Trendy Italian joint that replaced a longstanding local restaurant just quietly opened

It's been little more than five months since Toronto's longstanding Piri Piri Grill bid the Junction Triangle a permanent farewell, but its usurper, a trendy new Italian restaurant, has already called the space home.

For over 25 years, Piri Piri Grill stood as the stalwart representative for Portuguese cuisine in the Junction Triangle, with its expansive patio and comfortable, breathable atmosphere.

Bountiful, fragrant plates flew over the pass for a quarter-century, serving generations of customers from the neighbourhood, the city's Portuguese community, and anyone who needed their fix of, well, piri piri, before it closed permanently in November 2025.

At the time, Piri Piri Grill's ownership teased that they'd be launching an entirely new concept at the same address and, just two months later, announced their sophomore effort, Enoteca Rossio.

As of March 2026, the new restaurant has officially, albeit quietly, opened for business.

A major departure from the cuisine on which the team built its fame, Enoteca Rossio is a contemporary Italian eatery open for dinner and weekend brunch, with a hidden speakeasy in the back.

The backbone of the menu, created by Executive Chef Andrew Capone, is made up of traditional Italian eats, with a large selection of small plates like arancini alla Bolognesi and heirloom bruschetta, classic pastas and pizzas.

A pared-down cocktail menu departs from specifically Italian inspiration with options like a tropical fizz with rum, prosecco, pineapple and coconut and a clarified paper plane, nodding instead to the restaurant's youthful branding, but you can still find a large selection of Italian beers and Amaro.

The birth of Enoteca Rossio — which, tragically, came at the expense of Piri Piri Grill, but such is the circle of life, I suppose — is part of a broader trend of restaurants in Toronto overhauling their concepts to appeal to shifting neighbourhood and consumer demographics in recent years.

In the first two months of 2026 alone, Amano Trattoria became Notte, Vinoteca Pompette became Bar Allegro, and Pizzeria Libretto transformed its original Ossington location into Bar Libretto.

Other restaurants, like Belle Isle, MIMI Chinese and Antler, have also completely overhauled their menus while keeping their names and branding intact. And that's barely scratching the surface.

Only time will tell if these calculated risks are enough to keep restaurants' heads above water while the tides of inflation and recession threaten the entire industry, but I'll never complain about having a new restaurant to add to my list.

Enoteca Rossio is located at 1444 Dupont St.