A Quick Coffee Tour of Toronto, Canada: 4 Standout Cafés

Get a taste of Toronto’s expanding specialty-coffee scene.

BY MICHAELA TOMCHEK
BARISTA MAGAZINE ONLINE

Photos by Michaela Tomchek

Canada’s largest city and capital of the province of Ontario, Toronto is a metropolis with much to offer locals and visitors alike. Busy streets, glistening views of Lake Ontario, and plenty of excellent coffee make this city a worthwhile destination. Here, coffee giant Tim Hortons has a prominent presence—but tons of locally-owned shops are finding a strong foothold in the Toronto café scene. Today, we’ll take a quick tour of four noteworthy spots.

The Library Specialty Coffee

Operating since 2018, The Library has become a well-known spot in Toronto over the past several years. Their Queen Street location warmly welcomes visitors with minimalistic yet chic decor, delicate flowers adorning the tables, and the aroma of fresh brews.

Founder Jeffrey Ji spent some time in Melbourne, Australia, and, after having a taste of the specialty-coffee scene there, was inspired to bring some of the concepts he observed to Toronto. He also draws inspiration from his home city of Shanghai, China.

All of the coffee at The Library is roasted in-house—a worthy stop for refreshing cold brew, matcha from Shizuoka, tasty pastries (including delicious vegan cookies), and peaceful vibes.

Ethica Coffee Roasters

Situated just outside of downtown Toronto, Ethica Coffee Roasters was opened in 2019 by Gregory Koifman. Originally from Russia, Gregory has managed to infuse tons of personality into his coffee shop and roastery, which resides in an industrial-style brick building.

The name of the shop is inspired by the book Ethica by Benedictus de Spinoza—a philosophical treatise about emotion, intellect, liberty, and the power of the mind—which Gregory shares had a significant impact on him.

In terms of drinks, the shop offers the usual coffee offerings in addition to seasonal beverages such as the Sunset Lemonade. Try a pourover or a shot of espresso—or, if you’re craving something sweet, they also offer a refreshing strawberry iced matcha latte.

Subtext Coffee Roasters

When Alex Castellani, co-owner of Boxcar Social—another coffee chain in Toronto—opened Subtext Coffee Roasters in 2020, the goal was to bring high-quality coffee to the surrounding community while ensuring fair wages for coffee producers at origin. Situated in a busy, industrial area of Toronto, the café itself feels like a retreat, with lush plants, tons of cozy places to sit, and an overall peaceful ambience.

When asked to describe the Toronto specialty-coffee scene, Alex describes it as “diverse and disunified, defined positively by waves of immigration layered over quickly changing landscapes of disparate neighborhoods as you traverse the city.”

”There is a neighborhood grassroots mentality in corners of the city that lends well to local coffee shop culture, all enabled by a hodgepodge urban design where row housing exists a block away from dense office towers,” he says. “Less positively is that, despite such diversity of people and infrastructure, Toronto still is the financial center of Canada—and big money has increasingly played a role in what Toronto coffee looks like.”

Through Subtext, Alex seeks to challenge this notion, by offering a space for people to commune, purchase ethically sourced coffee, and learn about different origins in-depth. 

Alex shares that, after owning and running international multi-roaster coffee shops for over seven years and working a wide range of coffee jobs, he noticed an alarming disparity between those who produce coffee and those who serve it.

“So many producers are left out of the value propositions of specialty-coffee because of the ways we conventionally structure not just our coffee-buying, but relatedly build our menus and tell stories about our coffee programs and offerings,” he says.

In an effort to support farming communities, Subtext focuses on sourcing coffee from smallholder producers with small lots, and ensuring that traceability information is offered to customers. There are no blends—only single origin—and the shop publishes an annual Transparency Report outlining all of the details about the lots they purchased for that year.

“All of this work has shown the shortcomings of even the most progressive corners of our industry. There’s a lot of work to do, but as easy as it is to be cynical, it is just as apparent how powerful small actions are,” Alex adds. “Sitting in the middle of the supply chain, the results of simply humanizing producers and believing in end users’ desire to care is nothing short of inspiring.”

Coffee by JOY

A newcomer to the Toronto coffee scene, Coffee by JOY has been operating in the Lower Junction Triangle since December of 2024. Decorated with a sleek espresso bar and handmade pottery, the shop serves coffee from a variety of roasters, with coffee from Berlin, Germany’s Five Elephant being one of their most recent offerings.

The shop was founded by Monika and Tomas Vitmajer, who came to Canada from Czechia and sought to open a café with design inspiration from their home country. Apart from their passion for coffee, the two are also artists: Outside is a wooden bench hand-carved by Monika, who learned woodworking from her grandfather.

“It was really important for us to have a calm space where we could meet with other (artists)—show them what we are doing and also inspire others with our vision of life,” Tomas says. “Our motto is clear: Everything is possible. That is how we want our space to speak to others.”

The menu is simple, offering the usual espresso-based drinks in addition to chai and quality hojicha and matcha. There is also an impressive pastry selection, with plenty of vegan and gluten-free options—an ideal finale to a caffeinated tour through the city.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Michaela Tomchek finds coffee an important part of life and the world. She is an appreciator of the crop, the producer, and the many cafés throughout the world serving beautiful beverages. Currently, she writes about coffee, hoping to spread her joy across the globe. 

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