Best food in Leslieville!?!

[Sebastian]

This one would be perfect for the poster nicknamed 'Leslieville' but anybody with any type of reccomendations should reply!

What are the best spots to eat in or take-out foods in Leslieville? It doesn't matter what kind of foods. Any will do!!!

Thanks for your input.

[maureen]

Edward Levesque is heavily favoured on this board and elsewhere.
Small cafe type places are, Bonjour Brioche and Hello Toast. Hello Toast the funkier of the 2.
Vervaine and Barrio, both good, though there is a controversy over Vervaine lately.
Joy Bistro mentioned a lot also.No direct experience here.
There are postings on all of these throughout the board.

[leslieville]

Recognition at last!!! now I have to come up with some good suggestions. I quite enjoy Gio's at Leslie and Queen, and I must say, I am not impressed with Edward Levesque's kitchen or with Joy. We ate there last week(Joy), the mussells and my pasta were so salty they were almost inedible,the Marlin , (the special) was $28.00, no salad, no bread and minimalist to the extreme. I haven't tried Tomi Kro but I've heard great things about it(also at Leslie and Queen).
For more casual(much!), Dangerous Dan's at Broadview and Queen does good Burgers and surprisingly good ribs.And of course they have a lovely view of Jilly's strip club! Riverside, just down the street, has 17 mussell dishes on their menu. Queen Pita, and Peters Cajun Creole Pizza(actualy on Parliament but they deliver over here.) Add the Dutchpot and the Real Jerk for Jamaican, the Upper Crust for lunch, and Altitude Bakery for desert and you have variety, thats for sure!! come visit, we are very accesible.

[eatingzen]

Here's my one and only experience at Edward Levesque. You be the judge about whether I should return. I took my adult family and 89 year old father. He ordered the shrimp gnocchi. When it arrived he could not taste the shrimp. Only after insisting did the kitchen admit they had run out of shrimp. They had tried to pass off ordinary gnocchi on an old guy! They did not offer to remove it from the bill but did offer a dessert. My food was oversalted. Honest mistakes happen. This was malice of forethought!

[Toothpick]

Wow, that's disgraceful!! I had lunch at Edward Levesque's once.... a hard dry lamb burger that had obviously been cooked (incinerated actually) a long, long time before being served. Inedible, accompanied by a dull salad in an acrid dressing.

[Sebastion]

Thank you all for the responses. I will be sure to check a few of your reccomendations out! Re; the Dutch Pot. I have drove by it many times but have never went in. Can anybody give me a heads up on it? (Leslieville?)

[Ian]

I ate at the Dutch Pot a couple of nights ago. Good cheap island food. I usually go for the jerk chicken dinner, but the rotis look tasty and substantial.
Wash it all down with a Ting.

[Maureen]

Dangerous Dan's is best for takeout in my opinion. I'm not picky, but the place had giant blobs of dirt hanging from the fan above my head. Kinda ruined my appetite.

[Sierramum]

Edward Levesque's Kitchen would have to be my #1 choice for a nice dinner out, plus their brunch menu is delish.

Bonjour Brioche was okay, but I found the service terribly slow.

Have been to Joy Bistro for dinner once, but we were unimpressed so have no inclination on going back. The menu choices were way too limited as well.

Sandee

[Susan In Toronto]

Wow, I'm surprised by your comment about Joy Bistro. We've been there a couple of times for dinner (including last night) and found their menu very good. Maybe it was a while ago?

[Sierramum]

Hi Susan,

Actually, we went to Joy Bistro a few weeks ago. I don't know if they were having an off night or not, but hubby was not impressed with their pasta special at all. The pasta itself was too al dente, and he thought the sauce itself was middling. I had the lamb shank which I thought was just alright and the veggies were forgettable. Daughter didn't like the bread they served, but the soup of the day was quite good.

[Leslieville Guy]

I am surprised that so many people talking about Leslieville Fail to mention Verveine. Not only are they a top notch Restaurant worthy of downtown or college street. They are also well priced.
Verveine was in Leslieville before anyone thought of Leslieville as a dining location. Yes that's right!
Before Ed's, Gio's,and Tomi kro.

[QC]

The last time I was at Verveine (back in 2001), I would agree whole heartedly with you. In my humble opinion, it was the best value for money in TO. A return visit is long overdue, but some of the reviews of late were not that encouraging.

Since then, I'm out of the country more often than I'm in it and I would hate to go there for one of my TO meals and be disappointed.

I've got a week vacation coming up and I'll be spending it getting reacquainted with TO and the question is: Should I give it another chance?

I'm leaning towards a 'yes' for old times sake.

[Leslieville Guy]

YES!!!
I don't understand why people put so much stock in restaurant reviews. Reviewers are a dime a dozen, and amateur reviewers are even more abundant.(just take a look at this site) Not all Restaurants are for everyone. They are like Fashion. Just because the pants fit, doesn't mean you like them enough to wear them. That said, someone may find them very stylish.

Verveine is what it is.
It is not Susur, Avalon, North 44, or Canoe.
It is a compfortable, elegant, and Friendly Neighbourhood spot with excellent cuisine and good service.

There you have it.
Now you've heard something good about Verveine.

[Ian]

For something a bit cheaper I really like Queen Pita. It's a couple doors west of Ed Levesque. The owner 'Gus' has worked big hotels the world over as a Middle Eastern chef, so his stuff is really good. Best deal in the 'hood IMO. Prices are rock bottom.
If you're into something coronary - B&B Fish & Chips on Queen, just west of Jones, is excellent.

[james henry]

I can't believe all of you skipped over Riverside!! Almost 40 different types of mussels and fresh oysters?! I saw the new chef on Rogers Cable a month ago...Seems like the place has changed alot since they got a new chef. They had a bad rap before but things have changed since the other chef was fired. The food is sooo good there! I go almost once a week. Go and check it out.
For the record, I'm pretty sure the owner had his other place going before any other restaurant moved in the neighbourhood.

[duchesse]

New resto in Leslieville, Baldini: After one lunch and one dinner, very, very good. Not fancy but they really care: chiecken, pastas, really beautiful eggs Benny for brunch. Here's hoping they make it. Go for brunch before it is mobbed.

Also- no one has mentioned POP Bistro (Queen just west of Broadview)- i have had a few good meals there but twice they told me they "ran out" of desserts on a Saturday eveing before 9 pm.

[dinin and dishin]

I second Pop Bistro. We had an excellent dinner there about a month ago. I had a grilled whole fish that was as good as I've had in the city. The place is small, so I definitely recommend reservations.

Also in the neighborhood, the Dominion on Queen is a fine old-style beer hall with a wide selection of beer and great fries. They also have excellent live music in the evenings and on Saturday afternoons.

[grrlmet]

I am technically an ex-leslievill(ain?!?) now but still have ties to the hood and know the restaurant scene there altogethre too well.

tips - food wise - tomi-Kro is very good for dinner ( Laura Prentice - of Lolita's Lust and Chinchilla lounge at the stove helm) I used to love Okay Okay diner ( corner of Queen & Bertmount) for breakfasty stuff - there is a newish sushi place on the south side of Queen a few doors over from Verveine that does great takeout. Stratengers Pizzas are always good ( wood burning oven) Verveine changed hands just over a year ago - not the same at all any more - kinda like the heart got torn out of it, but Barrio is still doing good things - the young chef there has a lot of talent and interesting creative combinations. Have not been but Cafe Vert is reported to be very good - although the good review in NOW caused some serious ripples - press is always a double edged sword - particularly for small places. I was looking at Baldini's menu on a recent trip back and it looked quite interesting - definitely worth checking out!

Well there you have another two cents - happy chowing!

[Pape foodie]

Had brunch today at Baldini's. Definately recomend the eggs benny. Looked at the dinner menu,looks tempting. the owner thinks they'll have their liquor license in a week or so.

[atomeyes]

Thought i would bump this post back up.

Lots of new places in Leslieville. Just wondering what you would rank as your hits and misses.

This week, I went to Gio Rana's for the first time in over a year. Used to love it, then it was good (and good didn't justify the price for the food). I have to say that our dinner was amazing. There were 6 of us. Only one dish was ok (the clamshell linguine, but i think that was my brother's fault for ordering an olive oil-sauced pasta and wondering why it wasn't bursting with flavour).

I ordered the sexier duck and it blew its predecessor (sexy duck) out of the water. the butternut squash crepole was creamy and oozing with silky flavour. And the appetizer meatball was incredibly tasty.

[Otonabee]

I actually went to Leslie Jones and was blown away by the food. I have the roasted eggplant with peppers and goat cheese and it was plausibly one of the best vegetarian dishes I have had for quite a while. A beautiful charry flavour with basil grilled right on the eggplant.

For dessert, the carrot cake is really good, nice and light. Their hummus is also excellent.