This is Queen West’s newest spot for cocktails and nachos
A team of industry veterans is behind the Dirty Laundry
Name: The Dirty Laundry
Contact: 1186 Queen St. W., thedirtttylaundry.com
Neighbourhood: Little Portugal
Previously: Cold Tea, the Brooklynn
Owners: Robin Goodfellow (Czehoski, Bar Raval, PrettyUgly, Vela, Harry’s) and Aldo Pescatore (La Carnita, Sweet Jesus)
Chef: Renelle Joubert
Accessibility: Not fully accessible
Related: This new bar wants to inject some life back into Queen West
Toronto hospitality veterans Robin Goodfellow and Aldo Pescatore were working together on making a podcast called “Forward Drinking” when Covid hit. “We had all the funding and everything was good to go,” says Goodfellow. The duo ultimately pulled the plug, feeling it would be tone-deaf to launch a show about cocktail culture during a global pandemic.
But when the pandemic was in the rearview mirror, the two were still set on collaborating. “We decided we wanted to open a place that was less about our needs and more about everyone else’s.” That meant letting go of some of their “cocktail nerdery” and focusing instead on creating a space that would actually draw people out again—something affordable with casual food and well-made (but not overly precious) drinks, designed to serve the community.
“For us, other bars aren’t our competition,” they say. “It’s people’s homes.”
Related: This is when the new Pizzeria Badiali location is opening
Enter the Dirty Laundry, now open from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m., seven days a week, on Queen West between the Gladstone and Drake hotels. A little bit Sneaky Dee’s, a little bit PrettyUgly, the day-to-night spot is equal parts cocktail bar, Tex-Mex tavern and laid-back hangout to watch the World Cup or a Jays game.
The food
From former Sounds Good (RIP) and ex-Bar Raval chef Renelle Joubert, the menu is all about elevating affordable ingredients into craveable comfort food. The entirely gluten-free Tex-Mex lineup reimagines familiar favourites—think nachos with aged Albacore tuna, a tempura-battered fried catfish sandwich, and enchiladas stuffed with roasted chicken and house queso.
The drinks
It’s a high-volume cocktail program that riffs on well-built party drinks with a wink of dirrrty (so, delightfully trashy). Things like lychee martinis, piña coladas and even ’80s throwbacks like the Singapore Sling. But Goodfellow’s so-called cocktail nerdery isn’t entirely absent. Case in point: the Lunch, a Tex-Mex–inspired concoction that introduces tequila to cucumber, corn, guacamole, lime and spice.
The space
The 2,200-square-foot room (there’s an extra 1,000 on the patio) is centred around a nearly 360-degree bar, and is decked out in offbeat vintage finds, dimpled glass granny lamps and high-top seating. It falls somewhere between a half-finished basement and an eccentric clubhouse.
Erin Hershberg is a freelance writer with nearly two decades of experience in the lifestyle sector. She currently lives in downtown Toronto with her husband and two children.
