Easter Feasters in Toronto

Acknowledge this, the most important annual religious festival in the Christian liturgical year, with the massive commitment to gluttony and gastronomical indulgence you know you want to. Herewith, a thin selection of the multitude of Toronto eateries unfurling their menus this holiday weekend. Steer clear of the rabbit.

The Beaver Café This Queen West haunt throws open its killer patio this weekend so the city’s Easter bunnies might sample from a tasty selection of brunch goodies, including baked chocolate almond French toast, tofu scrambled burritos, smoked salmon salad, and grilled ham and cheese croissants. 1192 Queen St. W.

Mitzi's Sister This Parkdale familiar offers a triple-threat Easter punch—sittings on Good Friday, Saturday and Sunday—with a menu that includes fish cakes and eggs, challah French toast, and buttermilk oatmeal pancakes. 1554 Queen St. W.

Old Mill Inn The Easter brunch and buffet dinner at this elegant west-end staple invites diners to choose from an array of locally sourced Easter-oriented yummies including more than two dozen salads, lamb sirloin, Lake Erie trout, sole and the de rigeur player in every Easter passion play: ham. Expect a visit from a generous guy dressed in a bunny suit. 21 Old Mill Rd.

Sadie’s Diner Visit this earnest, comfy vegetarian café for a weekend brunch that’ll put hair on your chest, even in spite of its vegan leanings. Try the huevos rancheros, buckwheat waffles, or a vegan breakfast burrito with scrambled tofu and soy cheese, then wash it down with a glass of organic carrot, celery, spinach, ginger and broccoli juice. 504 Adelaide St. W.

Musa This middle-Eastern-inspired, side-patio-equipped café offers an egalitarian Easter Sunday brunch, no matter your heritage or tastes. An abundance of eggs (lumberjack, traditional, etc.) leads the list, followed by New York-style grilled challah sandwiches and French toast, crêpes (chicken or fruit), omelettes (the salmon rocket is exquisite), and, if you’re so inclined, pickled herring with arugula salad. 847 Dundas St. W.

The Sweet Escape Patiserrie This full-service café and bakery in the Distillery District is sweet on Easter and proves it with a dedicated menu that includes lemon cheesecake, carrot cake, Easter sugar cookies and a flourless chocolate cake that would make a Pope blush. 55 Mill St., Bldg. 47, Suite 102.

Oliver and Bonacini Café Grill
From Good Friday to Easter Monday, the Bayview Village restaurant supplements its usual brunch fare (think eggs Benedict with cheddar scones, French toast with warm fruit and honey almonds, and Belgian waffles with lemon whipped cream), with AAA black Angus strip loin with Yorkshire pudding, and baked salmon Wellington wrapped in puff pastry with watercress cream sauce. Bayview Village Shopping Centre.

Celestin The French experience dished out from inside a restored 1920s bank building comes by way of an à-la-carte brunch menu headlined by scrambled eggs with Merguez sausage, hollandaise-ladled eggs Benedict over croissants, crêpes with fresh fruit and seafood vol-au-vont. 623 Mt. Pleasant Rd.

The Hot House Cafe brunch is cool for lots of reasons, not the least of which is its on-site jazz and $18.95 pricetag. Try the omelette station and the pie-laden dessert buffet (included in the price). 35 Church St.

Debu’s Nouvelle Indian Cuisine Easter in India? Why not. This chic homage to the subcontinent offers a three-course prix-fixe lunch and dinner Easter menu featuring butter chicken, a three-egg omelette stuffed with chicken tikka masala
and Goan fish curry. A dessert du jour platter rounds out your travels nicely. 552 Mount Pleasant Rd.

Mildred’s Temple Kitchen This Liberty Village gathering place augments its usual weekend brunch with an Easter Monday à-la-carte nod to such offerings as blueberry buttermilk pancakes, green eggs and ham (a favourite with the junior brunchers), poached eggs on croissants with smoked salmon, and bacon-and-eggy salade Lyonnaise. 85 Hanna Ave.

Globe Bistro Heralding one’s entrance to the Danforth find this intimate bistro and its $29 three-course Easter brunch that starts with a mushroom purée, is followed up with a deep-dish smoked chicken quiche and prime rib with potatoes roasted with duck fat, and is topped off with a spiced carrot cake that’ll make your bunny ears tingle. 124 Danforth Ave.