4634. Best: the signature – and pricey! – boneless butter chicken in sweetly curried tomato sauce boneless chicken jalfrezi with cauliflower and green peas saag paneer with puréed spinach and tofu-like cheese. Average main $11. Open Monday to Friday 11:30 am to 10 pm. Closed Saturday, Sunday, holidays. Unlicensed. Access: barrier-free, no washrooms.


caribbeanrestos6_large.jpg

6. Bacchus Roti Shop

1376 Queen W, at Brock, 416-532-8191. There are only two types of roti authorities – those who swear by Ali’s down the block and those who prefer this long-running Parkdale institution. Ignore the Restaurant Makeover decor – banquettes! upside-down lampshade chandeliers! – and focus on the veggie-friendly card. But whatever you do, hold the cheese! Best: unorthodox made-to-order roti combos like curried shrimp with squash, spinach and cheese tender butter chicken in minimal sauce with curried potatoes and chickpeas vegan green beans, squash and spinach, all on lightly grilled whole wheat paratha to side, skinny sweet potato frites or retro creamy coleslaw to finish, layered spice cake topped with sticky caramel pudding to take home, jars of X-rated hot sauce. Average main $9. Open Tuesday to Saturday noon to 9 pm. Closed Sunday, Monday, holidays. Licensed. Access: barrier-free.


7. Albert’s Real Jamaican Foods

542 St. Clair W, at Vaughan, 416-658-9445, albertsrealjamaicanfoods.ca. Tucked away in fancy new digs directly around the corner, Albert Wiggins’s island-style fast food joint has been packing them in since the 80s. Best: slowly stewed bone-in island-style jerk chicken with allspiced rice ‘n’ peas and JA slaw melt-in-your-mouth oxtail dinners with caramelized plantain sides of salt cod fritters, gungo pea soup or dumplings with four types of gravy (“juice”) to drink, fresh sugar cane juice and ginger beer. Average main $10. Open Sunday to Wednesday 10:30 am to midnight, Thursday 10:30 am to 3 am, Friday and Saturday 10:30 am to 4 am. Licensed. Cash only. Access: two short steps at door, washrooms on same floor.


caribbeanrestos7_large.jpg

Steven Davey

8. Island Foods

1182 King W, at Dufferin, 416-532-6298, island-foods.com. Established in 1974 in the Dufferin Mall, this very busy spot operates assembly-line-style. Sadly, a long queue of ravenous customers at lunch and dinner doesn’t make it move any faster. Also: 1310 Don Mills, at Chipping, 416-487-7717. Best: boneless chicken roti packed with equal amounts of curried greens and potatoes an all-veggie version with sliced ‘n’ curried carrots, cauliflower, chickpeas and sweet bell peppers mid-range jerk chicken or pork over regulation red rice ‘n’ peas slow-stewed oxtail dinners with curried spuds and mixed veggies. Average main $9. Open Monday to Wednesday and Saturday 11 am to 8 pm, Thursday and Friday 11 am to 9 pm (King W) Monday to Friday 11 am to 8 pm, Saturday 11:30 am to 8:30 pm (Don Mills). Closed Sunday, holidays. Unlicensed. Access: barrier-free.


caribbeanrestos8_large.jpg

Steve Payne

9. Vena’s

1263 Bloor W, at Lansdowne, 416-532-3665. Mashud and Homewaty Siddique’s no-frills snack shack may not be the fastest food in town, but since everything’s made to order from scratch, who’s watching the clock? Best roti in town? The neon sign out front seems to think so! Best: hefty house-made rotis overloaded with butterflied shrimp and sliced asparagus slow-cooked stewing beef with button mushrooms in assertively curried gravy generous veggie combos like sweet squash, firm eggplant and leafy spinach. Average main $8. Open daily 10 am to 8 pm. Unlicensed. Cash only. Access: one step at door, no washrooms.


caribbeanrestos9_large.jpg

Steven Davey

10. Patty King

187 Baldwin, at Kensington, 416-977-3191. Since opening in 1980, the Chong family’s modest Kensington Market bakery has grown into a national wholesaler. And it all started with a patty! Also: 321 Progress, at Brimley, 416-321-1034. Best: minced beef, shrimp, ackee, goat and callalaoo patties baked or frozen by the dozen rudimentary old-school rotis stuffed with curried chicken and potatoes, chickpeas as exotic as it gets outstanding desserts like sweet potato bread pudding, chocolate volcano cake, black ‘n’ white chocolate soldiers to drink, homemade ginger beer. Average main $8. Open Monday to Thursday 7 am to 8 pm, Friday 8 am to 7:30 pm, Saturday 7:30 am to 7 pm Sunday and holidays 9 am to 7 pm. Unlicensed. Cash only. Access: one step at door, no washrooms.

Advertisement

Exclusive content and events straight to your inbox

Subscribe to our Newsletter

This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

By signing up, I agree to receive emails from Now Toronto and to the Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions.