For more than 70 years, a Toronto restaurant has been a focal point in the community, providing generations of diners with a setting to create lasting memories over an affordable and joyful meal.
Ask anyone who grew up in Scarborough or has been a regular there over the last seven decades and there's a good chance they'll have at least one story that begins or ends at Ted's Restaurant – also known as Amazing Ted's Diner.
Founded in 1954 by — you guessed it — the titular Ted, the restaurant is as old-school as they come, with no social media or websites to speak of and relying solely on customer loyalty and word of mouth to keep seats full.
Suffice it to say that the current model – which is actually the old model – works.
The restaurant still pays homage to its roots, which began in 1954.
With the slogan “A Great Place to Meet Your Friends” proudly emblazoned on the sign and snaking along the front window, you'll find that the place is regularly packed, with guests of all ages and faiths flocking in The restaurant's teal vinyl booths boast laminate countertops.
Bacon is a specialty at Ted's.
However, in addition to being a popular hangout for locals, Ted's is also a popular filming spot, appearing in a number of films and TV shows including “Handmaid's Tale,” “Lost Girl” and “Orphan Black.” What contributed more to its consolidation was its legacy as a Toronto landmark.
The original advertisement announcing Ted's grand opening.
While the name has stuck throughout the years, Ted, the restaurant's founder, only owned and operated the restaurant for about a third of his life before handing over the hands to another family who operated it for another 20 years, and finally Sold the company to the family of Randy Zhang, the current owner.
Randy Zhang from Amazing Ted's Diner.
The story of how Randy's family takes ownership of the beloved restaurant is, in his words, a “happy” story.
Randy is originally from Toronto. When he was a child, Randy's family decided to leave town for a slower pace of life. He eventually settled in Gananoque and ran a Chinese restaurant for four years before realizing that perhaps small-town life wasn't right for him after all.
Ted's still has the classic diner look and feel.
“We decided to move back to a larger urban area because it was so quiet,” Randy tells blogTO, “we had nothing to do.”
When Randy's parents returned to Toronto, they were reading the newspaper when they came across an entry in the newspaper offering “Amazing Ted's” for sale. Intrigued, they took a look, were fascinated by the old-fashioned restaurant and immediately took on the challenge.
There are no more guests like that.
The Zhang family had a lot of work ahead of them when they took over the place and its discerning patrons, Randy tells blogTO, learning the recipes from the previous owners before changing hands entirely.
Mastering the classic American-style diner menu was a big challenge for the Zhangs at first, says Randy.
“We took everything they could teach us,” he says, “because we were new and knew nothing about cooking Western dishes.”
That was 22 years ago, and since then, Randy's parents have retired, leaving the day-to-day operations of the restaurant to him and his brother, who recently celebrated the restaurant's 70th anniversary.
Photos and press reports from previous years.
“We try to keep it as it is,” Randy tells blogTO, even though the restaurant was renovated about 15 years ago.
“It’s a nice memory for a lot of people,” he says. “I know there are a lot of customers, from kids to grandkids, they've all been coming here for years,” preserving the Ted's that people know and love is paramount.
Everywhere you look at Ted's there are warm memories.
In the past 22 years that Randy has been at Ted's, he tells blogTO that one of the most rewarding aspects has been his regular customers and the opportunity to watch them and their families grow.
“Even though I've only had it for 22 years, I've already watched them grow from babies to teenagers to adults,” he says.
Breakfast sausages are a popular item at Amazing Ted's.
Despite the restaurant's cult following, Randy acknowledges that Toronto – and particularly the restaurant's home of Scarborough – appears to be growing at an unprecedented rate, meaning the restaurant's future is not guaranteed.
The restaurant has been owned by the Zhang family for 22 years now.
“Many customers remind me how much they like the restaurant,” he tells blogTO. “They tell me, 'Don't close it' and stuff like that, but the city needs to grow, so I don't know how long we'll stay.”
However, Randy assures that “business is good,” and the 70-year milestone is a sure sign that Ted's Restaurant may have what it takes to be one of those places that endures against all odds.
Ted's Restaurant is located at 404 Old Kingston Road.