Grabbing a meal for take-out doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice nutrition. Many restaurants and fresh food markets in Toronto understand the importance of a nutritious meal to time-deprived urbanites, and have made it their mission to provide Toronto with quick and healthy take-out meals. Grab a menu and make your choice – here are the best healthy take-out spots in Toronto. [Photo of Planta Burger by Jim Bamboulis]
The Goods offers delicious, nutritious breakfasts and lunches on the go. The menu is filled with salad bowls, breakfast bars and soup. The Tricky Tahini bowl is packed with silky tahini dressing, quinoa, mung sprouts, black sesame, carrots, cabbage, tomato, basil and mixed greens. All the menu items follow The Goods’ philosophy of access to nutritious whole food.
A vegan hot spot, Planta Burger creates plant-based burgers to-go. All the burgers are made fresh on site, and include only the freshest ingredients! Try The Classic topped with queso, cheese, mushroom bacon, pickles and tomato. Sides include Caesar salad, Buffalo cauliflower, and kale and cabbage slaw. The dessert menu includes coconut-milk base milkshakes that come in vanilla, chocolate and salted caramel.
Hopscotch started in London and opened shop in Toronto a last year. Its mission is to improve the quality of lives through organic salads, bowls, wraps and smoothies. Popular menu items include The Great Gusto with chopped romaine, mescln, chicken, tomato salsa, cabbage, caramelized onions, goat cheese and more. The eatery has also introduced delicious breakfast bowls, parfaits, and toast.
Health food store, The Big Carrot offers healthy quick meal options on the East End. The take-home ready meals are all made in store and keep with The Big Carrot’s commitment of providing organic and local ingredients to the masses. The selection is seasonal and you definitely won’t have a hard time filling up your container!
Nutrition is at the forefront of the menu options at iQ Food Co. All the ingredients are sustainable and locally sourced, meaning that it’s fresh and delicious! While the menu is focused on plant-based ingredients there are poultry, fish and dairy products. Try one of the many boxes that include local meat, vegetables and fruit, like the Sparta which includes roasted chicken, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, pickled onions, quinoa, hummus and more.
Kupfert & Kim have built quite the name for themselves in the city, serving up healthy and flavourful quick-service dishes. The menu includes some vegetarian favourites like the Oaxaca Bowl, which is brown rice, black beans, organic kale, beets, tortilla chips, cashew cream and more.
The mission at Urban Herbivore is to provide Toronto with the most sustainable meal possible. The menu is filled with local and sustainable ingredients combined to make delicious lunch items like a potato club with cheeze, made with roasted Yukon and sweet potato, hummus, tomato, coconut ‘bacon’ and ‘cheeze’ sauce. Even the to-go containers keep in line with the sustainability practice; they are 100 per cent petroleum free and biodegradable.
Open since 2015, 4Life Natural Foods has become an important part of Kensington Market. The dedication to selling local and organic food is what makes it a popular spot come meal time. There is a full-kitchen in the natural food market, allowing them to offer freshly baked breads and a massive prepared foods section, which includes vegetable lasagna, roasted chicken and more!