Opening up and running a successful restaurant in Toronto is hard enough on a good day. This year, however, many restaurants have found it extremely difficult to stay afloat amidst the financial instability and general feeling of uncertainty that has been brought on by the pandemic.
Vicino Italian Kitchen, a casual and charming spot for homemade pizza, pasta and gelato, opened up just under a year ago on Sumach Street. The restaurant was located directly across the street from Regent Park Athletic Grounds, with a patio opening up onto their field that made for an ideal outdoor summer dining space. Nearly everything, from the sauce to the pizza dough to the pasta, was lovingly made in-house, which drew in crowds of neighbourhood folk and residents of the upstairs apartments looking for a well-executed, relaxed Italian meal. They even boasted their homemade creamy gelato, and the concept was proving to be a successful venture in the area.
However, the homepage of the restaurant's website now displays a somewhat cryptic message, reading only "Vicino is closed. We would like to thank all of our customers for their support." Their Instagram page does not show any comment on the news, and their last post is from February, which also appears to be the month that their property went up for lease.
Although Vicino was unfortunately too short-lived, they will most certainly be missed. We wish the best of luck to the owners and staff in their next ventures!
