With Mexican, Peruvian, Brazilian, and Cuban restaurants, and more—the 6ix is your gateway to southern flavours up north.
Toronto’s diversity ensures a global village of authentic international cuisine options. Take Latin American restaurants in Toronto: you’ll find them spread across the city, thanks to our city’s ever-growing Latinx community.
Now numbering over 580,000 people, Canada’s Latin American population tripled between 1996 to 2021—with Toronto attracting the largest number of residents… and a bumper crop of Mexican, Peruvian, Brazilian, Cuban, Salvadoran, Nicaraguan and Argentinian restaurants in neighbourhoods across the city.
From Honduran pupusas to Cuban tostones, here’s where to find the flavours you’ve been searching for.
Latin American restaurants in the Entertainment District
Baro
Don’t let the night-clubby, King West vibes mislead you: food comes first at Baro—and it’s top-notch. Spanning multiple different Latin American cuisines, the kitchen’s dishes are a modern redux of rustic classics.
Watch the chefs in the open kitchen prepare the OG Duck Chaufa, Baro’s signature take on Peruvian fried rice served in a hot stone bibimbap bowl—which makes for more than a few irresistibly crunchy bits.
For a refreshing and more classic start to your meal, get the tuna ceviche with the addictive coconut lime sauce.
Mexican restaurants
La Carnita
Walk into this casual taco spot to satisfy your taco craving to the loud tune of hip hop and pop over the sound system. Street art and neon signs add to the easygoing, kick up your feet mood as you dig into cobs of Mexican street corn—which are always a messy affair to devour with the delectable layers of queso and crema—and La Carnita’s satisfying crispy fish taco, In Cod We Trust.
If you’re exploring elsewhere in town, get your taco fix at La Carnita’s sister locations in the Riverside or Yonge & Eglinton neighbourhoods.
Milagro Cantina
Inspired by Mexico City’s cantinas, Milagro Cantina is a ray of sunshine in the Entertainment District off of the King Street strip.
They serve up a killer cochinita pibil, with the roasted pulled pork in achiote served up alongside refrito beans and pickled habanero onions. Round out your meal with a michelada or agua fresca.
Kensington Market
Mexican restaurants
Tacos 101
Tacos 101 is a low-key, friendly taqueria with a playful mural of luchadores on the wall.
This casual Kensington Market hang is the spot to go if you’ve got birria on the brain: the meaty experience is elevated with a rich, flavourful consomme. The al pastor is no slouch either, slow roasted to sweet and spicy balanced perfection!
Rebozos Taqueria
Get that comforting home-style Mexican meal you’ve been dreaming about at Rebozos Taqueria. And while tacos are always a good idea here—the carnitas pork is seasoned and simmered to just the right tenderness!—do not miss out on a bowl of humble pozole. This is the soul-fulfilling pork and hominy soup you’ve always wished the Mexican mamá you never had would make for you.
Chilean food
Jumbo Empanadas
An iconic Kensington Market food experience, Jumbo Empanadas makes for a perfect mid-shopping pit stop. Try to snag a seat indoors or on the tiny patio whenever you’re feeling peckish while thrifting in this eclectic and boho neighbourhood.
With a choice of beef, chicken, cheese and veggie, the oversized stuffed turnovers benefit from a dollop of the house-made fresh salsa: it cranks up the flavour while cooling the piping hot handheld snack.
Little Italy
Latin American tapas
Qué Rico Tapas Bar
Come to Little Italy for the tapas and stay for the fun vibes. Qué Rico serves up a menu of small plates from across Latin America: share Ecuadorian ceviche, croquetas, lomo saltado and more when you join the party at this popular birthday spot.
Be sure to check the restaurant’s Instagram for ticketed nights they host with Del Caribe so you can hit the dance floor post-tapas and learn some spicy choreography.
Roncesvalles Village
Cuban food
La Cubana
A leisurely walk from High Park, Roncy Village’s La Cubana is the place to go for a retro diner aesthetic paired with a menu of Cuban dishes that prove simple can be best. Get an always-satisfying pressed Cubano sandwich here, with cod croquetas and corn frituras as comforting fried-food sides.
Got a bigger appetite? You can’t go wrong with the grilled fish served with pineapple and turmeric lime aioli—just pretend you’re enjoying it beachside in Cuba.
Need to scratch that itch while you’re downtown? No problem, there are La Cubana locations in Ossington Village and in The Well, too!
Argentinian/Venezuelan food
Bar Bacan
Bar Bacan shines with a welcoming atmosphere that’ll instantly make you feel like a regular at this charming family-run restaurant.
Arepa fans must get the pabellon arepa: it delivers on sweet, savoury and meaty, thanks to its filling of slow-cooked beef, beans, plantain and fresco cheese.
On the weekends, swing by for brunch so you can enjoy your eggs with housemade chorizo, picanha and chimichurri.
Midtown
Salvadoran food in Koreatown
Tacos El Asador
A no-frills, hole-in-the-wall eatery decked out with picnic tables and a streamer of little flags draped across the ceiling, Tacos El Asador is one of the city’s cult fave taco hotspots.
Enjoy a bean pupusa and an order of beef tacos, wash it all down with a glass of sweet horchata and you may just feel as though you’ve ducked into a taqueria in a Central American beach town. But you’re in Toronto, so why not chase your Latin fare with Koreatown taiyaki?
Nicaraguan food on Bloor West
La Bella Managua
La Bella Managua is a little gem that locals in the neighbourhood hope to keep secret. Chef co-owner Jesus Morales opened his Nicaraguan-Caribbean restaurant in 2025, making it one of Toronto’s OG Latin American restaurants.
Treat yourself to the nacatamal (the plantain-leaf wrapped dish of steamed corn masa filled with onions, peppers, tomatoes, and juicy marinated pork loin) and carne asada, a plate of expertly grilled steak full of rich beefy flavour.
Old Town
Mexican food in the Distillery District
El Catrin Destileria
Enjoy good-time vibes and authentic Mexican dishes with modern updates in a vibrant, buzzy Distillery District space.
El Catrin boasts Canada’s largest collection of mezcal and tequila (which you can conveniently taste test as a margarita flight!) and hosts multiday festivities for Cinco de Mayo and Day of the Dead, complete with mariachi bands, playful decor and special menu items.
Menu-wise, you can’t go wrong with tacos guasave, which include a bit of Canadiana in the form of creamy PEI potatoes, which are combined with flavourful mahi mahi ceviche inside a crispy tortilla.
Bonus: El Catrin Destileria extends patio season right into autumn thanks to its heated patio.
Eastside
Brazilian food on The Danforth
Rodeo Brazilian Steakhouse Rodizio
One of a handful of spots in the city where you can enjoy a Brazilian all-you-can-eat-meat meal, Danforth-Greektown’s Rodeo Brazilian Steakhouse Rodizio may not be the flashiest restaurant in town, but everyone’s focused on the meat, anyhow.
With your table’s card flipped on green, servers will continue carving you cuts of picanha AAA beef strip loin, pork, chicken, lamb and roasted pineapple. Turn the sign to red when you need to take a break or have had your fill.
Mexican food in Little India
Puerto Bravo
Puerto Bravo, a MICHELIN Bib Gourmand selection, is an unassuming, petite brick-walled space in the city’s Gerrard East/Little India neighbourhood.
Start your meal with an excellent guacamole and salted-just-right chips, but save room for tacos and tostadas. Seafood is the star of the show here; from the camarones bravos taco to the pulpo al carbone, everything is cooked to ideal tenderness and balanced taste-wise with homemade salsas, roasted poblanos and more.
More of the best Latin American food in Toronto
With such a wealth of Latin American restaurants peppered throughout Toronto neighbourhoods, the 6ix is practically a culinary gateway to Central America and beyond.
If touring the south via your tastebuds is a priority for you, be sure to visit during Midtown’s annual Salsa On St Clair Festival, which typically takes place the first weekend of July. But St. Clair Avenue West between Winona Drive and Christie Street is worth a stroll year-round for its many Latin American restaurants and cafes.
—This story has been updated with new details since it was first published in October 2023.
