Planta's Toronto Era Ends as Plant-Based Icon Closes Permanently

Planta's doors are closed for good in Toronto, and the city just lost one of its most influential restaurants.

The plant-based icon that opened at Bay and Bloor in 2016 and became a cultural phenomenon—packed nightly with carnivores and vegans alike, all there to watch chef David Lee perform what felt like culinary magic without a trace of meat, dairy, or eggs—has officially shut both of its Toronto locations as of Tuesday, May 19.

What started as a single, audacious concept in Toronto became a national obsession and, eventually, an American expansion story. Planta spawned outposts in Florida, Atlanta, New York, Los Angeles, and D.C., proving that plant-based dining could be more than worthy of celebration—it could be essential. The chain filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in May 2025, and by March 2026, liquidation was approved.

The restaurant world moves fast, but losing Planta hits different. This wasn't a forgettable chain folding; it was a restaurant that changed how Toronto thought about food. Lee's technique was precise, his ingredients were impeccable, and his ambition was unapologetic. Watermelon became ahi tuna. Carrot became hot dog. The vegetable patch didn't just feed people—it made them believers.

In a city where American chains typically colonize local culture, Planta represented the reverse: Toronto exporting vision south. Now, that vision has retracted. The U.S. locations remain open, a bittersweet reminder that sometimes the place that birthed an idea doesn't get to keep it.

For locals mourning the loss, there's a hollow irony: the city that invented this concept has been relegated to spectator. Planta was ours first.