The Best Tapas and Snack Bar in Toronto Bar Raval (ranked #1) Location: 505 College Street Atmosphere: Intimate, warm, woody I’ve wanted to eat at Bar Raval for years. Not only because of the great things I’ve heard about the food, but also because on BlogTO it’s ranked first on both the best tapas and best snack bar list, and second for best Spanish. Not to mention the nerd and former art...
The Best Pho in Toronto Pho Tien Thanh (ranked #2) Location: 57 Ossington Avenue Atmosphere: Small, busy and very pink According to blogTO, the two best places for pho—the quintessential Vietnamese soup—are about a block and a half away from each other on a strip of Ossington between Dundas and Queen. Nowadays, this location seems like an odd setting for the two best...
The Best Mexican Restaurant in Toronto La Carnita (ranked #1) Location: 130 Eglinton Avenue East, with three other locations at 106 John Street, 501 College Street, and 780 Queen Street East Atmosphere: Eclectic urban industrial I love tacos. One of the best trends to happen in recent food history—as far as I’m concerned—was the surge in popularity of Mexican food. I’m...
The Best Pizza in Toronto I’m breaking one of my own “rules” here by reviewing a place I’ve been to before, but the last time I went to Libretto it was at the University location and was right after a Jays game, so I may have not be at my most…discerning. Also, pizza is important, and I can easily see myself revisiting this list throughout the year, so might as well start from the top...
Food Adventure #3: Earls Kitchen and Bar Name: Earls Kitchen and Bar Location: 150 King Street West Category: Restaurant, bar Atmosphere: Upscale, trendy Additional info: Has heated outdoor patio. Website: Today, on another episode of Jurisfoodence, we will be reviewing Earls Kitchen and Bar, a...
Food Adventure 1: Bar Volo Name: Bar Volo Location: 587 Yonge Street Category: Beer bar Atmosphere: Casual, laid-back Additional info: Has outdoor patio. No reservations taken. Website: Our first review to start the school year is about the well-known beer bar, Bar Volo. Originally opened as an...
Food Adventure #12: Lady Marmalade LADY MARMALADE (898 Queen St. East) Kate: For our last foray into the Toronto brunch scene, we chose Lady Marmalade. In my four years living in Toronto, I had never been to this area (or many places east of Yonge, to be honest—I can count the number of times I’ve crossed the Don River on one hand), and holy shit it is far. It took me forty-five minutes to get...
ROSE & SONS (176 Dupont St.) Kate: Though I have heard amazing things about Rose & Sons over the past few years, the location and rumoured wait time prevented me from trying it (remember, I used to live at Passy, where brunch is nothing but a fantasy). Having been so impressed with Big Crow, I had very high hopes for what I will call this “greasy spoon with a twist.” Karolina: I feel...
Food Adventure #10: Brit THE BRISTOL (1087 Queen St. West) Kate: It feels like forever since I’ve had brunch on the Obiter! As our various commitments to our master’s theses and Mock Trial kept us from doing a Jurisfoodence review in the last issue, I felt that it was necessary to go somewhere that I knew to be excellent, so I suggested (for the first time) somewhere I had actually been before:...
Food Adventure #6: BIG CROW (176 Dupont St.) Kate: Karolina and I decided that since our last brunch adventure was such a hit (though, technically, the restaurant was a miss), she would be my official brunch companion for the rest of the year. Per her suggestion, we decided to check out Big Crow, which is run by the owners of Rose and Sons and Fat Pasha in a small tent-like structure directly...
Food Adventure #4 – SAVING GRACE (907 Dundas St. West) A thing or person’s “saving grace” is its redeeming quality, that feature which compensates for its flaws and imperfections. As I set off for my brunch adventure this week, I hoped and prayed that Saving Grace would be my saving grace from the lackluster brunch experiences I have relayed to you thus far. In addition to the promise that...
EASY RESTAURANT (1645 Queen St. West / 713 College St. West) After my disappointing experience at Aunties and Uncles, I was hoping that this week’s brunch adventure would boost my confidence in the Toronto brunch scene. I chose Easy Restaurant, as it is another spot with a great reputation and has a location on College Street, a stone’s throw from my apartment. Unfortunately, this may have been...
AUNTIES AND UNCLES (74 Lippincott St.) For my brunch adventure this week I, thankfully, wasn’t hung-over and decided that it was time to see what all the fuss was about at Aunties and Uncles. I had been hearing about this place since moving to Toronto, but living in Passy meant taking an hour-long transit ride downtown, followed by what I had heard was an extremely long wait prior to getting...
Laugh now, cry later, Osgoode. This is our 3L swan song, our last dance. And we’ve saved this dance for you. After today, we’re handing off the column to our successor contributors, who we hope will continue in our stead by leaving a trail of steaming culinary justice across the GTA. Goodman’s Bistro: Dan: No analysis of campus food options would be complete without mentioning the Aramark...
The sun is shining, and we are finally approaching the end of the law school year. It must be time to break plates and luxuriate! It’s time, in other words, for Greek food! Venue: Kalyvia – 420 Danforth Ave (just east of Chester station) Cuisine: Greek Food Food: Dolmades ($6.99), Prix Fixe Combo ($15.00): village salad, homemade chicken and pork gyros, roast potatoes, rice, Greek cheese...
This cold weather seems to be never-ending. So, comfort food was back on the menu in a big way this week. Hold onto your butts and give thanks, Osgoode. Meaty buns are front of mind in Midtown at Holy Chuck. Venue: Holy Chuck – 1450 Yonge Street (just south of St. Clair station) Cuisine: Burgers Food: Luke went for “The Big Chuck” ($10.99), which is HC’s take on a big mac, and rounded...
Lunar New Year just wrapped up this past week, and with that spirit in mind your intrepid food sleuths undertook to scout a Toronto downtown dim sum hotspot. Cha Lau is an authentic and budget-friendly option for dumplings, steamed dishes and other “small plate” Chinese goodies. Cuisine: Dim Sum Food: (shared) Beef and Chinese mushroom dumplings, Chinese olive and pork dumplings, ultimate shrimp...
Food Adventure #5 Happy 2014 Osgoode! Having abandoned our New Year’s diet resolutions in favour of something more realistic (flossing?), we’re ready to re-engage with the city’s best (student budget-priced) lunch spots for the benefit of Canada’s legal community! This week features Luke facing down the terrifying dual-headed hydra of travelling to Toronto’s West End and (gasp!) shared...
It started with a joke. On our way to Washington Square Park, struck by the startlingly warm – especially for November – air, we saw a falafel stand. I turned to my friend Daniel and remarked to him with complete sincerity – sorry, artificial sincerity, I was completely lying – that it was the best falafel in town. It was probably no more the best falafel in town than the hot dog stand at St...
Mid-semester doldrums? Spice it up. Grand Electric, the largely abandoned hipster stronghold of 2011 is past the line-up insanity of its infancy, yet remains an excellent setting to gorge on tacos.
Comfort food is a must heading into the Fall and Winter seasons, and with your health and happiness in mind, we went to the heart of the Entertainment district to find out whether a Toronto soup institution has what it takes.
DAN MOWAT-ROSE & LUKE JOHNSTON <Contributors> Round 2. We’re back with another food pick for you, Osgoode. Venue: Leslieville Pumps – 929 Queen Street East Cuisine: Smokehouse BBQ/Corner Store Food: Luke: Hickory Smoked Chicken Thigh Sandwich $7.75 & Bacon Infused Corn Fritters $4; Dan: Southern Style Beef Brisket Sandwich $7.75 & Coleslaw $3; Shared: Cornbread $3...
DAN MOWAT-ROSE & LUKE JOHNSTON
<Contributors>
This new column will document two 3L students’ explorations in the Toronto food scene, with an eye to student budget concerns, good eating, and a exposure to a broad range of culinary experiences.