The Carbon Snack Bar, a new venture from the team behind The Carbon Bar, will debut later this year in Toronto at 460 King Street West.
This new concept is the latest from owner Yannick Bigourdan, who envisioned it as “a baby brother or baby sister to The Carbon Bar,” according to BlogTO. The Carbon Snack Bar will move into the former home of Quantum Coffee and is expected to open in Summer 2025, offering a casual, counter-service experience with a menu inspired by Texas-style barbecue and global flavors. Customers can expect smoked meats, sandwiches, and a selection of sides, all crafted with the same attention to quality that patrons expect from The Carbon Bar.
“I fall in love with locations and then I reverse engineer what should go there,” Bigourdan tells BlogTO. “I fell in love with the corner right away, but then I also had in the back of my mind that somewhere in my life I would open a Carbon Snack Bar or two. We want to offer a very fun grab-and-go experience around that very strong barbecue DNA that we have, but it’s not to be confused with a second Carbon Bar. It’s not a sit-down, we won’t serve people at the table. It’s grab-and-go. It’s fun.”
Born in the South of France to a lineage of culinary professionals, Yannick’s passion for hospitality was inspired by his family’s rich gastronomic legacy, dating back to the late 1800s. After studying at the Swiss Hotel School of Lausanne and refining his skills at luxury destinations like Dromoland Castle and the Four Seasons in Beverly Hills and Toronto, he made his mark on Toronto’s dining scene. Yannick co-owned the acclaimed Splendido and later launched Nota Bene in 2008, which earned titles like “Best New Restaurant” from Toronto Life and enRoute Magazine. He sold his stake in 2014 and opened The Carbon Bar, later expanding it into a retail brand and founding Slice Baby Slice to manage over 45 food products, with a B2C platform launching in 2024.
Continuing to innovate, Yannick co-founded several restaurants, including Union Chicken, Amano Kitchen, and Mike’s Smash Burgers, eventually acquiring a majority stake in Amano Trattoria. He is now preparing to open The Berczy Tavern in June 2024. In 2023, he launched the elegant French fine-dining restaurant Lucie in Toronto’s financial district, in honor of his late grandmother, and established The Social Catering & Co., partnering with institutions such as the Canadian Opera Company and Union Station. Celebrated for his influence in hospitality, Yannick was awarded the Ontario Hostelry Institute’s Gold Award for Independent Restaurateur.
