Introducing: Linwood Essentials, the stylish new speakeasy near Trinity Bellwoods
(Image: Jackie Pal)
Name: Linwood Essentials
Contact Info: 930 Queen St W., linwoodessentials.com, @Linwood_TO
Previously: Yours Truly spin-off A-OK Foods
Neighbourhood: Trinity Bellwoods
Owner: Jake Valianes
Chef: Ryan Law, who staged at famous Spanish restaurants Tapas 24 and Arzac
The Drinks: Linwood Essentials is run by cocktail enthusiast Jake Valianes, a former bartender who spent a year traveling and tasting cocktails before turning his research into a business. His cocktail menu lists 24 drinks, some of which are rather unusual—a cocktail called “Lunch,” for instance, blends cream cheese infused Amaro with whiskey and black garlic bitters, while the “Artisanal Middle Finger” includes both green chartreuse and a syrup made out of super-concentrated PBR (it’s served in a mason jar and garnished with an orange-rind mustache and a pair of knock-off Ray Bans). Experimental syrups abound, including a particularly mysterious one called “Indian takeout.”
The Food: Chef Ryan Law draws much of his menu inspiration from Spanish tapas. This isn’t traditional European cuisine by any means, though. Law’s deep-fried potato bombas are designed to replicate the flavour profile of a fast-food cheeseburger, and his super-rich foie gras risotto comes topped with shredded duck and maple-glazed popcorn.
The Place: A-OK’s punchy teal picnic benches and shingled walls have been replaced with sleek leather banquettes and mod chandeliers. A few decorative details speak to the Prohibition theme, like the old-fashioned library lamps lining the bar and the marquee-style signage spelling out the word “repeal”—a reference to the end of Prohibition in 1933.
287923 <strong>Linwood Essentials</strong> has taken over the second-floor space near Queen and Shaw that used to house <strong>A-OK Foods.</strong> (Image: Jackie Pal) Introducing: Linwood Essentials https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/1_Exterior_linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/1_Exterior_linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/1_Exterior_linwood.jpg 667 1001 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/1_exterior_linwood/ 1_exterior_linwood 0 0
(Image: Jackie Pal)
287922 https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/2_Exterior2_Linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/2_Exterior2_Linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/2_Exterior2_Linwood.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/2_exterior2_linwood/ 2_exterior2_linwood 0 0
287921 A-OK's teal picnic benches and shingled walls have been replaced with a long bar and sleek leather banquettes. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/3_InteriorA_linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/3_InteriorA_linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/3_InteriorA_linwood.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/3_interiora_linwood/ 3_interiora_linwood 0 0
287920 The back bar stocks over 150 types of booze. (In keeping with the Prohibition theme, there are also various secret compartments.) https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/4_InteriorB_Linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/4_InteriorB_Linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/4_InteriorB_Linwood.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/4_interiorb_linwood/ 4_interiorb_linwood 0 0
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287914 <em>Bombas</em> are a classic Spanish tapas dish made with potato and beef. The Linwood version is stuffed with melted cheese and served over roasted garlic habanero aioli ($8). https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/10_Bombas_Linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/10_Bombas_Linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/10_Bombas_Linwood.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/10_bombas_linwood/ 10_bombas_linwood 0 0
287913 Smoked Norwegian salmon is served on ciabatta toasts with spinach cream and tobiko ($9). https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/11_Salmon_Linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/11_Salmon_Linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/11_Salmon_Linwood.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/11_salmon_linwood/ 11_salmon_linwood 0 0
287912 Fried eggplant is drizzled with honey and served on a bed of arugula with goat cheese and pickled shallots ($8). https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/12_Eggplant_linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/12_Eggplant_linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/12_Eggplant_linwood.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/12_eggplant_linwood/ 12_eggplant_linwood 0 0
287910 Catalan fried chicken is served with toasted almonds and a decadent prune and brandy sauce ($11). https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/14_Friedchicken_linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/14_Friedchicken_linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/14_Friedchicken_linwood.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/14_friedchicken_linwood/ 14_friedchicken_linwood 0 0
287911 A true French, Italian and American mash-up, the duck and foie gras risotto comes topped with crunchy maple glazed popcorn ($13) https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/13_FoieGrois_Linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/13_FoieGrois_Linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/13_FoieGrois_Linwood.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/13_foiegrois_linwood/ 13_foiegrois_linwood 0 0
287918 “The Artisanal Middle Finger,” a mix of green chartreuse, mescal and PBR syrup, comes accessorized with knock-off Ray Bans and an orange rind mustache ($15). https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/6_PBR_Linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/6_PBR_Linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/6_PBR_Linwood.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/6_pbr_linwood/ 6_pbr_linwood 0 0
287915 The “Riding through a Live Minefield on a Bicycle Built for two” combines chili-infused whiskey and fresh apples ($14). https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/9_apple_linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/9_apple_linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/9_apple_linwood.jpg 667 1001 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/9_apple_linwood/ 9_apple_linwood 0 0
287916 “Dr. V’s Magical Quick Fixer Elixir” is a bubbly cocktail spiked with herbal bitters called Becherovka ($15). https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/8_elixir_linwood-200x200.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/8_elixir_linwood.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/08/8_elixir_linwood.jpg 1000 667 [] https://torontolife.com/food/linwood-essentials-toronto-restaurants/slide/8_elixir_linwood/ 8_elixir_linwood 0 0
The bomba is actually a Catalan tapa (even though tapas are a southern Spanish thing) invented in Barcelona at a little place called La Cova Fumada.
http://chefmasterclasses.com/2011/11/bomba-catalan-potato-bomb-with-chorizo/
This place is great. Drinks were fantastic and well priced considering the complexity of some of them, and the bartenders were top notch.
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