First Look: TOAST in the Distillery District

Vv Magazine’s Amanda Phuong visited Toronto’s first specialty TOAST pop-up shop in the distillery district for an exclusive first look.

Toronto has seen more than its fair share of pop-up shops in the city, but nothing quite as unique and simple as TOAST. The sought after snack has made its rounds on Instagram and is now available for a cool 6 bucks a slice at the Distillery District pop-up every weekend this May.

The new concept, conceived by friends Amrita Singh, Lindsay Agnew and Chef Jo Lusted, was created after a trip to San Francisco, “I’m a big planner when I travel, so I like to do research in advance. I’m one of those people, you know what I mean?” Amrita laughs, “when I was doing research, I started to notice a common theme and it was toast.” After taking a toast tour of the city, Amrita and Lindsay knew they were on to something good, but knew they could make it better. “[In San Francisco], it was really more about the bread and simplified toppings. [We wanted to create a] combination of interesting spreads and really interesting breads.” 

Each and every spread on the menu is crafted by Chef Jo with quality ingredients that elevate already delicious bread. Tasters have the ability to build their own #toastcombo with the choice of four locally sourced loaves; cheddar chunk ciabatta, dark chocolate sourdough, golden semolina and pumpkin seed rye; and a variety of sweet and savoury house-made spreads like Nutella cheesecake mousse, ballpark peanut butter (a mixture of beer nuts and peanuts), grilled corn avocado mash and hummus 2.0 (a mixture of lentils, chickpeas, and feta).

If you’re not much of a risk taker, you’ll want to stick to TOAST’s favourite combos. My personal favourite was the 289, a slice of golden semolina with salted caramel milk jam – the ideal slice for sweet tooths. The bread is soft on the inside, with just the right amount of sweetness and an added crunch from cereal topping.

The 905 is made with pumpkin seed rye and pudina cream cheese. With a recipe passed down straight from Amrita’s mother and remixed by Chef Jo, this toast combo melds colourful flavours and spice.

The 416 is a take on the classic egg salad sandwich. While the spread is delicious, with an extra kick from cayenne pepper, the real winner is the bread, which is full of savoury cheddar chunks.

The 647 is a nod to chocolate lovers. Based on a dense dark chocolate loaf and topped with a carrot cake whipped ricotta, this slice is for toast lovers that live by the motto, ‘dessert first.’

Located in a dermatology clinic, some might think the venue is an odd destination for food, however, with a background in design, Lindsay has transformed the bare-bones clinic into an Instagram-worthy locale. With palm leave prints and wood accents, it’s hard to believe the team tears down and literally pops up in less than three hours.

TOAST pop-ups between 9 am and 3 pm every Saturday and Sunday during the month of May at 45 Mill Street. Only time can tell if we’ll see them again in the coming months, so hurry down and grab a slice – you’ll loaf it to death!

RELATED LINK: First Look: Maple Leaf Tavern 

What #toastcombo are you most excited to try at TOAST? Let Vv Magazine know in the comments below, or tweet us @ViewtheVibe.