It's no secret that The Lakeview Diner has had an interesting twelve months, with their ever-changing menu, new upscale vibe, and the omission of many of their staple dishes.

Or, as co-owner Fadi Hakim puts it, "Oh well, that was a blip."

Now, the 92-year-old diner has gone through even more changes that are hopefully more welcome: "out with the new and in with the old." They've brought back the older menu featuring their signature comfort meals, and reverted back to being open 24 hours and seven days a week.

Returning back to the family diner they once were was important for Hakim and owners, Peter Avenins, Frances Bell, and Alexander Sengupta.

"The Lakeview has always been an institution," Hakim says, who's owned the diner for 17 years. "We built a lot of goodwill with Toronto and [the previous change] was too much of a departure."

The chicken and waffles eggs benedict with a side salad. Photo by Hector Vasquez.

When they reopened after a brief closure in April 2023, the restaurant had a new menu that replaced some of its previous favourites, like the bacon-stuffed French toast and the cornflake chicken sandwich (a triple-decker sandwich that Hakim's mom used to make after learning the recipe from a magazine in the '70s).

Instead, the restaurant had a more upscale vibe, with pricier menu items that included Miami ribs, beef tartare, and caviar.

The change came with immediate backlash from the community, with some reviewers criticizing the pricier menu and claiming it had lost the diner charm it once had.

In June 2023, some changes were made, which included going back to the old management and slowly bringing back the older menu items, like the beloved apple pie milkshake.

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But it wasn't until October 2023 that Hakim says the team brought back even more of the previous food.

The kids' menu is also back — something that was first introduced in 2015. And with the diner now being 24-hours again, the late night menu is also back with its signature disco fries and other savoury and sweet eats.

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"Generally speaking, it's mostly back to normal," Hakim says.

Some of the new changes will still be present, like the renovated space, which includes a new kitchen and two bathrooms. There will be some more comfort vegan menu items too, like the maitake mushroom sandwich.

As for future plans, Hakim says he plans on having a takeout window for ice cream and milkshakes in the summer.

But for now, with the return of diner staples like the cornflake chicken, chicken and waffles eggs benedict, apple pie milkshake, and deep-fried Mars bars, Hakim sees the space returning back to what it once was: an institution in Toronto.

"We're slowly seeing that 7 a.m. crowd filled with parents who are with their kids entering the diner and people who were clubbing all night leaving, for instance," he says. "So that's nice to see."