Toronto Gets Its First Chili's

er. who cares?

BOOOO! Get out of town you too-bright, cheesy, multinational, American-born, cookie-cutter, corporate franchises!

Support the local economy!

Sincerely yours,

I.H.B.R.
(I hate big-box restaurants)

You know Tim, there is more to Toronto than Queen Street or Bloor Street. And while you seem to scoff at Chili's for opting for a suburban power centre instead of one of your hipster locales, I'm sure you would have been one of the first to scream "gentrification!" had they infact chosen one of your cooler-than-the-burbs neighbourhoods. There are some great things downtown, but there's a lot to be discovered north of Eglinton. People who don't think so really need to get over themselves.

Wow. The vitriol. What do you think I'm trying to do here - use some subversive tactics to promote chain stores and getting kickbacks in return?

This site's editorial mandate is to cover local culture and businesses but that doesn't mean we can't mention a chain store from time to time. IMO a huge American chain opening in Toronto is news, especially one as large as Chili's. I think it's actually quite notable they've taken so long to expand into this market.

As far as the downtown vs. Vaughan thing, the observation I was making was that a number of successful chain stores/restaurants, be they American or not, have decided to open their first Toronto location outside of the downtown core. I think this is notable. It would be as if Pages Bookstore decided to expand to the New York market but instead of opening in the lower east side or somewhere in Manhattan decided to open in New Jersey. And that's not knocking New Jersey. It would just be kinda strange.

Gross, More mediocre chains, thats just what we need in the burbs. Those who settle for high priced, processed ,pre-made food will enjoy I'm sure.

uh, for eating at chili's when i went to arizona in the 1990s?

A lot of those American restaurant chains are automobile related. Just like McDonald's which grew with the automobile, they will still be around until the supply of gasoline runs out. Of course, once one gets into the habit, it will be hard to break out of.
DJ means Vaughan, of course the 905 will attract chains like Chili's, because of its current automobile-oriented development. Enjoy it while it lasts.

hold the phone....Anthropologie's coming to TO?

Chili's belongs in the burbs. It's actually half decent food for a big-box chain, a pretty decent version of tex-mex and far better than our limited options in Canada. Chipotle opening downtown is the oddity, as evidenced by the sites that Panera, Krispy-Kreme, etc opened first.

We'll probably see a Chili's in 905 centric parts of downtown (Eaton Centre/Rogers Centre/John & Richmond) eventually. Course eventually can be a very long time - Panera still hasn't ventured into the core despite having a model that would seem to be a great fit.

I hope Guy Fieri comes to the grand opening of the new Chili's so that I can stomp on his toes and steal his backwards sunglasses.

I love it and i cannot wait Thanks Tim

It going to be at they colussus movie theatre in vaughn at hwy 7

Also, do you know if the menu is the same as the states menu?

website is working http://www.chilis-ontario.com/ you can check it out

I ate there last night at their VIP pre-opening. It was AWESOME! They are going to blow away all of the bland offerings with brutal service that we have been forced to put up with all these years.

Way to go Chili's!

Just this past week, I happened to have to stay at a hotel in Virginia that had a very expensive hotel restaurant. So I looked around for a nearby alternative and found Chili's, thinking "oh well, it's a chain, but at least it'll be cheaper" and it was, but the food was also very good and the service was fine, if perhaps a little too attentive. It probably helped that it was in the South and so people were pretty friendly.

As for the food: I had a fajita trio (steak, chicken, shrimp) and it was nicely spiced and plenty of food (free tortilla refills). I had a mini dessert in a shot glass and it was not so good. Their margarita's looked nice, but I didn't have one.

Would I go all the way to Vaughan to eat there? No. But if they had one downtown or midtown (where I live), I would go.

My guess is that they're expanding into Canada now cos it's a good time. US market collapsing, Canada not so much.

Peter

Totally agree. Chili's is awesome. Best burgers in the city, Jalepeno Burger is the #1. Their Chocolate Molten dessert is super too.