I flew from NYC to Canada for 24 hours just for dinner at this exclusive Toronto restaurant

When it comes to food, I'm not a line-waiter. Sorry to whatever viral matcha concoction, buzzy birria taco or Dubai chocolate Franken-doughnut might await me at the end of that hours-long queue, but I just ain’t waiting to eat. I will, however, travel for food, especially when it comes to great food—hidden-gem cold noodles in South Korea, a perfect simmering tagine in Morocco, swoon-worthy ceviche in Peru, and the like. So when a colleague asked if I would fly in her stead to Toronto for a lightning-fast 24-hour sojourn to try one of the city’s best restaurants, I definitely wasn’t saying no.

That’s how I found myself zooming from LaGuardia to Toronto Pearson—an easy, breezy 90-minute flight, long enough for three episodes of Hacks and two Biscoff cookies—on the Friday afternoon of Labor Day Weekend, with plans to dine at a restaurant called Enigma at 7pm that evening.

Located in the well-to-do neighborhood of Yorkville—which, if we’re looking for a New York equivalent, has strong Soho vibes, with high-end boutiques, design studios, chic cafes and frequent celebrity sightings—Enigma is a fine-dining concept from Johannesburg-born chef Quinton Bennett and Austin Chen, nestled on picturesque St. Thomas Street since 2020. When Enigma was awarded a Michelin star in 2022, it was among the first restaurants in all of Canada to receive the coveted rating.

So expectations were reasonably high when I entered the recently renovated and lavishly designed space, which is split into two designated zones—a bar-forward lounge area and the more formal dining room—that are connected via a hallway that acts as a pseudo gallery, with framed award designations and photographs of the team lining the walls. The Enigma experience begins in the lounge, where I'm welcomed with an earthy glass of Thai rooibos kombucha and a smattering of fancy little snacks: nori-wrapped seabass topped with delicate finger limes; a knob of pea mousse dressed up with rose gel and candied flowers; and a smoky-sweet tartlet of Ontario corn and ham hock. A good start, indeed.

The meal then shifts to the main dining room, where the restaurant’s head sommelier James Li—runner-up at this year’s Canada’s Best Young Sommelier competition—greets me with his thoughtfully selected wine pairings, the majority of which hail directly from our neighbor up north. A Rosewood 2020 “Neptune” Riesling is a crisp and brightly acidic kickoff to the first two plates of the multi-course Prestige Menu: End-of-summer tomatoes rehydrated for extra-concentrated flavor, served with a tomato jam whose tart tang you can feel inside your cheeks, and a smooth brassica panna cotta wreathed with pickled watermelon radish and droplets of basil oil. 

A double feature of beautiful, Hokkaido-sourced seafood follows. The third course stars a gleaming quenelle of yellowtail tartare finished with discs of squid-ink croutons and a tableside snowing of wasabi dust; the fourth sees Polish caviar get warmed up in dashi butter until downright dreamy and then spooned over scallop sashimi and sliced cherries. A rich half-moon of Quebec foie gras topped with a tumble of briny pickled kelp also gets some tableside love, the ever-attentive server pouring over a hot mushroom dashi from a crystal-clear tea pot.  

Things get fittingly luxurious when the meaty mains are ushered out from the open kitchen: Succulent Cornish hen gussied up with local-corn cream and an indulgent scattering of Black Perigord truffles; and tender Tajima Wagyu rendered sumptuously savory with an umami-deep duo of carrot kimchi and miso plum. But, as soundly delicious as both plates are, the real excitement comes when Executive Pastry Chef Sarah Tsai trots out the gorgeous meal-ending treats, a Wonka-worthy spread of wrapped hibiscus suckers and salted vanilla fudge, pistachio financiers and Saskatoon berry jam cookies, and a canelé enriched with white chocolate and foie gras as one final luxury before I roll myself back up Bloor Street to my hotel. 

There’s no mystery here: Fine dining it all certainly is, with elevated but genial service to boot. But is Enigma worth flying across national borders for? That’s obviously subjective—for most of us, paying airfare only to then drop $350 on dinner is no everyday occurrence. But whether you’re already in the Toronto area or down to Delta your way over, a meal at Enigma proves that it’s well worth the trip.  

How to spend 24 hours in Toronto:

Where to stay:

For my super-quick foodie stopover, I spent a delightful evening at the Hazelton Hotel, a luxury boutique hotel on Yorkville Avenue within walking distance of Enigma. 

The property has 62 glamorously designed guest rooms and 15 suites—many of which are often occupied by A-listers, as they were during the recent Toronto International Film Festival—as well as an on-site spa (I didn’t have time for a treatment but the cordial staff graciously let me load up on beauty samples), fitness facilities and a lobby dining room, ONE Restaurant, with a massive wraparound patio that offers great people watching. 

Speaking of, ONE Restaurant’s head chef Michael Hawryluk will partner with Quinton Bennett of Enigma for a one-night-only eight-course tasting experience on Wednesday, September 24 at the Hazelton. You can find more details here. 

What to do:

Yorkville is home to plenty of worthy cultural attractions, from the Royal Ontario Museum to the Gardiner Museum, but I decided to use my limited time to stroll further down near Grange Park to the Art Gallery of Ontario. 

One of the largest art museums in North America, AGO has an impressively diverse collection—my recent visit saw exhibitions spotlighting Joyce Weiland, Yayoi Kusama, Rembrandt, Kazuo Nakamura, Surusilutu Ashoona and titans of modernism like Mark Rothko, Helen Frankenthaler and Andy Warhol. 

After getting your fill of art, take the scenic route back up to Yorkville via the colorful Kensington Market with its many vintage shops, narrow alleyways and eclectic cafes. 

Where to drink:

After 10 courses at Enigma, I didn’t have room to eat one more bite—but there’s always room for a good cocktail. For day-drinking, seek out the stunning views and stiff tipples at the 17th-floor Writers Room Bar atop the Park Hyatt.

And for a lively nightcap, slip into the sexy and sophisticated scene over at Alobar, where I enjoyed a textbook-perfect martini. Or two.