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    Marathon Cafe

    3.8 (128 reviews)
    InexpensiveDonuts, Coffee & Tea
    Open 6:00 am - 9:00 pm
    Updated over 3 months ago

    Order Marathon Cafe Takeout or Delivery

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    Business Info

    MARATHON CAFE ATMOSPHERE

    What's the vibe?
    Moderate noise
    Dogs allowed

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    Recommended Reviews - Marathon Cafe

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    Wynne L.

    Inside there's a long counter for ordering, getting lottery tickets, a ton of Funko Pop!, and a little case for getting your own cutlery. In terms of seating, there's a couple of high-top counters and many two-seater tables. We ordered the best combo (satay beef noodles, egg sandwich, and drink) and a pineapple bun with butter. I like that there isn't a surcharge on getting the HK milk tea cold instead of hot. For us, it turns out that the delivery of pineapple buns had not arrived yet, so we changed our order to a 'piggy bun' with condensed milk. For me, there was way too much condensed milk on the bun. It was sickly sweet, and I could not finish it. The combo is good value since it includes satay beef with instant noodles, an egg sandwich, and a cold HK milk tea all for under $15. I understand that the HK milk tea is award-winning, but I feel like I've had better. Odd thing is that the mirror in the washroom is up really high. I can only see from my eyes and above.

    Ivan H.

    Location/Service This place is along Midland, a bit north of Finch in the well-known plaza where Coco Tea and Linh Ahn Pho is. Parking can be a bit tricky cause the parking lot is really tight - but there are some parking around the back if it's busy. Inside is pretty standard interior - they renovated recently to make it a bit more modern. And there's several tables available for dine-in option vs take out (which is mostly preferred). Staff are nice and orders are done super fast as a typical HK Cafe setup. Food I usually come for their award milk tea, which is always consistent and smooth. It is a little bit on a pricey side (~$5) - but it is a good kicker to start the day. Their food items are typical standard to me - this big breakfast I tried had the usual sausage, ham and egg sandwich. It's not the best quality or standard in my opinion, but it does the job done. Due to inflation, it is a little bit pricier in my perspective - so I would say it's great for those in a rush for a really quick meal since they are really fast with the order.

    Medium hot milk tea
    Maggie G.

    Only really come here for the milk tea. The milk tea is smooth and tea flavour is strong. A little pricey for what it is, $5 for medium sized cup. Next time ill be sure to check out the food!

    Hong kong milk tea
    Amy T.

    5 stars for the milk tea and 3 stars for the pineapple bun. Staff was helpful and patient. Heard that they got a remodel after the car accident, the tables are glossy and new. Milk tea is velvety smooth and tea is strong. Best HK milk tea I've ever had, including ones I had in Hong Kong. Unfortunately I overheated the pineapple bun and the butter melted completely. So sad. The bun was nothing special regardless.

    Stacey W.

    Solid place for Hong Kong style milk tea. And beware the milk tea is strong here. I always get a large cup to go and so never sit or stay at the Cafe. The milk tea has a strong tea flavor and it has the right amount of creamy to it. So if you like strong Hong Kong style milk tea this is your place to go. The large runs about $6 CAD.

    Iced milk tea in a sippy lid
    Stephanie N.

    Having been to marathon numerous times for their milk teas and other drinks, I finally got a chance to order their food items and dined in. They do an all day breakfast and I ordered the sausages with twin eggs. It comes with a drink and buttered toast (one full slice cut in two). I personally added in a ham and macaroni in soup too. For the drink I ordered a milk tea and it comes in a takeout cup so you can take it to go later. The dine in area is semi self serve. Cutlery are in a sanitiser box and condiments and straws are on the counter as well. The food came out pretty quickly. The eggs and sausages were cooked well. The eggs may be slightly bit too oily but it was okay. I was so surprised at the sheer amount of ham in the noodle soup!! Overall, it satisfied my simple breakfast craving. I would not mind coming back for their food items.

    Pork chop sandwich
    Joy H.

    I've heard quite a bit about this place for their HK milk tea, but I was honestly a bit disappointed. The HK milk tea is indeed delicious, but it doesn't feel particularly special compared to its equivalent you can find elsewhere. Perhaps I simply can't tell the difference enough, but I wouldn't say it's worth a special trip to try their famous milk tea. However, the price is okay for a large cup of it, so I would probably pick up a cup again if I'm in the area looking for some hot HK milk tea! The food, however, was surprisingly expensive for typical HK cafe breakfast fare. They tasted okay but nothing special. The pork chop sandwich has very dry bread so...not my favorite. I'd actually recommend getting pineapple buns like this or other HK breakfast from the bakery in the other plaza over. The service was also a bit lacking. We ordered at around 2pm on a weekend, there were only 2 other folks there at the time and we had been the first to order amongst them. The other 2 and subsequently 3rd and 4th people all got their orders before us, perhaps by ordering ahead or something. We waited about 30-40 mins for our food to be ready, which we thought was way too long for seemingly simple foods. Honestly a little disappointed from the hype. Don't get me wrong, the tea is delicious, just not particularly special. Grab a cup if you're in the area, but no need to go out of your way.

    Gianna Y.

    This is a true staple in this plaza. Been here since it opened and still going strong. Known for their famous award winning HK milk tea. But I personally like the yuan yuang tea better. Which they sell ok take home bottles if you like. The other item to order is their pineapple bun sandwich options from ham and egg to spam and egg or cheese and egg or pork chop or satay beef to choose from. All tasty! And what they seem to be famous for which I haven't tried is their satay beef with noodles and I see lots of dine-in ordering.

    Marathon Cafe in Scarborough
    Elly W.

    Our first stop here for some HK style cafe food. We ordered the 1L HKMT, pork chop over spaghetti, pineapple butter bun, French toast with peanut butter and rice noodles with soy, hoisin & peanut sauce. The HKMT was legit. It tastes just like the ones from Hong Kong! No wonder they won an award here! The baked pork chop was very tender, but unfortunately they didn't have the rice option which we prefer and they didn't ask if we wanted cheese. The French toast was okay, prefer it was condensed milk. The rice noodles was delicious, no complaints. The pineapple bun was average. The butter didn't melt enough and the bun was just okay. Overall good food but definitely great HKMT. We bought two bags of the loose tea to make at home. Also grabbed a HKMT with coffee to go! Delish!!! Definitely a must try! The staff is super nice as well.

    Chicken Club Sandwich
    Rachael C.

    I've come here a couple of times and the staff can be a hit or a miss. There are a couple of tables available for you to dine in but definitely don't recommend for large groups. Decided to try the chicken club sandwich and it was delicious! I would have preferred some more chicken in the sandwich but overall very tasty and different from traditional club sandwiches. The HK style milk tea is one of the best I've ever tasted. Also decided to get the 1L bottle of milk tea and it was wayyy too sweet.

    Pork chop bun with milk tea!
    Natalie C.

    Marathon's milk tea is the closest I found in city that is comparable to the ones you get in Hong Kong. It is smooth and creamy, with a relatively strong tea flavour without being bitter. I always get the hot milk tea with no sugar. I've also been to their Markham location and their milk tea is just as good! I would rank their food above average when compared to other cha ceng tangs in the city.

    Hong Kong Style Milk Tea (Cold)

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    3 years ago

    It was my first time trying milk tea from Marathon Cafe despite it being around for many years. Their milk tea tastes delicious!

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    Page 1 of 4

    Marathon Cafe Reviews in Other Languages

    Review Highlights - Marathon Cafe

    The tea is smooth in flavour to pair nicely alongside their Fried Porkchop in Pineapple Bun.

    Mentioned in 18 reviews

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    Harry and Heels California Donuts

    Harry and Heels California Donuts

    4.3
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    19.8 km

    The Short Version: California style donuts, big and fluffy…read more I'm a fan. The Long Version: So Harry and Heels is a donut shop inside the Fourth Man in the Fire Pizzeria. The founder is the same (he's also the founder of the Burger's Priest). Their donuts are also available at Farm Boy, even as far east as Ottawa, which is actually where I tried them (since sadly the last time I was in Toronto, was before the business was founded). I tried the Chocolate Cream Filled ($3.99) which is a big fluffy yeast donut with chocolate on top and is filled with whipped cream. It's like a round eclair, lol. The layer of chocolate was thick, which I liked. The amount of whipped cream inside was also good, not stingy. These donuts are big and substantial, yet so soft. I'm a fan. I'm looking forward to trying other flavours, likely just at Farm Boy for the near future, but hopefully at their store in Toronto in the not too distant future. Review #3 (2026)

    Ordered: Apple Fritter (CAD ~$5)…read more Aya's take: Located inside the pizzeria, Harry & Heels is cranking out California-style donuts. As someone who lived in California for 4 years, I will say these are better than the donuts I had there. We only tried the Apple Fritter which isn't usually my go-to but I'm very glad we tried it. It's crisp and sweet on the outside yet unbelievably soft and fluffy on the inside! The apple flavor is mild and could be a bit more pronounced, in my opinion. It's super airy and less dense than I expected which made this so easy to inhale. It didn't even make it out the door! Super friendly staff and tasty donuts!

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    Apple Fritter
    Apple Fritter
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    Unholy Donuts

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    A bit in the pricey side but they do infuse the custard into the donut on the spot for you, if you…read morerequest something that was not prepped yet. Courteous service within the tiny shop. Pretty good stop if anyone's ever near the Bay and Dundas region. I loved my KEY LIME PIE donut!

    There's something tempting about donuts…read more Unholy Donuts was founded during COVID shutdowns when the dipped donut craze hit the city. At that point, its humble start was inside a midtown restaurant for dessert takeout. Fast forward to now, they have three spots across Toronto including downtown which you can't miss with its colourful baby blue & pink exterior. Inside they specialize in brioche donuts that are all dressed up in a variety of flavours ranging from Nutella bomb to pistachio to Homer's favorite raspberry lemon! On the one hand the donuts are expensive starting around $6, on the other they are quite large and eye-pleasing for a unique treat and a hefty sweet bite at that. We picked up six donuts to go after a meal. This bakeshop demonstrates the power of social media in creating buzz across the neighbourhood. I see they're now up to 24 flavours. Perfect timing and novelty wins in this donut-obsessed city. Skip it or hit it? If you're willing to shell out for treats like BBT, there's no reason not to give artisanal donuts a try at least once.

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    Top: Strawberry Cheesecake | Bottom: Salted Caramel Cheesecake
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    Marathon Cafe - donuts - Updated June 2026

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