For years, the walk from Forest Hill Village down through Suydam Park and north through Cedarvale Ravine had a fine middle and two quiet ends. Spadina Road was better known for long-running institutions than for new kitchens. Eglinton Avenue West spent most of a decade behind LRT hoarding. This fall, both ends are changing for the same reason. The people opening restaurants there have personal ties to the area, and they say outright that they are building something they remember.
Between those two ends, the ravine itself is coming back from the storm of September 2. The City has already put back the wooden bridge closest to the Village, and cleanup further along is still in progress.
The Village End Has Its Most Talked-About Opening in Years
Gigi's opened in early July 2026 at 387 Spadina Road, in the space Mashu Mashu used to occupy. The Forest Hill Village BIA directory lists it as open daily from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. When Toronto Life reported the opening, it called Gigi's one of the stretch's most notable openings in years. The magazine described this part of Spadina as better known for legacy names like Pizza Banfi and Edo than for new arrivals.
The owner is Mike Kimel, who heads Harlo Entertainment, the group behind Linny's and Shake Shack Canada. Gigi's sits outside that company. Kimel grew up nearby and now lives in the area with his wife. He named the restaurant after his mother-in-law. He explained his reasons this way:
"I remember coming to the village as a kid, when it felt buzzy and alive. I wanted to bring that back so my friends could enjoy it again."
The chef ties Gigi's to the space's past. Endri Xhihani was the chef and owner of Mashu Mashu Mediterranean Grill and trained at the Rushton in Wychwood. Kimel's family had eaten at Mashu Mashu for years. Kimel knew Xhihani for his hummus, falafel and shawarma, so he asked him to cook a plate of pasta, and that plate convinced him. The kitchen in the old Mashu Mashu space is still run by the same chef, now with a broader Mediterranean menu.
The rest of the Village end is within a block. Le Petit Pain is at 431 Spadina Road, What A Bagel at 421 and EDO-ko at 425. All three were on the BIA's CafeTO patio list this spring. The BIA's public patio returned in May, next to Forest Hill Pets at 446 Spadina Road. Put together, the Village end now offers a full meal at Gigi's as well as a coffee or bagel to carry down the hill.
Down Through Suydam, Where the Summer Soundtrack Just Ended
Suydam Park is where the Village gives way to the ravine. All summer, the BIA's Music in Suydam Park series ran on Saturday afternoons from 1 to 3 p.m., at the stage near Spadina Road and Coulson Avenue. The tenth season ran from July 4 to September 26. Its September acts included Big Smoke Brass Band, The Rider Raiders, Moskitto Bar and Swamperella. That last Saturday was a week ago, so this is the first quiet weekend in the park since early July.
Past the park, the path drops to a wooden bridge at the south end of Cedarvale, near the exit to Suydam Park and Spadina Road. The September 2 storm pushed that bridge off its supports, and a fallen tree damaged it. Friends of Cedarvale reported on October 2 that the City had repaired the bridge and set it back in place quickly. The way from the Village into the ravine is open again.
What the Storm Left Behind, South to North
On September 4, two days after the storm, a Friends of Cedarvale volunteer on litter duty walked the park from Heath Street north to Ava Road. The volunteer logged damage in eight places. Follow-up reports since then show how far the repairs have reached. Walking north from the Village end, this is where things stood on the most recent report:
- The slope behind the subway exit at Heath Street. Fallen trees blocked the path at the top of the slope. Below them, runoff cut deep ruts into the ground.
- The wooden bridge by the Suydam Park and Spadina exit. Knocked off its supports in the storm, and repaired and back in place by October 2.
- Across the creek, a short way up the path. A very large tree was left half-toppled, with no caution tape around it as of the September 7 report.
- Near the Elaine Mitchell bench. A fallen tree was hanging over the path.
- The path from Heathdale and Humewood down to the arena. By September 19, the fallen tree had been removed and cut into logs.
- The Ava Road entrance at the north end. Also cleared by September 19, with the downed tree cut up.
The October 2 report said the City still has quite a backlog of storm cleanup. Spots in the middle of the ravine may still look the way they did in early September, even though both entrances are clear.
There is one more practical change. As of September 19, the arena washrooms, the only washrooms in the park, were closed because of an electrical problem. Portable toilets were set up next to the dog park. The same report pointed out that Cedarvale LRT station and the Loblaws also have washrooms.
The Eglinton End Is Getting a Restaurant Built on an Old Habit
The ravine's north end comes out near Cedarvale Station, which the TTC now lists as serving both Line 1 and Line 5. Metrolinx describes Line 5 Eglinton as a 19-kilometre route with 25 stations and stops between Mount Dennis and Kennedy. A short walk east along Eglinton, just past the northwest edge of Forest Hill, a former Popeyes at Bathurst and Eglinton is being turned into Woodlyns.
Woodlyns is a Chinese-Jewish restaurant at 947 Eglinton Avenue West. blogTO reported in mid-September that it was expected to open in October 2026. As of October 4, no opening date has been confirmed, so the safest plan is to treat it as coming soon. The partners are chefs Nick Liu and Josh Ling and Jeff Goldstein, a lawyer and entrepreneur. Liu is known for DaiLo, and he has said he wants to do for Eglinton's food scene what DaiLo did for College Street.
Goldstein's story is the closest match to Kimel's on Spadina. As an expropriation lawyer, he helped many Eglinton businesses that were affected by LRT construction. "I'm a member of this community," he told Toronto Life, "and this restaurant is partially a way to give this area something it desperately needs, something I had growing up: a central gathering place with great food and a great atmosphere." The partners signed their lease in January, shortly before the LRT opened.
The menu comes from a question Liu put to the team. Throughout history, what have Jewish people liked to eat besides their own cuisine? The answer was Chinese food. Early previews list matzo-ball wonton soup, Reuben spring rolls and chicken-stuffed knishes.
What Is Still Unfinished Along Eglinton
The trains are running, but the Eglinton streetscape is not finished. The City says it cannot currently complete the remaining eglintonTOday Complete Street work because of changes to Ontario's Highway Traffic Act. The section from Avenue Road to Chaplin Crescent was installed in fall 2024. Woodlyns is opening on a street where the transit is done but the sidewalk work has stalled.
That puts the walk, on October 4, in this state. At the south end, Gigi's has been open on Spadina since July, alongside Le Petit Pain, What A Bagel and EDO-ko. The repaired bridge leads down from Suydam Park into Cedarvale. Paths near the Heathdale and Ava Road entrances are clear. A cleanup backlog remains in between, and the arena washrooms were closed at last report. At the north end, Cedarvale Station serves two lines, and Woodlyns is due to open at Bathurst and Eglinton.
New restaurants on a familiar street can change how a family uses its home, and for some, eventually, when they decide to sell it. If you are thinking about what the next few years on Spadina and Eglinton mean for your property in Forest Hill, Barry Cohen Homes offers a complimentary valuation or a confidential consultation, with the discretion this neighborhood expects.
