Toronto's most beloved combination of nature, heritage, and local food — the Evergreen Brick Works Saturday market features 80+ Ontario vendors inside the spectacular industrial ruins of a Victorian brick factory. The surrounding Don Valley trails make it a full-day destination.
Neighbourhood: Don Valley / Rosedale · Address: 550 Bayview Ave, Toronto, ON · Hours: Mon–Fri: Closed | Sat 9:00 AM – 1:00 PM | Sun: Closed · Phone: (416) 596-7670
Why Visit
Shop for fresh Ontario produce, artisanal cheese, and baked goods right inside the atmospheric brick ruins of an old factory surrounded by nature. The location is perfect for combining your market haul with a Don Valley hike or bike ride.
What Makes It Unique
Unlike other Toronto markets, this one is set in a vast industrial heritage site with exposed steel beams, graffiti, and lush gardens reclaiming the space. With over 80 local vendors—think rare mushrooms, farmstead eggs, and local cider—it’s a crossroads for urban foodies and outdoor types alike.
If you want a Toronto Saturday morning that actually feels like Toronto, go to the Evergreen Brick Works market. It’s one of those rare places that manages to be useful, beautiful, and genuinely fun at the same time. You’re shopping for vegetables and breakfast, sure, but you’re doing it inside the dramatic old shell of a Victorian brick factory, with steel beams overhead, weathered brick all around you, and the Don Valley forest right outside. It doesn’t feel polished in a fake way. It feels lived-in, local, and very loved.
The market runs Saturdays from 9am to 1pm, but if you can get there between 8 and 10, do it. Officially it opens at 9, but early is still the right mindset: cooler air, fewer strollers to dodge, shorter lines for coffee and hot food, and first pick of the produce. By 11, it gets busy in that very Toronto way—families with kids, cyclists in helmets grabbing pastries, couples carrying tote bags full of greens, and serious home cooks comparing mushrooms and radishes like it’s a sport.
What makes this one worth returning to is the quality. The certified-organic produce is probably the best selection in the city, and the vendors are the kind who can actually tell you how to cook the weird greens you just bought. You’ll find farm-fresh eggs, beautiful carrots still dusty from the field, excellent Ontario maple syrup, and some very dangerous bakery tables. Get the artisan sourdough if you see a loaf you like, because the best bread goes early. And don’t skip breakfast. The hot food vendors are consistently strong, not just “market good.” A hot breakfast sandwich and a coffee here, eaten while wandering around the old industrial courtyards, is a very solid way to start the day.
It’s also an easy place to bring people with different interests. If you’re with kids, they can roam a bit without it feeling stressful. If you like architecture, the old brick-making buildings and open sheds are worth your attention. If you’re into nature, this is where the market really separates itself from the rest of the city. You can shop, eat, then head straight onto the Don Valley trails for a walk or bike ride. That’s why it works so well as a full-day destination instead of just a quick errand.
Getting there is straightforward enough: take the subway to Castle Frank and catch the 25 Don Mills bus, or use the free shuttle from Broadview Station on Saturdays, which is often the easiest option. The address is 550 Bayview Ave, and entry is free. Just bring a reusable bag, comfortable shoes, and a little patience if you arrive late. This isn’t a rushed, in-and-out market. It’s a place to wander, snack, buy too much bread, and remember that Toronto can still surprise you.