Front Street Foods

It’s unfortunate that they are only here for a short period of time, because I work near Union station and it was my go-​to lunch spot. It has a great selection of quality vendors and the food was pretty healthy and tasted great. It even had an Uncle Tetsu tent that didn’t require you to lineup at all!!!
They had live band playing at lunch, which is nice and makes a great atmosphere. I do wish they had more seating area though. It was packed at lunch and many times I had to take the food back to my desk :(

With no food options inside Union Station any more, and not a lot of quick places to eat nearby, Front Street Foods is a fantastic idea for the summer. The location is great with the large outdoor space full of a variety of vendors and tables for people to enjoy the weather.
I went to Yolo and had a Hawaiian grilled cheese. It was really tasty, though it tasted like they were using canned pineapple (would have been better fresh).
I also got some hydration juice. It was delicious and refreshing, which I really needed on that hot summer day. A bit more money than I would usually pay for a small juice, but it hit the spot when I needed it.
I took this opportunity to try Uncle Tetsu since there was no line up. My mom makes a mean cheesecake so I had high expectations. This was nothing like a typically cheesecake I’ve had before. It was very light, fluffy and really tasty. I can see why people love them so much!

Nothing signals the end of summer more blatantly than no longer being able to sit outside, chill and listen to music — the hallmark of Front Street Foods. (Well, that and the end of $ 1 drinks at McDs)
Front Street Foods extended their end date to Sept 27 but it’s STILL much too short! The market showcased some of Toronto’s best up-​and-​coming foods, like Uncle Tetsu’s cheesecakes, Fresh off the Boat snow crab fries and Pancho’s churros. Delicious choices for foods and drinks, and they constantly had some sort of musical entertainment going on. The stalls themselves did not have the «temporary» kind of look that CNE had, but had a quirky style to them, like weathered log huts. There was ample seating available, and so many beautiful days could be spent just sitting there, people watching and chatting with chums.
I’ll miss this venue when they’re done for 2015 but I hope they’ll be back!

⁵⁄₅ for the event! However ratings for food varies.
Union Station looks way much better now after all the construction. The venue is spacious enough for all the foot traffic, and there is plenty of tables for people to relax and enjoy their food. I also found most of the shops to be super efficient and lines up were short for most of the time. Of course the price is generally more expensive than what you would get in their own restaurants, but at least you are getting something different than your usual food court stuff if you work in Financial District.
*Fresh off the boat: Snow Crab fries + Lobster Roll combo — $ 20
The lobster roll here isn’t as fresh as the ones in their brick-​and-​mortar store. I felt the mayonnaise was overpowering the natural lobster flavor and considering the amount of lobster that you are getting here, I found it to be a bit too expensive for $ 15. I’m not really a coleslaw person, yet I enjoyed this as it wasn’t overly drenched in dressings and had a great crunch to it :).
There was an equal ratio of fries to snow crab, however I found the snow crab pieces were dry and the texture was like eating pork floss (if you are Asian you know this lol). The aioli was almost none existent and the snow crab was flavorless so I ended up dipping my fries with ketchup instead.
*Hotbunzz street cuizine: Street Bunzz Combo — 3 for $ 10
The bread was really smooth and soft without being too doughy or heavy. For some reason I thought these only had toppings with no fillings, however these with filled to the brim and I liked how the bun was so light, it was the perfect vehicle to carry all the yummy goodness inside!
My fav were the Seoul City Beef Short Rib and Buddha’s Bacon Butter Chicken. Both were packed with flavors and meat melted in your mouth. My least fav was Roasted Beet & Quinoa w/​Walnut Pesto as I found it to be overly sweetened and the beet was a bit sour too, a very unpleasant combination of flavors.
*Little Fin: Haddock + Chips — $ 11
The fish portion was tiny and a bit burnt on the outside, but surprisingly the fish was moist and really flavorful. Though it was a tad too salty for me, the fresh slaw helps to cut it down and the potato wedges were delicious with some garlic seasoning in them
*Mad Mexican: 3 tacos for $ 12
My most favorite taco was the braised pork as it was juicy and seasoned just right. Their guacamole is to die for, very creamy yet had the right amount of lime to cut down that fatty flavor from the avocado, definitely top your taco with some of that! However I felt the taco shells were a bit too warm and it kept falling apart :(.
I didn’t enjoy the fajita vegetable as I found it a bit sweet from the bell peppers and too bland. The yucantecan had chicken in it and it was so dry and tough to chew on. The chicken was tasteless as well, really disappointed:

August 02, 2015
I heard from Unilocal that there is a thing called Front Street Food going on at Union Station Plaza. We decided to check it out today. There were at least 15 vendors. Most of them are very well known such as Little Fin, Fresh Off the Boat, Holy Chuck Burger, Uncle Tetsu, etc. My husband decided to get a burger at Holy Chuck Burger… Yes! Smell so good! And there was a line up! Though there weren’t many people in the line but it was the longest line at the time. He ordered a croissant dog that came with beef hot dog, cheese, bacon, mayo, fried egg and chips. The fried egg on the croissant was the best part of it. Crispy and yummy!
We waited for a long time though it didn’t need to take that long for one order. However, there was a rude guy who ordered after my husband and few people, he grabbed my husband’s order and kinda ran away! The staff apologized for the rudeness of that customer and asked my husband to wait for another order. Yes we did wait but it was worth waiting for it.
I also have heard about how popular the Uncle Tetsu Cheeses cake is. People say that there are always lines up at the store. How lucky we were! I got a slice of cheesecake only few seconds ;) Not many people know that there is Uncle Tetsu here. No worries, I try my best to spread the word so people who love Japanese cheesecake don’t need to spend their time in a long line. They also sell you a slice of cheesecake if you want only to taste a small piece. As I know, the festival will end on September 27. Im not sure if they will extend the time. Run! before they’re gone!

Convenient location right outside of Union Station. Great place to try a variety of food and skip the 2 hour line for an Uncle Tetsu cheesecake.
Hot Bunzz was delicious but that price for buns wasn’t really worth it. Come and Get It was disappointing. Got a free sample of the jerk mango chicken, it was spicy but lacked the jerk and mango taste. Got the maple pork sandwich, the bread was too hard and the pork lacked seasoning. The kale coleslaw was bland and needed more acidity. Loaded Pierogi is a must try, generous portion and flavourful toppers for the pierogi which came out piping hot.
Overall, a great place to check out and to grab some food. Every stand had very nice staff that explained their food and most stands had a display of what they were offering.

I love the idea of a food paradise in the middle of downtown.
The strip consists of endless vendor selection include Uncle Tetsu, Jedd’s Frozen Custards, Fresh off the Boat, Bacon Nation, Pekoe, ect.
Summer sun, delicious food, live music, quintessential picnic tables — Front Street Food is shaping up to be a top spot for a summer social.

You know Union station used to be the worst area for anyone traveling. By that I mean on foot, by subway and even worse, in a car. Well you can put all those things behind you (for now) because for the most part the area is all cleaned up and fully functional. On top of this, they added some real street cred by dropping a food market right smack in front of front (get it!). Front Street Foods, offers a vast selection of treats for travelers looking to grab some food in a pinch or locals just looking to try something different. Before I sound like a travel brochure, just know that most of the options prior were either McDonald’s, or Mmmm Muffins. Not gunna hate, but sometimes a guy needs to treat himself knowmsayin?
Anyway, I got it started with a Fried Oyster Bao from Yolo. Yes, YOLO the acronym designed and made famous by our very own Drake. You know, Drake, the type of guy who cries when cutting carrots so that the onions won’t feel alone. Yeah that’s the one! This place has nothing to do with him besides the horrible name of the food stand, but yeah that Fried Oyster was aight.
Next up was Uncle Tetsu for dessert. Now this is where things get even better. Not only was there NO LINE UP for the cheesecake, we were also able to purchase the new Matcha Green Tea for the first time. I was great, really it was, but that’s not the end of it. Uncle Tetsu, was actually there in the flesh, dancing with fans and openly taking selfies with people. What a great guy, I wish we all had an Uncle Tetsu in our family.
Check out this joint, before the summer is over and it turns into a mound of snow obstructing your walk in December, YOLO. Toronto needs more of this and less of Drake. You know, the type of guy whose eyes roll back in his head when he eats chocolate.

Such a great place to go for drinks and early dinner after work! Location is of course, awesome and love the cute chairs/​table set up. Food is underwhelming but give the overall dining experience two thumbs up

I love the idea of Front Street Foods and hope that it will be an annual tradition.
We came for lunch on a Tuesday afternoon and were able to snag a corner of a picnic table for 2. I decided to get the lobster roll and fries from Fresh off the Boat and with a drink came to a very pricey $ 18. I don’t recommend it though — the lobster was extremely vinegar-​y and tasted off. My DC ordered a few tacos and a fresh lemonade from Mad Mexican.
There was live music happening while we ate. A few umbrellas provided shade from the hot sun and the vibe was overall friendly with diners comparing their lunches.
We treated ourselves to a piece of cheesecake from Uncle Tetsu (no lineups!) and headed back to the office satisfied with our lunch in the sun.

Front St Foods is a fantastic idea that they should definitely bring it back annually! The venue itself is located right in front of Union Station on Front Street and was actually spacious enough for all the foot traffic that came by.
There are so many delicious vendors that have parked themselves here. I know I am excluding so many, but guys like Fresh Off the Boat, Holy Chuck, Cava Sur, and Uncle Tetsu (which have 2 booths) have been some of the more popular ones. I loved some of the stuff produced by the booths and I would go into detail about them, but I will reserve that for the restaurants specifically as it doesnt pertain to the overall feel of Front St Foods.
The lineups were short for what I thought it would be. There is also plenty of tables and chairs/​benches for people to sit back and enjoy their food on. The crowds were nice and not overbearing and the prices weren’t outrageous by any means. Definitely nice when it’s patio weather out.
My biggest fear for the place was that there was going to be overcrowding and not enough seating but that wasn’t my experience the 2 times that i have been. I found that because they are opened for so long and for typically all day, that there is enough turnaround to keep things running smoothly. Please keep it going Toronto.

If you’re in Toronto this summer you have to make it a point to drop in. Great way to try some new food and enjoy the city all at the same time. This should be a year round thing in my opinion — host outside in the summer and move inside in the winter. Best food options around by far.
I have still not successfully gotten any Uncle Tetsu. They sell out early! Be warned… I consoled myself with a green tea Madeline.
We did try Fresh Off the Boat — lobster roll to die for. Totally worth it to combine the specials and get it with the snow crab fries. Yolo had Fried Oyster Po Bao — delish! We also got some cornbread from another stand — not really worth it for the price.
Know that it will be BUSY and hard to get a table before Jays games.

Dropped by this gem of a market when I missed my GO train at Union Station. Silver lining, I suppose! It’s a great alternative to the usual eateries at Union, and gives us all an excuse to take it easy in one of the busiest places downtown.
As tempted as I was to get absolutely everything available at this market, I opted for the Snow Crab Fries from Fresh Off The Boat (two thumbs up) and the buns from HotBunzz Street Cuizine. Not gonna lie, I had to look up the name of this place from another article because all I could remember was the abundance of Z’s in the name… Thankfully, the buns were way more memorable! Tastes better than it looks, trust. Go for the pulled pork.
A few other popular vendors that you might be excited to find are:
— Holy Chuck Burgers (limited selection compared to their original menu),
— Uncle Tetsu Cheesecake (so you can chuckle at everyone else still lining up at the Bay/​Dundas location),
— Jedd’s Frozen Custard (because frozen treats in summer heat is perfection)
Great selection overall — from savoury options like latke poutines to sweet indulgences like ice cream sandwiches. Hope they move this market indoors somewhere during the winter, would love to have this available all year round!

This place is fun and gives off nothing but good vibes in this beautiful summer weather.
I came here on a Friday for lunch as it is a few steps from the office… bought haddock & chips from Little Fin as it had one of the shorter lines and I really did not want to spend majority of my lunch hour waiting in line.
The seating is quite limited and I ended up walking over to the stairs outside by Royal Bank Plaza to enjoy my food.
Overall, this place is great if it were bigger… live music, great food, location and company!

Woah! Coolest food in Toronto here in one spot (most likely? Lol). Came down to Front St. on my way to a concert, and decided to stop by for some food beforehand.
With a couple tents and stalls set up in a fenced off area, there were different food and drink options, including alcohol too! Not always the best place for indecisive people, like myself, but ended up getting some cool food!
Picked out the Canadian Puller Bison Bun from Bunzz and some Nachos and Sauce from Mad Mexican. The buns were amazing, as there was bison inside and toppings too. Reminded me of a Chinese pork bun, but a twist on that flavour. The nachos were amazing too. With 5 different sauces to pick from, you could load up with as much of it as you wanted!
Overall, awesome options that you don’t get to see everywhere, but a little on the pricey side. With the nachos at $ 4 and two buns at $ 15, not the cheapest alternative when you aren’t really full after that. Definitely worth checking out though!

Two Questions:
How fun is this place?
AND
Why haven’t we had something like this in Toronto before?
We got there about 11 am on a Saturday and it was pretty chill. I don’t like crowds so this was perfect for me. Also perfect for me was being able to grab a glass of wine and wander the stalls. I beelined to Cava Sud because I love the restaurant itself and the stall did not disappoint. Fresh paella was perfect!
I tried the Uncle Tetsu cheesecake and honestly, I don’t understand what the hype is. Maybe I’m just too much of a white girl, but I like my cheesecake to be dense and creamy, not like a fluffy egg pie. Yuck! Why would anyone stand in line for an hour for this stuff?
Overall, though, anyone would be able to find something they like and take a little break out of the day, do some people watching and have a cold beer or glass of wine.
The concept is exactly what Toronto has been needing for a long time! It would be great to see this continue into the late fall with some heaters and such.

Finally something interesting happening down at Front Street!
I love the set up! The Popup vendors! Just the whole idea and concept and it is well executed! Here you can get a snack, a drink, a full meals from some of Toronto’s most popular business/​restaurants and some of them don’t even have a store front!
Price might be a little more than getting from the original store but you can get everything here! Tacos from Mad Mexician, Burger from Holy Chuck and especially the over hyped Uncle Tetsu Cheesecake was served as individual portion and no line up when I arrived around 10:30 am.
There is also a nice seating area with entertainment.
This is better than any food trucks or any of the gimmicky events I been to that required an admission fee and it will be here till end of September!
Too bad Toronto’s summer is so short! Enjoy the experience while you can and hopefully this would be a constant yearly event from now on!

It is an excellent idea. A neat and organized event indeed for the Summer. Pam Am does bring us all of this enjoyment on this finally construction-​free Front Street in front of the gorgeous Union Station.
There are variety of food, drinks and desserts to choose from. I admit that it will not be cheap especially if we wanna try several items at one time. Some popular food booths have longer lineup during busy lunch hours too. However, I enjoy the atmosphere especially on the warm and sunny days. There are plenty of tables and seats allowing an enjoyable patio eat-​in while listening to the live music. Just love it!

I love the assortment of goods here. I got the lobster roll and fries and I was super impressed. The meat was very tender. I love that the kombucha place is here — my husband lives for the floats. Sadly, Jedd’s frozen custard was nowhere near as delicious as I expected. I was hoping for eggy, sweet, creamy. I got bland and flat instead. Shake Shack has frozen custard down and Jedd’s should maybe re-​think their’s.
There is some mark-​up here compared to the brick and mortar stores. Uncle Tetsu’s is like 40% more $. Ouch!
There is lots of seating, the area is accessible for everyone. It looks like a great place to enjoy something to eat and relax.
Can’t wait to come back for a growler of kombucha!

Enjoy some of Toronto’s best vendors, good indie music, summer vibes, hustle and bustle of the city, right at this open air food market located at Union Station.
This market just opened this week, and it’s already packed with people.
Highly recommend: Kombucha Tea at the Pekoe stand (organic fermented Oolong tea with juicy watermelon), The Holy Chuck at the at the Holy Chucks stand. Also, UNCLE TETSU HAS A STAND.
Location: very convenient, right outside of Union station
Ambience: Very busy. You might struggle to find a seat, especially during rush hour.
Price range: mostly in the $ 10-​$ 20 region, typical vendor prices
Vendors that are participating:
Bacon Nation
Caplansky’s (August 3 — 30)
Cava Sur
ChocoSol (August 17 — 30)
Eative (July 6 — August 2)
Fred’s Bread (July 6 — August 2)
Fresh Off the Boat
Greenhouse Juice Co.
Holy Chuck Burgers
HotBunzz Street Cuisine
Hula Girl Espresso
Jamie’s Cracked Corn
Jedd’s Frozen Custard
La Fiesta (July 6 — August 2)
Little Fin
Mad Mexican (July 6 — August 16)
Miche Bakery
Nisos Importing (July 6 — August 2)
Pancho’s Bakery
Pekoe Kombucha Bar
Small Batch Co.
Station Cold Brew Coffee Co.
The Mighty Cob
Toben Food by Design
Uncle Tetsu
Uncle Tetsu Matcha Café (August 17 — 30)
Wanna Banana
Yolo TO
All in all, a very good time.