This is a follow up to the recent post on my favourite foods and drinks in Vietnam. Since we won’t be able to travel back there for quite a long time, I’m on a quest to continue discovering Vietnamese cuisine here at home.
Mainstream Vietnamese communities began arriving in Canada in the mid-1970s and early 1980s as refugees (also known as ‘boat people’) following the end of the Vietnam War. Most of them settled in southern Ontario; Vancouver, British Columbia; and Montreal, Quebec. Today, there are an estimated 240,615 residents of Canada who identify themselves as being of Vietnamese origin. In the Greater Toronto Area alone, there are about 74,000 Vietnamese Canadians, some of whom spend their daily lives enriching the city’s culinary culture with one of my personal favourite international cuisines.
Here are a few of my usual and new haunts for Vietnamese food in Toronto, Canada.
Pho Tien Thanh
๐ 57 Ossington Ave, Toronto, ON M6J 2Y9
This place will always have a soft spot in my heart as the place where Mr. Chuckles and I had one of our first dates, and where I introduced him to the joys of Vietnamese gastronomy. It’s a favourite spot for those who live out toward the west end of the city, particularly for their chแบฃ giรฒ (fried spring rolls) and phแป. I also enjoy the bรบn bi chแบฃ giรฒ (vermicelli noodle bowls topped with spring rolls and pork skin) and the broken rice. Prices are reasonable, averaging $8 to $10 CAD per item. There’s a competing Vietnamese restaurant called Golden Turtle about a half block away that does not compare, so don’t go there. Another great feature of Pho Tien Thanh is that is it mere steps to Bang Bang, one of the top ice creameries in Toronto, so you have a place for dessert too!

Pho Linh
๐ 1156 College St, Toronto, ON M6H 1B6
I was introduced to Pho Linh by my mom, who vouches for this place as being one of the favourite authentic Vietnamese eateries amongst her social network of fellow immigrants from Vietnam. I think this gives it some extra credibility? The best dish here, in my opinion, is the bรบn. The phแป is also considered to be pretty good. Unfortunately, this place was shut down temporarily back in January this year due to failing a health inspection, so that makes me squeamish. It has since reopened and continues to garner positive reviews on Yelp and Google, so perhaps all is well now.

Banh Mi Nguyen Huong
๐ 322 Spadina Ave, Toronto, ON M5T 1J6
As you know, I love bรกnh mรฌ. In fact, I generally don’t like eating sandwiches, but I will nearly always be ready to consume a Vietnamese baguette. It’s difficult to find bรกnh mรฌ that measures up to the amazing sandwiches we had in Vietnam, but the closest would probably be the ones from Banh Mi Nguyen Huong. This little shop in Chinatown sells bรกnh mรฌ with either cold cuts or shredded pork along with pรขtรฉ, for Vietnam level prices at only $3 each. They also serve other staples like bรกnh cuแปn (rice noodle rolls), fresh spring rolls, and various Vietnamese desserts.

UFO Restaurant
๐ 241 Niagara St, Toronto, ON M6J 2L5
This place was a recent discovery, after Mr. Chuckles came across glowing reviews of it online. UFO Restaurant is oddly placed within a convenience store on a quiet side street, so unassuming that you would never know that it is a beloved local eatery serving fantastic phแป and bรกnh mรฌ. It has been open for takeout throughout the lockdown, so we stopped here a few weeks ago to try out the bรกnh mรฌ. It was done a bit differently, filled with grilled marinated pork, reminiscent of the ones we had at Bรกnh Mรฌ Phฦฐแปฃng in Hoi An. I liked it, but missed the pรขtรฉ, which I think is really an essential ingredient for good bรกnh mรฌ. Price was also a little steeper at $5 per sandwich.

DZO Viet Eatery
๐ 308 Dundas St W, Toronto, ON M5T 1G4
We found DZO on Uber Eats while searching for new takeout to try. It opened very recently, just this past March, and specializes in modernized traditional Vietnamese recipes. Interesting highlights on their menu include the ‘pho poutine’ and ‘Viet tacos’. I personally tried the taro fries and fried spring rolls, which were delicious. Would eat again.

When I can get on the plane …I will try some of those restaurants in Toronto.
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I hope you get a chance soon!
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Sounds great would like to try some of these.
Have a great day https://chalkandcheesetravels.com
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They are all worth a try! Thanks for reading ๐
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This will definitely be helpful next time Iโm in Toronto. I remember going to a pho restaurant near my airbnb off King when I was there a couple years back and the broth was bland and was honestly the worst bowl ive ever had so definitely would look forward to some of these.
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I canโt even think of any notable pho places on King so Iโm not surprised that it was so disappointing!
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I remember in 2015 going with friends finding some good spots near Royal Ontario Museum we didnt have issues finding good places to eat. When i went in 2018, I stayed on Front Street near Fort York and the places i went to intially were meh, but on my last day there i went to a couple places near graffiti alley as well as Seven Lives and really liked. Definitely need to do more research for Toronto.
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Oh yes, Seven Lives is awesome ๐
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It might be my favorite place in Toronto.
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I still haven’t tried pho!! And we have pho restaurants around here!!
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You’re missing out!
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I know! I had a newcomer from Vietnam all last year who kept asking me if Iโd tried pho ๐ฒ yet. Bad teacher!!
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Great post ๐
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