Cantina Mercatto – Authentic Italian Dining with Vegan Options in Downtown Toronto

⭐ amazing food, great ambience, great service. Highly recommend. THEY HAVE A VEGAN / VEGETARIAN MENU!!! ... Detailed review ... Food Great portion for pizza, pasta I think is on the expensive side. The flavors were delicious, simple at best. We ordered their mushroom pizza and margherita and both were delicious. The wildfire crust was soft and perfect! Recommend the mushroom pizza more! We also got the gnocchi which was soft and amazing, but the portion felt small for the price. Still good! Menu We got the regular menu first and when I asked for vegan/vegetarian recommendations, the server brought over a separate menu!! I loved that!! Yes, only 2-3 options were vegan, but more catering to vegetarians for sure. A few dietary restrictions were also catered to (check with staff before). Location Located 10mins walking distance from Union station and concert venues nearby, this place is a great one for pre-show dinner. Or in general a good Italian food night downtown works too. Ambience I loved the vibe inside. Simple, relatively cozy, good lighting. Yeah, it's nice for celebrating things or having dinner with friends or for a date. Yes, it's family friendly too. Service Really good! They also added freshly grated Parmesan on top of our dishes so that's always fun. Cost The average dish costs about 23$ which I think is Toronto standard for a dinner meal. I think the pizzas are more worth it because they are filling. The pastas are more on the lighter side (i.e. if you're not too hungry). .... Overall? I'd say about 4.75/5 stars! Definitely recommend

My new favorite place. The vibe is really nice here. I loved the interior and patio. Food is also good. The staff put a candle on the dessert for my friend who had a birthday on the other day. I'll come back again.

On my birthday, I was the only one in the restaurant, and the staff made it incredibly special. They welcomed me warmly, served my dinner, and surprised me with a beautiful Lemon Tart with raspberry on the house — absolutely delicious! The Linguine Di Mare was fantastic as well. Truly an unforgettable and intimate birthday at Cantina Mercatto!

Just had my first experience at Cantina and it was amazing! We sat on the patio and had happy hour. Great options of beers and wine and as well as 1/2 price in all their pizzas. Sakshi was our server and I would absolutely come back for her. Such a warm and bubbly personality. Can’t wait to come back!

I ordered a pepperoni pizza a couple days ago and it was DELICIOUS. I've been to Taverna Mercatto and loved the food so I expected something similar with Cantina. It was actually a little different, and maybe a little better. The crust had an herb/garlic oil and a slightly less puffy crust. It was crispy and had lots of pepperoni. Will definitely return.

We stumbled upon Cantina Mercatto and left extremely impressed. The service was excellent, and the pizza was outstanding—made even better by the half-price happy hour promotion. The drinks were well-crafted, and the espresso was delicious. The only disappointment was the tiramisu, which fell short of expectations; I would recommend choosing a different dessert. We will certainly be returning soon, especially for more of their fantastic pizza.

Came here for our corporate christmas party. The service team was excellent, everything rolled out as planned! Foodwise, we got the seasonal set menu (fixed price per person) for the team. - Shrimp cocktail: Fresh juicy shrimps with 2 types of sauces. Delightful! - Mercatto bread: this was average. I personally prefer the magherita pizza (not pictured). - Lamb spiedini: Succulent juicy lamb. Pretty good! - 7oz flat iron steak: I really enjoyed this main course. The only downside was the cutlery wasn’t really suited to properly cut the meat into bite-sized pieces. Several of my colleagues had similar experiences. - Tiramisu: Pretty good! Not featured: Calamari, cauliflower and salmon canapes that were served during cocktail hour. They were absolutely delicious. The quality of the food here at this restaurant is pretty good and their event planning team is easy and attentive to work with! Highly recommended for anyone looking to plan private events!

When we walked in, the hostess gave us a table, but we asked to be moved since it had high chairs and there were plenty of other tables available. She didn’t seem happy about the request and kept giving us a rude look, which left us feeling uncomfortable. Thankfully, our server Stew came over shortly after and completely turned things around. He was warm, attentive, and checked in on us throughout the meal. His great attitude and service really lifted our mood, and we ended up leaving very happy. Stew’s service was excellent and friendly.