Popular cottage country food truck just opened a permanent location in Toronto

A food truck that's been serving Muskoka for the past three years just made a move into the big city, opening a permanent, year-round location in Toronto.

Gravenhurst residents are already well-versed in the punchy, pan-Asian flavours of Gato Gato, a food truck serving non-traditional Asian bites like bao, fresh noodles and dumplings for years. Now, Toronto is getting a taste.

Back in 2023, co-founders Jesse Smith and Chris Nyuli ditched their fine-dining backgrounds to start cooking what they describe to blogTO as "the kind of food [they] crave."

"Gato Gato was born 3 years ago after travelling and working in Asia, and both having a love for the exciting, bold flavours, we decided to open something in Muskoka since we couldn't find the flavours we were craving anywhere," they say.

If you build it, they will come, as they say, and the people of Muskoka most definitely flocked to Gato Gato. Within just a few years, the food truck, which stays situated on Gravenhurst's Steamship Bay Road, became an institution.

 

 

 

 

View this post on Instagram

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A post shared by GATO GATO (@gatogatomuskoka)

Making the leap to Toronto, Smith and Nyuli tell blogTO, felt like the next logical step for the business.

"It's a unique multicultural city, and we felt the vibe and flavours of Gato Gato would fit right in," they say.

As of Nov. 5, Gato Gato has officially arrived; the latest business to join the ranks at Waterworks Food Hall.

Toronto residents officially have the opportunity to sink their teeth into the staples that Muskoka loves, from Dan Dan noodles to momo; shrimp toast to pork belly lechon. The flavours at Gato Gato, evidently, know no borders.

Though Smith and Nyuli describe the move to Toronto as a "learning experience," they still note that it's been "more exciting than daunting."

As for further expansion in Gato Gato's future? "Nothing planned right now," they tell blogTO. "We're focused on Waterworks and getting the Toronto spot rolling," but a brick-and-mortar is never out of the question.

You can find Gato Gato at 50 Brant St.