Newly rebuilt Toronto’s Island Café reopens following devastating 2024 fire
Posted June 20, 2025 8:29 am.
Last Updated June 20, 2025 9:45 am.
A Ward’s Island staple is reopening just in time for the start of summer, more than a year after it was destroyed in a fire.
The fire gutted the popular The Island Café, which was housed inside the Ward’s Island Association Clubhouse building, in March of 2024.
The clubhouse, originally built between 1937 and 1938, played host to several events from May to October, including weddings, anniversaries, company meetings, seminars and picnics. The second iteration of the Island Café has been in operation since 2010.
Four and a half months after the fire, the café reopened as a temporary setup, by securing a temporary lease with the City to rent out a spot of land right in front of where the original café once stood.
The café is now fully back in business and is celebrating its grand opening on Friday and into the weekend, with live music and beer sampling from Great Lakes Brewery.
The newly rebuilt space features an expanded café, kitchen, and bar, as well as a new patio with more seating.
“We’re very excited to celebrate that we’re back and fully re-open again this year,” said Zorah Freeman-McIntyre, owner of The Island Café. “We want to share our heartfelt thanks with all our friends in the community who’ve supported us over the last year.”
While the café has long been a favourite watering hole for residents and visitors alike, it’s also been the site of a vegetable garden since 2016 that was left untouched by the fire. The produce it grows is donated to The Parkdale Food Bank and Fort York Food Bank.
With files from Dilshad Burman, CityNews
