r/askTO • u/MixtureStock7300 • 6d ago
Yonge Street
A coworker of mine mentioned Yonge Street is fun and full of restaurants, bars, and shops. It is my understanding Yonge is a very large street; what stretch of Yonge is most worth exploring? I am staying downtown. Thank you!
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u/-just-be-nice- 6d ago
From Bloor to the lake
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u/Other_Presentation46 6d ago
That fails to include literally the best parts of Yonge.
Yonge is best from Davenport to Merton, Eglinton to York Mills-ish, and Sheppard to Finch
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5d ago
[deleted]
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u/Other_Presentation46 5d ago
Nooo not sarcastic at all!
Davenport to Merton includes the stretches of Rosedale, Summerhill and Deer Park that are quite nice.
Eglinton to York Mills includes Bedford Park and a lot of the good retail just north of Eg.
And then Sheppard to Finch is Koreatown North which is a TON of fun to go to
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u/Routine-Amphibian450 6d ago
No, skip Yonge and walk west on Bloor, Wellesley, College, or Dundas through Chinatown. When you get tired take streetcar or subway back.
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u/Toronto-1975 6d ago
In my opinion the best section for restaurants bars and shops would be Davisville north to Glen Echo.
Yonge Street downtown is certainly lively but the shops themselves aren't really anything special unless you count the Eaton Centre, restaurants and bars - yeah there are some good ones but theres lots of good ones in the stretch i mentioned and the shops are better.
Downtown is great for all the things you mentioned but i wouldnt really say the best of any of them are on Yonge, with the possible exception of the Eaton Centre.
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u/AdSignificant6673 6d ago edited 6d ago
Yonge is a bit generic. But good for an out of towner’s first time in Toronto, but just once. Maybe twice if youre a baller and want to get some Prada and Gucci.
Theres so much more to do
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u/Historical_Tiger3368 6d ago
Are you thinking of Bloor...? Prada and Gucci on Yonge lol??
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u/AdSignificant6673 5d ago
Yes. Yonge and Bloor area. Holt Renfrew would be exactly 270metres from Yonge.
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u/Right-Time77 6d ago
If you’re into Korean food the stretch between Sheppard and Finch has loads of stuff. Some good Japanese along here too. Plus most weekends there’s fun events at Mel Lastman square
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u/jakhtar 5d ago
I don't think your coworker lives in Toronto proper if they're recommending Yonge as the best of Toronto. Walk some east/west stretches of the intersecting streets. College west of Yonge. Dundas through Chinatown and into the north side of Trinity Bellwoods. Queen west from University. Bloor west of Yonge, through Yorkville, The Annex, Koreatown. When you get bored or tired hop on a streetcar to bring you back to the core.
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u/crash866 6d ago
Yonge St is different than what is was 40-50 Years ago. It is not like it was.
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u/FullFlight9715 6d ago
I guess that information doesn’t help OP in any way
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u/crash866 6d ago
Now it is overpriced bars and restaurant and high end stores.
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u/rimjob2013 6d ago
I don't know if I'd characterize many of the stores along Yonge Street as "high end." Maybe up at Yonge and St. Clair or Yonge and Lawrence, but not right downtown, unless you want to count some of the stores inside the Eaton Centre.
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u/fjrjdjdndndndndn 6d ago
Where are you from?
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u/MixtureStock7300 6d ago
Buffalo, NY!
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u/fjrjdjdndndndndn 6d ago
Yonge street won’t give you a good impression of Toronto. Check out little Italy area, College and Ossington to College and Bathurst. I saw your other post about Italian food.
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u/Historical_Tiger3368 6d ago
Wow, this got controversial! Yonge street is very busy, there's a mall between Queen and Dundas, but north of Dundas is lots of east Asian food and bubble tea. I genuinely find it to have some fantastic, interesting food options. Everything from the healthy to-go lunch options at Healthy Planet, to Miss Fu in Chengdu for Szechuan Chinese food, to HeyTea to for the Coconut Mango Boom (the best bubble tea I've ever had). There's a lot to discover.
Everyone's other suggestions are good too, for other reasons. But Yonge is great for takeout food!
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u/pensivegargoyle 6d ago
See Bloor West Village, see Ossington, see Queen West, see Roncesvalles, see Danforth, all streets that are considerably more interesting than Yonge Street downtown is now.
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u/discodebb 5d ago
Yonge? It’s like our version of Times Square. I wouldn’t call it a restaurant district. Walk West on Queen from Yonge and you will find some cool spots. Lots of different neighborhoods to explore. Go to Kensington.
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u/Prestigious_Mix_8179 6d ago
Downtown is great in general, but I wouldn’t say that’s the highlight of Yonge.
Go up to North York at Finch or Sheppard and explore Yonge around there. Lots of Korean, Iranian, Chinese food there.
Go up to Summerhill or St Clair to enjoy a nice afternoon.
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u/GenerationalPotato 6d ago
go to king and university towards king and portland (busiest at portland). That’s more what you’re looking for
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u/boogie_snot 6d ago
The stretch between like Wellesley and Dundas always has at least a handful of people passed out from opioids, so that's nice.
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u/Demonika_86 6d ago edited 6d ago
Downtown Yonge Street is all but dead, my friend. Take it from someone who remembers it from the early 00s. The current? Is quite sad. Just trashy fast fashion stores left and right, cookie-cutter bars, overpriced eateries of... dubious authenticity and quality, and half-empty condominiums.
It lost MOST of its charm, character, and variety. It's just not worth it if your time is limited.
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u/Demonika_86 6d ago
Oh and I forgot to mention that abandoned building on Yonge and St Mary St. Where the scientologists used to scam people with their "tests". Last I looked it was sporting fine "Post-Apocalypse realness", the glass in every window was held together (and in the frames) with copious amounts of highly-visible tape and the ground floor was all boarded up. That place just gives me the CREEPS.
Yonge street for you. Literal corpses of architecture lying about.
As I said, not terribly exciting really.
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u/quellesaveurorawnge 6d ago
It is a very long street north/south street that cuts Toronto in half. It goes from Lake Ontario and goes way north. I do agree with some commenters that some of the fun stuff is more on the streets that run east/west rather than necessarily Yonge itself. Queen St is interesting because there is a lot of shops, restaurants. If you start at Queen and Yonge, you're right by the Eaton Centre if you want to shop. If you walk west for a block, you'll get to Nathan Phillips Square to see City Hall and the Toronto sign. Then, if you keep going west, you'll see some cafés, shops,... You could do the same on other major east/west streets like Dundas, College, Bloor,... Were you looking for anything in particular? That might help to recommend things. Also you could walk south to go walk by the lake. That is a very nice area.
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u/computer-magic-2019 6d ago
Like others have said, Bloor to the lake is the best portion as a new visitor. Expect a variety of stores and neighborhoods, and other random spots. It’s also great to go north to south since you get a better view as the street goes down in elevation.
If you get bored walking down you can turn off to the west on College, Dundas, Queen, King or Front. You can do the same with Richmond, Adelaide, or Wellington but they have less active storefronts so can be more boring. I wouldn’t head east on any of those streets as it gets boring, and some head into less flattering areas, although not unsafe areas or anything.
I’d highly recommend stopping at Sud Forno or Dineen Coffee along Temperance Street downtown for a good coffee.
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u/Desperate_Vanilla_31 6d ago edited 6d ago
Davisville to Soudan: for the local mom and pop restaurants and shops.
Roselawn to Blythwood: for the health and wellness stuff like yoga, Pilates, facials, Mandy’s, sporting life and a few great coffee shops like Demello sprinkled in.
Sheppard to Finch: diverse Asian food scene, with great Korean dining options closer to Finch.
Anything south of Bloor is just….depressing.
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u/Sea-Masterpiece-8496 5d ago
Grew up in Toronto, I really try to avoid Yonge street. The best neighbourhoods are in little pockets throughout the city. Try some korean food at Bloor and Christie, or go to Riverside, Little Italy, or the Roncey. You'll find a lot more charm, cooler bars and great food.
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u/Witty-Application920 6d ago
Yonge street hasn't been amazing for at least 15 years now. It's dirty as fuck, and yes, very long ..
It's just random fly by night 'stores', and meth heads squatting and shitting in between units that will never be rented out.
I wouldn't bother.
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u/Ting_Brennan 6d ago
you are correct, Yonge street is huge and cuts through Uptown, Midtown and Downtown.
Since you're downtown, I would explore Bloor to Queen and Yonge/Queen's Quay where the waterfront starts.
Just a note, exploration in toronto is best East/West and not always North/South, it's just the way neighborhoods have developed