Stumbled over this vegan gem and am SO glad we did. The presentation and taste of every dish blew us away. Every flavour was so creative. Would highly recommend for anyone - vegan or not

This PLACE! From the minute you walk in , Darshan welcomes you with a smile. The back patio is an absolute oasis in the middle of Kensington market. The food was unbelievable - as some one who is not vegan or vegetarian , I was so incredibly impressed with the food. The resonance cocktail was spectacular. I can’t say enough about this little gem !

The food here was so flavourful, inventive and nutritious. We had the $35 brunch. We shared 5 plates. Each plate presentation was stunning. The Chef and team here deserve all the good things. 5 stars. We will come back here frequently.

Really unique restaurant that provided a unique dining experience. Went for winterlicious. Highlights included the tomato jam that went alongside the parsnips. The oyster mushrooms in the main had a nice chard and smokey taste to them, and the smell of the shishito peppers being grilled was very aromatic. The ice cream at the end of the meal was so refreshing and light.

Went here for dinner with a girlfriend who is vegetarian. The space is cute and well utilized. The service was amazing, our server was very attentive and friendly. The food was both delicious and aesthetically pleasing. Everything was just so pretty like a work of art. I really enjoyed the oyster mushrooms, biryani, and chaga tea in particular. Definitely a good spot to checkout with a friend or even on a date.

It's a beautiful date night place and the ambience is quite mellow and romantic. Their idea is pretty unique, however, I was expecting a better flavor palate considering that the quality of the food they served was great! Will try more dishes next time!

Beautiful, tasty and thoughtful vegan food. Nice back patio. A gem in Kensington Market.

The food was so amazing and flavourful. The menu descriptions were hard to understand but the servers were fantastic and gave us great recommendations. The best vegan food I’ve had in Toronto so far. We really enjoyed sitting on the back patio. It was very relaxed and we sat their for around 3 hours ordering more small plates and drinks without anyone rushing us out. Definitely a special place that I’m grateful to have in my neighbourhood.

Lovely experience here. Brought my mom for an early Mother's Day dinner and she and I really enjoyed the experience. We opted for the chef's 6 course meal. I loved how we were surprised by every meal. No set menu. The chef explained each dish and really enjoyed watching them plate the food for presentation which was such beautiful art. The flavours blended so well with each dish. Highly recommend this experience.

The vegan food at Hawker is absolutely delicious - so flavourful and innovative. We tried every dish and they were all superb. Earth, God's Work, and Starry Night were our favourites. The service is also excellent. Highly recommend a visit! I will definitely be back again.

Amazing restaurant. Great atmosphere and each plate was absolutely exquisite! The drinks, desserts, and entrees were all so tasty, scrumptious, and overall mouth watering. Will be going back a lot!

This was such an amazing meal. We did the Chef's Choice 6 course meal and it was amazing. Eat course was different and interesting with amazing flavours. The chef put so much effort and patience in each meal and watching her do that was such a joy. Thank you again for the amazing meal! I highly recommend the Chef's Choice 6 course meal to anyone looking to celebrate! You'll have tasted many wonderful flavours and leave full and satisfied!

⭐️the menu doesn’t include a description of the dishes so check out my photos for pictures of every option! ⭐️ Food: My family and I really enjoyed the food. It was thoughtfully prepared, flavourful, and perfectly presented. I’ve listed our favourite dishes below but please know that my selections were only based on flavours that I personally enjoy. Only one dish was objectively “bad” and I wouldn’t recommend it. Fav dishes: starry night, spring Good: summer, autumn, earth, god’s work, reap/sow, dawn (but the dawn dumplings are faaaar too small!) Not my style: woods, roots Never again: Fields (explanation: there was not enough “cream” on the plantain chips so they were dry. Combine dryness with the thickness of the chip and you end up with a chip that feels like you’re chewing wood chips or a plastic utensil.) Value: You will need 3-5 dishes per person for a meal. Be aware that you will spend about $15 per dish. Some dishes were priced too high for what we received, TBH. Atmosphere: absolutely charming and the staff were lovely. Great for friends gathering around the table or a cute date. All in all, lovely experience and would return again!

My friend and I did the 6 course chef's table tasting. It was amazing! One of my favourite food experiences thus far. For starters the ambience of the restaurant is dim lighted, calm and intimate. Each dish was unbelievable. Our experience included Summer, Earth, Roots, God's Work, Starry Night and Winter (dessert). They were all delicious and unique in their own way. My favourite was Summer, God's Work and Winter. I am still in awe of the experience and can't wait to come back.

Fantastic experience! They had a set menu of 6 dishes & a dessert for a very reasonable price of just $40 per person. Extra brownie points to the warm and welcoming server who made us feel right at home.. The food is elevated Indian - inspired by Indian flavors. Veggies are heroed so well in their dishes that you begin to wonder why you eat meat at all! Every element on the plate is so well thought out - from the hero vegetable to the fermented sides, herb oils, ellmulsions and nut pastes.. Highly highly recommend!

We did the vegan tasting brunch and loved it. The back patio is very cute. The food was very rich, almost too rich. They make lovely cocktails as well. Will definitely be back to try the dinner.

Hawker is my #1 favourite restaurant!! I love how the quality of food is always incredible and the flavours are unmatched. A true culinary experience! PS. as someone who has tried everything on the menu, you will not be disappointed by anything! My favourite is always the Biryani

The flavours are incredible here! I got the BC, Biryani and Shroom Wings dish and all three exceeded my expectations. One of the best vegan restaurants in Toronto, I can’t wait to go back! Highly recommend

Excellent South Asian vegan food at a very good price. We had the curry tacos to start, then shared the butter chickpea and aubergine curry. Everything was cooked to perfection with a lot of interesting flavours. Service was friendly and efficient, everything was made in under ten minutes. Cannot recommend highly enough.

I had one of the most delicious, interesting dining experiences! A very quaint restaurant with a relaxed, comfortable atmosphere. I had 3 dishes, each one was gorgeous to look at. What a treat to get my eggplant curry with Rosemary smoke lazily emanating from underneath the bowl as I reached in for another delicous spoon. This was a real treat and I look forward to returning soon so I can try more from your creative menu. TY

I’ve never been keen to go a vegan or plant-based restaurant, but Hawker blew me away. Everything from the ambiance, the knowledge of the serving staff and food make an unforgettable experience. The drinks were superb and the beet + oat milk is something I’d buy bottled. It’s sublime. The tapas style meals makes it easy to have a taste of everything. I loved both desserts and cannot recommend them enough — the ice cream is better than anything you can find in store. As for the dishes, I don’t think you can go wrong and I’d ask for their hot sauce to kick it up a notch. Flowerpot and Starry night were great, and the naan is special — I could eat them everyday.

Best restaurant experience ever! The back patio is romantic, the service was great, the bowls and plates are marvelous and the food is both very artistic and colourful and soooo tasty! It's a unique experience, I can't wait to be back in Toronto to go back. I highly recommend Flowerpot, Reap/sow, God's work, Earth, and Bushfire

This is Hawker restaurant. A vegan experience in Kensington Market. The restaurant is fully plant based and the atmosphere is very cool. Excellent for dates, hanging out or just to chill. There are three seating arrangements, front street level, patio back patio and the main restaurant seating area. I chose the prefixe menu at the chef’s table (you sit at the bar and watch the food getting cooked.) The background music is soft and not overpowering and you can easily carry a conversation. From an accessibility point of view this place is not barrier free friendly. The bathroom is down a very narrow staircase and to get to the restaurant you need to go up a few feet from the street via staircase. The bathroom is clean. Now, let’s talk about the food options. You can order the tapas, or the prix fixe menu; however, the later is only available at the bar, where there’s only 3 seats total. Now let’s talk about the food. The options are surprisingly filling, likely due to the common presence of various local oils and fats in each dish. The food was really good, and the service was good. Overall, if you are vegan, this the perfect date night, fine dining-esque experience, and you won’t leave hungry. Our chef’s were the highlight, extremely friendly and happy to explain any and all to us even while multitasking. The only dish out of many we didn’t like was the ceviche. We did the prix fixe menu, and paid around $260 for 2. In summary, believe the hype & try this place out.

Cute brunch idea for anyone looking for a vegetarian/plant-based meal.. I went for the weekend brunch, and I left surprisingly full! Each dish was full of flavour and presented quite nicely. Lovely staff, great atmosphere.

Hawker ~ Artful small plates ~ All Vegan! . We want to thank God for guiding us find this amazing soulful restaurant! YOU HAVE TO VISIT! . We had their Chef’s Tasting Brunch and were in awe of every dish presented to us. It became impossible to decide our favorite dish as all were delicious. . We would highly encourage everyone to go for their Chef’s tasting menu and you won’t be disappointed.

Had the prie fixe brunch, which was fantastic. Loved the use of New World ingredients to enhance South Asian cuisine. Total experience took 90 minutes, with great portions, no too spicy - we were both full.

Good food, kind service and cute patio. It's nice to discover new ingredients and beautiful ways of presenting food.

A cozy vegan spot in Kensington that serves small dishes to share. Pretty expensive for the amount of food you're getting, with each dish generally costing around $15. Generally, all the food was flavourful and seasoned well with clear Indian influences. The entire experience was pretty enjoyable with attentive service, well crafted interior design, and a chill, intimiate atmosphere to chat.

Probably the best food experience of my life. My girlfriend and I went to the chef's table menu tasting. Every course was well thought out and stunning, and seeming every course was better then the last. Portions were excellent, you tried a bit of everything and ended up walking away full. We had all 3 of the cocktails and they were so different yet so great. The chef's themselves were super friendly and accommodating. You almost don't want to tell anyone about it so you can get a spot next time but the word has to come out about Hawker. 10/10 would go again, even non vegans would be impressed

Everything tasted divine! Definitely try their brunch, you won’t be disappointed. Staff were very understanding when my friend was running late and our server and the chefs were so friendly. Definitely will be back……they make their ice cream in house y’all!!!!! What? 10 out of 10 🤎

You must try this plant-based restaurant in the heart of Kensington market serving the most beautiful Vegan delicacies with a South Asian inspired menu. @hawker.to has a beautiful ambiance along with a cosy patio. We had their six course brunch menu which was percect for two and the flavours were so good, it is hands down the best plant based brunch in Toronto! Started off with : ☕Deliverance: hot chaga tea with spruce syrup 🌞Summer: papadam, chickpea ferment, eggplant 🫛God’s work: romano beans, pepper paste, pine nut 🍲Reap sow: daal, pomegranate, praita, roti 🍛Chickpea curry: red peoper oil, shiso leaves 🍚Starry night: Biryani, smoked poblano, lavender 🍄Earth: oyster mushrooms, smoked corn broth, sesame 🍨Rasmalai Ice Cream with pistachio crumble They also have plenty more to offer and if you're looking for a modern, artsy, plant-based place for your next date night, check out Hawker 📍291 Augusta Ave, Toronto • • Follow @gourmetbliss for more! • • Follow @gourmetbliss for more!

Safe to say that Hawker has been added to my list of top favourite vegan spots in Toronto. One of the things I typically expect/ mentally prepare myself for is that most vegan places are healthy but not always great in taste or lacks the depth of flavours one looks for in a dish. Every dish that was presented had so much flavour and dimension (factor in that its all fresh vegan ingredients). All dishes from the tasting menu were well cooked, well plated, and tasted great. Got lucky securing a last minute reservation and was very impressed. Highly recommend for vegans and non vegans, Hawker will not disappoint!

We had a wonderful time. Food is delicious.

Incredible spot! We had a big party (10 people) and they were so good and accomodating. All the dishes were amazing, perfectly crafted and delicious. Good portions and the chefs seem like the actually love their job!

I enjoyed the modern take on South Asian classics. Delicious, generous portions and staff were super courteous. As a bonus: they have a lovely secluded patio, away from the signature ruckus on Augusta! Thanks for a great experience :)

Went here for winterlicious with my friends. The experience was nice. The waiters were very friendly. The food portions were quite small to be honest but the plating was pretty. It was an interesting mix of ingredients and flavors.

Phenomenal. We ordered every dish (11) on the menu to share among four which we found substantial. Dishes were inventive, nicely presented, well balanced with interesting subtle flavours, south asian inspired. Among them, my favourites were the yucca and oyster mushrooms, wonderful naan as well. Nicely decorated restaurant with a calm vibe, open kitchen, back patio, good service.

Delicious and authentic Indian fusion vegan food. Loved it. Must go. They have fixed menu. Will highly recommend!!

The food quality and service are fine, but the biggest issue I had was the fact that the menu does not list the prices, and you are forced to have the starter, main and dessert even if you just want to have the main course. The high prices are not justified by the general ambience, which more borders on that of a take-out or small eatery. Certainly, there are other vegan restaurants offering more value for money.

As someone who is not well acquainted with vegan dishes, this restaurant amazed us. We went during Asialicious and had the 4-course meal. The flavors were so strong and wonderful. Our top-pick was the biryani dish with smoky cream. Only complaint is that I wish the flavors in the cocktails came through better.

The food and people was awesome caters to large groups.

went here with some friends and absolutely great vibes and delicious food and the pricing for the amount of food was wow! will be back for more. even my non vegan friends loved it

I used to come here before the pandemic when it was a take out eatery. The food was exceptional and I could tell the chef was highly skilled, probably professionally trained, and they had more to offer than what we were seeing at such a low-key joint. My husband had an aversion to curry dishes from a food poisoning event 15 years ago and he was able to re-start eating South Asian cuisine after coming here. Also, he does not share the same vegetarian lifestyle as me, but this is the one of the few vegetarian restaurants that he will ask to return to. During the pandemic, we made our way here and we were sad to see it closed down. On Thursday, I was looking at options in Kensington Market and was so pleased to see this place opened again. I was even more pleased to see that it has turned into a sit-down restaurant. The prix fixe menu is a great idea to allow the small kitchen crew to focus on a small number of high quality dishes, allow patrons to sample a selection of flavors, and allow patrons to experience an entire vegan dining experience. No, this place is not LCBO licensed (?for now). I would not deduct any star ratings if a small business chooses not to serve alcohol. There are plenty of bars around if you would prefer an alcoholic beverage before or after your meal. I don't believe that a fine meal necessitates an alcoholic beverage as our culture often dictates - this is something that maybe we can get used to once in a while. I did order the chaga tea and I'm pretty sure it's a home-made recipe brewed in-house. It was delicious. The ambience. This restaurant is very small and quaint. I'm pleased that the owners are deciding to re-invent themselves and I like the new ambience. Just imagine going to your best friend's condo and they are trying their best to provide you with a great dining experience. The kitchen is open concept (similar to Shook Restaurant), so imagine that they are working feverishly in the kitchen while you are enjoying their cooking. Try not to bother them since they are also hosting their other friends in parallel. I would describe the ambience as Kensington-meets-candle light dinner. I can also succinctly describe it as fine-dining dishes , without the pretention. The flavours. I loved it - lots of Asian and South Asian flavours, which is a nice change from other vegetarian prix fixe menus in Toronto, which tend to focus more on western flavours. I had the green beans to start (don't forget to dip the beans in the nut butter smear), dal (the poured raita sauce, mmmm), and forest floor (love the nut mixture). My husband had the oyster mushrooms (no surprise since he loved the oyster mushrooms on their pre-pandemic menu), soba noodles (spicy, but yum!), and chocolate avocado (decadent!). I loved every dish we ordered. The flavors and presentation are high end and the dishes would fit in any finer dining establishments that charge $75+ for their prix fixe menu. For this reason, I found the price to be affordable and in fact, if Toronto Life gets wind of this place, the price might have to go up for the "foodie" crowd. I was worried with the appetizers that the portions were going to be small, but the chef has portioned all three dishes appropriately (i.e. smaller app plates, heartier entree dishes, and individual dessert servings). My husband and I were full by the end of our meals. The thing about vegan dishes, you have to ensure the entire meal is nutritionally packed with protein and fats to ensure that you aren't loading up just on carbs - I feel the chef did this very well, ensuring nutritionally balanced plates among the three dishes (regardless of which options you chose). For a vegan dining experience, I highly recommend, even if you are not vegan. Please support this place as there are not many vegan places like this around (I would maybe liken this place a bit like Awai on Bloor West, which is now closed). Other places in Toronto that offer vegan prix fixe menus are more western influenced and their price points are much higher.

We had the 6 course chef’s table dinner experience and it was such a great time. It’s a cozy spot with not many seats (so make sure to get reservations in early), we were seated right in front of the open concept kitchen so could see all the action as each dish was being prepared. Everything is so flavourful and top points for presentation. Dishes are so creatively put together. It’s like sitting in a real life version of Netflix’s Chef’s Table. Creek Bed and God’s Work were my favourite. I didn’t think I’d be full from 6 dishes as they didn’t look like a lot but I was stuffed! So make sure to arrive hungry. If I were to be critical, Autumn course was a little too salty and the dessert was underwhelming. I would’ve preferred the ube and pandan to be a little less subtle. I also thought being a chef’s table experience would’ve been more interactive? Other than the chef letting us know what each dish was, there wasn’t much else to the interaction. Would still come back for the food, however I thoroughly enjoyed most of food I had. Need to try the brunch next!

Exquisite vegetarian Indian fusion. Beautiful, delicious, friendly people, carefully considered decore and creative menu. Will definitely be back! Very friendly chefs who you can see making your food and care about your experience!

Great food. If you want to feel special or treat someone I would go here.

Just wow, the mixture of flavors is amazing to create the most perfect plant based food.

It was ok. Presentation wonderful but the dishes didn't really hit the mark in general, some lacked flavour. An Indian heritage attendee suggested "the spices were undercooked". Waitress was friendly but communication was a bit difficult. No licence or BYO.

We had a fun night out, and the food is decent, but several dishes were underwhelming. The soba noodles had plenty of flavour, but way too much oil. Both desserts we had felt underdeveloped. The saffron pudding was not really the texture of a pudding, it was very firm, and although the flavour was nice it's a tiny portion. The other dessert we had is called "forest floor", and it's just a handful of pulverized nuts in a bowl with some syrup, and three tiny spots of whipped cream. I'm not sure what the intention here was, but the experience of eating it is very much like eating a mouthful of sweet sand. The desserts really did seem like an afterthought, and were an underwhelming end to the meal. I'd also add that they need to improve their ventilation. It's a tiny dining area right next to an open kitchen, and the atmosphere became very smoky after a while. I don't think I'll return here.

Starry Night (biryani) was very delicious. 5/5. Love the raisins, which added an occasional sweetness to the savoury rice. Bushfire (eggplant curry) was okay. Not bad, not great. Slightly bitter. The roti that accompanied the dish had a slightly crisp exterior, and a soft and pillowy interior with a slight chewiness. 3/5 overall. Friendly and quick service. 5/5. Note that all portion sizes were small however.

This vegan restaurant is not only serving delicious foods, it's serving an entirely new experience. The food had dense layers of spice, distinct aromas, and innovative plating. We ordered: 1. Summer (papadam, chickpea ferment, cherry tomatoes) | $13 Savory and sweet aromatic spices were generously sprinkled on the juicy roasted cherry tomatoes. The tomatoes were placed on top of papadam (deep fried Indian lentil/bean flour) chips that were so thin and crunchy. Underneath the tomatoes was a gentle spread of chickpea ferment (a little like hummus but less creamy) that softened the overall texture. 2. Bushfire (eggplant, rosemary smoke, roti) | $15 What a dream. The eggplant curry was served on top of smoking rosemary that has such an intense yet calming herbal smell. The curry itself was quite light, a bit bitter, and slightly woody-tasting (due to the burnt herbal sprinkles on top). The overall taste was so earthy it was so different from the heavier curries I’ve tasted. The Roti was so, so fluffy. The taste was slightly umami from the generous sprinkles of parley on top. 3. Starry Night (biryani, smoked poblano, lavender oil) | $15 The rice was topped with little ruffle drops of sour cream and an earthy cream (which I could not identity). The biryani rice flavors were rich in spices. We loved the bits of sweet raisin and other softer seeds embedded. Couldn’t really taste the lavender oil tho. 4. Reap/Sow (dal, pomegranate, raita, roti) | $14 One of my favorite dishes! The curry itself tastes so earthy it was almost intense (rich of the natural taste of grains, seeds, and roots). There was little seasoning to the curry but the crunchy pomegranates bits on top were so refreshing and sour raita sauce set a bold contrast to the minimally flavored dal. 5. Starry Night Pt 2 (ube, pandan, rose) | $9 The white pandan mousse droplets had an intense coconut and vanilla flavor. The mousse just melted in my mouth as soon as I placed it on my tongue. The ube droplets were a lot more dense (like a sweet mashed potatoes) and creamy. It was interesting to taste the different kinds of sweetness. Each bite of the fleur de sel instantly enhanced the diversity of sweet flavors and added such a nice crunch to the mousse. The little flower bits enriched the smooth texture as well.