[evandyk]

They run East Side Mario's in Canada? We made the mistake of going to one in Kingston while driving between Toronto and Ottawa. Big mistake. So that doesn't hold much promise for OG.

 

[Towered]

Recipe are wildly uneven in their track record.

You can look at Swiss Chalet and The Keg, arguably their best properties, in terms of financial success. They've largely kept those two 'good' at what it is they do, they won't win any awards, but they are solid fast casual/steakhouse type offerings. . Burgers' Priest has likewise seen torrid growth under their ownership.

Harveys is one of their middling properties. They have yet to kill it, but its less successful than it was 20 years ago. Arguably under investment in real estate, menu development, and the breakfast segment (they're absent) have hurt them.

Meanwhile, they've generally botched their attempts at Italian, (East Side Marios and a few others over the years); at coffee, and at generic date-night/family resto (Kelseys etc etc.)

So file under TBD on the OG acquisition.

Oh man, they own Burger's Priest now?? Eff that chain then.

 

[Towered]

I will not tell you your wrong...............but I will say you're dating yourself, LOL

I believe that location closed in 1997, so its been 28 years since you last dined there (at that location), it did bounce around after that until finally closing for good, in Thornhill, in 2009.

Hah, I've dated myself many times over on this forum, with my many references to my clubbing escapades in the 90's...

I'm pretty sure nobody here assumed I was a young'un, despite how I may dress...

 

[Richard White]

They run East Side Mario's in Canada? We made the mistake of going to one in Kingston while driving between Toronto and Ottawa. Big mistake. So that doesn't hold much promise for OG.

Agreed.

East Side Marios is a shell of what it was 20 years ago.

I went to the Warden/Eglinton location recently. Prices went up but quality went down.

 

[Towered]

I will not tell you your wrong...............but I will say you're dating yourself, LOL

I believe that location closed in 1997, so its been 28 years since you last dined there (at that location), it did bounce around after that until finally closing for good, in Thornhill, in 2009.

Addendum: I still dream of their breaded (actually battered) shrimp. Those were a delectable treat that I luckily got to devour many times since my parents loved to go there. I can still taste them when I think about them. I have desperately tried many, many different "Chinese" restaurants in the ensuing decades to find similar ones, but all of them disappointed me. The closest attempt was to be found at Salad King, but even those weren't on the same level (the batter was too thick), and recently those assholes dropped it from their menu, so now they've lost me as a frequent lunch time customer.

 

[Towered]

Update on the famous Lakeview Diner - a few years back during covid, the ownership changed and the locally beloved menu was eliminated and they attempted to pivot to some sort of quasi fine-dining, along with the predictable huge price increases. An uproar occurred on social media over this, and once I got wind of it, decided I wouldn't bother going there any more (I had been a frequent patron with my former partner and the kids). Well well - last night I got a bit drunk with an old clubbing buddy and we decided to go to the Lakeview for a midnight meal for old time's sake, and to my utter amazement, the original menu had been restored, along with my favourite fish and chips that had been unceremoniously jettisoned in a vain attempt to lure tacky yuppies! Nice to get the odd small win in life...

 

[evandyk]

They didn't really pivot to quasi-fine dining. They just stopped using frozen Cisco stuff and used fresh ingredients. But like everything else, teh prices went up quite significantly around that time.

What's on the menu at the Lakeview, the recently revamped 90-year-old Dundas West diner

Including milkshakes, club sandwiches and buckets of fried chicken

torontolife.com

The Lakeview’s new menu, which includes things like disco fries and stacked sandwiches, doesn’t stray far from the standards regulars know and love, but its dedication to fresh ingredients is new. According to Hakim, the kitchen had been relying increasingly on frozen foods over the years. “Now it’s about applying better ingredients and better cooking techniques to the staples that already exist,” Boukhari says.

But yeah, the people demanded the frozen staples be restored.

 

[Towered]

Kensington NIMBYs doing their thing.

Opening a restaurant in Kensington Market was his dream. Now neighbours say the province should put a stop to it

Kensington Market residents asked the province to not grant a liquor licence to Karan Sarvaiya’s new sports bar, which opens next week.

www.thestar.com

Normally I'm not a NIMBY, but I'm ok with this rejection. A sports bar does not fit Kensington's unique, quirky, counter culture vibe whatsoever. Keep that mainstream garbage out of there.

 

[evandyk]

That's ridiculous. This place sounds no more mainstream than Burdock Brewery, Gus Tacos, Pizzeria Via Mercanti, Trinity Common, Otto's Berlin Doner, etc. It's pretty much exactly what belongs in Kensington.

 

[artyboy123]

Loading…

torontolife.com

Replacing the former Clio Club on King west!

Remember when the economy was so strong that restaurants started selling memberships? Well, those days are long gone. Even Charles Khabouth—one of Toronto’s most prolific entertainment impresarios—has closed his private King West club Clio (which had replaced the also-private Spoke Club). His latest venture in the same location, Portland Square, is a pivot from exclusivity to accessibility.

Opening July 24, the three-level venue brings together four distinct concepts under one roof. “Portland Square marks an exciting new chapter for King West, right at its hottest intersection,” says Khabouth. “Every detail has been thoughtfully curated to create an atmosphere that feels bold, fresh, fun and distinctly King West. With this multi-level dining destination, we’re proud to offer an experience that we believe will become the area’s new heartbeat.”

Home - Portland Square

PORTLAND SQUARE A MULTI LEVEL DINING DESTINATION WILL OPEN ITS DOORS THURSDAY, JULY 24 SIGN UP TO RECEIVE UPDATES

portlandsquareto.com

@Northern Light what your thoughts on this? @evandyk @AlbertC @Towered

 

[artyboy123]

Addendum: I still dream of their breaded (actually battered) shrimp. Those were a delectable treat that I luckily got to devour many times since my parents loved to go there. I can still taste them when I think about them. I have desperately tried many, many different "Chinese" restaurants in the ensuing decades to find similar ones, but all of them disappointed me. The closest attempt was to be found at Salad King, but even those weren't on the same level (the batter was too thick), and recently those assholes dropped it from their menu, so now they've lost me as a frequent lunch time customer.

Even salad King was meh the last time I went post pandemic was summer of 2021 and before I left the city in June 2025...honestly the food wasn't what I remember back in university day when I visited Toronto from Waterloo and also my favourite spot near the Dundas Square.

 

[artyboy123]

That's ridiculous. This place sounds no more mainstream than Burdock Brewery, Gus Tacos, Pizzeria Via Mercanti, Trinity Common, Otto's Berlin Doner, etc. It's pretty much exactly what belongs in Kensington.

Don't forget Marry Me Mochi and all these localized chain crap....

don't forget the third wave coffee spots in Kensington!

 

[bearcat]

They didn't really pivot to quasi-fine dining. They just stopped using frozen Cisco stuff and used fresh ingredients. But like everything else, teh prices went up quite significantly around that time.

What's on the menu at the Lakeview, the recently revamped 90-year-old Dundas West diner

Including milkshakes, club sandwiches and buckets of fried chicken

torontolife.com

But yeah, the people demanded the frozen staples be restored.

You don't go to a 24 hour diner, especially after an evening of drinking, looking for fresh ingredients imo. You want inexpensive but filling greasy diner food. And cheap drinks like $5 (now $6) Caesars.

At least that's why I went there. And I think that's what the people wanted and were rightfully in my opinion upset when they lost it.

I don't think the people wanted a porterhouse with horseradish aioli, confit garlic and smoked potatoes for $89 (!!!!). Or three bagels with cream cheese and caviar for $145 (!!!). These were menu item on the new menu.

And worst of all the Caesars were $14 then! Insane!

It sure felt like quasi-fine dining to me when I saw the new menu.

I am 100% with @Towered on this one .

 

[gabe]

You don't go to a 24 hour diner, especially after an evening of drinking, looking for fresh ingredients imo. You want inexpensive but filling greasy diner food. And cheap drinks like $5 (now $6) Caesars.

At least that's why I went there. And I think that's what the people wanted and were rightfully in my opinion upset when they lost it.

I don't think the people wanted a porterhouse with horseradish aioli, confit garlic and smoked potatoes for $89 (!!!!). Or three bagels with cream cheese and caviar for $145 (!!!). These were menu item on the new menu.

And worst of all the Caesars were $14 then! Insane!

It sure felt like quasi-fine dining to me when I saw the new menu.

I am 100% with @Towered on this one .

Agreed! Yuppification has ruined so many good restaurants, sometimes people in the city of Toronto just want a greasy spoon that's open late. Think of taxi/ride share drivers/ bar crowds, and anyone else working nights. It's nice to have a diner to go eat at, instead of McDonald's or Tim Horton's.

 

[TripleQ]

Speaking of The Burger's Priest, the Etobicoke, Mississauga and Oakville locations are "temporarily closed" and have been that way for at least a week, anyone know what's going on?