Live Market

I get their paeleo box, it’s surprisingly tasty for healthy food:) Also they have organic soup in mason jars for $ 10 each. Great to bring for lunch. I wish they open a location on the east side!

Horrible service and over-​priced garbage. I went today to get a salad and inquired about a smoothie. I asked for a sample. Apparently it was such a weird thing to ask because all the staff looked at me as if I was from planet Mars. I won’t be going back and none of my friends will either.

WHY IS THE COFFEE $ 3.50. WHY. You can get organic coffee at Mabel’s (Queen and Ossington), and Balzac’s (2 min. walk from here, also in Liberty Village) for half the price. There is no need for organic coffee to be double the price of conventional. The first time I ordered coffee, I couldn’t see the price, and of course didn’t ask. When I saw the total, I wondered if it was really mine. The coffee is good, but not the price of a latte good.

I was really disappointed with their «green smoothie». It was so bad :| The ingredients were, 1 frozen banana, 2 or three small pieces of frozen kale, and milk. The colour was a yellow milky colour and BARELY tinted green, and the whole thing cost $ 10.
For ten dollars I was expecting to get a smoothie full of amazing, fresh, green ingredients, but instead I got a sweet, milky mess. Not to mention the kale was frozen !!! Frozen kale looses most of its vitamin C, B, and antioxidants.
I’ve had the green smoothie at Bolt Fresh Bar on queen which is also $ 10 and is absolutely amazing. It is basically a massive salad in smoothie form. Power Plant: green apple, kale, spinach, cucumber, spirulina, avocado, sprouted flax+chia seed, hemp hearts, lemon, ginger, coconut water, maple syrup. Now THIS smoothie is worth $ 10!!!

I got Acapulco box which is kinda Mexican, because I was wondering about the taste of their nacho chips. It was very filling thanks to the healthy brown rice and there were lots of guacamole which I love! Would like to try other boxes.
These days I’ve been trying to be a vegan. I’m happy to have this kind of vegan place near my office. :) However the reason why I rated 4 stars is it’s kinda pricy — almost $ 15 after tax. The food quality was very good though.
I think workers are friendly and the place is clean. Sometimes you can try some sample food.

Really love this place. Convenient, delicious, fresh and feel good ingredients! I love that they offer brown rice or quinoa. Everything off their menu is made fresh to order. They also have a decent size fridge of prepared foods (soups/​salads/​etc).
So far, I haven’t loved the desserts and the juices very week to week. You can buy one juice one week and the same the next, but it will taste different. Paying $ 9.50/bottle; I’m expecting some consistency.
Other than that, I love this place. The bangkok box is my fav but I need to try the burrito!
Give it a try for sure!

NOT FOR EVERYONE
For example, my somewhat picky other half will only eat things that taste good. Whereas, if I see the health benefit, that can outweigh something tasting average. He will only eat one or two food items from there and pushes back about going there.
CLEANLINESS
Extremely clean and tidy. It’s a fairly new store. Nice and bright, which is pleasant in the winter.
FOOD
They have a grab n’ go. The pumpkin coconut milk chia seed pudding was okay; it tasted like raw squash but it was edible & I loved the concept and felt the benefits outweigh that hiccup.
Their raw lasagna made with cashew nut that mimics ricotta and zucchini layers was amazing; my picky hubby liked it and would eat it again. A bit pricey, but the nuts are so that is fair.
Their cheesy kale chips are okay (had solar produced others from nearby health food stores that are way better). They have unique nut spreads dried on nori (sushi wrappers); they are inconsistent. I had one with hemp seeds that tastes like they accidentally spilled too much lemon juice into it so it makes you pucker.
I hated their tortillas that have various veggies and are dehydrated. It is nice and pliable, but it just would not break down in my mouth.
They have fresh made items behind the counter. I think it’s sandwiches and juices.
I appreciate their creativity and pride in their products. I also appreciate that they tend to use super foods that give you maximum nutrition for your calories.
RETAIL
They also sell a few raw food lifestyle supplies and equipment like mesh bags to make nut milks.
SERVICE
Knowledgeable, but on the self-​righteous side. Perhaps better to say, they are helpful but it’s not a «warm» environment. I felt like I was looked down upon for not fully embracing the lifestyle, but they were nice enough to encourage me to very gradually incorporate this lifestyle if I pursued it fully. Hipsters would love this place.
It is a counter service operation. Not a place where you sit and expect to be served at a table.
VERY disappointed that I called them just after they closed and left a very polite voicemail and they never returned my call. First, they did not put my cookie in my bag that I paid for, so I wanted to get it the next week when I was in the area. Second, I bought their sketchy raw kimchee. There is a warning label that says open carefully because it may be under pressure (presumably because it continues to ferment). They bagged my $ 50+ order, and the jar of kimchee tipped over in the bag. It soaked the bag, nearly everything I bought, and soaked my car seat. Kimchee has got to be one the strongest, garlicky smells ever. Needless to say, I wasn’t impressed with how much clean up and deodorizing I had to do. I also wanted to know if the kimchee was safe to eat if it was not tightly sealed (because you normally don’t eat food from jars that aren’t properly sealed & I was new to the raw food thing). But, nope, no return call.
Low rating because this bad experience (unacceptable in my opinion for any food establishment to not return food safety related calls — EVER! It’s worse when it concerns raw food that isn’t cooked to kill germs.) and that their food is not for everyone. I gave them an extra star for the leadership they have taken in the Toronto raw food movement and innovation.
PARKING
There are maybe a dozen 5 – 10 parking spots for that shopping strip. Spots are hard to come by, but there is uncovered Green P half a block up the hill across from Origin Liberty Village.
I’d recommend taking the King St street car that lets off right next to them.
HANDICAP ACCESSIBLE
Yes. Wide enough for a wheelchair and it is a one-​level store. Low enough counter and nice, very visible menu board. I don’t believe there are guest washrooms.

The rice boxes are delicious at this place and totally affordable considering how much food you get, way better value than Fresh. 13 dollars for a whole meal that is obviously made with great fresh ingredients.
Checked out this place late on a weekday. The atmosphere is okay, a bit sterile but there is a lot of seating.
I ordered a Seoul box which had Korean-​inspired ingredients and was very good and filling. It had kimchi, pickled cucumbers, tofu, brown rice and carrots.
The vegetable juices are 9.50 dollars for a small bottle. That was a bit outrageous. I understand that real vegetable juice is well worth the price and can be pricey, but I also make juices at home and have bought enough juice to know what’s reasonable. For 9.50 dollars, you should be getting way more juice.
The missing stars are for the service.
The girl behind the cash was not friendly at all. In fact, she was unapproachable. She said nothing when I came in, didn’t smile or ask me what I wanted, rather stood there with an icy glare. At no point did she smile or give any hint of good customer service. Maybe she was having a bad day, but that kind of attitude is completely inexcusable. When I said «thank you», she literally turned her head away and didn’t say anything.

Beautiful store. My first meal there did not contain very fresh ingredients/​the food tasted a little spoiled. I had a rice bowl –don’t remember the name. I miss the larger selection of raw food dishes that are available at their Dupont location. I will go back to give it another try.

My previous experience with Live had been it’s dine in location in the Annex. The new venue drifts from that into something it clearly states, Live Market.
Containing refrigerated areas filled with their food products and snacks that follow the Live food profile. Gluten free selections abound especially tempting baked products by the cash bar. Good move on their part.
At the time I walked in they were promoting their new Live beauty line. Samples of white chocolate pomegranate lip bath, face serum & wash vanilla frankincense, eye serum pomegranate rose made it’s way to my home.
Surrounded by glass, it is easy to enjoy the great seating facing king street while eating from the fresh menu offerings. Along with with that perhaps have a cup of Ezra’s pound coffee.
One of the reasons its more than just Live Market is it has a café. A joint partnership with Ezra’s Pound. Damn good coffee people! Its worthwhile for coffee aficionados in the area to try their wares. And for those familiar, you can buy their coffee to make at home.
Nice addition to the Liberty Village.

I had the intention to give this place a try for a while now, and decided to finally check it out today for lunch.
Food: I ordered the Burdock burrito ($ 12) on the advice of the cashier. It contains seasoned burdock and tempeh, sweet potato, kimchi, guacamole, chipotle aioli, and cashew sour cream in a gluten free wrap. Verdict? Delicious. I was pleasantly surprised by the crunchy texture and savoury flavour of the burrito, and found it to be quite filling.
I also bought one of the cold-​pressed juices they have in the refrigerator ($ 9). According to the bottle, it provided one million percent of my daily vitamin requirements. Or something like that, I can’t remember.
Price: My meal came to just over $ 22 with taxes, which is a little more than I like to spend for lunch normally, but considering the quality of the ingredients and overall healthiness factor, I didn’t mind.
Service: The cashiers were friendly and offered good advice on what to eat. All you can ask for, really.
If you enjoy eating raw/​vegan/​gluten free food, or just want to try something different, check this place out.

First, I give 5 stars for 3 things:
1. Ezra’s Coffee (Try the cortado, it’s amazing)
2. Live’s kimchi – I’m addicted to it.
3. The clean décor and the 360 view – big windows all around.
The 3 stars is mainly because this place has a personality split. They should have opened separately. On the one hand you have the all-​vegan, gluten-​free everything side, and on the other you have rich indulgent coffee (made with actual milk).
Live has the better deal. They are attracting the vegan, health-​conscious and after-​the-​workout crowd in liberty, which is happy to shell out $ 12 for dehydrated, fermented, gluten-​free sandwiches/​salads.
Ezra’s is probably going to lose out here. Here’s the challenge. Coffee drinkers usually want a snack to go with their drink. And they don’t usually go for the all vegan, raw, gluten-​free stuff because it tastes like health food. I personally do the green smoothie in the morning and eat 90% vegan, but when I drink coffee I want to dip a real, crunchy biscotti or oatmeal choc chip cookie in it, and these options don’t exist. Here, you have to have your coffee with some all-​healthy snack pretending to be a cookie or nothing. So, even though the coffee is amazing, many coffee drinkers may end up going to one of the many other cafes in the neighbourhood that provide indulgent treats and more affordable sandwiches.
Other things they can improve on:
1. Friendliness: I’ve been there 3 times now (and I’ve brought new people with me each time to get them to try the coffee!), and only the barista was genuinely friendly and interactive. Today the cashier never cracked a smile and looked pissed off when I ordered a cortado. On my first visit there was this amazing fellow who gave us incredible service, delivering our coffees to our table, but he never smiled either. As someone who works from home, going for a coffee is a ritual I enjoy partly because it often includes friendly interaction with another human being. When that doesn’t happen, it’s much less enjoyable. Aroma may not have the best coffee but it’s okay and they always make me feel welcome. Same with Balzac’s.
2. Freshness of Food in the Fridge: I was going to buy a salad but then I noticed the artichoke had mold on it. This made me then question the freshness of everything else in the fridge and at $ 11 a pop it wasn’t worth the risk.
3. The Price Point: Personally, I find the price point high, especially when the promise is «we use mostly organic and GMO free when possible” – which means you can never know what if anything is organic or GMO free. I’m happy to pay $ 12 for a sandwich if I know for sure it’s definitely all organic/​GMO free – or at least definitely all GMO free, but not just for the possibility. Otherwise I’m more likely to go to the falafel place a few doors down where I can get an awesome veggie sandwich for $ 5.
Overall, it’s great to have a new place in the neighbourhood and I will try out some of the menu options to be fair and see if they are worth the money, but I think I’m just heartbroken that I can’t have Ezra’s awesome coffee with the same treats it serves at its other location.

Love this location. I actually live near the Dupont location, but constantly travel to liberty village location since they have more options for take home and quick eats.
I love that they incorporate both raw options, but also vegan options that have grains like quinoa, rice, wraps since I do not strictly follow a raw diet.
Their prices are great too, since many live products can be found in health food stores around Toronto, they actually have most at this location for give or take a dollar to three dollars cheaper.
I’m in love with the variety of juices they have, the variety of their burritos and bowls.
The burdock burrito is definitely worth getting multiple times. The trainer’s bowl with quinoa is really amazing as well. They also have breakfast options like oatmeal with your choice of toppers, and a delicious almond butter and jam gluten free sandwich.
They also have already prepared meals which look satisfying as well if you can’t wait for them to prepare items on menu.
Amazing location, will continue to visit.

I’ve been waiting for Live Market to open for a while. From the moment I saw the familiar «Live» sign appear in Liberty Village, I’ve been waiting. They opened in the week I was out of town visiting family, so for a week, I watched from a far, watching my friends post pictures of the various things they had bought, and ate, looking forward to being back in my hood of Liberty/​Niagara so I too could eat this stuff too.
Live Market is conveniently (?) located right near my gym, so I have been here three times in a fairly short time period, and it’s nice to have such a great post-​workout option, and really extra nice to have a close non-​starbucks coffee/​tea option near my house.
Both times I’ve actually ordered food, it’s been very very tasty. First time — the chickpea burger, second time, upon the recommendation of the server — Burdock Burrito (Do order this. It is yummy.) Live Market also keeps me in Silk Road earl grey tea. I’ve had the wherewithal to arrive shortly before the influx of Liberty Village work folks coming in on their lunch break.
I often feel like the best way to tell the service level of a restaurant is how they handle minor errors. My partner ordered and ended up waiting a fairly long time for his lunch order, so not only did they make it right, they apologized, and offered him a coffee for his trouble. Smooth. Empowered staff make me a happy camper, so we just left liking them even more.
They’ve got Ezra Pound roasted coffee, and prepared ready-​to-​go items, juices, snacks, and treats, as well as order-​in items if you have a little more time.
There are lots of locally made products like ChocoSol chocolate, Stasis Preserves, Bunner’s Cookies, Sweets from the Earth treats, amongst other things. You can buy protein powder, tea, coffee, and even make up. They also have jars of Rawtella for sale, which I wouldn’t call «healthy», but I would call really really delicious (since I did end up buying some on my last visit…)
Service has been consistently friendly, food has been consistently good, and I feel like I get good value for my money when I go there.
Things to know: They don’t have debit/​credit working yet, but it’s coming soon. I.E., At the moment it’s Cash Only.

I’ve been waiting for a spot like this to open in Liberty Village. It’s stuff I would make myself at home (even better?) and that makes me super comfortable with eating out. I stay away from preservatives, sugar and processed stuff so this place is amazing. It’s as natural as it gets and will make your cells smile :) I’ve had the Detox Kelp noodle salad, and the Bankok box, as well as the Green Kick juice and a Gypsy cookie. LOVE THIS SPOT. You’ve got to try it.

It’s been more than a year since I first heard a rumour via Twitter that Live Food Bar was looking to open a second location on Ossington, followed by disappointment that they did not get the space.
But now, there’s Live Market! It’s not Ossington or a full service restaurant but I think it will be a very successful venture. It’s a combo café/​eatery/​grab & go between Live Food Bar and Ezra’s Pound (Dupont business friends) at the corner of King and Atlantic.
It’s exactly what the Liberty Village working folks needed for an AM coffee from Ezra’s Pound and a healthy breakfast or lunch from Live. They have a great selection of prepared salads, wraps, oatmeal and even a breakfast sandwich and there’s also a limited version of their regular menu available from the counter. Everything is vegan except for Ezra’s which has milk/​cream for some of their drinks.
Right now I’m loving the layered coconut yogurt parfait for brekkie and the bibimbap for lunch.
They’re also selling natural grocery items like Sweets from the Earth gluten-​free chocolate chip cookie dough and brownie dough or you can buy the baked kind to go with your coffee. They also have RawMio (formerly Rawtella) — a raw vegan chocolate hazelnut butter that tastes about 1000x better than Nutella and is actually good for you! This stuff is my new obsession. I’ve yet to put it on anything, because every time I get my hands on a jar, I end up spooning the whole thing into my mouth. It’s a problem.
There’s also ChocoSol chocolate, protein powders and lots more. There’s even a line of natural make-​up products.
My favourite thing so far is the huge selection of smoothies made with cold pressed juice. Cold pressed juice places are all over NYC but this is the first time I’ve seen it in Toronto. They’ve got a wall of rainbow colored juice flavours and you can even buy a grab and go juice cleanse package.
The seating is limited to bar seating but it overlooks King St, which is nice.