Introducing: The Dog and Bear, the traditional British pub that took over from The Social

By Renée Suen | June 20, 2012

By Renée Suen | 06/20/2012

A view of the busy pub during a Euro 2012 match (Image: Renée Suen)

The latest addition to gentrifying Beaconsfield Village is a simple space that’s designed to service the increasing number of residents moving into the area. Opening just in time for Euro 2012, Dog and Bear is a traditional British pub from Richard Lambert and Jesse Girard (Parts and Labour, The Hoxton), along with co-owners Stefan Brogren (yes, that Stefan Brogren), Michael Homewood, Kenny Hotz (yes, that Kenny), Richie Smith, Jamie Webster and Benn Young. The aim: to provide a unintimidating place for neighbourhood folks to hunker down for a drink and watch a game or two. Lambert tells us that the pub was inspired by his father’s similarly named pub in Canterbury, England, and that he’s simultaneously excited and nervous about Lambert senior seeing the space for the first time in August.

All 3,750 square feet of what used to be The Social (Lambert and Girard’s party-centric place) has been revamped: the yellow brick walls have been exposed, the ceiling beams have been restored and there’s a new slate floor. The bar is now on the west wall, outfitted with brass taps, with velvet-laden booths flanking the east wall. The wide space dividing the bar from the booths provides ample room for patrons to gather around the many flat-screen TVs along the 30-foot bar. Among the period pieces decorating the place are vintage English ceramic toby mugs, Victorian-era portraits of the Royal Family, dog and bear drawings, images of Lords Gladstone and Dufferin, a Union Jack and a 1903 “God Save the King” banner. There’s also a private room tucked in the back and a space up front that opens onto Queen Street, furnished with plush red couches from Marty Millionaire.

Being a pub, Dog and Bear has about 20 beers on tap ($5–$8), including a number of Canadian (Creemore, Mill St.) and U.K. (Bass, Newcastle, Boddingtons) brews. Although the emphasis is on beers and ales, cocktail sippers and wine drinkers have a few options to choose from ($7-$12) as well. While Smith takes care of the front of house, chef Andrew Eade (Splendido, Luma, Scaramouche) heads up the back, serving hand-crafted pub food. Snacks range from curry-flavoured crisps ($3) to battered pickles ($4) and Welsh rarebit ($6). Heartier courses like the ploughman’s board ($15), smoked corn and haddock chowder ($6), chicken curry ($12) and bangers and mash ($12) are all nods to British classics, served with a Torontonian touch that includes local heirloom vegetables and herbs from Eade’s garden. The kitchen is open every day from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., serving lunch, brunch and dinner fare; those looking for the hearty Full English ($12) will be happy to note that it’s available until 3 p.m. daily.

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Summer trifle ($6): simple lemon syrup–soaked sponge cake with lemon curd, fresh berries, poached rhubarb and whipped cream. The composition changes with the season

An inside look at the juicy D&B Burger ($14), which comes with fries or salad. The patty is made from ground chuck, brisket and hanger steak from The Butcher Shoppe

D&B Burger ($14): a juicy medium-rare patty sandwiched between crisp bacon, lettuce, tomato and mayonnaise in a toasted bun. The burger comes with fries or salad (cheese, $2 extra)

Ploughman’s board ($15): aged applewood-smoked cheddar (from England), cured meats, a hardboiled egg, curried cauliflower florets and house-pickled carrots and beets. Butter, triple crunch mustard, pickles, chutney and sliced breads round out the platter

Crispy battered pickles ($4): spears of mildly tart pickles are battered, fried and served with a dill-laced sour cream. The light and airy beer batter is based on Heston Blumenthal’s recipe

House crisps ($3): fried in-house and available in both salt and vinegar or curry (pictured) flavours

English garden salad ($9): just-cooked new potatoes, beans, cheddar, beets, pickled shallots in a honey mustard dressing. The herbs (mint, nasturtiums) on the plate come from Eade’s personal garden

Smoked corn and haddock chowder ($6): with hearty bits of line-caught haddock from Fisherfolk, nuggets of sweet corn and lime, seasoned with a five-Mexican-chili blend

The space by the window allows for people watching if sports is not your thing

A private room tucked in the northwest corner of the pub is available for parties and other gatherings

Various Victorian-era portraits of the Royal Family are found behind the bar

Various dog and bear figurines, busts and drawings are also found in the room

Vintage English ceramic toby mugs are some of the knickknacks decorating the space

According to Lambert this wide alley is a common feature of pubs in the UK that not only provides staff room to manoeuvre around the tables but also ample standing room for patrons watching sports

Plush red couches trimmed with carved wood from Marty millionaire surround a low table made from a 100-year old dolly that was found at The Hoxton

The front Queen St. facing end of the dining room, furnished with vintage pieces from Marty Millionaire. The area is slightly quieter than the rest of the pub and has a window that opens up completely to the street for nearly al fresco dining.

A view of the busy pub during a Euro 2012 match

The Dog and Bear’s sign is a direct replica of the original Dog and Bear pub owned by Lambert’s father in Canterbury, England

The Dog and Bear, 1100 Queen St. W., 647-352-8601, dogandbear.ca, @thedogandbear

9 thoughts on “Introducing: The Dog and Bear, the traditional British pub that took over from The Social”

hop says:

June 20, 2012 at 9:35 pm

Great to see a burger in Toronto served medium rare.
Bill Harrod III says:

June 20, 2012 at 9:38 pm

Ah! Burgers, Fries and Beer…..must be a Toronto restaurant! The difference here is the sloppy design will attract the sloppy people. To each his own.
wine says:

June 21, 2012 at 10:43 am

food was terrible.
Nicole says:

June 21, 2012 at 11:48 am

Great place to hang out!!
cindy says:

June 21, 2012 at 12:12 pm

food is shit
JJDD says:

June 21, 2012 at 4:31 pm

Looks a bit cheap, really…
The exposed brick/beams/vents doesn’t suit this ‘English Pub’ style place. Guess I’ll have to check it out in the flesh to be sure, but so far, not too excited.
1000songs says:

June 26, 2012 at 10:34 am

Awful. Truly awful.
pussy says:

July 11, 2012 at 4:21 pm

when will this fake english pub open when will kenny hotz drop in?
pussy says:

July 11, 2012 at 4:47 pm

who cares if the pub is built cheep the main thing is if the food is good I looked at the food and it looks pretty dorn good to me the people that left comments that the foods terible must not like english food and must be very fussy eaters.

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Introducing: The Dog and Bear, the traditional British pub that took over from The Social

9 thoughts on “Introducing: The Dog and Bear, the traditional British pub that took over from The Social”

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