Toronto, Canada's Exciting Metropolis on Lake Ontario

Toronto is a city built out of neighborhoods, food, and constant surprises. We sit down with Ashley Rochefort, Media Relations Manager at Destination Toronto, to unpack what makes Canada’s largest city feel so alive, from its long history to its modern identity as “the world in a city,” where roughly half of residents are born outside Canada and cultures show up block by block.

We get specific about things to do in Toronto, starting with the CN Tower for panoramic views, the glass floor, and the EdgeWalk, plus the waterfront cluster nearby with Ripley’s Aquarium and the Rogers Centre. From there we hit iconic stops like Casa Loma with its seasonal programming. Museum favorites including the Royal Ontario Museum, the Art Gallery of Ontario, and the unexpectedly fascinating Bata Shoe Museum.

We talk Toronto’s legendary diversity of authentic eats, and the fusion that comes with it, including the Toronto-invented sushi pizza, peameal bacon sandwiches at St. Lawrence Market, and the city’s serious love for Jamaican patties. We also map out walkable neighborhoods like the Distillery District and Kensington Market. Toronto's natural beauty includes beaches, parks, High Park cherry blossoms, and a quick ferry ride to the Toronto Islands. Finally, we connect the dots to a Niagara Falls day trip and the Niagara wine region, plus summer festivals, the CNE, and nightlife hotspots. 

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Ashley Rochefort isMedia Relations Manager at Destination Toronto. She loves her city and has done the Edge Walk on CN Tower. 

Podcast host Lea Lane has traveled to over 100 countries, and has written nine books, including the award-winning Places I Remember  (Kirkus Reviews star rating, and  'one of the top 100 Indie books of  the year'). She has contributed to dozens of guidebooks and has written thousands of travel articles. Read her weekly essays on Substack.
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Our award-winning travel podcast, Places I Remember with Lea Lane, has produced over 130 travel episodes! New episodes drop on the first Tuesday of the month, on Apple, Spotify, and wherever you listen to podcasts. All episodes are also on the website: placesirememberlealane.com
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Transcript

Lea Lane 0:26

Toronto, the dynamic capital of the Canadian province of Ontario, is on Lake Ontario's northwestern shore. Toronto's history spans over 15,000 years, beginning with indigenous peoples. The French established trading posts in the 1750s. After the American Revolution, the British founded the town of Toronto in 1834. The city became a railway hub in the 1880s,

Toronto History In Two Minutes

Lea Lane 0:52

and following a post-World War II immigration boom, the municipality of Metropolitan Toronto was formed in 1954. It's now Canada's largest city and financial capital. It's known for its economic strength and its high percentage of foreign-born residents. It's really a terrific city. Our guest is Ashley Rochefort, Media Relations Manager at Destination Toronto. Welcome, Ashley, to Places I Remember.

Ashley Rochefort 1:19

Thank you so much for having me. Really appreciate it.

Lea Lane 1:23

So Toronto is a vibrant multicultural hub with roughly half of its residents born outside of Canada, representing what I read is over 200 ethnic origins. What are some of the major nationalities in the city and how have they shaped it?

Ashley Rochefort 1:37

We like to say we are the world in a city. There's really representation from everywhere, all four corners of the earth. Toronto has the largest Tibetan population outside of Asia.

Lea Lane 1:48

Really?

Neighborhood Enclaves And A Food City

Ashley Rochefort 1:49

Yeah. And we have a little Tibet to go with that. We're one of the original city of neighborhoods. The first business and improvement association was founded in Toronto, and now those are found all over the world. There are so many enclaves in the city of Toronto. We have three Chinatowns. Three.

Lea Lane 2:10

Yeah, it's more than New York City, I think.

Ashley Rochefort 2:13

That's right. There's a little India, one of the more recent neighborhoods is a little Iran in the North York region. There's a little Ethiopia, u Koreatown. I mean, you name it.

Lea Lane 2:29

We've got it. And what I'm thinking is you've got great food, of course, from all of these regions, I can imagine.

Ashley Rochefort 2:35

Exactly. That is something that people recognize about Toronto is our food scene is incredible because we have authentic food from so many different regions. But then it also sparks this incredible fusion cuisine. Now I think in the last six to twelve months, we've had several Japanese Italian fusion restaurants.

Lea Lane 3:01

Wow. Yeah. I heard about the sushi pizza. Is that something that was invented in Toronto?.

Ashley Rochefort 3:04

It was, yes, it was. It was. When we talk about kind of iconic dishes of Toronto, yes, the sushi pizza. Of course, pea meal bacon sandwiches. Explain that one. P pea meal. Okay, so it's back bacon, but it's traditionally way back when it was preserved in pea meal, but now it's preserved in cornmeal, so it has a bit of a cornmeal crust on it. That's Canadian bacon. It's crunchy. It can't, it can be on the other side. It also has different preparations. You can get it at the St. Lawrence Market on a sandwich, which is one of the city's iconic dishes. It's like six dollars Canadian, which is practically free, and it's delicious. Another iconic dish of the city, which a lot of people don't know about, is actually the patty, the Jamaican patty.

Lea Lane 3:59

Yes, the grab and go. It's very popular, I know.

Ashley Rochefort 4:02

When patty shops open up in the city, it makes headline news. There are lineups around the corner. Everyone has their favorite, and they're very specific about which ones they like. So you can get it at any corner store, any bakery. I live in the Ukrainian village, and my local bakery has patties. Wow.

Lea Lane 4:22

That's a fusion, Ukrainian, Jamaican, right? (Oh yeah, oh yeah, yeah, yeah.) Well, I think it's great. I think foodies take heed because this is a foodie city, and then that's a great draw. Now, what are some of the iconic sites and activities, not to miss? We'll start with the CN Tower for stunning views.

Ashley Rochefort 4:40

Of course, the CN Tower. It's actually their 50th anniversary this year. So there's what's going on at the tower. I really recommend you go up and walk on the glass floor. That's incredibly exciting. The edgewalk is wonderful. I have done it.

Lea Lane 4:58

Is

CN Tower Waterfront And Must Sees

Lea Lane 4:58

the 360 restaurant still revolving? Do you know a lot of cities have stopped that? Why how come Toronto keeps it going? I think it's great.

Ashley Rochefort 5:06

We continue. And that is actually the world's tallest wine cellar, which is a bit of an oxymoron.

Lea Lane 5:15

Oh, you get high. That's very interesting.

Ashley Rochefort 5:19

Yeah. Yeah. I mean, it all kind of starts with the CN Tower. And then what's really great is when you're down by the CN Tower in the waterfront, there's a lot right there. So he's aquarium is right beside it. And then on the other side is the Rogers Center, the home of the Toronto Blue Jays. I know that it has an in-house hotel. A hotel right in the stadium. So it's a bucket list item for sports fans and baseball fans. You can watch the game from your hotel suite. Quite a view. Honestly, it's it's such an incredible experience. Casa Loma. Love Casa Loma. It's so beautiful. I think what Casa Loma does better than a lot of attractions is it has really wonderful seasonal programming. So in the summertime on Monday evenings, because a lot of restaurants are closed on Mondays, but on Monday evenings they have Symphony in the Garden. You can go and experience the beautiful weather and sit in the shadow of Casa Loma.

Lea Lane 6:19

I might add that Casa Loma is a gothic revival castle. Lots of secret tunnels and stables, and it was built in 1914. So it's quite a heritage landmark.

Ashley Rochefort 6:29

Sorry, yes. The only thing I think it's technically not a castle because royalty has not lived there. But for all other intents and purposes, it is this beautiful structure that sits atop a hill and overlooks the city. They have this beautiful symphony in the gardens in the summer. They have a festival holiday season, which is incredible. And at Halloween, they have the best haunted house.

Lea Lane 6:56

That's good to know. I can imagine on the three levels of decorated rooms and all this marble and everything, it might be scary. Yeah. How about some museums? I know the Royal Ontario Museum is one of the great museums of North America. What is its specialty?

Ashley Rochefort 7:13

It's more of a museum. So it has artifacts, it has dinosaur bones, it has specialty exhibits. It is kid-friendly and interactive, free and open to the public. So it's an exciting time for the ROM. I think another one is the Art Gallery of Ontario,

Museums From Dinosaurs To Shoes

Ashley Rochefort 7:32

which is Frank Gahry designed space. They're adding on a contemporary art wing right now, a showpiece of art. They have incredible international exhibits, indigenous art, a famous group of seven, which is Ontario art. It's a really special place. There's also some smaller museums that are really fun and the shoe museum. That is the largest collection of shoe and shoe paraphernalia in the world. It's so much fun. They have special exhibits. It's a bit of a smaller museum, which is great because it only takes like an hour, an hour and a half to well, it depends how much you like shoes. Well, yeah, I mean, if you like stay longer. Yeah, yeah. It's a great little treasure.

Lea Lane 8:23

Oh, yeah. I think I'm finding immediately that there are wonderful surprises here. We know Toronto's a great city, but now we're finding it's a funky, fun city as well with great food. How about some of the vibrant neighborhoods? Uh, what are some of the most walkable ones that we shouldn't miss?

Ashley Rochefort 8:39

The distillery district. It's a pedestrian neighborhood, revived, renovated Victorian structures. It actually was a distillery. There are still distilleries in the distillery district, but it's all cobblestones and Victorian brick structures. There's galleries, there's a theater, restaurants,

Distillery District And Kensington Market Walks

Ashley Rochefort 8:59

shops. It's the home of iconic Winter Village, which is a holiday experience. You can't miss that.

Lea Lane 9:07

Sounds terrific. How about the Kensington Market? That's kind of Bohemian with lots of vintage shops and street art, right?

Ashley Rochefort 9:15

It is. And they have pedestrian-friendly Sundays. And Kensington Market is one of the last ungentrified neighborhoods in downtown Toronto. We are very protective of the area because it is ungentrified and we want it to remain that way with independent shops and settle themselves, then they would move on and create other enclaves. It has this diversity to it, and you can see still some of the communities that have come through Kansas International.

Lea Lane 9:46

Fabulous. With all this great walking, are there a couple of parks you'd recommend to sit and just enjoy the greenery? Where would you?

Ashley Rochefort 9:53

Yeah, I think that people are really surprised at how green Toronto is. The shores of Lake Ontario. We have a just over 40 kilometers of shoreline. We have 10 beaches, three rivers, the only urban national park in Canada. The city has 1,500 parks and 10 million trees. And it really

Parks Beaches Shoreline And Toronto Islands

Ashley Rochefort 10:18

is this like beautiful green city. Classic park is High Park, which is in the west end.

Lea Lane 10:26

It's known for its cherry blossoms in the spring. I know that.

Ashley Rochefort 10:29

Cherry blossoms in the spring, Shakespeare in the summer. It's called Dream in High Park. A couple other parks, a brand new one, actually, is B desage Park, which is on the waterfront. Phase one opened last year, phase two this year, full of native plants and public art, which is fantastic. Another one that people don't know about unless they're from Toronto is the Toronto Islands. So yes, you take a ferry, it's about 10-15 minutes from downtown, and you can explore the Toronto Islands with beaches and a haunted lighthouse, and it's also pedestrian friendly. There's a couple of restaurants and coffee shops.

Lea Lane 11:13

And there's amusement park on Olympic Islands.

Ashley Rochefort 11:16

Go fishing, go swimming, paddleboarding, supping. It's a wonderful way to spend a summer.

Lea Lane 11:22

And I like the bluffs at Scarborough. You have these beautiful cliffs. You have surprises all over. That's what's so nice about Toronto. We're hearing all these wonderful things. Yeah. And you can visit Niagara Falls too if you want to. It's not in Toronto, it's near Toronto. Tell us how close it is.

Ashley Rochefort 11:40

Niagara is about, it depends on the traffic, let's be honest. Of course. You know, anywhere from one to two hours drive from the city. It is really typical for visitors when they come to Toronto or when they go to Niagara to then experience the other. So we kind of go hand

Niagara Falls Plus Wine Country

Ashley Rochefort 11:59

in hand. Niagara Falls is, of course, a bucket list item, but the Niagara region is also a wine region. So you can do wine tours by bike, by car, buy helicopter. That's also really expensive. That's hard, but you don't have to drive. Helicopter over the falls and then land at a winery for lunch. Super lovely experience. Yeah.

Lea Lane 12:25

Hi, uh, I'm just blown away by all these surprises. I mean, I know Toronto is a great city. Again, when I hear this, I'm reminded how surprising it is. That's that's what's so super. You have great major festivals. You mentioned one of them. I know you have one of the largest Caribbean festivals in North America, if not the largest. What other ones?

Ashley Rochefort 12:44

Summer is festival season. So every weekend there's an incredible festival. I was just at the Toronto Outdoor Art Fair this weekend on Nathan Phillips Square. We have two jazz festivals in the summertime. There's a jerk fest. I mean, you

Summer Festivals The CNE Nightlife

Ashley Rochefort 13:01

name it. We we've got it. Yeah. I think also the CNE is really special. So that's the Canadian National Exhibition. (Yeah, the X. It's called.) Exactly. Exactly. Let's go to the X. So it happens for 18 days at the end of summer, and it's kind of really iconic bookend to the summer. Everyone goes. It's you have all that fair food, midway shows. It's awesome.

Lea Lane 13:27

It's a lot of and then you have nightlife. You have great nightlife as well, with these wonderful ethnic neighborhoods and so much fun. What would be one or two of the places or the areas to go to?

Ashley Rochefort 13:38

Definitely a little Portugal on Dundas West. It's very happening. Lots of cool bars and restaurants, also some secret bars. So for some kind of if you know, you know. And then Osington Strip is also a lot of fun. There's a brewery, a lot of nightlife. Again, just bars and restaurants, teems with people in the evening and night. (Right. I'm sold.)

Lea Lane 14:07

Well, the name of the podcast is Places I Remember. So, Ashley, would you please share a favorite story of yours about Toronto, your home?

Ashley Rochefort 14:15

Yeah. In honor of its 50th anniversary, it's a quick story about doing the edge walk at the CN Tower. I had a group of journalists in town from the UK, and they wanted to do the Edge walk, and fine, and I had no plans of going. And then

EdgeWalk Fear Turns Into Joy

Ashley Rochefort 14:33

at the last minute, someone canceled. So we had this spot booked, and I decided, well, I guess I'm gonna go. I really didn't want to.

Lea Lane 14:42

I was genuinely Well, you want to explain it's about 2,000 feet up in the air, and it used to be the tallest piece of property in the world.

Ashley Rochefort 14:52

I remember we were having lunch before we went up the tower, right at the base of the tower. All the journalists were like not nervous, no big deal. And in my head, I just thought, I can't think about it because if I think about it, I'm not gonna do it. We went and it's a whole process getting suited up, and they check all your harnesses, and there's a lot of safety involved. We get on the elevator, and this group of journalists being from the UK, they did not have a sense of how high the CN Tower is. They thought it was just that's why they weren't nervous. I had been up the tower, I know how tall it is, and they started to look a little green. They were like, oh my gosh. And the Edge walk is you are outside and you walk around the CN Tower 360, and one of the journalists started crying. And I'm like, We're here, we're doing it, like we're we're doing the thing. So we walk out there, and throughout the the Edge walk, there's a lot of different moves you have to do. There's leaning forward, there's leaning back, no hands, and all of the journalists wouldn't do it, they were too scared. (Oh, really?) And what happened was I was like, this is fantastic. And I did all the moves and I leaned forward and hands up, and I had the greatest time. That's great. The roles totally reversed. Have you done it since? I haven't, but you have to tell everyone they should. It's such an adrenaline rush. You can see the planes landing at Billy Bishop Airport on the islands. I was really lucky to have a beautiful sunny day. Even if you're scared, you should do it because it really is a thrill.

Lea Lane 16:48

It is a thrill. Yep. I think uh it's a very good lesson. Sometimes you know, you try a little harder and then you might, and you find something that you can do and you didn't know you could do it. Great. I I've been a journalist on some of these press trips. I know what we sometimes have to do and we don't realize it till we get there. So I really felt for them too. That's funny. Well, Toronto is truly one of North America's greatest cities, and I hope to return there soon. Thank you so much, Ashley Rochefort, director, media manager of Destination Toronto, for sharing your wonderful city with us.

Ashley Rochefort 17:22

Thank you so much.