Canada’s first restaurant to have two Michelin stars is Sushi Masaki Saito. Photo: Sushi Masaki Saito
Canada’s first restaurant to have two Michelin stars is Sushi Masaki Saito. Photo: Sushi Masaki Saito
Canada’s first restaurant to have two Michelin stars is Sushi Masaki Saito. Photo: Sushi Masaki Saito
Canada’s first restaurant to have two Michelin stars is Sushi Masaki Saito. Photo: Sushi Masaki Saito

'Michelin Guide' awards its first stars in Canada to 13 Toronto restaurants


Farah Andrews
  • English
  • Arabic

The Michelin Guide has announced its first stars in Canada.

The lauded brand awarded 13 Toronto restaurants stars on Tuesday, with a total of 74 restaurants included in the guide.

Twelve venues received one Michelin star and one, Sushi Masaki Saito, was lauded with two stars. Michelin recognised 17 restaurants in the Bib Gourmand category.

Toronto now has 13 Michelin-starred restaurants. Getty Images
Toronto now has 13 Michelin-starred restaurants. Getty Images

There are several categories awarded by Michelin. One Michelin star is given to restaurants for “high-quality cooking that is worth a stop", two stars are given for “excellent cooking that is worth a detour" and three Michelin stars are given for “exceptional cuisine that is worth a special journey". Michelin’s Bib Gourmand list refers to restaurants that provide “value-for-money three-course meals”, that is, venues where diners can enjoy several courses under a certain amount (which varies depending on a city’s cost of living).

While the Toronto guide spans 27 different types of cuisine, it has been criticised for focusing its search in central Toronto and primarily awarding restaurants that serve set or tasting menus.

In the list of Michelin-starred restaurants, there are five Japanese restaurants, four contemporary, two Italian, one French and one Mexican restaurant. The Bib Gourmand list includes four Mexican restaurants, two Italian restaurants and one representative of American, Middle Eastern, Asian, Spanish, Thai, Indian, contemporary, fusion, deli, gastropub, barbecue cuisines respectively.

Middle Eastern cuisine is represented by Fat Pashas, a restaurant with communal tables and a sharing concept. "Sharing is paramount here," says the guide. "Though on your own you could make a meal out of the salatim platter, which samples excellent dips like creamy hummus and smoky muhammara, fantastic falafel and grilled pita."

Vice News social media manager Evy Kwong tweeted her frustration that the Michelin inspectors had neglected large parts of the Greater Toronto Area, saying they had clearly "skipped all of Scarborough, Mississauga, Brampton, Markham and Chinatowns".

SJC Media publisher Ken Hunt said it was hard to criticise the list without "disparaging the many fine restaurants" that were recognised, but described it as a "deeply weird list".

Full list of Toronto's Michelin-starred restaurants:

Aburi Hana, Japanese/kaiseki cuisine — one star

Alo, contemporary cuisine — one star

Alobar Yorkville, French cuisine — one star

Don Alfonso 1890, Italian cuisine — one star

Enigma Yorkville, contemporary cuisine — one star

Edulis, contemporary cuisine — one star

Frilu, contemporary cuisine — one star

Kaiseki Yu-zen Hashimoto, Japanese/kaiseki cuisine — one star

Osteria Giulia, Italian cuisine — one star

Quetzal, Mexican cuisine — one star

Shoushin, Japanese/sushi cuisine — one star

Yukashi, Japanese/kaiseki cuisine — one star

Sushi Masaki Saito, Japanese/sushi cuisine — two star

Full list of Toronto's Bib Gourmand restaurants:

The Ace, gastropub cuisine

Alma, Asian cuisine

Bar Raval, Spanish cuisine

Campechano, Mexican cuisine

Cherry St Bar-B-Que, Barbecue cuisine

Chica's Chicken, American cuisine

Enoteca Sociale, Italian cuisine

Fat Pasha, Middle Eastern cuisine

Favorites Thai, Thai cuisine

Fonda Balam, Mexican cuisine

Grey Gardens, contemporary cuisine

Indian Street Food Company, Indian cuisine

La Bartola, Mexican cuisine

Puerto Bravo, Mexican cuisine

R&D, fusion cuisine

SumiLicious Smoked Meat & Deli, deli cuisine

Wynona, Italian cuisine

In June, 11 restaurants in Dubai were awarded Michelin stars and this month, it was announced the guide is expanding its UAE reach to include Abu Dhabi in November.

Michelin-starred restaurants in Dubai — in pictures

The specs

Engine: 5.0-litre V8

Power: 480hp at 7,250rpm

Torque: 566Nm at 4,600rpm

Transmission: 10-speed auto

Fuel consumption: L/100km

Price: Dh306,495

On sale: now

THE CLOWN OF GAZA

Director: Abdulrahman Sabbah 

Starring: Alaa Meqdad

Rating: 4/5

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Key facilities
  • Olympic-size swimming pool with a split bulkhead for multi-use configurations, including water polo and 50m/25m training lanes
  • Premier League-standard football pitch
  • 400m Olympic running track
  • NBA-spec basketball court with auditorium
  • 600-seat auditorium
  • Spaces for historical and cultural exploration
  • An elevated football field that doubles as a helipad
  • Specialist robotics and science laboratories
  • AR and VR-enabled learning centres
  • Disruption Lab and Research Centre for developing entrepreneurial skills
THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick

Hometown: Cologne, Germany

Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)

Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes

Favourite hobby: Football

Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk

Company Profile:

Name: The Protein Bakeshop

Date of start: 2013

Founders: Rashi Chowdhary and Saad Umerani

Based: Dubai

Size, number of employees: 12

Funding/investors:  $400,000 (2018) 

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Bio

Favourite place in UAE: Al Rams pearling village

What one book should everyone read: Any book written before electricity was invented. When a writer willingly worked under candlelight, you know he/she had a real passion for their craft

Your favourite type of pearl: All of them. No pearl looks the same and each carries its own unique characteristics, like humans

Best time to swim in the sea: When there is enough light to see beneath the surface

Tell-tale signs of burnout

- loss of confidence and appetite

- irritability and emotional outbursts

- sadness

- persistent physical ailments such as headaches, frequent infections and fatigue

- substance abuse, such as smoking or drinking more

- impaired judgement

- excessive and continuous worrying

- irregular sleep patterns

 

Tips to help overcome burnout

Acknowledge how you are feeling by listening to your warning signs. Set boundaries and learn to say ‘no’

Do activities that you want to do as well as things you have to do

Undertake at least 30 minutes of exercise per day. It releases an abundance of feel-good hormones

Find your form of relaxation and make time for it each day e.g. soothing music, reading or mindful meditation

Sleep and wake at the same time every day, even if your sleep pattern was disrupted. Without enough sleep condition such as stress, anxiety and depression can thrive.

EMERGENCY PHONE NUMBERS

Estijaba – 8001717 –  number to call to request coronavirus testing

Ministry of Health and Prevention – 80011111

Dubai Health Authority – 800342 – The number to book a free video or voice consultation with a doctor or connect to a local health centre

Emirates airline – 600555555

Etihad Airways – 600555666

Ambulance – 998

Knowledge and Human Development Authority – 8005432 ext. 4 for Covid-19 queries

The specs
  • Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
  • Power: 640hp
  • Torque: 760nm
  • On sale: 2026
  • Price: Not announced yet
Ferrari 12Cilindri specs

Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12

Power: 819hp

Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm

Price: From Dh1,700,000

Available: Now

EA Sports FC 25
Conflict, drought, famine

Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.

Band Aid

Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.

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Know before you go
  • Jebel Akhdar is a two-hour drive from Muscat airport or a six-hour drive from Dubai. It’s impossible to visit by car unless you have a 4x4. Phone ahead to the hotel to arrange a transfer.
  • If you’re driving, make sure your insurance covers Oman.
  • By air: Budget airlines Air Arabia, Flydubai and SalamAir offer direct routes to Muscat from the UAE.
  • Tourists from the Emirates (UAE nationals not included) must apply for an Omani visa online before arrival at evisa.rop.gov.om. The process typically takes several days.
  • Flash floods are probable due to the terrain and a lack of drainage. Always check the weather before venturing into any canyons or other remote areas and identify a plan of escape that includes high ground, shelter and parking where your car won’t be overtaken by sudden downpours.

 

UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
Specs

Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
Torque: 1075Nm
On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request

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Updated: October 13, 2022, 8:46 AM`