Fifteen blasphemous brunch dishes that put boring eggs Benny to shame
Fifteen blasphemous brunch dishes that put boring eggs Benny to shame
By Caroline Aksich | February 27, 2015
By Caroline Aksich | 02/27/2015
Barque’s smoked-duck pancakes. (Image: Caroline Aksich)
In this city, brunching has become a competitive sport: groggy early birds who show up even before restaurants open snag prime tables, while those who refuse to rise with the sun suffer through 45-minute waits, sometimes in sub-zero temperatures. For the most part, boring beige flapjacks aren’t causing the frenzy; instead, it’s belt-busting brunch plates featuring the likes of frogs legs and foie gras that are driving Toronto’s mid-morning meal mania. Here are 15 of the most epic and unholy brunch creations from around town in order of just how over-the-top they are.
307869 Mildred's Temple Kitchen https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/mildreds-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/mildreds-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/mildreds-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/mildreds-toronto-restaurants/ mildreds-toronto-restaurants 0 0
Mildred’s Temple Kitchen
307862 <br />
Emma's Country Kitchen https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/emmas-country-kitchen-toronto-restaurants-02-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/emmas-country-kitchen-toronto-restaurants-02.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/emmas-country-kitchen-toronto-restaurants-02.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/emmas-country-kitchen-toronto-restaurants-02/ emmas-country-kitchen-toronto-restaurants-02 0 0
Emma’s Country Kitchen
307866 lil baci https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/lil-baci-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/lil-baci-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/lil-baci-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/lil-baci-toronto-restaurants/ lil-baci-toronto-restaurants 0 0
307872 The Dirty Bird, only served on Sundays at <strong>Stockyards</strong> and accompanied by a strict no-alterations policy, means business. A savoury Belgian waffle is topped with buttermilk-fried chicken, then drowned in sausage gravy, and the whole thing is crowned with a sunny-side up egg. ($14)<br />
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<em>699 St. Clair Ave. W., 416-658-9666</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/stockyards-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/stockyards-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/stockyards-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/stockyards-toronto-restaurants/ stockyards-toronto-restaurants 0 0
307860 For their brunchy take on duck confit cassoulet, <strong>The County General</strong> take maple-baked beans that are applewood-smoked for six to eight hours and throw a poached egg on top. ($14) <br />
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<em>936 Queen St. W., 416-531-4447</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/county-general-toronto-restaurants-02-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/county-general-toronto-restaurants-02.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/county-general-toronto-restaurants-02.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/county-general-toronto-restaurants-02/ county-general-toronto-restaurants-02 0 0
307857 <strong>Barque</strong>'s smoked-duck pancakes are topped with reduced wild blueberries and whipped chèvre, making for a sweet, smoky, tart and tangy stack. ($14)<br />
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<em>299 Roncesvalles Ave., 416-532-7700</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/barque-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/barque-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/barque-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/barque-toronto-restaurants/ barque-toronto-restaurants 0 0
307873 It’s hard to imagine an astronaut noshing on anything but freeze-dried grub, so after weeks of eating anemic space food, it makes sense that space-walkers will over-indulge back on Earth. When Chris Hadfield visited <strong>The Federal</strong>, he ordered the most decadent plate on its brunch menu: french toast topped with foie gras, bacon and Medjool dates, and smeared with almond butter—a dish inspired by Devils on Horseback. ($19)<br />
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<em>1438 Dundas St. W., 647-352-9120</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/the-federal-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/the-federal-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/the-federal-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/the-federal-toronto-restaurants/ the-federal-toronto-restaurants 0 0
307865 <strong>La Cubana</strong>'s chorizo empanada is more like a flaky, Parisian galette than the chewy, moon-shaped pockets you're used to microwaving. The pastry is stuffed with house-made chorizo mixed with sofrito, olives and capers, then topped with champagne vinegar–pickled raisins and a pair of poached eggs. ($14) <br />
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<em>392 Roncesvalles Ave., 416-538-7500</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/la-cubana-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/la-cubana-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/la-cubana-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/la-cubana-toronto-restaurants-2/ la-cubana-toronto-restaurants-2 0 0
307858 Big Crow's whisky banana bread. https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/big-crow-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/big-crow-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/big-crow-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/big-crow-toronto-restaurants/ big-crow-toronto-restaurants 0 0
Big Crow’s whisky banana bread.
307864 For their crab madame—inspired by but not to be confused with a croque madame—<strong>The Hole in the Wall</strong> takes a hearty hunk of crusty French bread and loads it with shredded crab mixed with house mayo. The open-faced sandwich then gets a lick of béchamel and a quick broil before being topped with a sunny-side-up egg and a tomato slice. ($15) <br />
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<em>2867 Dundas St. W., 647-350-3564</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/hole-in-the-wall-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/hole-in-the-wall-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/hole-in-the-wall-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/hole-in-the-wall-toronto-restaurants/ hole-in-the-wall-toronto-restaurants 0 0
307868 <strong>Mata</strong>'s guava poutine is a beast of a bowl that hits all the hallmarks of traditional poutine—except that the potatoes are swapped out for cassava, the starchy root veggie. After a good boiling and frying, the fries are creamy on the inside and crispy on the outside. The dish is then topped with pulled pork that's been drowned in guava BBQ sauce, and two poached eggs smothered in hollandaise push it all over the edge. ($16) <br />
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<em>1690 Queen St. W., 647-691-0234</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/mata-bar-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/mata-bar-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/mata-bar-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/mata-bar-toronto-restaurants/ mata-bar-toronto-restaurants 0 0
307863 Over at <strong>The Farmer's Daughter</strong>, Thai frog legs are lightly poached in an herbaceous milk bath. Kermit then gets a splash of buttermilk before being dredged through paprika-spiked flour. After a quick swim in the deep fryer, the not-so-teeny gams hit the plate atop a buckwheat waffle. A pat of butter, infused with maple syrup and pinot noir, finishes the plate. And that's how you make frog waffles. ($12)<br />
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<em>1588 Dupont St., 416-546-0626</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/farmers-daughter-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/farmers-daughter-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/farmers-daughter-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/farmers-daughter-toronto-restaurants/ farmers-daughter-toronto-restaurants 0 0
307897 <strong>Bar Buca</strong> does traditional Tuscan pig's blood crêpes, but instead of plain vanilla sugar as a garnish, they're slathered with a liquour-spiked chocolate ganache and crème anglaise. On the side: a single espresso-poached fig. ($10)<br />
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<em>75 Portland St., 416-599-2822</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/bar-buca-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/bar-buca-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/bar-buca-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/bar-buca-toronto-restaurants-2/ bar-buca-toronto-restaurants-2 0 0
307871 For Chinese-Jamaican restaurant <strong>Patois</strong>'s patty big benny, mash-up-happy chef Craig Wong takes two plump Jamaican patties—stuffed with ground chuck that's been flavoured with allspice and scotch bonnet—then adds crispy mortadella, poached eggs and a buttery hollandaise on top of it all. ($13)<br />
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<em>794 Dundas St. W., 647-350-8999</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/patois-toronto-restaurants-02-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/patois-toronto-restaurants-02.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/patois-toronto-restaurants-02.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/patois-toronto-restaurants-02/ patois-toronto-restaurants-02 0 0
307867 <strong>Lisa Marie</strong>'s double pancake pork burger is the ultimate junk-food love child: a Big Mac meets a McGriddle. Two griddled pork burgers topped with melted American cheese come sandwiched between a trio of hotcakes. The double decker is then layered with iceberg lettuce, tomatoes and a not-so-secret sauce: Thousand Island dressing. ($14) <br />
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<em>638 Queen St. W., 647-748-6822</em> https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/lisa-marie-toronto-restaurants-150x150.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/lisa-marie-toronto-restaurants.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/02/lisa-marie-toronto-restaurants.jpg 1200 800 [] https://torontolife.com/food/fifteen-blasphemous-brunch-dishes-put-boring-eggs-benny-shame/slide/lisa-marie-toronto-restaurants/ lisa-marie-toronto-restaurants 0 0
Really? Not one vegan brunch option? Get with the program.
The title is “blasphemous brunch dishes” so if you think vegan cuisine is extreme then please jump in a lake
Emma’s Country Kitchen’s Cinnamon Bun Pancakes look pretty darn vegetarian to me – perhaps not vegan, but I didn’t see a whiff of an animal anywhere near them! Just saying.