There's something rebellious about eating a meal past our bedtime. We can't help but get a little thrill tucking into a juicy burger, squaring up with a warm slice of pizza or gnawing on a meat-packed gyro when the sun's down, the moon is high and the city's skyscrapers are twinkling. Late-night food in Toronto is its own foodie sub-culture; when some of the best restaurants in Toronto start to wind down for the night, a new all-star roster emerges with menus jam-packed full of nocturnal bites, often designed to be paired with an ice-cold brew or a potent craft cocktail.
We love grabbing a wallet-friendly meal during the day at Toronto restaurants with cheap eats, and we always stay out late at the best bars in Toronto — but there's a special place in our hearts for restaurants with late-night food in Toronto. Food seems to taste better in the wee hours of the morning, and we're pretty confident calories don't count past 10 p.m.... or, we won't be counting them, at least.
There's no shortage of restaurants and bars with late-night food in Toronto. Here, the tables get louder, the drinks flow quicker and kitchens buzz with electric energy. Whether you're tucking into comfort food at a 24-hour café or grabbing nachos at an iconic punk bar, everyone dining in has the same cheeky secret — your late-night meal, booze-fuelled or otherwise, defies ritual and embraces a sprinkle of YOLO. We love it.
14 restaurants with mouth-watering late-night food in Toronto
1. Hanmoto
2 Lakeview Ave.
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Walk through the Lakeview Avenue Parkette off Dundas West to an unmarked door with a tinge of glowing red light, and you’ll find some of the best late-night food in the city. Hanmoto’s pint-sized, dimly-lit interior is a welcome reprieve after a wild night in the city. They’re open until midnight on weekdays and until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, slinging their unique brand of Japanese-influenced bites. The dyno wings are an unholy mashup of gyoza filling stuffed inside a deboned chicken wing for an obscenely delicious, ginormous wing that will solve all your late-night problems. If you’re up for it, sip on sake and craft cocktails with your snack plates.
2. 416 Snack Bar
181 Bathurst St.
There’s not a spoon nor a fork to be found at 416 Snack Bar; it’s just you, your digits and chef Dustin Gallagher’s epic creation on your plate. The intimate snack bar has carved out its reputation as one of Toronto's best in its decade-plus of operations, and is showing no signs of stopping. Scarf down Korean fried chicken, oodles of east coast oysters and spicy tuna hand rolls at this iconic Queen and Bathurst hidey-hole until 2 a.m.
3. LoPan Bar
503 College St.
We’re thrilled to announce our 2 a.m. dinners will no longer consist of fast food and regret. Instead, we’ll be heading to LoPan, the speakeasy above DaiLo serving an all-star roster of Nick Liu’s Cantonese bites until late. Toronto after-hours doesn’t get much better than this; feast on barbecue-sauce-drizzled Kentuckee Fried Tofu with cabbage slaw, rouse your spice receptors with a General Tso chicken skewer sprinkled with crispy onions or go all-out with Liu’s legendary Big Mac Bao.
4. Short Turn
576 Queen St. W.
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Popular Bathurst Street golden child 416 Snack Bar has had to turn away many a hungry or thirsty guest in its decade-plus of operations, largely due to lack of space. In 2023, Short Turn was born to help accommodate the overflow — but with its glitzy streetcar-inspired interior and snazzy cocktail program, the cocktail bar isn’t playing second fiddle. Short Turn dishes handheld snacks ‘til 2 a.m., mostly comprised of hits from 416 Snack Bar’s menu.
5. El Rey Mezcal Bar
2A Kensington Ave.
While we’d be more than happy to clamber aboard one of El Rey’s lime-green barstools and sip peppery Oaxacan mezcal all night long, your favourite food mag’s gotta eat. And eat we can until 12 a.m. every day of the week, surrounded by cheery conversation and jubilant cheers-ing in this Kensington hotspot. The pico-de-gallo-topped octopus, chorizo tacos or crispy mushroom molotes are sure to satisfy late-night spice cravings. Snag a seat on the patio or get your grub delivered and dig in.
6. Bar Chica
75 Portland St.
Simply put, Bar Chica at King and Portland is cooler than cool. The Michelin-recommended Spanish tapas bar is a discrete, speakeasy-esque hub where hip crowds flock to snack on exceptional food until 1:30 a.m. As the night goes on, conversations get more lively as the craft cocktails flow.
7. Baro
48 King St. W.
Crown jewel of King West heavyweight Honeycomb Hospitality (Petty Cash, Dasha), Baro is a bustling multi-floor institution primed to be the place you start and end your night out. Snack, share or feast on Latin-American meat and seafood classics like pollo asado or pulpo a la plancha (huacatay marinated octopus) until midnight. Guests can choose between the main floor, Pablo’s Snack House on the second or Baro’s greenery-laden rooftop. The night doesn’t need to end once the kitchens close, though; keep sipping on a tequila-forward tipple ‘til late.
8. Hemingway's
142 Cumberland St.
Seven days a week, 365 days a year, Hemingway’s dishes out some of the best pub grub in the city until 2 a.m. There are few finer pleasures in life than the buttery fish tacos or braised lamb shank, but we're equally happy to order some late-night quick and sizzling chicken fajitas. One of the best ways to spend a warm summer’s night in the city is to catch a Jays game on their famous patio.
9. Kintaro Izakaya
459 Church St.
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Japanese tapas at 2 a.m. is our definition of a good time. This cherished neighbourhood bar, grill and sake house in Church-Wellesley Village is a great place to bring a big group of friends. A lengthy menu of tataki, deep-fried proteins, juicy skewers, fresh sushi and sashimi, noodles and rice bowls ensure something for everyone at the table. Equally impressive are the drink offerings — we’re dazzled by a Sapporo topped with a swirl of icy beer and fruit-focused cocktails, but the robust sake menu is what always keeps our thirst quenched until the early morning hours.
10. Toronto Beach Club
1681 Lake Shore Blvd. E.
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Eastenders, your late-night — scratch that, early-morning — hunger pangs are no match for Toronto Beach Club’s Mediterranean menu, with the kitchen open on Fridays and Saturdays 'til late. The coastal vacay vibes extend beyond your plate in the airy, open dining room and on the patio that’s mere steps away from Woodbine Beach. Come for the food (28-day-aged wagyu ribeye? Yes please), stay for the after-dark atmosphere — once the sun goes down, Toronto Beach Club transforms into a buzzing party, with a DJ bumping tunes and, if you’re lucky, a flamenco trio performance.
11. Alexandros
Multiple locations
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For more than 25 years, Alexandros's handcrafted gyros have been feeding Toronto. The original Danforth spot (right beside the often-lively Alexander the Great Parkette) was actually the first Toronto Greek restaurant to have gyros on their menu, but it’s their Queens Quay location that remains open until 4 a.m. Their succulent chicken or pork is cozied up with fresh tomatoes and onion in a perfectly-charred wrap, then doused with a herby tzatziki sauce that’s to die for.
12. RAP's
1541 Eglinton Ave. W.
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Just off Eglinton West, Little Jamaica’s RAP’s has been a top contender for the best jerk chicken in the city for decades. They’ve been dishing their smoked, fall-off-the-bone poultry — a carefully perfected family recipe — to the local community for 40 years. Chances are, RAP’s will be open when you visit; they’re typically only shuttered for a few hours every day between 6 a.m. and 11:30 am.
13. 7 West Café
7 Charles St. W.
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Twenty-four hours a day, 365 days a year, in rain, snow, sleet or shine, you can count on 7 West Café to welcome you with open arms. Just south of Bloor, the cozy, multi-level Italian café set in an old brick home is a classic date night or late-night spot. With excellent pub food in satisfying portions, plus an air of romance, charm and nocturnal elegance, you might just forget that you’re dining in at 4 a.m. Music to our ears.
14. Sneaky Dee's
431 College St.
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Wolfing down an overflowing plate of guac and sour cream-topped King’s Crown nachos from Sneaky Dee's is a rite of passage for Torontonians. Whether your favourite beer-soaked memories of the punk rock palace are pure mosh-pit mayhem or nostalgic nights out with old university friends, chances are that the Sneaky Dee's menu has fuelled your late-night escapades at one point or another. Their Tex-Mex comfort food hits the spot when you’ve had a few too many pints and the hour is late. The best part: Sneaky Dee's will be there, waiting for you next weekend, when you’re back to do it all again.
