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    Union Summer

    3.6 (21 reviews)

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    BAO SO HARD.
    Bev K.

    It was my first time at Union Summer and I had a great time! TBH, I really have nothing to compare it to but my colleagues weren't all too impressed with the food on offer this year and kept saying the 2016 edition was much better. (They were on a hiatus last year due to the construction at Union Station). There are a plethora of food stands to choose from but I naturally gravitated towards Mean Bao. Why? 'Cuz I 'bao so hard', that's why. (peep photo) Ordered the pork belly bao and it was comparable to the baos I've had in Taiwan. Note: we arrived at noon and the place was already packed. Limited seating so it was hard to get more than three seats. Arrive early to make use of your limited lunch hour... I ran out of time but really wanted to try the cookie monster ice cream @ Fugo. Better luck next week! 3.5

    Tofu Bao from Mean Bao
    Shaan A.

    I'm not overly impressed with Union Summer this year (2018). While they do have some great options like Fugo, Mean Bao, Wvrst and more...the options do seem quite limited. What happened to Eva's Chimney cones? What about Death In Venice gelato?? I came on a weekday evening and the sun was shining. They have live music apparently at some hours, and nice seating underneath patio tents. I decided to get a few things; a tofu bao from Mean Bao, some donuts and ice cream from Fugo, some fries from Union Chicken...and that's about it. The service everywhere is pretty quick, and the food is fairly tasty. I liked my veggie Bao - it was light and fresh. The fries were extremely salty though. Fugo didn't disappoint - it was quite delicious as always and I like how they make the donuts fresh. Union Summer is definitely a fun spot, but if you need to go out of your way to get there this year - you won't miss much if you decide not to go.

    Michelle W.

    Ive been to this pop up market maybe 2-3 yrs ago and they have definitely stepped it up! They now have a nicer wooden bench area surrounded by all the diff pop up food vendors. Well organized and relatively clean. I like how theres so many good options to choose from and theres also music playing / bands at certain times. I opted for the fugo creamsicle drink with the tiny donut on top - honestly so worthy of a picture! Tasted ok - wish it was more of a drink though. The mean bao station was good - soft bun w/ juicy pork belly & got a noodle salad with tofu that was infused with such great seasoning - tofu was the best part. Also shared the OG union chicken sandwich...was delicious and devoured half of it in a matter of minutes!

    Vanessa D.

    This was my first time checking out Union Summer. I didn't realize how small it was (seating was kind of a pain, but we managed to find a spot to sit at). It also rained and wet most of the benches available so everyone was kind of squishing around. There's a good amount of food to choose from. I originally wanted to try a burger from one of the stands, but chose to try the food from Mean Bao. I was not disappointed. We ordered the pork and .....I forgot which the other one was but it wasn't the chicken. IT WAS SO GOOD. I'm such a sucker for bao's. We chose to try some of the mini donuts from Fugo as well. And their ice cream? Ugh everything was delicious. I'd probably go back again to try out a few of the other booths food as well. We got lucky and there was a pretty live show going on. Definitely something to experience in Toronto if you're a tourist or even a resident. Go, go, go!

    Burger priest menu
    David L.

    Union Summer Market brings a punch to compete with its predecessor, Front Street Foods. Conveniently located outside of Union Station, it will definitely attract large crowds but it is definitely not perfect in terms of layout. Here's what I tried on multiple visits to this food market so far: Eva's Original Chimney: Definitely the main dessert place at the market. I tried the original chimney and it was definitely photo worthy and thats all. It's basically a churro filled with vanilla ice cream soft serve. I wouldn't try it again. Loaded Pierogi: I ordered the porky pig which had bacon, caramelized onion, cheese and green onions. I honestly thought the pierogis would be stuffed with those ingredients but they were just placed on top of the pierogis. Everything they put together works and taste alright but nothing too special here. Burger's Priest: Finally, a convenient place to order some Burger's Priest! I still find that they are still the best burger place in Toronto. I ordered double cheeseburger and they make it fresh. Love that they are here at the Union Summer Market. True True Pizza: This was actually quite a surprise for me as I already went back and tried two different pizzas on different visits. I tried the Donnie Brasco and Hunt & Peck. Both pizzas were solid and freshly made. I definitely want to check out their restaurant location sometime. Mad Mexican: Mad Mexican is back from last year and I tried 2 tacos. You definitely have to add guacamole as I find the tacos to be a bit dry without it. The layout is a huge thing that I was disappointed about. All the vendors are all in the middle while there are two aisles on either side of the market. It doesn't provide that market feeling as it did last year when everyone was in the middle and people could look at all the options at once. They seem to like to blast music and I get they want to add entertainment with a stage but I find that it to be a miss. When it's lunch hour, people usually come and go quickly as there aren't enough seats to accommodate everyone at the market.

    Loaded Pierogi - Donald Duck - so good!!!
    Ross S.

    Review is mainly for Loaded Pierogi: Had an awesome and wonderfully filling Donald Duck (pierogis, carmelized onions, cheese, duck gravy, tomatoes, and a whole duck confit leg!). Loved it! Duck confit leg is one of my favourites and this was great - especially for one in a good stall. Never have seen it made in a deep fryer before, but worked fine. Was very salty, but that is pretty normal for duck confit leg. The potato periogis were good - fluffy but solid. There were eight in the portion. Generous amount of shredded cheese, carmelized onions (come from a can), and duck gravy. Garnished with sliced grape tomatoes. Hubby had the Ms Piggy - same 8 pierogis & shredded cheese but a ton of Apple smoked pulled pork. He loved it! The service was friendly and efficient. This isn't cheap take out, but definitely higher end food and pricing. Worth it for a treat! And I'll be going to one of their sit down locations soon. Seating in the area is hampered by the odd food stall layout this year. The stalls are in the centre of the court - back-to-back in two groups. Makes it very difficult to check out all the stalls when making your selection and there is no room to line up at the stalls much less wait for your order to be prepared. The seating is spread around the perimeter. Difficult to find open places and the rest of your group. The layout last year was much better with one alley for the food stalls and all the seating grouped together. It should be switched back!

    Loaded Pierogi's duck confit leg on regular pierogies and Carbon Bar's beef brisket sammie
    Mae F.

    I've been here twice so far this summer. There are a few things I like about this place: -Many choices of vendors to buy food from during the lunch hour and several are well known like Gushi, Momofuku Noodle Bar, Eva's Original Chimneys etc. -Easily accessible since it's right by Union Station -Live music that's actually really good -Alcohol is sold here -Decent portion sizes at some food stalls Cons: -Some places overcharge for their food like $16 for duck confit pierogies which were literally 8 small pierogies with a very salty small duck leg on top at the Loaded Pierogi stall -Narrow space between the back food stalls and some sitting areas, which is a lot more noticeable when it's crowded during the lunch hour - I have yet to be blown away by any of the food at these food stalls. So far, I've tried the beef brisket sammie at the Carbon Bar, duck confit pierogies at Loaded Pierogi, double down beef bacon patties sammie at Patois, Eva's Original Chimney Cones (the one with the brownie chunks and toffee bits) - all were just okay...but Death by Venice's lemon ricotta rosemary gelato was surprising really good! This summer market is worth going to once though (it's summer after all!) if you don't work or hang out in the area.

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    Review Highlights - Union Summer

    They had quite a few different vendors including El Catrin, Union Chicken, Carbon Bar and more.

    Mentioned in 4 reviews

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    Hot and Spicy Festival

    Hot and Spicy Festival

    1.9(7 reviews)
    0.7 kmHarbourfront

    This is my first time going to the annual Hot and Spicy Festival down and Harbourfront Centre. I…read moreguess I was expecting to have a lot of food vendor and I was disappointed. Most of the vendors that participated are selling hot sauces, mustard and more hot sauces... Might as well renamed the event to Hot and Spicy Sauces Festival. The Iron Chef Final on the last day was interesting though... and I got to sample the winner's cooking at the end of the show!! If you are in the area, definitely drop by. But doesn't worth a special trip for this!

    The Hot & Spicy food festival is one of the last summer festivals the city of Toronto offers. It's…read moresituated in a decent location right by the lake at Harbourfront Centre. It also offers ample room to move around which makes it comfortable for families, seniors and festival goers in general and the lineups for vendors are short and minimal which work well in favour of the festival. The one area were they could really improve is offer more food vendors, instead of really having tons of vendors selling just hot sauces and spices. I'm not saying they should be reduced but there should be more of a balance because a lot of people come to festivals for the food. This would make the festival so much better because the location is pretty good, lineups are minimal, there are music performances and there is ample room to move around. One thing that worked well was the taco takedown competition where 6 restaurants in Toronto offered their take on tacos to see who had the best tacos in town, the price was $8 to try six tacos, one from each restaurant, they were pretty good but good thing "Seven Lives" wasn't involved in the competition because they would have blown away the competition. The lineup was a little long at 30 minutes but that's because it was the main food highlight of the festival.

    Photos
    Hot and Spicy Festival - Our pretty city at night

    Our pretty city at night

    Hot and Spicy Festival
    Hot and Spicy Festival - Painfully slow samosa, pakora, etc stand - food was bland

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    Painfully slow samosa, pakora, etc stand - food was bland

    Waterfront Night Market - Water feature and floating Lanterns

    Waterfront Night Market

    3.0(11 reviews)
    3.7 km

    This was such a fun, spontaneous evening! It had a cool Oriental night market vibe with tons of…read morefood stalls, bouncy houses, and two live DJs. The food was tasty but definitely pricey, especially after the entrance fee (which wasn't cheap). Highlight was launching lanterns into the water such a sweet little moment with my kid. It felt like a cool blend of culture-meets-festival energy. Would totally go again, just maybe pre-game with snacks first .

    The website: I wasn't impressed with this waterfront night…read moremarket. I had such high hopes though. Their marketing & pictures of past events looked so good. Hubby & I bought tickets for this year's event. Firstly, their website doesn't have any FAQs. Other than a link to buy tickets & what the cost of the ticket gets you there's not much more information. First Impressions: We arrived just after 4pm & lined up. We got through pretty quickly because there wasn't much of a lineup. The device they were using to scan tickets wouldn't scan ours so they took a picture instead. We had VIP tickets so we got the "nicer" red lantern with tealight candle (the kind with a battery & a switch to turn on). They did a bag check & saw one of us had a bottle of water with us (unopened). They made us throw it into the garbage before going in. That wasn't nice. I later saw people with their reusable water bottles walking around with it. Why were those allowed and not ours? Not nice. As we went inside some booths weren't even set up. Though a good amount were already making their food items for waiting customers. One booth near the entrance was grilling skewers & the smoke went everywhere. The food: After wandering around I decided to get the ube burger & fries from the Bunso booth. The burger was a lot smaller than I thought it would be. The beef patties inside were quite thin. It didn't look appetizing compared to the picture. But it tasted a lot better than it looked. LOL. One thing I will criticize about the burger I wish they hadn't put so much black pepper into the patty. It was a bit spicy for me. It would have been nice if they had seasoned it more gently. The fries were decent. My only complaint is that they weren't hot. But given the circumstances where they were cooked (outdoors on a windy day) I can understand that. The Chatime food truck was nearby so I bought a purple aura bubble tea drink from them. It was too sweet for me. I only drank about half of it before abandoning it. Later on I got the egg shaped waffles in a small carton & the combo comes with lemonade in a flask. This was from Eggette Lab. The flask is a round ring & the strap is pink. Hubby drank the weak lemonade in it. It was funny to see him wearing the flask with pink ribbon & cartoon cats on it. Hubby got chicken skewers from Bunso (no picture) & a Vietnamese coffee style drink (didn't catch name of food vendor). The good: -The red lanterns hanging above the dance floor were nice. -The water feature where the lanterns go was nice. But the water didn't look too clean. -There was a plastic gold dragon by the water which looks nice in pictures & there's a small red bridge beside the water feature for selfie shots. -There was also some plastic Fu dogs where the dragon dancers have a tent. -The fake cherry blossoms looked nice too. -People were friendly & food vendors were friendly. -There were picnic tables set up near the back of the area away from the dance floor. It was quieter there. -The live dj was good. The bad: -A lot of the same food vendors here have also been at Mel Lastman Square events which is free to get into - I didn't feel like I was getting anything special or VIP. I was hoping to see more food vendors I hadn't seen before. -The only washrooms were portapotties which were disgusting & dirty. You can use the washrooms at enercare center but you have to leave the market & might not be allowed back in. -The VIP ticket came with a free alcoholic drink. That booth wasn't even set up yet when we arrived. Hubby was able to get a soju bomb later. -There are no recycle bins or green bins. Everything goes into the garbage. That's a lot of waste. When we got home we opened up the lanterns to look at them. They are cheap plastic lanterns. We recycled them at home. The electronic tea lights are ones you can get at the dollar store. It was nice to experience a different night market but I don't think I'll come back to this one. There are tons of free-entry night markets around the city that I can go to.

    Photos
    Waterfront Night Market
    Waterfront Night Market - Their sign

    Their sign

    Waterfront Night Market

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    Vegetarian Food Festival - Creamy centre of Bunner's pumpkin spice muffin

    Vegetarian Food Festival

    4.2(13 reviews)
    0.7 kmHarbourfront

    Free, massive food festival with plenty of cheap eats and free samples…read more Booths can range from healthy superfoods to junk food pop-ups, to vegan clothes & accessories, to the few who have nothing to do with veganism. Sample everything, grab something to eat, sit on the grass, and listen to the live indie bands. Like what you sampled? Well many booths are selling their products tax free and at discounted prices. I strongly recommend that you bring cash and a sturdy shopping bag, or two. Plenty of different panels and cooking shows. For full schedule, visit: vegfoodfest.com/schedule Parking is a headache. I strongly recommend that you take the TTC to Union station then the streetcar should drop you right infront of Harbourfront centre.

    The Annual Toronto Vegetarian Food Festival is easily my favourite event of the year. It's in its…read more27th year, after starting as a small fair at George Brown College in the '80s. It draws 20,000+ people to the Harbourfront Centre over the course of the weekend and exposes people to the fact that cruelty-free, plant-based diets are not just healthy but also delicious and easy! There's loads of free speakers on a wide range of subjects from weight-loss and nutrition to the sociological aspects of meat-consumption, which is my area of interest. Last year I took in two talks by Carol J. Adams, noted professor and author of 'The Sexual Politics of Meat', on feminism and how marketing of meat for consumption intermingles with the subjugation of women's bodies as 'meat' in advertising. It was very stimulating and thought-provoking and I didn't have to pay American university tuition just to hear it. The cooking demos are all free as well. I've enjoyed the 'Vegan Iron Chef' competition two years in a row but this year I'm planning to see some 'educational' one's like how to make 5-step vegan fudge and how to properly cook leafy greens like kale and swiss-chard (I haven't a clue on the latter). Of course, the best part of a Vegetarian Food Festival is the food. They have everything from cupcakes and ice-cream to raw food, dim sum, Jamaican, Indian, and so much more. There's also loads of free sample to be had like kiwis, milk alternatives, granola bars, protein powder just off the top of my head. I'll probably take in 1.5x the caloric intake I usually eat but I won't gain a pound because nearly everything at the festival is vegan. Whether you're a vegan, vegetarian or just a veg-curious omnivore, you should pay the Food Fest a visit this weekend. If you're thinking 'this isn't my bag, I eat meat and I don't like vegetables.' Think again, the Food Fest is for everyone and can help you reduce your meat intake and up your vegetable count for improved health. Everyone knows eating lots of vegetables is good for your health and heart but a lot of people don't even know how to cook them. This is the place to find out so you can have a longer, healthier life and reduce your impact on the environment! If Bill Clinton can do it, you can too: http://sanjayguptamd.blogs.cnn.com/2011/08/29/sanjay-gupta-reports-the-last-heart-attack/ You can also check out and support all the great community vendors, like the animal rescue groups such as Toronto Cat Rescue, Annex Cat Rescue, North Toronto Cat Rescue, Ferret Rescue, and Rabbit Rescue. There's also activists groups like Sea Shepherd, Farm Sanctuary and others. And of course, there's Yelp. This is where I got my first introduction to Yelp and my very own Yelp re-useable swag bag from Kat F. Hope to see you there! Val G.

    Photos
    Vegetarian Food Festival - Sweets from earth

    Sweets from earth

    Vegetarian Food Festival - King's Cafe doing mad business as usual.

    King's Cafe doing mad business as usual.

    Vegetarian Food Festival - Line up for book signing from Dr. Michael Greger

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    Line up for book signing from Dr. Michael Greger

    Toronto After Dark: Horror, Sci-Fi & Action Film Festival - Another packed audience at the festival!

    Toronto After Dark: Horror, Sci-Fi & Action Film Festival

    5.0(3 reviews)
    0.9 kmEntertainment District, Downtown Core

    Horror fans come out in horde's every time TAD comes to town! And no matter what your horror taste…read moreis, this festival will most certainly have something for you! Pure uncensored horror in all it's fright, gore and even comedy! And I wouldn't be surprised if they add "International" somewhere in the title as the 2010 festival had movies from a wide variety of countries, and you know that Asian horror is a whole different experience than what you would see playing at most cinemas. This year's festival was 8 nights long with 16 films raging from the much hyped about "human centipede" to a movie centered around a killer tyre! Yes a killer tyre! (Look up the trailer for Rubber). Tickets don't always sell out and you can get them at the box office until the last minute, but for bigger name movies (including the opening and closing nights features) you are better off with advanced tickets. Or you can opt for the VIP festival pass (you get a cool lanyard too!) that gives you access to all movies. ARRIVE EARLY! Line ups start very early but don't get too discouraged if it winds up around the block and goes all the way up the street, the Bloor Cinema has a large capactiy! And festival hosts and volunteers are clearly passionate about the festival which certainly adds to the experience. There are always a pre and post film interview/Q&A with the director. And after one film I was at, everyone was invited to the Pauper's Pub across the street for drinks with the director. I would love to see tiff do something like that! This was my first year with TAD and I will definitely try to get as many movies under my belt in the future! Just make sure to research your film a little before you go in case you walk in to a torture film expecting a different kind of horror!

    I love horror movies and the b-grade ones are even better! You can imagine why I am a fan of…read moreToronto After Dark. Plus the tickets are not very pricey either.

    Taste of Toronto - My customized mustard from Maille with maple syrup, rosemary, basil, hot sauce

    Taste of Toronto

    3.7(21 reviews)
    1.7 kmCity Place

    Disclaimer: I won 2 complimentary tickets from Yelp Toronto Giveaway. So we ended up just paying…read morefor the food. Love the set up and location of Taste of Toronto. This is the first time I ever been to Fort York. Getting there was easy as Streetcar 509 get me right to the entrance. The ground is spacious and I like the white tent like set up giving it an English Garden gallery vibe. I was expecting the worse since I attended the Saturday Evening Session but was pleasantly surprised that the event was well organized and it was not too crowded. Maximum wait for me was less than 10 minutes for anything. Most of the restaurant vendors did have good time management and kudos for all the kitchen staff working so hard keeping us all fed and wait time to the minimum. We ended up trying Little Sister's Pork Belly ($8), Morimoto Toronto's Uni Carbonara with a bottle of S.Pellegrino ($8) and THR's Lobster Grits ($10). Each dish was well presented with good flavours. There are also a lot of free sampling and tasting in various food vendors, For wine tasting, they are going for $1 each or so. Love the different demo. Getting into Master Cooking Classes were impossible with the limited first come first serve openings but watching the cooking class was just as fun. American Express Lounge was a nice touch from AMEX as it has free samples and free bottle water to keep you hydrated. I would come back next year on a nice day to spend a few hours to wander around and sample some food. The longest line being Richmond Station and Drake. I would suggest to skip those as it really was no point spending your time lining up for food.

    Contrary to a lot of reviews below, I absolutely loved Taste of Toronto…read more Our group wanted to try a variety of options, so we pooled our money and loaded it on 1 card. Surprisingly, the wait time to try top restaurants were not bad at all. We pretty much got a taste of every dish at every place. By the end of the night, I was holding my magnum ice cream with a big smile on my face. My friends were all struggling to walk and wanting to roll home instead. The main dish that made my night was: Splendido - "True North Atlantic Salmon Sashimi from Atlantic Canada - Avocado, sesame, race cakes." This dish had the "Wow factor." After having a slice, I was in shock. I honestly could not stop talking about how delicious this dish was that night. I had to get a second order immediately. The sauce had the perfect amount of flavor without being too strong to cover the taste of the freshly sliced Salmon Sashimi. The texture from the avocado compliments the tenderness and chewiness of the Sashimi perfectly. Amazing! What I really like about this festival is that you get a taste of the food from top restaurants around Toronto. I will definitely be trying Splendido shortly in the future. I look forward to Taste of Toronto next year and I highly recommend others to join me as well!

    Photos
    Taste of Toronto - Baklava Soft Serve from Mamakas Taverna

    Baklava Soft Serve from Mamakas Taverna

    Taste of Toronto - Smoked True North Salmon (capers, caraway, pickled onion, toast, creme fraiche) from Piano Piano

    Smoked True North Salmon (capers, caraway, pickled onion, toast, creme fraiche) from Piano Piano

    Taste of Toronto - Station Burger (milk bun, beet chutney, onion ring) from Richmond Station

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    Station Burger (milk bun, beet chutney, onion ring) from Richmond Station

    Toronto's Festival of Beer

    Toronto's Festival of Beer

    4.2(26 reviews)
    3.6 km

    On Saturday July 26 I attended the TFOB. It was my 2nd time attending this particular Beer Fest…read more but my previous visit was in 2011, 14 years ago, at the same location, west side of The CNE Grounds. I arrived in the long lineup to get in at about 2:20 pm, 20 minutes after the Fest. started. The line moved fairly steadily and I got in at about 2:40. As usual at the bigger Beer Fests that I attend, I walked around to get 'a lay of the land' and find out which Breweries and other beverage Companies were there and what they had available. My admission included a sampling glass and 5 tokens which could be used for beverages and food. Additional tokens cost $1 each and samples were predominantly 2 tickets for a 4 oz (half glass) pour, therefore $2/each. I started sampling around 3 pm and continued doing so for 3 1/2 plus hours; I had a total of 10 samples - mainly beer - but also Pear Apple Cider and Mango Guava Vodka Soda. I experienced a wide variety of flavours and styles in the different beverages I had. Loud music was playing through large speakers in the large outdoor area that the Fest. mainly took place in; indoors there was a stage with instruments on it and several other beverage providers. For food, there were food trucks stationed in a separate area at the Fest.; due to the cost I had lunch beforehand. It started to rain later in the afternoon and I left around 6:45 pm. More Attendees had arrived as the afternoon progressed and although it became fairly crowded outside, there was still adequate room to circulate throughout the Fest. I quite enjoyed experiencing the TO Beer Fest. for my 1st time in a very long time. Largely a younger crowd was present and it appeared to me that many others who came quite enjoyed attending as well.

    In the last 2 decades, I have been to TFOB probably 6-7 times. It was previously held at Fort York…read morebut a while ago, with growing popularity - they moved the location to Exhibition Place. I was not happy about this change because it became less accessible (far from the city core, and need to take GO transit) but I go there anyway as I love beers. I go there to sample many different beers - it is HEAVEN for beer lovers. Just like endless beer flights. Especially, if you have luck with the weather - the experience will be very relaxing. To me, it is like a paradise - surrounded by hundreds of thousands of happy, friendly, and cheerful zythophiles - feels like a community celebrating the golden beverage! As per food - the qualities are declining, unfortunately. They used to invite a variety of Toronto's popular restaurants and chefs, but not anymore. Now all are "food track level" except for Oyster Boys. Food can be purchased with both cash and tokens. Tokens are sold by mobile-token-sellers - TFOB staff are walking around selling tokens. It accepts credit and debit cards but I strongly recommend you carry cash, as the debit machine seemed to have a lot of issues here and there. Beers - there are several sections based on the types of producers (import, local, newbies, etc...). My recommendation is the area called "Change Makers" - you can sample new local breweries' products on tap - if you want to support new local businesses, and try new and different beers, it is a "must go". This year's best was - Town Brewery (Whitby). I am not saying this just because I am a Whitby resident. This place is really passionate about what they are doing and continues to make high-quality beer. I was glad to have beer from Left Field - for established stability. We also had a very nice conversation with the staff from Old Credit Brewing Co - I thought their beer was worth people's attention! Final note - be careful about the size of the bag you bring in. If it is too big, you are not allowed to enter. Only a small handbag is allowed. No backpack. There is no locker around (on-site, at Exhibition GO station or Union Go). So, you will be in big trouble if you have a big bag! Cheers!

    Photos
    Toronto's Festival of Beer
    Toronto's Festival of Beer
    Toronto's Festival of Beer - Poutine from Smoke’s Poutinerie

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    Poutine from Smoke’s Poutinerie

    Distillery Winter Village - cute snowmans

    Distillery Winter Village

    3.6(12 reviews)
    1.7 kmDistillery District

    So I actually had a really wonderful time going in the second to last day of the winter village…read more The last weekend there's no need to purchase a ticket to enter, there's no Santa or carolers, and it's less people since it's very early January. The lights and decorations were beautiful! The light snow added to the wintery ambiance. We got lucky with parking. A new nearby apartment complex was selling parking for the winter village. It was within a block away. If you followed the official event parking signs it'd lead you to 2 Church St parking garage which is about 1 mile away (probably a 25-30 minute walk in the cold. No thanks). The winter village was a smaller than I expected. We wandering around and left after an hour or so. There's a lot of pop up vendors selling everything from crochet plushies, poutine, dumplings, crepes, and more. I think most people would go during December or closer to Christmas. I think it's worth going at least once but I'd hate the crowds during peak times.

    This year, the main sponsor isn't Dior but L'Oréal, and honestly, it's still just as beautiful--if…read morenot more festive and flashy than last year. There are more lights, more decorative details, and the brand installations feel more polished overall. Since the pandemic, it feels like winter events in Toronto have become bigger and more extravagant, and Distillery Winter Village is a perfect example of that trend. It's less of a simple holiday market now and more like a small winter-themed attraction. Still one of the best spots for photos Once the lights turn on in the evening, the atmosphere is hard to beat. If you're looking for cozy holiday vibes or festive photos, this place never disappoints. Food & drinks are what you'd expect Mulled wine, hot chocolate, sausages--classic winter market items. Nothing mind-blowing taste-wise, but you're definitely paying for the ambiance. About the tickets Evening entry requires a ticket, and honestly, I'm not sure it's always worth it--especially if you've been before. It's fun, but not necessarily something you need to pay for every single year. Tip If you don't want to buy a ticket, go before 4 PM. Entry is free, it's less crowded, and if you stay a bit longer, you can still catch some of the lights turning on. Expect crowds Weekend evenings are packed. Between tourists, couples, families, and dogs, it can get pretty hectic--don't expect a slow, peaceful stroll. Overall: Beautiful, festive, and very "holiday vibes," but definitely a mood-and-photos kind of place. Great to visit once a season, just keep expectations (and spending) in check.

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    Distillery Winter Village
    Distillery Winter Village
    Distillery Winter Village - Hello Distillery District!

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    Hello Distillery District!

    UBE Night Market - Isabella donuts

    UBE Night Market

    4.5(2 reviews)
    2.5 km

    This is a two-night market featuring one of the Philippines' popular ingredients called Ube, which…read moreis vivid purple in colour. There is food, drinks, live music, and art. It is free to enter the night market. Ube is a purple yam, a type of sweet potato, scientifically called dioscorea alata. It's deep purple colour is due to the presence of anthocyanins. There were so many food vendors. There was Filipino artist Leeroy New, DJ Nina Salvo, Band BotterxBroke, and a magician. We ordered the following: 1. From Tito Parley's: Salvanas ($7.00), a macaron x ice cream sandwich, Ube Coco flavour. 2. From Hazel's Best: Ube Gulaman Samalamig ($6.00), a cold drink. 3. From Islas: UBE Smash Burger (double, $15.00). The food and drink we got were so delicious! There are picnic tables to sit on. After 18:00, it got crowded, so it may be hard to find a spot to sit down. We also met a friend, Rechie Valdez, federal Minister of Small Business. She herself is Canada's first Filipino federal minister. There is no free WiFi. The festival is wheelchair accessible. There are two paid parking lots. Review 2023-304

    First time attending the UBE night Market. Tons of vendors with lots of ube items on their menu…read more There was also a magician and music. Fun to drop by and check out some food. I loved the ube pork adobo cheese bun, very unique and delicious. Some items are really pricy for what you get, but that's usually the case at the night markets. Fun to try out some limited time items for the festival. Loved that there was a ube themed backdrop to take a photo and it was great that it was walking distance to us.

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    UBE Night Market - Crowds

    Crowds

    UBE Night Market - Sisig fries

    Sisig fries

    UBE Night Market - Isabella's Mochi Donuts (still setting up)

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    Isabella's Mochi Donuts (still setting up)

    Union Summer - festivals - Updated May 2026

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