What Happened to The Citizen After Restaurant Makeover? (Toronto, ON)
Current status
As of October 2026, The Citizen has closed — confirmed via nowtoronto.com, March 30, 2010.
Last verified
What the source shows: NOW Toronto (2010-03-30) describes Ruby Watchco, run by Lynn Crawford and Lora Kirk, as occupying the Queen St E space that formerly housed Citizen, and Post City (2010-01-07) reported Crawford was buying out owner Rodney Bowers.
- Season / episode Season 4, Episode 6
- Original air date
- Address 730 Queen St E, Toronto, ON M4M 1H4
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What happened after Restaurant Makeover?
Essence was a Toronto restaurant that became The Citizen in the Restaurant Makeover episode aired on 2007-11-05. TV Guide's season listing describes chef Rodney as putting his and his fiancée's wedding savings into the conversion. Designer Brenda Bent and the build crew raced to finish an Art Deco design before a holiday weekend, and chef Lynn Crawford, an old friend of Rodney's, came in to help. Rotten Tomatoes' synopsis notes that the holiday weekend pushed back the plans for the big reveal. The sources read do not describe the new menu or the budget.
Later coverage places The Citizen on Queen Street East in the Riverside area. Toronto Life reported on 2009-11-04 (Karon Liu) that rumours had The Citizen on Queen East being renamed and remade from 2010-01-01, and that chef-owner Rod Bowers would neither confirm nor deny them. Post City reported on 2010-01-07 that Crawford was working to buy out Bowers, that the deal was not yet signed, and that she planned to renovate before opening.
NOW Toronto's 2010-03-30 review, by Steven Davey, covers Ruby Watchco at 730 Queen Street East at Broadview, which it describes as occupying the Riverside space that formerly housed Citizen, run by Rodney Bowers. The review adds that Crawford had helped overhaul Citizen for Restaurant Makeover, that she ran Ruby Watchco with Lora Kirk, that dinner was an $80 prix fixe, and that designer Cherie Stinson's new look replaced Citizen's Art Deco style. Wikipedia's list of Restaurant Makeover restaurants notes that Crawford and Stinson purchased and renovated the restaurant, which fits the NOW account, although the same list marks the restaurant as still open.
A BlogTO article filed under October 2020 in its web address reported that Ruby Watchco had closed after ten years; Crawford described the decision as 'a family decision'. The sources read do not say what occupies the Queen Street East space now.
Featured on Restaurant Makeover
- Show
- Restaurant Makeover
- Original air date
- Episode title
- Essence
- What was featured
- Essence restaurant converted into The Citizen with an Art Deco design
- Role
- Featured restaurant
- Name on the broadcast
- The Citizen
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Visit info
- Address
- 730 Queen St E, Toronto, ON M4M 1H4
- Venue type
- restaurant
- Official website
- thecitizento.com
- State hub
- TV restaurants in Ontario
Businesses change fast. Always confirm directly with the restaurant — call ahead, or check its own current website or social media — before making plans around anything on this page.
Sources
- nowtoronto.com — https://nowtoronto.com/food-and-drink/lynn-crawfords-makeover/
- postcity.com — https://postcity.com/?p=1765
- torontolife.com — https://torontolife.com/food/lynn-crawford-to-take-over-the-citizen-rod-bowers-wont-confirm-or-deny/
- media.blogto.com — https://media.blogto.com/eat_drink/2020/10/restaurant-toronto-top-chef-closed
- tvguide.com — https://www.tvguide.com/tvshows/restaurant-makeover/episodes-season-4/1030015607/
- rottentomatoes.com — https://www.rottentomatoes.com/tv/restaurant_makeover/s04
- Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Restaurant_Makeover
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Record rmk-057 · last verified .