What’s on the menu at Archie’s, a new retro-inspired restaurant inside the Broadview Hotel

Name: Archie’s Contact: 106 Broadview Ave., archiesto.com, @archiestoronto Neighbourhood: Riverside
Owners: Archive Hospitality Chef: Artem Shcherbina Accessibility: Fully accessible

Riding the wave of Toronto’s appetite for casual nostalgia-driven restaurants, Archie’s is the latest spot bringing throwback vibes to the east end. More pub than diner, it replaces bougie bistro the Civic (which replaced Jilly’s strip club) on the main level of the Broadview Hotel.

Related: Seven new diners for breakfast, lunch, dinner and late-night drinks

To honour the landmark building’s storied past, the restaurant is named after entrepreneur Archibald Dingman, who built the property in 1891. Dingman’s Hall, as it was then called, was a pillar of the community and a lively gathering place. Archie’s is hoping to take up this mantle once more.

“We visited all the restaurants the community really loves in this area—Eastside Social, the Comrade, Maple Leaf Tavern—to hone in on what we wanted Archie’s to be. They all have a warm, comforting, inviting feel to them that we wanted to emulate here,” says Chapman.

Related: Where the Drake Hotel’s executive chef eats in Leslieville and Riverside

The Food

A large roster of burgers (two smash, five traditional) and staple comfort foods form the core of the menu, flanked by a few salads and some elevated takes on pub classics like steak frites, fish and chips, and chicken supreme. A selection of sharable finger foods includes corn ribs, chicken wings, reuben croquettes and nacho fries.

“Chef Artem and I spent quite a bit of time—and gained quite a bit of weight—going around to all the best-known burger spots,” says Chapman. “We found inspiration in everything from the Comrade to Rudy’s. That’s the thing about burgers: there’s such a wide range of what people like and don’t like. That’s why we have so many on the menu. There’s a burger for everyone here.”

“I’m originally from Russia, and my mother is Jewish,” says Shcherbina. “She cooks a lot at home. She’s a big inspiration behind the bold flavours that sing in your mouth that I use throughout the menu. The area I’m from is close to Armenia, Georgia, Turkey and the Black Sea. It’s a mountainous region, and we use a lot of herbs from the mountains in our cooking. So at Archie’s I’ve created a house-made spice blend for every dish. Each one is different.”

The Drinks

The unpretentious drink menu starts with playful signature and classic cocktails, some of which reference the building’s illustrious past. There’s a concise wine list and a heavy focus on local craft beer in cans, in bottles and on tap.

“The beer was important to me,” says Chapman. “There are so many great craft breweries in the east end—Rorschach, Left Field, Lost Craft, Common Good—and they all provided a robust selection of fantastic beers.”

Some zero-proof options and beer cocktails (a shandy and a michelada) round out the beverages. There’s also Archie’s-branded beer and wine: a crisp ale, a chardonnay and a cab-merlot blend made by Vineland Estates Winery.

The Space

The 60-seat dining room is decked out with a retro photo booth, a jukebox, a pool table and vintage signage. “You kind of feel like, if you were here 50 or 60 years ago, it would look similar,” says Chapman. “People love an opportunity to mark the moment, so the photo booth is a way to connect. Sure, you could take a photo on your phone, but this forces you into a booth with another person or two or three people. It’s a fun little interactive thing. Same goes for the pool table—it’s been nice to see strangers interacting with each other, asking if they can play together.”