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Essence of Life - Kensington
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Health Store
Natural foods market stocking organic produce, bulk staples, vitamins and supplements, personal care products, and more. Open Mon-Fri 10:00am-7:00pm, Sat 9:30am-6:30pm, Sun 11:00am-6:30pm.
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Last update on 24 Jul 2021 by Guest
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18 Reviews
First Review by TRaeCH
yingsi
Points +129
Great value, great selection - Edit
Very good health food store for both vegans and omnivores. Very wide selection that’s roughly 10% cheaper than whole foods.
Read moreProduce is not that fresh but there are other places for that!
Pros: Selection (food, supplements, personal care), Excellent value and competitive pricing , Accommodating for specialty diets
Cons: Place has a weird smell
Guest
renegade1851
Points +57
A go to - Edit
This is definitely a go to shop for me. It is well stocked and had many vegan products.
Read moreGuest
lobotomylover69
Points +142
So much variety - Edit
So many amazing foods to try and so many I absolutely loved.
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2023-09-30
Pros: Great groceries
Guest
UnaRose
Points +39
Great Afforable Shopping - Edit
My favorite health food store. Their selection and prices are amazing. They carry all the vegan raw staples for very affordable prices and also have a large selection of green, cruelty free cleaning homecare and health and beauty products. Great location as well.
Read moreUpdated from previous review on 2021-05-17
Pros: fast, friendly competant staff, great selection, very affordable
Guest
Heatherw1019
Points +433
great selection - Edit
Great selection of vegan products and love all of the bulk items. Cute little store in the heart of Kensington.
Read moreGuest
DaisyGould
Points +276
Excellent range of products - Edit
I feel like you could find pretty much anything you would need in this shop, there is a great selection of vegan cheeses and meat substitutes and every kind of milk you could think of.
Read morePros: Incredible range
Cons: Some items are a bit pricey
Guest
BronFair
Points +515
I definitely missed out when I lived in this neighbourhood - Edit
I only started shopping here after I moved out of the area! I definitely regret not shopping here when I lived so close by. Good selection, decent prices for health food/natural food stuff.
Read moreGuest
wilsonschneidg
Points +2887
They have everything - Edit
This is my to go food shop.
Read moreI have often been put off by the crazy prices in organic stores but Essence of Life restored my faith. They sell their own tofu at a great price, have some good deals and sell plenty of vegan products.
Can’t stop by without buying some Sweets From The Earth S’mores cookies...😆
Definitely recommended!
Pros: Many vegan products
Cons: The aisles are very narrow, crazy when it’s busy
Guest
stam
Points +2141
A must-go for vegan groceries!! - Edit
They have an amazing stock of everything from food items to black soap, castile soap, vitamins, etc. I often do a price comparison between their items and the same items at Tutti Frutti a few stores up the street. There’s a discount shelf that has great deals, and they also stock nuts and seeds that can you buy in bulk.
Read morePros: Great value, Wide range of vegan goods
Cons: Tight space
Guest
JoelCitulski
Points +69
My shopping go-to for nearly a decade and a half - Edit
EOL has been a shopping mainstay for me since the early 2000's. Yes, it is cramped, as other reviews have noted, but in a way that adds to the charm of it - the aisles are like a bazaar, chock full of a huge variety of the items you know you want and need, and then hundreds of things you didn't know you needed till you found them ;) In addition to food products, there is a vast selection of vegan cleaning products, toiletries and supplements
Read moreGuest
Yasminesan
Points +1953
Amazingly well stocked - Edit
This place is a reasonably priced and well-stocked alternative to the shops in the main part of the market. They had everything I was looking for, plus lots of more unusual and harder-to-find items.
Read morePros: Price, Location, Stock
Guest
Muuuuu
Points +3230
Tons of stuff - Edit
The store is small but they have everything you need - and even stuff you might not need
Read moreGuest
pyrelics
Points +54
Everything you need and more! - Edit
This is my absolute favourite store for all my vegan treats and "meats" they have the best selection and always have something new when i come in. Things like unsweetened coconut ice 'cream' and other non-dairy treats, vegan packaged foods, and crazy varieties of Cliff Bars, Sol Burgers and Tofurkey products that you cant find at say a loblaws or sobeys and with the exception of maybe the Organic Produce they are very well priced, I've yet to find cheaper prices for some of the specialty vegan foods at any supermarket in the area.
Read morePros: Amazing Selection, Well Priced
Cons: Narrow Aisles
Guest
sglcklch
Points +3055
Not bad at all - Edit
This is a pretty nice store in the heart of the funky Kensington Market. I came here to stock up on travel food, so the lack of fresh groceries was a non-issue for me. Selection was quite good for its size and prices were acceptable. On the flip side, space was cramped and the aisles were too narrow, which spoiled the shopping experience a little bit. But still, it's well worth it to pop in and browse the shop while you're in the area.
Read moreCons: cramped
Guest
Teknotribes
Points +134
Overcrowded and overrated - Edit
Don't expect to get any pre made food here. This is just a small health food store. The isles are impassable and the place is ridiculously overcrowded. Selection is limited and prices are average. Enjoy some outside time and shop the rest of Kensington market instead.
Read morePros: good products
Cons: over crowded, expensive, limited selection
Guest
IngridV
Points +101
great shop in a great neighborhood - Edit
Love this place
Read moreYou can find everything there and it's not that expensive compare to some other vegan store.
Guest
Ken4057
Points +1200
Much larger than nearby Tutti Frutti - Edit
But not as cheap.
Read morePerhaps the largest natural store in the city proper with the exception of the horrendously overpriced Big Carrot on the Danforth.
Massive freezer section, fresh produce, lots of beauty products in a separate section with a separate cash.
I like going here, but I go to Tutti Frutti a few doors down for essentials since they're definitely cheaper.
Pros: large selection, cheap
Guest
TRaeCH
Points +384
One of many gems in the Kensington Market - Edit
To begin, most Montrealers are hard pressed to sing the praises of Toronto. The reasoning behind it is fairly obvious given their proximity, partially overlapping identities, sports rivalries, civic pride and many other things. Rivalries aside, as a proud Montrealer, I absolutely adore Toronto's Kensington Market area!
Read moreEssence of Life is a a one-stop-shop for vegetarian and eco-friendly items and products located in the heart of Kensington Market. It is well stocked, offers good value specials and has a very friendly and helpful manager. I can say that in respect to variety, the selection one would find in Montreal pales in comparison to what they offer at Essence of Life - I'm 90% sure it is because they sell many vegetarian products that don't have french packaging and therefore are not available, at least, in the province of Quebec.
I have traveled fairly extensively throughout the United States and while Essence of Life doesn't quite measure up to many of the health food stores I've visited in the US, I have yet to see anything substantially better in eastern Canada.
Honestly, my rating is highly reflective of the area surrounding Essence of Life; Kensington Market is the closest thing I've seen to a vegetarian utopia in all of my travels. Kudos Toronto!
Pros: Located in Kensington Market, Specials/Sales, Variety
Guest
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