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Toronto Life - The Dish

The latest restaurant buzz, including what’s opening, what’s closing, and where to eat, drink and be seen

Deathwatch

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February 2, 2012 | 3:40 pm

Real Jerk landlord seeks to overturn injunction, calls judge’s decision “astonishing”

In what’s turning into the Toronto restaurant story that just won’t die, Bill Mandelbaum, the new owner of the Queen Street East building that houses The Real Jerk, has sent a note out to Toronto media lamenting the court’s decision to grant the Caribbean restaurant an injunction against its earlier eviction notice. Here’s what he had to say:

TO THE TORONTO READERS

The Courts decision on Monday was surprising and and quite disappointing in the judicial process.

It was obviously based on sentiment, not law.

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Deathwatch

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February 2, 2012 | 10:44 am

The Real Jerk wins the right to stay put (Injunction: 1; Eviction: 0)

(Image: Amber Dawn Pullin)

The eviction saga that cast Real Jerk owners Ed and Lily Pottinger as Davids against Bill Mandelbaum’s Goliath is over (for now, at least). A judge has granted an injunction that will allow the Caribbean restaurant to stay at the corner of Queen Street East and Broadview Avenue until the end of the year, though Ed told reporters he would be looking to move before then: “I just wanted a little more time to relocate, and I now have that. Whatever happens from now on, I’m going to be looking for a new place…hopefully in the neighbourhood.”

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Deathwatch

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January 30, 2012 | 11:19 am
The Real Jerk calls in the lawyers (well, one of them) to fight eviction 

Ever since the The Real Jerk’s new landlord told the Caribbean resto to close up and move on, owners Ed and Lily Pottinger have shown they’re as good at marshalling community sentiment as they are at serving up jerk chicken and roti. First they went the protest and online petition route. Now the pair has hired a lawyer to seek an injunction that would delay the eviction. “I’d prefer to sit back and relax and run my restaurant,” Ed told the Toronto Star, “but if it means it may be taken away from me, you’ve got to get savvy quick and come out swinging.” Lawyer Albert Formosa had better work swiftly—the eviction notice, served by Bill Mandelbaum of Buckingham Properties, tells the restaurateurs to skedaddle by January 31. Which is tomorrow. Read the entire story [Toronto Star] »

Deathwatch

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January 18, 2012 | 4:58 pm

Steve Gonzalez to fill in at Niagara Street Café as owner Anton Potvin readies it for sale

Steve Gonzalez and Nick Liu at the What’s on the Table fundraiser for the Stop (Image: Jenna Marie Wakani)

Last week we reported that Nick Liu is leaving Niagara Street Café to open his own place, an Asian brasserie. As it turns out, he’s not gone quite yet—he’ll be manning the stoves until January 29, at which point he makes way for Top Chef Canada contestant Steve Gonzalez, who’s filled in for Liu at the café on several occasions in the past. But the bigger news is that after owning the quiet restaurant off the main King Street strip for almost eight years, Anton Potvin is casting about for buyers.

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Deathwatch

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January 16, 2012 | 12:19 pm

The Real Jerk fights closure with protest and online petition

(Image: Amber Dawn Pullin)

After Riverside landmark The Real Jerk announced it was being forced to close its doors (as a result of its building being sold), it didn’t take long for the restaurant’s many fans to speak out, hoping against hope that their beloved oxtail might be saved. This weekend, owners Ed and Lily Pottinger launched a campaign to protest the closure, urging diners to share their experiences at the Caribbean eatery and to sign the following petition (h/t The Grid):

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Deathwatch

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January 11, 2012 | 11:32 am

The Real Jerk, Riverside’s cult favourite Jamaican restaurant, gets an eviction notice

(Image: The Real Jerk)

The iconic smiling sun that’s shone down on the corner of Queen Street East and Broadview Avenue for the last 22 years is about to set—and soon. Over Christmas, the building that houses The Real Jerk was sold to Bill Mandelbaum of Buckingham Properties, and rumour has it the restaurant is slated for demolition to make way for yet another condo development. Sure, it always seemed a little cheesy, and it stuck out a little in dreary grey wintertime, but the gaudy corrugated tin mural and beaming sun (the latter painted by Jamaican artist Tony Green) is a true Riverside landmark.

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Deathwatch

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January 9, 2012 | 12:19 pm

Danforth fixture The Cook’s Place to pack it in after 14 years

(Image: The Cook’s Place)

After supplying Toronto with coveted Japanese knives, top-of-the-line cookware and innumerable last-minute foodie gifts for 14 years, Barbara Ackerman, owner of The Cook’s Place, is shuttering her Danforth Avenue fixture for good in order to spend more time with her five-month-old grandchild. “Running this shop has made me a part of so many families in the neighbourhood,” she told us. “What I sell is about feeding the family, and to be able to share that with my customers has been incredible.”

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Deathwatch

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December 23, 2011 | 10:33 am

Roncesvalles staple Granowska’s Bakery to serve its last paczki at the end of the month

Granowska’s has presided over the corner of Roncesvalles and Fern for 39 years (Image: Joey deVilla)

On the morning of Thursday, June 13, 1972, after three straight days of baking, Elizabeth Klodas and her mother Maria opened the doors to Granowska’s Bakery on Roncesvalles, which they named after the family bakery they left behind in Poland. “That first day, we sold out in five hours,” she told us. “We were both so happy but then started crying when we realized we had to start baking all over again! We thought we had baked enough to last the weekend!” Now, after nearly 40 years in business, the bakery will be closing its doors for good at the end of the month.

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December 5, 2011 | 5:12 pm

Carlos Hernandez shutters Inigo, the churrasqueira in Igor Kenk’s infamous bike shop

(Image: Jon Sufrin)

After just under a year in business, it seems that Inigo, the churrasqueira at the foot of Trinity Bellwoods Park, has shut its doors. Owner and chef Carlos Hernandez told Now’s Steven Davey that problems with his landlord were partly to blame, as were difficulties sourcing quality free-range chicken. Being across from the park didn’t help in the way of foot traffic either, apparently. And sadly, it doesn’t look like Hernandez will be opening another restaurant any time soon. Read the entire article [Now] »

Deathwatch

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November 23, 2011 | 3:38 pm
Liberty Belle Bistro shuts its doors 

Diners phoning in to make a reservation at Liberty Belle Bistro have been met for a few weeks now with a recording saying the restaurant is temporarily closed. Over at The Grid, Karon Liu confirms that Aidan Pascoe’s little oasis of French cooking is unfortunately closed for good due to “personal health issues.” While Liberty Belle’s run was extremely short (it only opened back in February), it had already gained quite a following in Liberty Village, which our reviewer pointed out can sometimes feel like “the Bermuda Triangle of cooking.” Read the entire story [The Grid] »

Deathwatch

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November 18, 2011 | 5:48 pm

Rising rents on Queen East push out Red Rocket Coffee, which is moving to the Danforth instead

(Image: Amber Dawn Pullin)

Leslieville’s Red Rocket Coffee has been forced to close up shop after its landlord doubled the rent to $49 per square foot. Co-owner Liako Dertilis says the response from his regulars has been immediate. “The TTC guys across the street are livid,” he told us, referring to the workers at the nearby streetcar yard. The news, however, isn’t all bad. Along with his business partners, Dertilis signed a lease late this afternoon for a new location at 1364 Danforth Avenue, near Coxwell. Although Red Rocket’s new home will be a similar size, Dertilis says it won’t be the same. “We have to leave our extended family—that is, our customers,” he said. “These are the people who come into the store, and we hug them… We feel like we’ve been robbed of that.” The Wellesley Street location is unaffected.

Deathwatch

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August 23, 2011 | 9:14 am
Midtown’s Lai Toh Heen to close in September 

Metropolitan Hotels put out a press release yesterday afternoon announcing that Lai Toh Heen, the cheaper Davisville cousin of downtown’s acclaimed dim sum temple Lai Wah Heen, will be closing for good on Sept. 18 of this year. “Lai Toh Heen has seen many successes in the past five years and now it’s time to take what we’ve learned and apply this culinary knowledge to our other restaurants,” said Metropolitan president Henry Wu in the release. No word yet on what might replace the midtown favourite.

Deathwatch

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May 30, 2011 | 1:22 pm

City’s average burger price plummets with closure of M:brgr’s King West location

(Image: Jon Sufrin)

On Tuesday, we heard through the grapevine from Montreal food journalist Lesley Chesterman that the Toronto location of M:brgr, home of the $100 burger, had closed. At the end of last week, we received confirmation from M:brgr’s Toronto PR firm that the rumours are true, and founder and owner Jeff Dichter has confirmed that the Toronto location has “ceased operations” and will remain closed.

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Deathwatch

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April 21, 2011 | 6:12 pm

It’s official: Duggan’s Brewery has served its last pint

(Image: Danielle Scott)

Not long ago, it seemed as though brew and gastropubs were on the rise in Toronto, but a couple of recent closures are giving us pause. While My Place’s failure might be attributed to its west end location and size, many are shocked to hear that downtown brew pub Duggan’s Brewery has also shut its doors.

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Deathwatch

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March 29, 2011 | 2:33 pm

Yorkville’s redesign kicks street food vendors off the curb

A hot dog vendor at the safer location of College and St. George (Image: Alfred Ng from TorontoLife.com Flickr Pool)

The costly Bloor Street Transformation Project (BSTP) may have added flowerpots, trees and benches to the widened granite sidewalks on Bloor Street between Yonge and Avenue, but it’s also become yet another reason why Toronto’s street food industry is floundering. Apparently the Yorkville renovation left no room for several street vendors, forcing out eight hot dog stands (some of which have operated in the area for 15 to 20 years), two retailers and an ice cream truck.

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