Parquet is in the old Flock space. I realize food costs have gone up. I’m not quite ready to pay these prices for bistro food in Toronto. For comparison at an indie Annex bistro northwest of Harbord St , Maison T has kept its mains in the $26-$33 range.
Harbord was a haunt for me decades ago when I lived on Major. Aside from recent visits to Emmer, we haven’t been to anything else in the last few years. We did like Piano Piano pre-pandemic - the bitter greens pizza particularly. We liked Flock for the chicken sandwich and the salads. We also still like Harbord Bakery for challah, rye, and their particular version of bagels.
Has anyone tried Pizza Gigi recently? That was one of the go-tos for Sicilian slices as a student (along with Cora and Papa Ceo).
I’ve never been to Gigi. Maybe I will try a slice this spring.
Cora’s has gone downhill. It was my favourite pizza in 1999.
I’ve had a good mushroom pizza and a good pasta from Piano Piano, as take-out in the past year, as well as a decent rooftop patio brunch at Harbord House during the early fall.
I didn’t love my last visit to Rasa around the fall of 2021. I used to love their brunch 7 years ago, and I’ve probably visited 10 times since they opened.
I found brunch at Her Father’s Cider Bar okay in 2019. The menu doesn’t interest me too much so I haven’t been back.
My last visit to Flock was in 2020, I think, and I haven’t tried the location further west (379 Harbord) yet. https://www.eatflock.com/locations
I mostly buy Challah at Harbord St Bakery. Their prepared savoury food is pretty good, too. I have liked the schnitzel and salads.
I didn’t post about our experience on the Patios with Good Food thread because I don’t like the food that much. Many of the options weren’t my cup of tea.
It’s a nice patio. I find the food okay. The service was good.
This place offers flights of cider, which my friend enjoyed.
They offer reservations for brunch through OpenTable.
I prefer the brunch food offered at Union on Ossington, Emma’s Country Kitchen on St Clair W, or Chadwick’s in the Annex.
Emmer Bakery and the Harbord House are the other Sunday brunches currently offered on Harbord Street. Both have patios.
Emmer’s breakfast menu ends at 11:30 am, and the lunch menu begins at 11:45 am.
Emmer is now open on Wednesdays. 9-4.
I stopped by Emmer at 1 pm, for a coffee on the patio that isn’t covered.
I bought Emmer’s sesame focaccia, 2 slices of mushroom quiche and a small almond plum tart today.
The pastry case at 1 pm (3 people in line)
A few years back, just the presence of the ‘David Lee/Victor Barry’ led Splendido and the modern Japanese Omakase spot Skippa were enough of an incentive for me to drive all the way from Richmond Hill.
Musoshin Ramen has replaced Glory Hole donut location on the north side of Harbord, which was a chai bar before that. The Musoshin Ramen site hasn’t been updated to show the new location on Harbord.
I picked up a Cobb salad ($24) to go from Harbord House, which was a variation on the classic, with blue cheese dressing and some shredded cheddar, rather than chunks of blue cheese. The chicken was grilled. It was satisfying for a take-out salad.
Harbord House’s kitchen is open until 10 pm. It’s open on Mondays, a night many restaurants along Harbord St and in the Annex are closed.
I also finally tried a slice from Pizza Gigi. Open from 4 pm- 4 am. I tried the olive and mushroom Sicilian-style slice ($5.50). It hit the spot. Less greasy than Bitondo’s, and a crispy, yet somewhat doughy crust.
on Harbord at Borden yesterday as well. It was okay.
I think this place has lost some business since Emmer opened, even though Emmer is only open Wed- Sun. I like their coffee, I like their focaccia, I like their imported iced tea and sodas. They keep less stock around than they were carrying 2 years ago.
