World’s First 24-Hour Vegan Drive-Thru Expands to Toronto

Canada-based vegan fast-food chain Globally Local will open a location in Toronto, ON in September. It will be the first brick-and-mortar location outside of the chain’s home base of London, ON. In addition to operating a food truck, Globally Local founder James McInnes opened two locations in London in 2017, one of which features the world’s first 24-hour vegan drive-thru in a space formerly occupied by popular Canadian fast-food chain Harvey’s. The chain offers vegan fast food that mimics familiar offerings such as McDonald’s Big Macs, Burger King’s Whoppers, and KFC’s chicken sandwiches. The new 35-seat restaurant will offer dine-in and takeout options for all-day breakfast, lunch, and dessert menus. “Toronto has always been a really important market for us, and we have always been incredibly busy with our food truck here during the festival season,” McInnes told VegNews. “We feel that Toronto really needs affordable, quick, and delicious plant-based options and this is why we are bringing our 100-percent vegan fast-food chain to Toronto.” McInnes spent the last year and a half building the company’s own plant-based food manufacturing facility, where the company makes its vegan proteins and sauces. According to McInnes, the facility was a critical step in the company’s expansion plans and will allow the brand to scale production to meet future needs. Last year, the chain became available for franchising and has plans to open 20 new locations in Ontario within the next two years.