Fruta Libre is a stall serving Mexican street food, drinks and snacks within World Food Market on the TMU Campus.

Founded by Julio Campos (Tacos 101), the stall serves as a spot for a spicy snack, perhaps best known for their Fruta Picada — cups of fresh fruit laden with chamoy and tajin.

The stall happened by chance, says Campos. When the first location of Tacos 101 closed down, he approached World Food Market to open a stall, but with another taco vendor existing in the market, Campos had to get creative.

Thus, Fruta Libre was born in June of 2020.

Prompted by the desire to offer Mexican street food to Toronto, Campos tells blogTO that he's been praised over the years by people who've been searching for truly authentic flavours and found them at Fruta Libre.

Inspired by his love of mangos with Chile y limon (lime and chili powder), some of the first menu items at the stall were his Fruta Picada cups. The stall currently offers mango, watermelon and pineapple ($10) or mixed fruit ($11) options.

The fruit is drizzled with a hefty helping of chamoy, a syrup made of dry apricot, hibiscus and chilli powder and topped with a sprinkling of tajin, making for a bite that's at once sweet and salty, spicy and refreshing.

The popularity of the fruit cups led to further developments, like their best seller, the Chamoyada ($10) — a mango slushy brimming with mango chunks, chamoy drizzle, tajin and a tamarind candy.

You can get more than just sweet treats at the stall, though. Campos also focuses on popular Mexican street food options, like Elotes ($9), corn on the cob rolled in Mexican mayonnaise, cojita cheese, lime and chili powder.

For an extra hit of spice, you can also opt to swap the cheese for hot Cheetos or Takis.

"The inspiration behind Fruta Libre was the lack of places in the city that sold these snacks, reminiscent of street food from our homeland," says Campos.

"I soon realized that more than just selling street food, I was providing food that brought nostalgia and reminded people of their childhood."

Nothing at the stall brings a true hit of childlike wonder quite like their chip-based dishes, like the Tosti-Esquites ($16), which features corn, Mexican mayonnaise, cheese, valentina sauce and lime atop Tostito chips, all served inside of the chip bag.

Agua Frescas ($6), Mexican pop, Tamales and candies are also on offer at the stall, helping Campos to succeed in his mission to bring a hint of childhood nostalgia from his Mexican upbringing to Toronto.

Fruta Libre is located at 335 Yonge, on the south side of World Food Market.