Brunch at Cafe Landwer on University Avenue, Toronto

On Boxing Day, with snow coming down over University Avenue, we went for brunch at Cafe Landwer, just across from the Shangri-La. Friends in Toronto had told me about it, and one brunch was enough to see why they call it an institution.

The yellow sign is hard to miss on a grey winter day, and so is the date beside it: est. 1919. Inside, every table was taken, with people from all walks of life enjoying their day.

Cafe Landwer at a Glance
📍 Location · Corner of University Avenue and Adelaide Street, downtown Toronto, across from the Shangri-La
☕ Known for · Coffee from a house roasting since Berlin in 1919, and an all-day Mediterranean brunch menu
🍳 Don’t miss · The Mediterranean stuffed omelette with focaccia, the Belgian waffle board and Turkish coffee in a copper pot
❄️ Best time · Go early on holidays and weekends — every table was taken when we arrived on Boxing Day
💲 Good to know · No pork on the menu; turkey bacon, non-dairy milk and gluten-free bread are all available

A Café with a Century Behind It

The date on the sign is real. In 1919, Moshe Landwer opened a small coffee shop in central Berlin, with a roasting house beside it. In 1933, as the Nazis came to power, the family left Germany for Tel Aviv, where they set up the city’s first coffee roasting house on Allenby Street.

The restaurants came much later. The first Cafe Landwer opened in Tel Aviv’s Rabin Square in 2004, reviving the old family name as a casual café, and the chain has since spread across Israel and North America.

The Room

The room is a mix of old-world café and diner. There are checkered floor tiles in orange, black and white, tan leather booths, red banquettes, ceiling fans and big yellow pendant lights, with a long marble bar running along one side.

One wall is covered in framed black-and-white photographs and vintage-style coffee posters, under a yellow neon sign that reads “Start your day with Landwer”.

The bar is the heart of the room, with wine bottles stacked in arched shelves, two coffee grinders and an espresso machine, all hung with garlands and bells for the holidays.

Near the entrance, a little red-doored vestibule, tied with a big holiday bow, keeps the cold out. The booths beside it look straight out onto the snowy street.

A Multicultural Menu

The menu reads like the room looks. There are shakshukas, a Jerusalem bagel, schnitzel and falafel, Belgian waffles and pastas, halloumi, hummus and Moroccan cigars, all on the same page. I love that. Brunch here is a little tour of the Mediterranean and beyond.

Coffee Done Right

For a café that started as a coffee roaster, the coffee has to be good, and it is. My cappuccino came with a perfect heart in the foam, and they nailed it.

The Turkish coffee came in a hammered copper pot with a long brass handle, an empty cup and a butter cookie on a wooden tray. I call it Greek coffee, because of my Greek roots, and I am biased. Both are made the same way, with very finely ground coffee simmered in a small pot. In Greece, it was long called Turkish coffee, and the name “Greek coffee” took hold after the 1974 invasion of Cyprus.

What We Ordered

The Mediterranean Stuffed Omelette was delicious. It is a three-egg omelette filled with red and yellow peppers, cherry tomatoes, red onion and spinach, finished with feta and parsley, and served in a cast-iron skillet. It came with crushed potatoes, and we upgraded to the focaccia, which arrived warm, charred in spots and so fresh.

Landwer’s Belgian Waffle came on a wooden board with a bowl of whipped cream, Nutella, maple syrup and fresh fruit. We added a side of turkey bacon, which came standing up in a little metal cup. Oh my, I wish I could have that every day.

The Greek yogurt bowl was topped with homemade granola, seasonal fruit and a drizzle of date honey, with green apple slices fanned on top.

The avocado toast comes on a toasted, sesame-crusted Jerusalem bagel, with cherry tomatoes, radish, chilli flakes, Thai hot pepper, feta and a tangle of spring greens.

Everything was fresh and delicious. This was not a quick bite. It was a brunch made for lingering.

The service was just as good. The staff were warm and friendly, and even with every table full on a holiday, the welcome was as cozy as the room.

A Place for Everyone

Before our visit, I had read with real sadness that this location had been targeted during protests. In October 2023, a large crowd gathered outside calling for a boycott, and during a later march, a smoke flare set off outside drove diners on the patio indoors.

Hate and intimidation should not happen anywhere. For me, the beauty of travel is learning to appreciate and respect every culture. Sitting in that full dining room on Boxing Day, surrounded by people of many backgrounds enjoying their day and their food, that was exactly what I saw.

Bubbly Tips

• Go early on holidays and weekends. Every table was taken when we arrived on Boxing Day.
• Upgrade to the focaccia. It is only $2.50 extra with an omelette, and it arrives warm and fresh.
• Add turkey bacon. There is no pork on the menu, but the turkey bacon is worth every bite, and it can be added to breakfast dishes for $4.
• Order the Turkish coffee. It comes in a copper pot with two cookies. Let the grounds settle before you pour.
• Ask for non-dairy milk. Soy, almond and oat milk are available for most coffees.
• Check the dietary symbols. The menu marks plant-based and gluten-friendly dishes, and gluten-free bread is available.
• Know the group policy. An 18 per cent gratuity is added automatically for groups of seven or more.
• Try another location. Cafe Landwer has several locations around Toronto if University Avenue is full.

Final Thoughts

I would definitely return, for the food, the coffee and that warm, friendly service. If I lived in Toronto, Cafe Landwer would be one of my hangouts, a bit like Monk’s Café in Seinfeld, the diner where Jerry and his friends met in nearly every episode. Its exterior was a real place, Tom’s Restaurant at Broadway and West 112th Street in New York. Mine would be a little café with a yellow sign on University Avenue.

Until next time!

xoxo,
Bubbly 🎈