pancho y emiliano

Someone stole a panda from a Mexican restaurant and Toronto police are on the hunt

Maybe you've been there before: it's 2 a.m., you're pretty past tipsy and the novelty beer mug you're drinking out of is something you think would look great in your kitchen cupboard.

Or maybe it's a traffic cone outside that's caught your eye, or a road sign on your walk home, depending on how much trouble you feel like causing.

For one man in Toronto, the unfortunate object of his drunken kleptomania this past weekend was a stuffed panda head, which Mexican restaurant Pancho y Emiliano uses as a mascot of sorts at its Entertainment District location. 

The theft on the night of February 1 was caught on security footage, which the eatery is circulating on social media in an attempt to find the ruthless culprit who stole their beloved panda.

In the video, the slightly swaying man can be seen spotting the panda, and quickly deciding that it must be his. After looking around for witnesses, he figures the best option is to hilariously stuff the squishy bear head into his coat, which admittedly doesn't appear to be an easy task.

With the stuffed head in tow — the poor thing — the guy tries to play it cool in a way that only a drunk person could think actually looks like playing it cool. He then books it down the stairs and out of the second-floor restaurant.

Pancho y Emiliano is taking the incident to heart and has since reported it to Toronto police. Though there's still no news of the whereabouts of  Mr. Panda or his abductor, we hope that he makes it home safely soon.

Lead photo by

Pancho y Emiliano


Latest Videos



Latest Videos


Join the conversation Load comments

Latest in Eat & Drink

Dessert spot shuts original location and goes all-in on Toronto's new food hall

Toronto restaurant that opened with big buzz has permanently closed

5 tiramisu in Toronto you need to try at least once

Justin Trudeau showed up to eat at a Toronto restaurant this week

Pick-your-own strawberries at farms in Ontario open for the season this month

Win free ice cream for the summer and a Chapman's chest freezer

People in Ontario have mixed feelings about The Beer Store's monopoly ending

The 10 hottest new bars in Toronto right now