Hot Mess is a Toronto sandwich shop that doubles as a neighbourhood delicatessen where everything — right down to the potato chips — is made in-house.
The dynamic duo of Lee Stein, founder of the burgeoning If I May Hospitality, and Chef Steven Kasprowicz (The Eat Locker), are on a roll right now.
Months after spearheading an overhaul of the food program at Leslieville’s now-closed Dive Shop, the two joined forces to open Hot Mess, their vibrant neighbourhood sandwich shop and pantry. In spring 2026, Stein will team up with mixologist Sasha Siegel to open Bar Etc. in the old Dive Shop space, with Kasprowicz helming the food program.
Given the team’s meteoric rise to prominence along the Leslieville stretch of Gerrard, you might not guess that Hot Mess’s opening day was nearly exactly that: a hot mess.
“We opened on January 1. That was a brave decision,” Stein says. After celebrating the New Year into the wee hours of opening day, they managed to get the doors open. Hot Mess has been steadily carving out its place as a new neighbourhood staple ever since.
It’s exactly the vision that Stein and Kasprowicz had for the restaurant and pantry when they first dreamt it up.
“[We’re] just trying to bring something to Leslieville for the daytime,” Stein says, with an emphasis on daytime.
“We noticed out here that there was definitely a lack of options of fun, tasty things within an affordable price point in this area of Leslieville, so we really wanted to close in that gap and give the neighbourhood and the families something that they can fold into their routine,” Stein says.
In the case of Hot Mess, the daytime offerings take the shape of a concise menu of sandwiches that run the gamut from the classic Italian Trio to a Jerk Fish sandwich served on coco bread, with a handful of sides.
“The concept of the food program is largely based on classic foods and sandwiches with a little ode to our backgrounds, myself being Trini and Steven [Kasprowicz] being Polish,” Stein says.
Case in point: the Jerk Fish ($14). An undisputed standout on the Hot Mess menu, this sandwich, centred around crispy basa that’s fried fresh to order (no frozen fish fingers here), is an ode to Stein’s Trinidadian roots.
The lightly-fried fish packs a significant kick with the help of jerk-spiced mayo, which is balanced by the bright tang of mango show salsa and supple, sweet coco bread. It’s a resounding favourite among staff and customers alike, and it’s easy to see why. You won’t find anything like it anywhere else in the city.
Another serious contender for best seller would be the Beef Dip ($17), which, conversely, includes nods to Kasprowicz’s Polish background.
Consisting of shaved AAA top sirloin, grilled onions, emmentaler cheese, Polish pickles and house-made horseradish mayo, this is a seriously hefty sandwich, made all the better by the cup of beef jus it’s served with for dipping.
For those who abstain from meat, the Truffle Mushroom Melt ($14) is a formidable inclusion on the menu. As a matter of fact, you should try this sandwich even if you do eat meat. It’s that good.
A small mountain of sauteed cremini mushrooms is piled high on a Blackbird Bakery baguette (the same used for the Beef Dip), with provolone, grilled onion and a house-made truffle mayo that deftly straddles the line between perceptible truffle flavour and subtlety.
On top of the hot foods, Hot Mess also boasts a curated collection of pantry staples, including salsas, sauces, pickles, soups, snacks, frozen mac ‘n cheese and lasagna, to further serve the community it entered not two months ago.
Impressively, all of the pantry stock is also made in-house by Kasprowicz and his team. When I ask him whether he has time to sleep, Kasprowicz cheerfully responds, “sometimes!”
A personal favourite of Kasprowicz’s house-made pantry staples are the potato chips, which come in three flavours (ketchup is the best) for just $3 a pop.
Hot Mess is located at 1027 Gerrard St. E.