community
The Annex's Best Restaurants Serve Italian, Mediterranean, Japanese Cuisine
The Annex offers a range of restaurants and casual spots serving Italian, Mediterranean, Japanese and other dishes to University of Toronto students and local residents.
How we reported this

The Annex neighborhood in Toronto supports a range of restaurants that include Piano Piano for Italian dishes, Fat Pasha for Mediterranean and Middle Eastern fare, Rose and Sons for Jewish appetizing options, and Kinka Izakaya for Japanese pub food.
Street-Level Dining Spots
Harbord Street functions as a culinary destination with low-lit modern trattorias that prepare fresh pastas along with Middle Eastern items such as hummus and shawarma. Dupont Street includes three restaurants operated by Anthony Rose: Rose and Sons, Big Crow and Fat Pasha. These locations draw from the neighborhood's established food scene.
Food Hall and Cafe Options
The Annex Food Hall gathers a selection of Toronto food vendors under one roof at accessible price points. The Annex Cafe provides coffee from The Angry Roaster along with sandwiches from Raff's Pizza each day from 8am to 4pm. Raff's Pizza itself serves both nostalgic and modern pies daily from 4pm to 11pm.
Late-Night and 24-Hour Choices
Big Fat Burrito stays open until 3:30am on weekends. Additional late-night choices include falafel from Sarah's or Ghazale. Vesta Lunch, located at the intersection of Dupont and Bathurst, operates as a 24-hour diner known for preparing eggs in the early morning hours.
The neighborhood attracts University of Toronto students and young adults who seek affordable meals that range from pizza and sushi to the late-night options noted above. These venues operate at various hours that accommodate different schedules without requiring advance reservations in most cases.
Visitors can check current hours directly at each location or through the listed sources for any updates before heading out.
References Sourced but Not Limited to:
- tripadvisor.com · Restaurants g155019 zfn21002027 Toronto Ontario
- fodors.com · Restaurants
- streetsoftoronto.com · The 10 best restaurants in the annex ranked
- diaryofatorontogirl.com · Annex restaurants
- streetsoftoronto.com · The 5 best restaurants in the annex ranked
- theannex.com · Eat and drink
- ritual.co · Toronto the annex
- viewthevibe.com · City guide best restaurants the annex
- ryanroberts.ca · Best restaurants in the annex
- ellidavis.com · Best restaurants in the annex