When I am in Ang Moh land, I like to visit old school diners which are the equivalent of kopitiams of Singapore and Malaysia.
Like the kopitiams of Singapore and Malaysia, old style diners are slowly disappearing. Actually, the situation is even more acute in Toronto. There are less heritage diners in Toronto today than the fingers on one hand.
Patrician Grill is one of the last hold outs, and perhaps the most famous. (The nostalgic diner with vintage bar stools and well padded booth seats is still regularly used for location shoots for movies and television.)
Chris' parents-in-law Louie and Helen founded Patrician Grill in 1967. Chris and brother-in-law Terry now run Patrician Grill which has a reputation of turning out comforting food that tastes the same for the last 50 years.
The quintessential greasy gas griddle in the open kitchen in full view from the bar counter. Bantering with the friendly chef owners while perched on a bar stool is a popular pastime of Patrician Grill regulars.
The menu is pretty homely, if not prosaic - just comfort food like eggs, pancakes, sandwiches, burgers, meatloaf, fries, and other diet busting fare as well as coffee and tea. Patrician Grill even proudly sports the tag line "Nothing fancy since 1967".
And that's the thing, like kopitiam food, its enduring charm comes from it being ingrained into our everyday lives since our first eating out. Indeed, many of Patrician Grill's regulars first come here with their parents and now come with their own children.
Since I am in Toronto, I opted for a classic peameal bacon sandwich with kaiser buns.
Peameal bacon is cut from pork loin, fat is trimmed, wet cured in brine, and rolled in cornmeal. It is sliced, grilled on a griddle and served as a sandwich often between a crusty kaiser bun.
Peameal bacon is closely linked to William Davis, owner of William Davies Company at Front Street, just steps from today's Patrician Grill. In the early 1900s, William Davies Company was the largest meat exporter in the British Empire, earning Toronto the nickname Hogtown.
The peameal bacon was tender, juicy, savoury, salty. I like peameal bacon.
The coffee, like Americano was light, slightly citrussy with subtle bitter. Doesn't have the caffeine jolt of Nanyang kopi.
Everything today, peameal bacon sandwich and coffee for CDN$10 tax and tip included.
Recommended for you ๐ When you visit Toronto, one of the must try foods is a peameal bacon sandwich. I suggest you can experience it at Patrician Grill. The food is good, the price is right, service is great and this historic eatery is one of Toronto's last old school greasy spoon diners. They say visit this soon before it becomes another high rise condo ๐
Next time I come here, I want poutine!
Lovely article by Stephenie Dickison on Patrician Grill ๐ click
Read more about what I did in Toronto this summer ๐ click
Restaurant name: Patrician Grill
Address: 219 King St E, Toronto, ON M5A 1J9
GPS: 43°39'03.7"N 79°22'08.4"W ๐ 43.651024, -79.368990
Tel: 1(416) 366-4841
Hours: 7:00am - 4:00pm (opens at 8am on Sat & closes at 3:30pm on Fri. Sundays off)
Non Halal
Date visited: 13 Jun 2019
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