Modern Lebanese Restaurant Design in a Heritage Building on Yonge Street, Toronto

This restaurant fit-out is located at 586 Yonge Street, Toronto, ON M4Y 1Z3, in the Church-Wellesley neighbourhood of downtown Toronto, steps from Wellesley subway station. The project converts the ground floor of a three-storey heritage building into a modern, open Lebanese restaurant while leaving the protected heritage facade untouched.

Designed by Quadrant Architects, the project is currently moving through the permit stage. It shows how a contemporary restaurant can be inserted into an occupied mixed-use heritage building on Yonge Street without altering the character of the streetscape.

Project Overview

Project type: Restaurant fit-out and interior renovation
Building type: Three-storey mixed-use (restaurant at grade, office above, residential on third floor)
Location: 586 Yonge Street, Church-Wellesley, Toronto, ON M4Y 1Z3
Area: Downtown Toronto, Yonge Street corridor, near Wellesley station
Heritage condition: Protected facade, no exterior alterations permitted
Cuisine: Lebanese
Scope: Architectural design, interior design, OBC and life-safety coordination, building permit
Status: In permit stage

Design Goals

Create a bright, open, contemporary dining room behind a protected heritage facade
Route a full commercial kitchen’s mechanical systems through an occupied mixed-use building
Maintain code-compliant fire separation between the restaurant, office, and residential floors
Fit a complete commercial kitchen into a compact ground-floor footprint
Maximize seating while meeting accessible washroom requirements

Our Approach

The interior was opened up to maximize visibility and seating while the heritage facade on Yonge Street stayed exactly as it was. Nothing visible from the street changes, while the customer steps into a fully contemporary room.

The most demanding part is mechanical. A commercial kitchen needs exhaust, fresh-air intake, and return air, and at 586 Yonge Street these systems must travel from the ground-floor kitchen, through the occupied office and residential floors, to the roof, using very limited shaft space. The roof itself has restrictions and limited room for the make-up air unit. Resolving this required close coordination between the architect, mechanical engineer, structural engineer, and building owner.

Fire separation and life safety were equally critical. Each occupancy carries different requirements under the Ontario Building Code, and the design maintains compliant separations and exiting for all three uses. The commercial kitchen was planned within a tight footprint for efficient workflow, and the dining layout balances seat count, customer comfort, and the required accessible washrooms.

Results

A modern Lebanese restaurant designed within a protected heritage building on Yonge Street
Mechanical systems integrated through an occupied mixed-use structure with limited shaft space
Code-compliant fire separation and life safety across restaurant, office, and residential floors
An efficient commercial kitchen and a comfortable, fully compliant dining room in downtown Toronto

Related Restaurant and Heritage Projects in Toronto

Quadrant Architects designs restaurant fit-outs, tenant improvements, and heritage building renovations across Toronto, including the Yonge Street corridor, Church-Wellesley, the downtown core, and Queen West. Related services: tenant improvement and change of use · commercial architecture services · interior design.

Project lead: Sara Rahgozar, M.Arch, OAA. 416-357-5713 · sara@quadrantarchitects.com