New Toronto restaurant completely pivots concept after major liquor licence delays
A newly opened Toronto restaurant has been forced to overhaul its entire concept amid delays from The City.
Lakeshore Village’s Pinky Swear Eats has had quite the roller coaster of a few months, which is saying a lot, considering it only opened in March 2025.
Founded by Toronto food scene veterans Ayana and Neil, who, combined, boast nearly 40 years of experience at various eateries in the city on top of, in Ayana’s case, heading up sales for Acquired Taste, a major non-alcoholic beverage importer, Pinky Swear Eats was initially dreamt up as a new go-to neighbourhood wine bar for its New Toronto community.
It was full steam ahead on that concept for Ayana and Neil until, despite the rest of the bar being ready to open, they found themselves still fighting to acquire a liquor sales licence.
Upon signing their lease in October 2024 and submitting their liquor licence application through the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO), they say they were “blindsided” with a backlog of unresolved permits from 2021.
“What should’ve been a straightforward approval process turned into over months and months of delays, major expenses, and lost momentum,” Neil and Ayana write in a statement on Pinky Swear’s Instagram account.
So, antsy to open but facing an unknown length of time and effort before they’d be able to serve alcohol, they decided to pivot, leveraging Ayana’s expertise in the zero-proof cocktail market and launching a comprehensive non-alcoholic beverage program, all the while still holding the dream of, eventually, swapping back to the wine bar dream.
That was in March. To date, Ayana and Neil confirm in a statement posted to their Instagram account on Sunday, July 20, that they’re still waiting for their liquor licence, and, now, they’re pivoting again.
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Instead of sitting on their hands while they wait, though, they write that they’re “embracing what’s been working,” which means tasty comfort foods, zero-proof beverages, and supportive community vibes.
“We originally envisioned Pinky Swear as a cozy neighbourhood wine bar in Lakeshore Village,” Ayana and Neil write in a statement on the restaurant’s Instagram. “But after months of liquor licence delays, we’re making an official pivot: we now operate as a full-time brunch and lunch eatery.”
The pivot, they explain, has been driven by the ongoing permitting issues they faced in the months before — and the months since — opening, and has been further bolstered by the community’s warm reception of the bar’s initial zero-proof bar band-aid solution.
“We’re turning frustration into opportunity,” they write.
Still, they admit, it’s been clear since opening that plenty of people would still like the option to indulge in an alcoholic beverage if they so desire, so they’re still actively working through the backlog of work to get the restaurant licensed, but, in the meantime, they’re leaning even further into embracing the daytime vibe.
They launched a Sunday brunch service on Mother’s Day and have now decided to operate as a dedicated brunch and lunch restaurant, open Tuesday through Sunday — a far cry from the wine bar idea they started with.
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Now, in addition to perhaps one of the most comprehensive non-alcoholic drink menus in the city, you can tuck into comforting, Mediterranean-inspired brunch dishes like Sweet Potato Latkes with grapefruit-sage cream; Breakfast Cassoulet with lamb and beef sausage, white beans and poached eggs; and Housemade French Toast, which, if you ask us, isn’t a bad substitute at all.
“The wine bar dream is on pause (not gone!), but our purpose hasn’t changed,” Ayana and Neil write. “We’re here to be a locally loved space serving great food, thoughtful drinks, and real hospitality,” and that will always hit the spot — alcohol or not.
Pinky Swear Eats
Address:Â 2901 Lake Shore Blvd. W.
Phone:Â 416-354-6336
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