Osteria Giulia

The story

Crafted with passion, served with love

The Vision Behind Osteria Giulia

Osteria Giulia is the result of Chef Rob Rossi's long-held ambition to create a sleek, authentic Italian eatery in Toronto. Rossi had already built a strong reputation with his critically acclaimed Bestellen, which he closed in 2017 after five years to pursue something closer to his heart. That pursuit led to Giulietta in 2018 — ranked fifth on En Route Magazine's Canada's Best New Restaurants list within months of opening — and eventually to Osteria Giulia, his more intimate Italian expression on Avenue Road.

The restaurant earned two forks from Gambero Rosso in 2025, the Italian food bible whose recognition carries particular weight for an Italian kitchen operating this far from the source.

Chef Rob Rossi

Rossi's path to this point is well-documented. A runner-up on the first season of Top Chef Canada, he honed his craft as chef de partie at Canoe and executive chef across the Mercatto restaurants before striking out on his own. He also hosts a television show on TLN, and the energy of that — cooking, talking, sharing — translates directly into how Osteria Giulia feels as a room.

"Part of cooking is entertaining," Rossi has said. That philosophy is most visible at the chef's bar, seating guests right at the centre of the action. For Rossi, who learned to cook alongside his mother, the work has never felt like work. "It's just part of my life."

Osteria Giulia is also a partnership with David Minicucci, with whom Rossi has built a small but focused group of Italian restaurants in the city.

The Experience

The menu is organized across dinner, dolce, a convivio format, cocktails, and wine — a structure that reflects the Italian instinct to linger and share rather than eat and leave. The bar program and wine list are taken seriously, fitting for a room that doubles as a wine bar and lounge with outdoor seating available.

The Italian cooking here is designed around atmosphere as much as the plate. Rossi's gregarious presence — whether in person or embedded in the DNA of the kitchen — gives Osteria Giulia a warmth that formal Italian restaurants in Toronto don't always manage.