Introducing: Hey Meatball, the new Leslieville location of the mix ’n match meatball shop
Name: Hey Meatball
Contact Info: 912 Queen St. E., 647-340-6439, heymeatball.com
Neighbourhood: Leslieville
Owner and Chef: Rodney Bowers, former owner of The Rosebud, who also owns Hey in Roncesvalles and Hey Meatball on College Street
The Food: Meatballs and sides. Customers can design their own sandwiches, pastas and plates by choosing from a menu of balls, sauces and starches. Some combos are suggested, like The Rodfather, a pork meatball sandwich with Bolognese, pesto and Parmesan. Delivery will be available by 2014.
The Drinks: House-made cream soda, ginger ale and lemon-lime pop. A liquor license is in the works.
The Place: A cheerful, family-friendly diner with 27 bright red seats and a wall-spanning photo of three adorable, spaghetti-eating kids. A Boeing B-54 model airplane hangs enticingly from the ceiling.
The Numbers:
• 4 balls: chicken, beef, pork and vegan
• 5 sauces: tomato, Bolognese, pesto, mushroom and cheese
• 6 sides: spaghetti, elbow macaroni, rigatoni, mashed potatoes, polenta and brown rice
• 7 days a week for lunch and dinner
243217 Hey Meatball is located on Queen East, at Logan Introducing: Hey Meatball Leslieville https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A001-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A001.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A001.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/hey-meatball-leslieville-toronto-restaurants/slide/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a001/ hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a001 0 0
Hey Meatball is located on Queen East, at Logan
243218 Bowers inherited the vintage B-54 model airplane from a friend (Image: Renée Suen) Introducing: Hey Meatball Leslieville https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A002-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A002.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A002.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/hey-meatball-leslieville-toronto-restaurants/slide/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a002/ hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a002 0 0
(Image: Renée Suen)
243219 Owner Rodney Bowers’s daughter, Abby (left), was the inspiration behind the family-friendly restaurant (Image: Renée Suen) Introducing: Hey Meatball Leslieville https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A003-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A003.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A003.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/hey-meatball-leslieville-toronto-restaurants/slide/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a003/ hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a003 0 0
(Image: Renée Suen)
243220 For $13, customers can mix and match from a menu of balls, sauces and starches. The popular Rodfather sandwich comes on ciabatta with Bolognese, pesto and Parmesan (Image: Renée Suen) Introducing: Hey Meatball Leslieville https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A004-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A004.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A004.jpg 656 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/hey-meatball-leslieville-toronto-restaurants/slide/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a004/ hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a004 0 0
(Image: Renée Suen)
243221 Spaghetti and meatballs (Image: Renée Suen) Introducing: Hey Meatball Leslieville https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A005-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A005.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A005.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/hey-meatball-leslieville-toronto-restaurants/slide/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a005/ hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a005 0 0
(Image: Renée Suen)
243222 House-made cream soda ($3) (Image: Renée Suen) Introducing: Hey Meatball Leslieville https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A006-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A006.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-A006.jpg 667 1000 [] https://torontolife.com/food/hey-meatball-leslieville-toronto-restaurants/slide/hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a006/ hey-meatball-toronto-restaurants-a006 0 0
(Image: Renée Suen)