Keith Lee visits Toronto restaurants and leaves a lasting impression

Celebrity food critic Keith Lee left a $3,000 tip at a Toronto restaurant over the weekend, but it's the “Keith Lee Effect” that leaves a lasting impression.

“We had a lot of people right away,” Rodney Best, owner of Afro Pizza at Dundas and Jarvis streets, told CP24 on Tuesday. “It's helped our business a lot.”

Lee's food reviews have garnered more than 16 million followers on TikTok, creating a phenomenon known as the “Keith Lee Effect” that boosts business after the trip.

For his first taste test outside of the United States, Lee went on the FamiLee Food Tour in Toronto over the weekend.

He visited four joints in two days. At Afro Pizza, he tried a few slices and ate the mac and cheese, giving it an 8.5 out of 10.

“A little more sauce and it would have been really hot. It was the tastiest I've had in a long time.”

Lee left behind $3,000 in cash, and Afro Pizza left another $1,000 to hand out free slices for the rest of the night. “After he left, we gave people free pizza for three hours,” Best said.

Celebrity food critic Keith Lee heads to Toronto for his first tour outside the United States (TikTok).

From Biscuits to Baskets in Ajax, soon after Lee's visit, the small chocolate shop, housed in a courtyard shed in a quiet neighborhood, began to show new faces. “We're excited to see so many new faces,” Victoria Fliegel, store manager of Basket Cookies, told CP24.

“This is the most Canadian thing I've ever done,” Lee said while sitting in his car, holding a box of baked goods in a TikTok video. Even though she doesn't have a sweet tooth, Lee gave their Korean sponge latte an eight out of 10.

“It means a lot to our family,” Fliegel said.

Fliegel admitted that his family had never heard of Lee and didn't know his wife had arrived for a box of baked goods until Lee showed up after hearing about customer service.

“It was the best customer service they've ever seen,” Lee said of his family's comments.

With business flowing from the “Keith Lee effect,” Fliegel said they're aiming to buy a better coffee machine to serve more customers.

“We're all shocked, very shocked, but excited to see what happens.”