Animl Steakhouse
The steak knives are out at the newly launched Animl Steakhouse on Wellington Street, just down the street from TIFF’s HQ. Choice cuts include a 10-ounce striploin ($75), an 18-ounce ribeye bone-in ($130) and a 24-ounce Porterhouse ($135). For safari hunters, there’s the Platinum Surf and Turf platter, a $999 meal with a Wagyu tomahawk steak the size of a canoe paddle and a 28-ounce lobster tail.
420 Wellington St. West Reservations: 416-764-6094
Honey Chinese
Casual Chinatown comes to King Street with Honey Chinese on the third floor of Portland Square. Executive chef Marc Cheng is summoning the nostalgic charm of your local Chinese restaurant: “From Vancouver, San Francisco, New York and Toronto, Honey is inspired by the different Chinatowns and their reinvention in using local produce and ingredients to make Chinese restaurants a favorite among local communities.” The menu includes Chinese stalwarts like crispy roasted pork ($16), sweet and sour pork ($28) and General Tao chicken ($32).
600 King St. West, 3rd floor
Reservations: 416-368-8448
Louf
Building on his modern Palestinian cuisine-inspired restaurants in Bethlehem (Kassa) and London (Akub), chef Fadi Kattan has opened Louf with business partner Nicole Mankinen, with a focus on local and Middle Eastern ingredients. Kattan promises “dishes and drinks that tell the story of Palestine through each mouthful and sip,” including braised beef in a tamarind sauce and pomegranate molasses ($52), and Maftoul Qare, or hand-rolled Palestinian wheat balls ($33). There’s also a brunch menu for first-weekend TIFF-goers.
501 Davenport Road
Reservations: 416-323-0596
Maven
Chef Shauna Godfrey opened Maven with the promise of comfort food with a European Jewish twist. Godfrey gives thanks to her Bubbe Rose (grandmother) and the Culinary Institute of America for inspiring her to turn simple ingredients into complex dishes like chicken schnitzel with fermented plum and brown butter sauce ($32) and a schmaltzy duck confit cholent ($42): “Some dishes on the menu come from my Bubbe Rose’s recipes, like our house coleslaw, challah buns and cheesecake.”
112 Harbord St. Reservations: 647-348-9666
Vinny Restaurant and Vinyl Bar
Chef Hans Vogels’ globally inspired menu balances elevated classics with bold, unexpected combinations that surprise and satisfy. Refined yet playful, each dish is carefully crafted to complement the ambience of the room. After 11 p.m., a dedicated late night menu takes over that’s perfect for a post-screening nosh. Don’t miss the fried chicken ($30) and a side of “fat chips” ($12).
480 King St. West
Reservations: 647-660-0999
The St. Regis
While the property isn’t new, the storied luxury hotel is whipping up a special culinary lineup for this year’s 50th anniversary of the film festival — the centerpiece of which is the King’s Cake, an opulent 50-layer riff on their signature 13-layer dessert that will go for $500 per slice. Elsewhere at the hotel’s dining lounges they’ll have a gold-plated 50-ounce Australian Wagyu Tomahawk, a caviar-and-cocktail pairing, a TIFF-themed afternoon tea, and a signature Black Tie & Gold Dust cocktail (made with tequila and Kahlua). Festivities run from Sept. 4 to Sept. 14.
325 Bay Street
This story appeared in the Sep. 3 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Click here to subscribe.