white castle toronto

New Toronto restaurant looks a lot like White Castle

A brand new iteration of 'Kings' is gearing up to open in the heart of Toronto's restaurant-packed Pape Village, right where the now-defunct King's Bar & Grill once stood, and King's Park Souvlaki Place before it.

That's right, after spending a few years as a Chicago-style eatery, the space at 919 Pape Avenue (another cursed location, maybe?) has once again been transformed.

This time, it'll open as Kings Drive-In and serve "burgers, shakes, fish + chips and more." The owners are going for a retro drive-in vibe with Coca-Cola branded tables, based on what's been posted to Facebook so far, but the logo and branding scream "30 jalapeño cheese sliders, please."

white castle toronto

White Castle first opened in Wichita, Kansas circa 1921. The brand is known for selling high volumes of tiny, square hamburgers. Image via White Castle

I mean, it's uncanny. From the newly-built parapet to the orange and white pentagon logo, Kings Drive-In is (aesthetically) a White Castle clone.

One could be forgiven for thinking the American burger chain is finally coming to Toronto, given the colour scheme and shape of the building itself.

Sadly, however, the iconic hamburger chain is still a U.S.-only privilege, with the exception of one store in Shanghai.

white castle toronto

Kings Drive-In isn't billing itself as a straight-up hamburger joint, but the branding similarities with White Castle are unmistakable. Composite image via blogTO and White Castle. 

If Kings Drive-In can somehow nail the taste of a White Castle slider — a burger that has almost 100 years of history behind it — then lucky for Toronto.

If not, all the better for Kings.

American fast food corporations aren't exactly known for letting matters of copyright infringement slide.

Lead photo by

Dani Stover


Latest Videos



Latest Videos


Join the conversation Load comments

Latest in Eat & Drink

Toronto restaurant that's served fish 'n chips for almost a century shuts down

Matty Matheson opening new restaurant in Toronto

Loblaw named among Canada's top 100 employers for 2025

Toronto restaurateur reminds us to support older restaurants if we want them to survive

Even more carrots recalled in Canada over potentially deadly contamination

Brazilian coffee chain with nearly 300 locations globally is opening in Toronto

Toronto cafe that's been around for 15 years is permanently closing

Closure of Toronto restaurant after 70 years signals change for neighbourhood