What’s on the menu at Hot Pork, a new deli counter serving sandwiches and house-made charcuterie
Also: poutine topped with local curds and gravy made using drippings from the smoked brisket and pork belly
More New Restaurants
Name: Hot Pork
Contact: 932 Dundas St. W., @hotpork.to
Neighbourhood: Trinity Bellwoods
Chef-owner: Michael Synowicki
Accessibility: Step at entrance
By 2020, Michael Synowicki had been working his way through the ranks of the country’s high-end hotel kitchens for nearly two decades. He most recently held the position of sous-chef at the King Edward, where he had free creative reign to build menus and employ recipes that were far from your standard hotel fare. Then the pandemic hit. “I was on a defined career path of becoming an executive chef,” says Synowicki. “But then Covid happened, and all I was doing was executive-cheffing for my wife and roommate.”
Related: This is Toronto’s hottest new destination for steak sandwiches
About a year into the pandemic, Synowicki was running out of money, but he still had a mortgage to pay, so he knew he had to pivot. He turned to his childhood for inspiration. “When I was growing up, my dad owned a fine foods store on Yonge Street. I used to help him and my grandma make all kinds of sausages over the holidays and for special occasions. It occurred to me that—at a time when people were looking for special items to eat at home because restaurants were closed—I could start a business making and selling my own nitrate-free, filler-free and uniquely flavoured sausages.”
Synowicki named his business Chef Michael’s Gourmet and took to social media to peddle his house-made and -smoked sausages, brisket and salmon. In the beginning, he also delivered all the orders himself. As his business took off, he started running pop-ups at places including Tulip Variety and Escape Goat (both now closed, unfortunately), where he would grill meat and make sandwiches to order. But it wasn’t until he landed a regular stall at the Junction Farmers Market last summer that he knew he had something special. “I had lineups every week,” he says. “Eventually, I decided I needed a permanent store to build a menu around my products.” And Hot Pork—the only business on its Trinity Bellwoods block with an industrial smoker in the laneway—is just that.
The food
An expansive to-go menu of raw sausages and various other house-made meats in globally influenced flavours (like the Korean gochujang sausage burger or the Maltese sausage) as well as jarred soup, pâtés, pickles and pickled eggs. The hot menu includes fast food–inspired (but very much elevated) sandwiches for breakfast and lunch, plus decadent poutine made using drippings from the smoker parked outside.
The drinks
Synowicki is working on a liquor licence so he can serve local craft beer and wine (selected by his father, who owns a wine distribution company). For now, there’s a range of Coca-Cola and San Pellegrino products as well as Ting, a nostalgic favourite for Synowicki, who grew up drinking it on Friday nights when his family would get West Indian takeout for dinner.
The space
The whitewashed and light-filled space is outfitted with a refrigerated display case and a freezer full of goods, plus a few tables for anyone who can’t wait to get home to eat their sandwich. Decorating the walls: a faux-magnetic menu board and some framed slow-exposure photos taken by Synowicki’s artist wife, Jennie Suddick.
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Name: Hot Pork
Contact: 932 Dundas St. W., @hotpork.to
Neighbourhood: Trinity Bellwoods
Chef-owner: Michael Synowicki
Accessibility: Step at entrance
By 2020, Michael Synowicki had been working his way through the ranks of the country’s high-end hotel kitchens for nearly two decades. He most recently held the position of sous-chef at the King Edward, where he had free creative reign to build menus and employ recipes that were far from your standard hotel fare. Then the pandemic hit. “I was on a defined career path of becoming an executive chef,” says Synowicki. “But then Covid happened, and all I was doing was executive-cheffing for my wife and roommate.”
Related: This is Toronto’s hottest new destination for steak sandwiches
[caption id="attachment_643973" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] Cook Jailen Smith (left) with chef and owner Michael Synowicki[/caption]
About a year into the pandemic, Synowicki was running out of money, but he still had a mortgage to pay, so he knew he had to pivot. He turned to his childhood for inspiration. “When I was growing up, my dad owned a fine foods store on Yonge Street. I used to help him and my grandma make all kinds of sausages over the holidays and for special occasions. It occurred to me that—at a time when people were looking for special items to eat at home because restaurants were closed—I could start a business making and selling my own nitrate-free, filler-free and uniquely flavoured sausages.”
Synowicki named his business Chef Michael’s Gourmet and took to social media to peddle his house-made and -smoked sausages, brisket and salmon. In the beginning, he also delivered all the orders himself. As his business took off, he started running pop-ups at places including Tulip Variety and Escape Goat (both now closed, unfortunately), where he would grill meat and make sandwiches to order. But it wasn’t until he landed a regular stall at the Junction Farmers Market last summer that he knew he had something special. “I had lineups every week," he says. "Eventually, I decided I needed a permanent store to build a menu around my products.” And Hot Pork—the only business on its Trinity Bellwoods block with an industrial smoker in the laneway—is just that.
Related: What’s on the menu at La Bella Sangweech, a new place for stacked Italian sandwiches in Little Italy
The food
An expansive to-go menu of raw sausages and various other house-made meats in globally influenced flavours (like the Korean gochujang sausage burger or the Maltese sausage) as well as jarred soup, pâtés, pickles and pickled eggs. The hot menu includes fast food–inspired (but very much elevated) sandwiches for breakfast and lunch, plus decadent poutine made using drippings from the smoker parked outside.
[caption id="attachment_643969" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] The various components of the BBQ Combo Sandwich—house-smoked brisket, pork belly, a fried egg and an English muffin—sizzle on the flat-top[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_643961" align="aligncenter" width="1500"] The finished product is dressed with classic melty American cheese, barbecue sauce, hot sauce and mayo. $16[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_643958" align="aligncenter" width="1500"] The smoked pork belly sandwich is basically a BLT living its best life. Synowicki dry-marinates the pork belly for 12 hours in a basic barbecue spice mix (paprika, chili powder, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper) before smoking the meat for another eight hours. It’s reheated on the flat-top for service, placed in a brioche-like challah bun from Lev's and topped with fresh arugula, ripe tomato and house chipotle aioli. $12 small, $16 large[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_643976" align="aligncenter" width="2560"] The Korean gochujang sausage burger features a spicy and smoky pork patty that’s pressed on the flat-top until crispy. It’s nestled in one of those challah buns and buried in house kimchi slaw, lime aioli and toasted sesame seeds—bibimbap meets banh mi meets burger. $12[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_643959" align="aligncenter" width="1600"] This bagel is stuffed with house-made lemon-cured gravlax, whipped lemon cream cheese, house-made pickled onions and capers. It’s finished with a sprinkling of sea salt and pepper. $12[/caption]
[caption id="attachment_643965" align="aligncenter" width="1600"] For the poutine, hand-cut potatoes are fried to perfection, then topped with local cheese curds and gravy made from drippings from the smoked brisket and pork belly. $9[/caption]
The drinks
Synowicki is working on a liquor licence so he can serve local craft beer and wine (selected by his father, who owns a wine distribution company). For now, there’s a range of Coca-Cola and San Pellegrino products as well as Ting, a nostalgic favourite for Synowicki, who grew up drinking it on Friday nights when his family would get West Indian takeout for dinner.
The space
The whitewashed and light-filled space is outfitted with a refrigerated display case and a freezer full of goods, plus a few tables for anyone who can’t wait to get home to eat their sandwich. Decorating the walls: a faux-magnetic menu board and some framed slow-exposure photos taken by Synowicki’s artist wife, Jennie Suddick.
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