Toronto’s food scene is packed with hidden gems, but this year’s ByBlacks Restaurant Week is putting a spotlight on Black-owned businesses serving the most flavourful comfort food! The annual celebration runs from May 11 to 17 and highlights restaurants and caterers offering everything from smoky Nigerian suya and Lagos-style shawarma to braised oxtail, jerk lobster, Caribbean pasta dishes, homestyle Jamaican classics and more.
Here are four amazing Black-owned restaurants and caterers to check out in the midtown-Toronto lineup when you’re craving Caribbean and African flavours.
Carib Dish
Fair warning: you probably won’t be able to settle on just one dish at this restaurant! The OG Carib Dish is in Barrie, but the team recently expanded to St. Clair W, giving Torontonians a new place to dig into Caribbean-Canadian eats inspired by flavours from Jamaica, Trinidad and Tobago, Grenada, Barbados, St. Vincent and more.
The slow-cooked oxtail meal is one of the standout dishes: braised until fall-off-the-bone tender and simmered with lima beans in rich gravy, and paired with sides like rice and peas, steamed veggies or fried plantains. Their curry goat meal is another must-order if you want something deeply savoury and spicy. The menu also gets super playful with dishes like jerk chicken waffles, which pair boneless jerk-marinated chicken with sweet golden waffles for a salty-sweet combo that’s perfect for brunch. The restaurant’s loaded poutines are also worth trying, especially the jerk chicken and oxtail versions, which are both layered with gravy, fries and Caribbean-seasoned meat.
For seafood lovers, try the escovitch snapper, coconut-steamed salmon or jerk shrimp plates. Finish with sweet potato pudding or black fruit cake for a proper island-style dessert! 1828 St Clair Ave. W.
Frontlines Catering
Frontlines is much more than just a catering company. The Weston Rd organization operates with a community-first mission, using food sales to support youth programming, mentorship, job training and mental health resources for young people across Toronto!
The delicious food is just a bonus. Its menu focuses on approachable Caribbean comfort meals designed for parties, office lunches and large gatherings, with trays loaded with jerk chicken, fried chicken and coconut curry chickpeas served alongside rice dishes, wraps and skewers. The lunch catering menu includes BBQ jerk chicken meals served with rice and peas or roasted potatoes, as well as chicken rasta pasta bowls and veggie pasta bowls for lighter options. Their appetizer spreads are just as craveable, with crispy fish sliders and Caribbean corn soup cups, as well as Caribbean snack staples like puff puff, cornbread squares and sorrel drinks! And if you have a sweet tooth, try traditional desserts like cassava pone and black cake. 1800 Weston Rd.
Greelz on Bloor
Toronto’s first Nigerian street food space is now sharing the vibrant heat of Lagos with the West End! Since opening its newest location on Bloor St in September, it has become the go-to for smoky, spicy flavours. If you’re new to West African dishes, try Naija classics like the beef suya, seasoned with a spicy peanut-based rub, or the Agege Cheeseburger. Don’t skip the smoky jollof rice or chicken suya wrap: they’re both packed with heat and crunch.
If you’re into shawarma, Greelz gives the popular wrap a Nigerian twist. Their chicken and beef mix version comes packed with spicy grilled meat and sausage, while the “Lagos Party Bowls” include peppered beef and spicy goat meat coated in the restaurant’s designer sauce (pair either one with fried plantains or sweet potato fries!). 2100 Bloor St. W., Suite 5A. They also have a location in Kensington (198 Augusta Ave.).
Taste Seduction
Taste Seduction blends traditional Jamaican cooking with flavours from other cultures, creating a menu filled with genre-blending dishes! The menu is curated by Chef Vernon Young, a native of Jamaica with years of experience in crafting traditional home-style meals (so you know you’ll get a flavour-packed plate).
Start with a comfort-food-heavy appetizer, like the “blow wow” lineup: deep-fried flour dough stuffed with jerk chicken or oxtail and cheese. Then dig into the braised oxtail, slow-cooked until tender and served with rice and peas, or the signature Bolts 3ple Mash Potatoes, a mash made with Yukon Gold, sweet potatoes and mini red potatoes! The jerk salmon and honey jerk BBQ salmon are also perfect picks if you want something smoky but a little lighter.
Now for the fusion: try the jerk pesto fettuccine, curry coconut fettuccine or rasta pasta tossed with spinach and seasonal vegetables (most dishes can also be customized with jerk chicken, shrimp or oxtail!)
For something more casual but still satisfying, the oxtail Philly sandwich and jerk chicken sandwich both pack serious flavour. And if you somehow still have room afterward, the Jamaican rum cake and Seduction milkshakes are waiting! 399 Keele St.
Still hungry? ByBlacks Restaurant Week is also showcasing the best black-owned restaurants in downtown Toronto,Toronto’s East End, Halifax and Eastern Canada. Follow @byblacks on Instagram or visit their website to find a Black-owned restaurant near you.
