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It’s a wrap on week one of Riverside Flavours – Fall Edition!

In case you didn’t know, Riverside Flavours – Fall Edition — a brand new campaign by the Riverside BIA — features local venues offering a unique dish or drink around classic fall warming spices: cinnamon, ginger, cardamom and nutmeg. The campaign will run until November 15th!

Last week, we kicked off the Riverside Flavours – Fall Edition blog features with a signature cocktail. Next on our line-up is a warm hug in a bowl by a beloved Riverside favourite:

Cornmeal Porridge

Participating Business: BlessedLove Caribbean Market (@shopblessedlove)

Address: 753A Queen St E, Toronto, ON M4M 1H3

For Riverside Flavours, the folks of BlessedLove are bringing a piece of Jamaica to the neighbourhood: the Cornmeal Porridge. “Cornmeal Porridge was something we used to make back home in Jamaica. We always had these spices in the house and cornmeal was very cheap, so we’d have Cornmeal Porridge for breakfast, lunch and dinner,” shares Suzette Saunders, co-owner of BlessedLove.

BlessedLove’s version incorporates sweet potato with the cornmeal mix and uses cinnamon, nutmeg, vanilla and other spices. Comforting, rich and creamy, BlessedLove’s Cornmeal Porridge is perfect for the coming chilly autumn days. Pair it with a perfectly flaky patty or a side of their bestselling jerk chicken for a truly filling Jamaican meal.

More about Riverside Flavours – Fall Edition:

More than just a showcase of culinary creativity, Riverside Flavours is also a chance for you to show support for local businesses in the Riverside neighbourhood. 

Here’s an awesome bonus: when you try these featured items, you can enter our raffle and get a chance to win a local dining prize pack!

With every order of any Riverside Flavours item, you can enter our raffle and vote for your faves in 3 fun categories! There will be weekly and grand draw winners — plus, an esteemed panel of food & drink experts will be voting for their top dish or drink!

To view the full contest rules and important raffle information about Riverside Flavours – Fall Edition (and HOW to enter the raffle), click HERE!

Read through the fine print of Riverside Flavours – Fall Edition and come right back to the blog to read more about the featured dishes and the BIA businesses behind them!

Check @riverside_bia on Instagram and the Riverside Blog in the coming weeks for updates on Riverside Flavours –  Fall Edition!

BLOG: Riverside Flavours – Fall Edition: Gin Amore Cocktail by AURA (Feature 1 of 7)

We acknowledge and thank the City of Toronto, Government of Canada and FedDev Ontario for support of this campaign as part of the ‘Riverside Ramps it Up’ project through the Transit Expansion Construction Mitigation Fund 2025.

We’re at the halfway point of Riverside Local Love already?! Two weeks left to enter the raffle — Riverside Local Love runs until Nov. 6th!

As a campaign, Riverside Local Love aims to highlight and support the many amazing small businesses in Toronto’s Riverside neighbourhood.

Joining is as easy as 1-2-3! Shop, dine, use services or leave a Google Review for a Riverside BIA business; enter our raffle up to once a day; and we’ll contact you by email if you’re a winner!

What can you win? $250 gift card for (3) weekly draw winners and $500 gift card for (2) grand draw winners — and the winner gets to pick a local independent business of choice from our list.

To view the full contest rules and important raffle information about Riverside Local Love (and the submission link for the raffle), click HERE!

BLOG: Riverside Local Love is back October 6th! Here’s How it Works

If you entered the raffle and didn’t get lucky this week, don’t worry, we have two more Weekly Raffles to go and our Grand Prize Raffle as well!

This week, we’ve got testimonials from our first batch of Weekly Draw winners. Here’s what they had to say about their favourite Riverside businesses:

“I went to a cafe and saw the Riverside Local Love poster. I had spent just over $10 so I thought, why not enter the raffle? I picked Butchers of Distinction because they are one of the best butchers in the East End.” – Shirley

“White Lily Diner is one of my favourite restaurants. The turkey french toast is amazing. I always tell people to come here. I think Riverside Local Love as a campaign is great because it reminds people that there are all these businesses here, which is especially important with all the construction happening in the neighbourhood. I feel like people already support local — Riverside Local Love just makes it more fun!” – Tess

“I love the vibe of Tabule and I love Middle Eastern food. I’ve never had anything bad here. I have friends who travel a lot too so whenever they’re in town, I bring them here. Even as a resident of the area, Riverside Local Love encourages me to be more involved in supporting local.” – Patricia

(Disclaimer: These statements have been edited for length and clarity.)

Check @riverside_bia on Instagram and the Riverside Blog for regular updates on Riverside Local Love!

Thank you to the City of Toronto and Government of Canada’s Transit Construction Mitigation Fund for support of Riverside Local Love as part of the ‘Riverside Ramps It Up’ project.