This popular barbecue restaurant finally opened a second location

For 15 years, Barque Smokehouse has been holding court on Roncesvalles, serving up brisket, baby back ribs, and pimento mac and cheese to west-end families and barbecue devotees. Now—after years of hearing, “When are you opening closer to me?"—chef and owner David Neinstein has finally given the people what they want: a midtown location.

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Now open in Wychwood, on St. Clair just west of Bathurst, Barque 2.0 didn’t just move into a vacant storefront—it partnered with XO Bisous, the neighbourhood’s beloved pâtisserie and brunch spot. The café is owned by Genna Steckel, who trained at France’s prestigious École Nationale Supérieure de la Pâtisserie (oh là là) and brings a serious pastry pedigree to the collaboration.

“I had been looking for the right midtown spot for nearly two years,” says Neinstein. “Genna and I had some mutual friends who knew she wanted to extend her daytime business into evenings, so they introduced us.”

But this isn’t a case of two independent businesses simply sharing a roof. According to Neinstein, Barque and XO Bisous are officially married. “Both of my locations are benefiting from better desserts, house-made buns and all around more reliable production.” For now, though, the new location has a bit of an edge: all-you-can-eat ribs on Sundays and wings on Wednesdays.

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“I grew up in midtown Toronto, and I went to St. Louis for all-you-can-eat wings on Tuesday nights. This is an homage to that, but with the alliteration,” he says. It’s a fitting way to introduce Barque to a neighbourhood that has already demonstrated a healthy obsession with barbecue—as anyone who’s encountered the regular sold-out signs at nearby Golden Horseshoe Barbecue can attest.