The finest restaurant-quality smash burger in Toronto — Aloette's burger (available at Aloette Go for takeout and at the bistro) uses dry-aged beef, house-made sauce, and a potato bun that improves on the original in every measurable way. Chef Patrick Kriss (Alo upstairs) backing a burger joint is the most pleasant surprise on Spadina.
Neighbourhood: Queen West / Spadina · Address: 163 Spadina Ave, Toronto, ON (Aloette); Aloette Go in same building · Hours: Aloette: Tue–Sat 11:30am–2pm, 5:30–10pm | Aloette Go: Tue–Sat 11:30am–close
Why Visit
Aloette’s burger uses dry-aged beef, creamy house sauce, and an impossibly soft potato bun, all put together by Chef Patrick Kriss—better known for some of the city’s most acclaimed fine dining. It’s the kind of burger you’ll think about days later.
What Makes It Unique
Unlike other burger joints, Aloette brings bistro-level technique to a smash burger at both a sit-down spot and a quick takeout counter. The kitchen literally shares talent with the Michelin-starred Alo upstairs, so the burger is closer to fine dining than fast food. Plus, Aloette Go lets you skip the wait—and pays less—for nearly the same burger.
Aloette opened in 2018 as the casual companion to Alo Restaurant upstairs — same building on Spadina Avenue, different floor, different price point, same kitchen team. Where Alo is a $200-per-person tasting menu experience, Aloette is a French bistro running lunch and dinner at neighbourhood-restaurant prices, with a burger that has become the most-discussed item on the menu.
The Aloette Burger is dry-aged beef, smashed thin, with American cheese, the house sauce (a proprietary thousand island variant that the kitchen has refined through dozens of iterations), pickles, and shredded lettuce, on a potato bun that is baked specifically for this sandwich. The dry-aging concentrates the beef flavour in a way that distinguishes it immediately from any fast-casual smash burger, and the sauce has the kind of balance — salt, acid, fat, sweetness — that you'd expect from a kitchen that normally builds seven-course tasting menus. It costs approximately $20–22 for the burger with fries, which sounds expensive for a smash burger until you eat it.
Aloette Go is the takeout window operation in the same building, offering the burger and other bistro items for pickup at a slightly lower price point. The full bistro service at Aloette proper is a more rounded experience — wine, desserts, the full menu of bistro classics alongside the burger — but if the burger is the primary goal, Aloette Go is the fastest path to it. The building at 163 Spadina now houses three distinct dining experiences (Alo upstairs, Aloette bistro, Aloette Go), all using the same kitchen philosophy.
Frequently Asked Questions
What makes the Aloette burger different from other Toronto burgers?
The Aloette burger uses dry-aged beef, which concentrates the meat flavour significantly compared to fresh-ground patties. The house sauce is made in-house by the same team that runs Alo Restaurant upstairs, and the potato bun is baked specifically for the sandwich. The combination of restaurant-level technique applied to a bistro-format burger is what distinguishes it — it costs more than fast casual and delivers noticeably more.
What is Aloette Go?
Aloette Go is a takeout window in the same building as Aloette restaurant at 163 Spadina Avenue. It offers the Aloette burger and select bistro items for pickup at a slightly reduced price compared to full bistro service. It is open Tuesday through Saturday during lunch and dinner service. No table, no server — just the food, to go.
How much does the Aloette burger cost?
The Aloette burger with fries runs approximately $20–22 at the full bistro and slightly less at Aloette Go for takeout. It is priced above fast-casual smash burgers and delivers correspondingly better quality. The dry-aged beef and house-made components justify the premium for most who try it.
Do I need a reservation at Aloette?
Reservations are recommended for dinner at Aloette (the full bistro) and can be made via their website or Tock. For Aloette Go (takeout), no reservation is needed — it operates as a walk-up window during service hours. Weekend lunch at the bistro can also get busy, so booking ahead is advisable.