Didn’t get enough gifts on your birthday? Here’s a list of some places in Toronto that offer freebies or discounts on your special day. - Dreamstime photo
Metro Whether you’re looking for a quick pre-made meal to eat in between classes or your groceries for the week, the Metro (external link, opens in new window) on campus at 89 Gould Street has 10% off of groceries for students every week on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. Just bring your OneCard and show it to the cashier when you’re checking out.
If you’re hankering to carb load, try the Mac & Charlie, a franken-grilled cheese stuffed with mac and cheese. And if you must consume a vegetable of some kind, check out the deep-fried Brussels sprouts massaged with a balsamic-honey reduction. Open in Google Maps
Copy Link Chef-owner Corinna Mozo’s retro diner, decked out in pastel hues and squeaky vinyl banquettes, pays tribute to the original restaurant her grandfather owned in Cuba in the 1950s. Everything here is made from scratch, including the bread, pastries, and desserts. The serotonin-boosting barbecue beef short ribs are braised for hours and given a lacquer of sweet-savory guava sauce; the dish is served with piquant slaw, speckled rice and beans, and meaty palm-sized tostones.
Starbucks: You get one free beverage or food item if you’re a Starbucks Rewards member. You’ll need to have been signed up at least seven days before your birthday and made a star-earning purchase within the last year.
PG Clucks claims to have the best fried chicken sandwich in the city, and we’re not about to argue with that. Almost all under $15, their sandwiches come with a large piece (or two) of crispy fried tender chicken with a heaping pile of toppings and a fluffy bun. It’s challenging to get through one of these mammoths on its own, but if your appetite came to play, they have sides too, and you can make it a combo for under $20.
If you prefer fish, the whole sea bass is smothered in house-fermented chiles, Fujian wine, and flowering chives, creating a numbing hellfire that balances with the angelically floral fish. For dessert, mai lai go (a modest sponge cake from the dim sum realm) is ushered into a sophisticated stratosphere with a custard moat and salted egg yolk filling. To drink, Mimi offers one of the most comprehensive libraries of baijiu in the city, with bottles ranging from juicy and effervescent to deep and saucy.
Now, you can hunker down at a table while you wait for your piping-hot fried bao to cool. You can get four of the crispy balls of heaven for under $10. Bite a hole in it first, suck out the delicious broth and then dig in.
Previous dinners have included sweetbread-stuffed ravioli with parsley cream sauce; heart tartare, vibrant with fermented shrimp and whipped bone marrow; a menacing smoked chicken leg (with claws intact) served with breast mousse; and a vigorously gamy duck-hen-partridge tourtière, complete with a head and legs peeking out of the pie. Open in Google Maps
Copy Link Rachel Adjei is a Ghanaian Canadian chef and food justice advocate who celebrates much of the underrepresented African diaspora in Toronto. She founded the Abibiman Project to support Black food sovereignty initiatives via a range of pantry products, pop-up dinners, and catering — all in the hopes of challenging people’s perceptions of African foods and the narratives surrounding them. At her staple pop-up location at the Grapefruit Moon in the Annex, her ever-evolving dinner menus offer deep-dives into specific African regions, which Adjei contextualizes with information about the corresponding culture.
With features on deck every day at this massive brewpub on Yonge Street, you can't go wrong when stopping by on any day of the week.
Copy Link Residents of leafy Dovercourt may be slightly agitated by the endless lines of customers who form in their sleepy neighborhood for this pizzeria, run by chef and sorcerer of slices Ryan Baddeley, but they’re appeased with firsthand access to fresh pies. And magical they are: Three-day slow-fermented dough straddles the realm of a Neapolitan pizza and flaky Yemeni malawah, giving off an audible ASMR snap as you bite in.
Indulge in their legendary Hungry Tata’s Lunch Plate. It’s packed with kielbasa and pierogi, stuffed with potatoes and cottage cheese, transporting your taste buds to a happier time.
Copy Link Wine should always be easygoing and approachable, at least according to Grape Witches owners Nicole here Campbell and Krysta Oben, who opened their bottle shop and bar (including a seasonal patio) in the west end of the city. They offer parties and workshops with an aim to stimulate conversation and educate palates in the process, aided by their quirky yet handy “Badge” guide, a litmus test to determine how “wild” you want to go outside your usual tasting comfort zone (based on variables like acidity, minerality, savoriness, bitterness, sweetness, and more).