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Food is subjective, yes, but food is more than famous Euro-chefs who happen to settle in a certain city, or the diversity of a city's immigrant population. It's the availability of good grocery stores, bakeries, inexpensive but good eateries (whether full-fledged restaurants or cafes), and quality food outside chic bistros in fashionable neighborhoods. On this scale, Toronto ranks below Montreal in Canada and certainly below some cities in the US: New York, San Francisco, New Orleans, and possibly even Los Angeles, Chicago and metro Washington DC.
To the Canadian poster who warned the OP that Phoenix, Arizona, was so small and quiet compared to Toronto: Phoenix is a metro area of 4 million people (if it were in Canada, it would be that country's 2nd-largest metro). Everything is relative, and while it's true that Toronto is larger and more cosmopolitan than Phoenix, let's not go too far. Phoenix is quite big, and it ain't Winnipeg.
Last edited by masonbauknight; 06-21-2013 at 09:43 AM..
Food is subjective, yes, but food is more than famous Euro-chefs who happen to settle in a certain city, or the diversity of a city's immigrant population. It's the availability of good grocery stores, bakeries, inexpensive but good eateries (whether full-fledged restaurants or cafes), and quality food outside chic bistros in fashionable neighborhoods. On this scale, Toronto ranks below Montreal in Canada and certainly below some cities in the US: New York, San Francisco, New Orleans, and possibly even Los Angeles, Chicago and metro Washington DC.
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I think you make some really good points here. Even the junk food in Montreal has more than a few unique local twists.
It's one thing for a city's restaurant scene to take multiple signature cuisines and dishes from other parts of the world and replicate them authentically (and even exquisitely), and quite another to produce entirely new, innovative dishes and genres and also fusions of dishes/genres that have never existed anywhere else.
To the Canadian poster who warned the OP that Phoenix, Arizona, was so small and quiet compared to Toronto: Phoenix is a metro area of 4 million people (if it were in Canada, it would be that country's 2nd-largest metro). Everything is relative, and while it's true that Toronto is larger and more cosmopolitan than Phoenix, let's not go too far. Phoenix is quite big, and it ain't Winnipeg.
I know Phoenix very well. I love it there, but let's not pretend it feels anywhere close to a city of 4M. Toronto is on a whole other scale, despite only being slightly larger.
@Liberated. Toronto isn't "slightly larger" than Phoenix: Per The Economist 2013 yearbook: Toronto 6 million, Phoenix, 4.1 million. Toronto is Canada's powerhouse, while Phoenix is a regional hub of the U.S. Southwest. But Phoenix is dynamic and no "quiet" Winnipeg or Ottawa. Far from it.
Los Angeles has better food than Toronto. And I am not talking about $50+ per plate restaurants. I am talking about being able to walk into a place and eat for less than $10 a filling, delicious, healthy meal. The Mexican restaurants in Los Angeles are amazing and Toronto has no equal. That being said, Toronto has some damn good places to eat, plus it's not under the despotic rule of the U.S. regime.
@Liberated. Toronto isn't "slightly larger" than Phoenix: Per The Economist 2013 yearbook: Toronto 6 million, Phoenix, 4.1 million. Toronto is Canada's powerhouse, while Phoenix is a regional hub of the U.S. Southwest. But Phoenix is dynamic and no "quiet" Winnipeg or Ottawa. Far from it.
I don't want to argue about it - I know all the facts about Phoenix. My family has a home there, I have been at least 40 times and I have even considered moving there.
All my point was that coming from Flagstaff, AZ, Phoenix may seem like a massive city - but Toronto is in another league. I was giving the OP a comparable reference point to understand the scale of this place, because it doesn't compare to anything in the region in which he currently lives.
I said Phoenix seems small and peaceful by comparison. To anyone who has spent a considerable amount of time in each city, it does.
I've been to Phoenix/Scottsdale many times myself, mostly for work mind you. It is not a quiet town by any means. I love the scenery and the restaurants and golf courses are outstanding. But it is also very spread out and not 'downtown-centric' like Toronto so it does not have a 'big city' feel. Nor does it play the role of a regional hub that Toronto does for Canada. That being said, it would rival Montreal for being the 'second' city if it was part of Canada.
I've been to Phoenix/Scottsdale many times myself, mostly for work mind you. It is not a quiet town by any means. I love the scenery and the restaurants and golf courses are outstanding. But it is also very spread out and not 'downtown-centric' like Toronto so it does not have a 'big city' feel. Nor does it play the role of a regional hub that Toronto does for Canada. That being said, it would rival Montreal for being the 'second' city if it was part of Canada.
Size-wise, for sure. But even in the U.S. when it comes to urbanity there are many cities that are quite a bit smaller than Phoenix that offer a more urban feel.
That's doesn't mean that Phoenix is a sleepy town by any stretch.
Size-wise, for sure. But even in the U.S. when it comes to urbanity there are many cities that are quite a bit smaller than Phoenix that offer a more urban feel.
That's doesn't mean that Phoenix is a sleepy town by any stretch.
True, but just because a city is more urban than another does not make it more powerful or mean it has more clout, its really a function of where and how people live. Mostly all cities in the south are more spread out. Dallas, Houston, and Atlanta are all argulably less urban than Montreal but they are all more powerful. Seattle may have a smaller downtown than Vancouver but it's still much more powerful. Pheonix can rival Montreal head-to-head in terms of economic power, but Montreal is more of a cultural powerhouse.
Last edited by johnathanc; 06-21-2013 at 01:57 PM..
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