Vegan
American
Juice bar
Take-out
Canadian

Natural food restaurant, reported fully vegan Jun 2019. Menu offers an array of starters, multi-layered salads, wraps, burgers, bowls, plus soup of the day and weekend brunch. Example of items include: tempeh reuben sandwich, poutine, falafel salad, vegan burger, green goddess brown rice bowl, and soymilk matcha latte. Several branches in Toronto. Open Mon-Fri 11:00am-10:00pm, Sat-Sun 10:30am-10:00pm.


Venue map for Fresh on Bloor
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48 Reviews

First Review by veggiewoman

Lindzriot

Points +139

Vegan
19 Jul 2014

great place!

Amazing vegan selection, worth the money, big portions. Worth a visit. Onion rings are brilliant.

vallonicka

Points +195

Vegan
25 Jan 2014

Decent, but not super healthy

We've been going to Fresh for years, even back when it was known as Juice for Life. I've noticed a fall off in quality, especially in their hummus plate (no more red lebanese olive oil). The drinks are still great, and you can get some decent treats, but most of the food is fried, and not very healthy and sometimes not at all appetizing - there are much better restaurants in the area for vegans, but if you like fried stuff this is your place.

Pros: Good hours, Great Drinks

Cons: Too much fried stuff

Genie_bray

Points +40

Vegetarian
21 Nov 2013

fabulous vegan selection

I went to Fresh with my colleague who doesn't eat dairy or gluten and we had so many choices, including lots of vegan cakes for dessert!
We shared these amazing quinoa crusted onion rings and sweet potato fries for appetiser. Both portions were huge!
For main I had a chipotle bacon burger which was fabulous. The restaurant is vegan but they do have vegetarian cheddar or goats cheese you can choose to add on top which does have dairy. I chose cheddar with my burger and it was also great.
My colleague had a soba noodle bowl with lots of veggies and tofu
For dessert I had the amazing carrot cake. It was so moist and the slice was big which was greatly appreciated! My colleague had a vanilla cupcake and she said it was also good.
Fresh had so many options anyone could find something they liked. It was also reasonably priced and right on Bloor Street which is the place to be in Toronto (or at least that's my understanding!)

Pros: vegan cake!, many gluten free options, fabulous burgers

Cons: nothing - everything was great!

Poundie

Points +13192

Vegan
19 Jan 2013

Popular with students

This place seems popular with U. of Toronto students; it was packed each time I went there. I found the food to be quite good and tasty, and rather healthy, with lot of choices. The prices are reasonable, and the atmosphere is relaxed. At lunch it gets cramped and somewhat noisy, but the food gets to you rather quickly. In all, an enjoyable place to go--I would definitely return.

Pros: good student-geared place, good food

Cons: not elegant

eric

Points +20056

Vegan
15 Sep 2012

good food - nice place

I came here on my way out of town and needed something to go in a hurry. The staff were friendly and I opted for one of their burgers. I was hungry, and although it didn't look that special in a to-go box, it was one of the best veggie burgers I've ever had. The bread was awesome, and the burger texture was too. It came with a small kale salad (very small), and I was quite satisfied.

Pros: Good burgers

brooder

Points +27

Vegan
24 Apr 2012

Mediocre food and abysmal service

This was my second and definitely last visit to Fresh. When I first tried this place about a year ago, I was not impressed. On that occasion, I experienced lousy service and overpriced mediocre food, not to mention the incredibly cramped tables and noisy environment. I had ordered the "magic tofu" wrap, which was far from being magical. It was basically a mushy medley of nondescript veggies combined with overcooked tofu "steaks".

After my most recent visit, I realize that nothing has changed. Although the restaurant was half empty when I arrived, and was told that "your server will be with you soon", it was at least 10 to 15 minutes before anyone even showed up at my table. Several employees seemed to be standing around and chatting with each other, or texting on their smartphones, rather than attending to customers.
When the server finally arrived, I ordered the miso burger, which comes with a "side of marinated kale slaw".

When the order finally arrived I was quite disappointed. The burger was overdone, bordering on what one would consider burnt. It had the consistency of wood chips and sawdust and was not very tasty. The "side dish" of "kale slaw" was tiny and was nothing special as far as taste. Even though the restaurant was far from full, it was still quite noisy.

I cannot understand why Fresh appears to be so wildly popular, in the light of the poor service, mediocre food and crummy ambience. I guess it is just another example of an over-hyped trendy yuppie hangout. I will not be back.

Pros: Convenient Location

Cons: Mediocre food, Poor service, Not good value for money

ieatmodestmouse

Points +140

Vegan
06 Apr 2012

SO YUMMY!

we went to eat here expecting a quick light meal and we got HUGE portions! some of the best food we've had out! we got the quinoa onion rings with the avocado chipotle sauce. yum. we also got the grilled veg burrito which was good and had many layers of flavor. the best thing by far was the powerhouse bowl. we forced ourselves to finish it after being full because it was SO GOOD. next time i will probably get the smaller bowl. i didn't realize how huge the portions were!

Zo

Points +207

Vegan
08 Mar 2012

Fresh on Bloor and spadina

Huge selection of healthy and tasty food.

Shush eats

Points +28

Mostly Veg
17 Jan 2012

NOT so Fresh - Soggy

My parents, husband and I went to Fresh Monday night. I was wanting to go for a while, and I was so disappointed. I would go back only if I were in the area. I would not go out of my way.
The menu was wide with a variety of burgers, bowls, and wraps. But it was all really greasy and made me feel sick. It is vegetarian/vegan food that has healthy drinks, but it seems like "bar food" made vegetarian. I guess I was expecting the health factor to be greater.
The crowd is very university centred. We waited a half hour for a table. They said it is busy like that every night after 7. The servers were friendly and accommodating and even brought my dad a fresh orange juice on the house as he is diabetic and his sugar was slipping during he wait.
If you don't mind greasy, the BBQ burger was tasty and my parents liked the mushroom onion burger. The sweet potato fries were soggy and not so tasty. My hubby had the Beach Bowl. He said it was ok, but too oily. The soups were delish and the E3live shot was a little icky. You be the judge.

Pros: vegan

Cons: oily, noisy, crowded

vegified

Points +68

Vegan
06 Jun 2011

fresh is fresh

i used to live really close to this place. i always enjoyed eating there. the food is good, the service was good when i went. it was usually packed and therefore loud, but if it's packed you know people are liking it. :)

kevinloxley

Points +19

Vegetarian
19 Apr 2010

A Favorite!

Fresh is a staple of the vegetarian/vegan dining scene in Toronto. Always great food at a reasonable price. I have yet to try something that I didn't absolutely love. Fresh is a great place to take your meat eating friends...Fresh has certainly helped me convert a few meat eaters. Also, they have a great cookbook that features all of the recipes from the restaurant; worth checking out.

jedzen

Points +108

Vegan
01 Apr 2010

Lots of options...

I've been here for lunch with my boyfriend and there was a lot of people. The menu is wide, and you can customize your own meal, and your own smoothie. I did chose ingredients for my own wrap, so i can't really review on their ability to make a great meal. I loved what i had, since i knew what i was getting ; there was no surprise. The only thing i was surprised about is that all the ingredients came on 2 plates, with the wrap on the side. I told the guy i wanted to have a wrap with those inside so i thought they would make it into a nice presentation. Anyway that is far from a big deal, i did not really care about making it myself. My boyfriend had a dahl soup with corn bread and a salad and he liked it. The smoothie was really good. The service was a bit slow, but friendly and fun. Maybe i would have wrote a more constructive review if i had chosen one of their home made plate and if i would have ate dessert. Since i didnt, all i can say is that i'll go back if i can to try more food.

pfalvo

Points +81

Mostly Veg
31 Dec 2009

Great Brunch

We liked it a lot. Kid friendly. Good eats. Amazing vegan menu.

Pros: healthy, variety, friendly

Ken4057

Points +1200

Vegan
24 Dec 2009

Sooo loud

To have a conversation with the people you're dining with when this place gets crowded - which is often - you have to almost yell. The tables are tightly packed together, too. They're making a KILLING at this Fresh location.

Other reviews have got their decent - but overpriced - menu pretty right, so I won't duplicate it.

An anecdote: some ignorant so-and-so brought a full fur coat into the place. A young woman got up, walked over to her table and mentioned - in a calm, casual voice - that it was a vegetarian restaurant and fur coats were upsetting to the diners for a number of reasons. This fur coat woman complained and the young lady was asked to leave. No joke. The owners are not even vegetarian: they just know a cash cow when they see one (see above).

Pros: huge menu, lots of greens

Cons: not veggie owners, overpriced, loud as heck

dagny70

Points +314

Vegan
22 Oct 2009

Loved it!

My partner & I came here for lunch on a recent trip to Toronto and were both very impressed. It's pretty funky, nice decor and ambience - quite far removed from the usual bo-ho veggie places we are used to. I had a tofu wrap that was delicious, filling, and made me feel like I was eating something nice & healthy. My partner had a veggie burger with sweet potato fries, which was so nice, and quite different from the standard pre-packed veggie burgers you get in other places. The staff were nice and pleasant, and the price was good. We liked it so much, a few days later we went for dinner at 'Fresh on Spadina'!

Pros: Great, tasty food, Great choice, Good value for money

KD

Points +75

Vegetarian
14 Jul 2009

Delicious and re"fresh"ing!

I ordered the soup of the day (a vegan leek soup) with cornbread, along with the baby energy bowl. The baby bowl on its own would have been a full meal for me! My bro would have needed the regular sized bowl, though. The food was incredibly tasty and had lots of fresh veggies.

I also ordered a smoothie. I forget the name, but it included blueberry, banana, and something else. It was very good.

The server was really nice and very helpful.

It was pricier than most restaurants I go to, but worth it. (Smoothie, baby energy bowl, soup of the day, and cornbread including taxes and tip came to about $28.)

Pros: fresh, healthy food, friendly staff, large portions

Cons: moderately expensive, parking is difficult

veganstastebetter

Points +205

Vegan
28 Apr 2009

my fav in TO

Every trip to Toronto isnt complete without a meal at one of the Freshes. Bloor is fav. Since I have bought the cookbooks and made some of the dishes. I can appreciate how much work goes into making such great food. Keep it up.

Pros: Food, Juice

Cons: Loud

Keith_Thode

Points +712

Vegan
17 Jan 2009

One of the Best

There's a reason why it has won so many "Best of..." awards. Can't say enough good things about this place. However, it does need acoustic pads. It's too loud.

cantorveg

Points +30

Vegetarian
18 Aug 2008

not bad, but why all the hype?

I don't get why everyone is so crazy about fresh, sure it's good but not AMAZING. The wraps and rice bowls are pretty good, but also relatively standard fare that I eat at home pretty much everyday. I guess it's a fairly reliable standby but when I want a really tasty or innovative meal I'd generally head elsewhere.

Pros: decent food, good cake, omnivore friends like it too

Cons: pricey smoothies, crowded, poor service

philjdomm

Points +945

Vegan
07 Jul 2008

My carnivore friends

was so impressed he felt a GARDEN was growing inside him!

veggiewoman

Points +374

Vegan
11 Oct 2007

Holy cow it's so good!

Amazing flavour to every dish. A must-try!! Nice, clean, casual place. Cool wallpaper. Lots of variety. Tons of smoothies, coffees, fruit juices, power shakes, etc. Great desserts. Healthy choices. Amazing prices. Even non-vegetarians love Fresh. Best place ever!!

Pros: low prices, flavour/ taste, great menu choices

Cons: no reservations




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