A Kensington eatery is going viral for its suggestive name, which is sparking conversation about other restaurants in the GTA with taboo titles.
Nestled on Augusta Avenue is FakeBus, a Turkish restaurant selling traditional Middle Eastern eats like doner, shawarma, falafel and lentil soup.
The restaurant is generating buzz online and not for its delicious cuisine. Social media users noticed a distinctive characteristic in FakeBus’s signage – it resembles the logo of a pornography website called Fake Taxi.
Some are appalled by such a blatantly sexual display, with a few calling it offensive and disgusting.
“This is really gross,” a Reddit user wrote. “The idea of theming an ordinary takeout place in this way is so revolting that I can’t imagine anyone would want to eat there.”
But not all reaction to FakeBus is negative, and the signage has actually inspired some GTA residents to drop some of their favourite restaurants with risqué names.
Glory Hole Doughnuts frequented the replies, a donut shop in Toronto’s east end.
The donuts are “what creams are made of,” the slogan reads, a tagline that doesn’t shy away from its provocative double meaning.
Ashley Jacot De Boinod is the owner of Glory Hole Doughnuts, and says the name came from a brainstorm between her and her partner while in bed.
“He kind of blurted it out as a joke, and it kind of resonated with me,” she explained to Now Toronto. “It just sort of stuck.”
However, De Boinod says when she thought of the idea, she didn’t think of the shock value that would come with it. She knew what a ‘glory hole’ referred to, but thought the concept in relation to donuts was hilariously playful and didn’t expect to gain attention from it.
She says in the initial years of the ongoing 13-year business, she gained much more backlash. The outrage went so far as American fundamentalist groups calling her in anger. But recently, the response has been pretty tame, with most reaction coming from teenagers prank calling the shop.
“I’m glad that I can provide humour to the younger generation,” De Boinod laughed.
Glory Hole Doughnuts provides a wide array of gourmet donut flavours, including bestsellers ‘Toast and Butter’ and ‘Ferrero Rocher.’ The decadent bites range from $3 to $5.75, De Boinod said.
In Hamilton, Mikey’s Cream Pies gives a spicy name to a sweet treat.
Owner Mike Jensen’s shop name stems simply from him serving up tasty cream pies, but a white splat as his logo shows he’s no stranger to the duality of the dessert’s name.
Jensen said most people who pass by get a great laugh at the name, and has often witnessed people taking selfies in front of the storefront. The family business started three years ago and his signage has gone viral many times beyond the border, with people calling in from a Hamilton in California, U.S. hoping to get a taste of his cream pies.
“It’s funny to those who have a sense of humour and it’s offensive to those that don’t,” Jensen said. He also says he finds that the older generation doesn’t seem to get the joke.
Mikey’s Cream Pies offers all kinds of pies, with a variety of fillings like custard to cream cheese and a range of sizes from cup-sized to nine-inch pies. They also sell butter tarts, cookies and many other sweets.
Prices range from $6 to $19, Jensen said.
Now Toronto reached out to FakeBus for comment, but they did not respond by time of publication.
