{"id":909071,"date":"2026-09-25T11:52:09","date_gmt":"2026-09-25T11:52:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/909071\/"},"modified":"2026-09-25T11:52:09","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T11:52:09","slug":"michelin-2026-7-spots-from-our-top-100-list-made-the-cut","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/909071\/","title":{"rendered":"Michelin 2026: 7 spots from our Top 100 list made the cut"},"content":{"rendered":"

This year\u2019s Michelin Guide to Toronto and its surrounding regions largely maintained the status quo from last year<\/a>, with no restaurants gaining or losing stars. However, the biggest change in the 2026 guide is a new crop of recommended and Bib Gourmand restaurants, the former signifying a place that has no stars but is still worth dining at, and the latter being Michelin\u2019s designation for getting a bang-for-your-buck meal.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n


\n \"Toronto’s
\n <\/a><\/p>\n

Sure, the Michelin Guide\u2019s top honours usually go to restaurants synonymous with stuffy, fine-dining that probably don\u2019t match the tastes (or wallets) of the average diner, but there are some gems in its annual list that the Star\u2019s own critics agree are worth checking out. Here are seven spots\u00a0from the Star\u2019s Top 100 Under $100 guide<\/a> that are also Michelin-approved.<\/p>\n

\"AloetteBay\"<\/p>\n

The $10 Mini Martini at Aloette Bay comes with a perfectly shucked halfshell oyster.<\/p>\n

Andrew Rowat for Toronto Star<\/p>\n

Address: 81 Bay St., fourth floor (at Front St. in CIBC Square)<\/p>\n

Technically it\u2019s Aloette\u2019s original location at 163 Spadina Ave. that held on to its Michelin recommended status from last year, but we\u2019re counting it as an overlap with the Star\u2019s praise for the Aloette that\u2019s right across from the Scotiabank Arena. Our chief critic, Chris Nuttall-Smith, had this to say about his visit.<\/p>\n

Near the start of the menu at the Alo group\u2019s Financial District hot spot, there\u2019s a simple but almost magical phrase. \u201cAloette Mini Martini $10,\u201d it reads. Maybe you only came for the $29 pre-game burger, fries and beer special or for the superlative calamari fritti and a couple of snacks. Maybe it\u2019s a splurgy steak you\u2019re after (Aloette goes both low and high) or the best-in-show \u2014 best in any show, anywhere \u2014 lemon meringue pie. But damn, that $10 martini is something. It\u2019s served on a gold tray, with an olive, a pickled onion and a lemon twist. It comes with a perfectly shucked half-shell oyster, also, on a miniature bowl of pebbled ice. It\u2019s an affordable actual luxury, which is pretty much the ethos of the place. That burger is excellent, the meat properly pink in its middle, deeply beefy, on a house-baked bun. The sea bream: moist, crisp-skinned, just kissed with smoke and char. Sure, there\u2019s a Dubai chocolate sundae for dessert, but the lemon meringue pie is the can\u2019t-miss. It is impossibly tall, silky and sunshiny sweet-sour; its torched meringues explode as you eat them, like mini campfire marshmallows, the perfect ending to a three- or four-mini-martini meal.<\/p>\n

\"Ardo\"<\/p>\n

Ardo is a downtown destination for Sicilian cooking.<\/p>\n

Carmen Cheung for Toronto Star<\/p>\n

Cuisine: Italian, Sicilian<\/p>\n

Address: 243 King St. E. (at Sherborne St.)<\/p>\n

Since 2015, Ardo has quietly been a reliable spot for a date-night-worthy meal in the picturesque, historic stretch of King East just a few steps from the St. Lawrence Market. The restaurant is small, but the flavours are grand. Come here instead of the many tourist-trappy spots in the area. It\u2019s recommended by Michelin as well as Nuttall-Smith, who described it this way.<\/p>\n

The joy around this well-run little room is half the show: the after-work aperitivo-seekers and fresh-faced couples drinking sunny white wine by the glass, the pre-theatre quartets just happy to be some place nice. Chef Roberto Marotta\u2019s Sicilian cooking provides the other half and then some \u2014 it\u2019s as close as you\u2019ll find here to the flavours of southernmost Italy. There are puffed and golden chickpea flour panelle to start, hot and crisp straight from the fryer, seasoned with wild fennel and a pop of good salt. They seem understated at first, and then they take your breath away. There are fish and meats done simply, as in Sicily, as well as prodigiously cheesy arancini and glistening white anchovies in emerald-green oil. Marotta\u2019s pastas are exquisite: rich, sweet, deep-tomatoey, stracciatella-topped pomodoro sauce, say, on noodles he sources from Sicily, their manufacture so rigorously pre-industrial they\u2019d be a parody if not for their deliciousness. In cooking this simple (big asterisk there), ingredients mean a whole lot. Or take the squid-ink-stained conchiglie special late this winter, tossed with pistachio-mint pesto, crunchy house sourdough pangrattato, and delicate, candy-sweet shrimp, the sort of dish you hope will never end. For dessert, there\u2019s house cannoli \u2014 they even make their own candied orange peel. Perfetti.<\/p>\n

\"ChicasChicken(Vertical)\"<\/p>\n

At this Nashville hot chicken spot the meat is drybrined for juiciness and fried to order.<\/p>\n

Andrew Rowat for Toronto Star<\/p>\n

Cuisine: Fried chicken, American<\/p>\n

Address: 2853 Dundas St. W. (at Keele St.)<\/p>\n

While I wasn\u2019t the one who wrote the entry for this Nashville-style hot chicken restaurant in the Junction, my tip is to go at least medium-hot for the best experience, provided you can tolerate at least three chilies from Salad King (unspicy hot chicken just feels wrong). Also, go for the fried pickle slices as the side because the portions for that are huge. Here is Nuttall-Smith\u2019s review about this Bib Gourmand spot.<\/p>\n

The old-school vibes at this simple, celebrated Nashville hot chicken spot are hard to miss. The former diner space has ancient faux-wood panelling, a Formica counter, seen-better-days bar stools and Mulroney-era ceiling fans; it\u2019s either charming or grotty, depending on your take. (We\u2019re on team chotty.) The chicken, meantime, is dry-brined for juiciness and fried strictly to order. It comes crunchy, chili-stained, deeply seasoned and almost awkwardly juicy, in spice levels from none to mild to what the kitchen calls Hot AF. (Medium is where most postpubescent mortals will start to feel the burn.) You can get wings and tenders, also, in a variety of sauces. The chicken bites, for what it\u2019s worth, are just OK: with bits that small, the batter starts to get in the way. But Chica\u2019s sandwiches, made from boneless thighs, are breathtakingly tasty, particularly the versions served on tender toasted brioche and topped with the creamy house slaw. The sides include skin-on waffle fries and freakishly delicious fried pickle slices. NB: fried-to-order whole chicken pieces can\u2019t be rushed; order ahead or be prepared to wait.<\/p>\n

\"Conejo<\/p>\n

This bustling College Street bistro features a Caribbean Latin and Creole menu.<\/p>\n

Andrew Rowat for Toronto Star<\/p>\n

Cuisine: Caribbean, International<\/p>\n

Address: 838 College St. (at Ossington Ave.)<\/p>\n

Below is my review from when I visited the Bib Gourmand-endorsed Conejo Negro earlier this year with a colleague. The one thing I would add is to make a reservation because walk-ins were getting turned away by the time we finished our meal.<\/p>\n

There are two modes to choose from at this busting College Street bistro. The intimate front room is pure date night, with flickering tea lights just barely illuminating tables for two. But walk through the hidden hallway to the rear dining room and it\u2019s brighter, more casual, fitting for after-work drinks and a dinner hang. Either way, the Caribbean, Latin and Creole menu, with its blackened fish, jerk chicken and mango-sweetened ceviche, unifies the spaces: familiar favourites sized for sharing. There\u2019s a crisp watercress, radish and snap pea salad under tangy chimichurri vinaigrette and nutty tahini. The Caribbean-style braised beef cheek is luscious and fork-tender, over silky-textured cheddar grits and tender collards, doused in peppery sauce. The juicy fried chicken thighs, in smoked hot honey sauce, come beautifully crisp and just sweet enough; mop up the sauce with the Brazilian cheese puffs, made satisfyingly chewy with tapioca flour.<\/p>\n

\"Guru<\/p>\n

At Guru Lukshmi, each doa bite is a study in texture and heat.<\/p>\n

Carmen Cheung for Toronto Star<\/p>\n

Cuisine: Indian, South Indian<\/p>\n

Address:\u00a07070 St. Barbara Blvd. (in Derry Village Square)<\/p>\n

Dosas are the star at Guru Lukshmi, a grand South Indian restaurant located west of Pearson airport, as former food editor\u00a0Alex Baldinger writes below about this Bib Gourmand spot.<\/p>\n

As with any thrill ride, you may spend longer getting to Guru Lukshmi and waiting for a table than actually eating your dosa. At least you\u2019ll have time to study the menu beforehand, a 43-page(!) PDF that surveys nearly every corner of South Indian vegetarian cuisine. There are the fried lentil-flour doughnuts called vada, steamed rice idly cakes (the toonie-sized minis are superb, drenched in ghee and sambhar, the tangy lentil stew that acts as a sidekick to nearly everything on the menu), and at least 10 different categories of dosa, the specialty here. Order a paper dosa: a golden cone of fermented rice-and-lentil batter, crisped in ghee and curled until it\u2019s roughly as long as a cricket bat. Though there\u2019s any number of fillings available, they\u2019re typically savoury and at least a little fiery, like the Mysore Bhaji, built on potatoes, roasted garlic and chili paste. Each bite is a study in texture and heat, and after a dunk in the cool tomato, coriander and coconut chutneys that come alongside, temperature, too. No fire is too great to be put out by a glass of shikanji \u2014 the savoury, supremely refreshing lemonade spiked with cumin and black salt.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"NL_Pho<\/p>\n

Pho Ngoc Yen\u2019s beef short rib pho which celebrity food critic Keith Lee called the \u201cbest pho\u201d of his life during a surprise visit to the restaurant on Adelaide.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Nick Lachance Toronto Star<\/p>\n

Address: 350 Adelaide St. W. (at Peter St.)<\/p>\n

Pho Ngoc Yen has been a local favourite for years, back when it had one Mississauga location \u2014 that was the spot that was added to this year\u2019s Michelin-recommended list. Our endorsement goes to the newest downtown Toronto location, which has quickly amassed a celebrity clientele<\/a> for its proximity to the Entertainment District. Here is our Top 100 writer Chi Nguy\u1ec5n\u2019s review.<\/p>\n

The specialty at this enormous and elegant downtown room is vibrant, family-style Vietnamese dishes, made with skill, care and cultural pride. The short-rib ph\u1edf comes packed with flavour: a whole braised rib sits submerged in its broth; lift it, and the yielding meat slips away in one clean pull. Chicken thighs follow, balancing smoke from the grill and the fragrance of lemon leaf, the juicy meat set against crackling fried sticky rice. Chef and co-owner Tr\u00ed Tr\u1ea7n\u2019s cooking combines time, technique and deep-rooted tradition. That shows in his seafood-laden g\u1ecfi ba b\u00eda \u0111u \u0111\u1ee7 salad, its translucent green papaya ribbons balancing citrus sours, subtle sweetness and fish sauce\u2019s salt; the salad\u2019s toasted peanuts add depth, and fermented crab brings a delicious layer of briny funk. Tr\u1ea7n\u2019s c\u01a1m chi\u00ean th\u1eadp c\u1ea9m \u2014 house special fried rice \u2014 mixes fluffy broken rice, sweet, crispy shallots and juicy pork in a savoury slick of wokked egg and soy. It\u2019s the kind of dish you keep reaching for long after you think you\u2019re done. End with the avocado milkshake: thick, buttery, stirred through with strands of fresh coconut, not too sweet.<\/p>\n

\"SumiLicious\"<\/p>\n

Chef\u00a0Sumith Fernando learned his smoked meat craft at Montreal\u2019s Schwartz\u2019s Deli.<\/p>\n

Carmen Cheung for Toronto Star<\/p>\n

Address: 5631 Steeles Ave. E., Unit 5 (at Middlefield Rd. in Milliken Crossing)<\/p>\n

\u201cKids, we have Schwartz at home\u201d was what came to mind for the line of diners outside SumiLicous when it first opened eight years ago right on the Scarborough-Markham border. No need to take the road trip to Montreal when a longtime Schwartz cook opened to bring his talent to the GTA. Here\u2019s what reviewer Alex Baldinger had to say about this Bib Gourmand entry.<\/p>\n

Sumith Fernando spent 17 years practicing at the altar of smoked meat that is Montreal\u2019s Schwartz\u2019s Deli. In 2018, when he was ready to pursue the craft on his own, he chose a strip-mall unit on Steeles Avenue in deep Scarborough. From there, word began to spread about the Catholic Sri Lankan immigrant cooking halal Jewish-Canadian soul food with the devotion of a true believer. The cure on the meat is Fernando\u2019s peppery, proprietary secret, but his start-to-finish process \u2014 rub, rest, smoke, steam, slice \u2014 is almost better measured in weeks than days, and results in a bite that makes you shake your head in awe. The smoked meat sandwich combo is the move: thinly sliced layers of brisket piled onto soft rye with yellow mustard, alongside good fries, a vinegary slaw and a Putter\u2019s pickle. That they also sell karnatzel, a dried beef sausage so niche it barely exists outside the old-school Jewish deli canon, tells you how seriously Fernando takes the tradition he\u2019s evangelizing. And if your cardiologist isn\u2019t watching, the smoked meat poutine is the ultimate homage to the Montreal roots that make this deli a true pilgrimage spot.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"This year\u2019s Michelin Guide to Toronto and its surrounding regions largely maintained the status quo from last year,…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":909072,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[49,48,75],"class_list":["post-909071","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-entertainment","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-entertainment"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/909071","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=909071"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/909071\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/909072"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=909071"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=909071"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=909071"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}