Saturday
AFT Kitchen & Bar
686 Queen E, at Broadview, 647-346-1541, aftbar.com, @aft_bar Taking its name from the acronym for “about fucking time,” Paul Campbell’s southern-fried bistro in the one-time Toucan Taco/Le Rossignol/Pop space delivers considerable ‘cue on one of the loveliest backyard patios east of the Don Valley Parkway. Best: to start, smoked and briefly deep-fried chicken wings in the Buffalo style sided with a whack o’ handcut fries for the wayward vegetarian, deep-fried strips of panko-dusted portobello mushrooms with thyme aioli mains like free-range half chicken slathered with sweet Kansas City-style sauce sided with purple cabbage slaw and German potato salad nicely barked and perfectly pink pork side ribs optionally mopped with sauce weekend-only platters with peppercorn-crusted brisket, those meaty ribs and saucy chicken cheddar-studded ground-brisket burgers on eggy Harbord Bakery buns. Complete dinners for $40 per person, including tax, tip and smoked habanero Caesar. Average main $18. Open for dinner Saturday 4 pm to 1 am. Licensed. Access: one step at door, washrooms on same floor. Rating: NNN
Marky & Sparky’s Smokehouse
520 Annette, at Runnymede, 647-748-4227, @MarkySparkys Despite being featured on an upcoming episode of Restaurant Takeover, Marcus de Simone and Frank DiGenova’s Baby Point barbecue joint manages to rise above the 10-seat take-away’s generic decor. And while they offer an extensive carte of ‘cue – all sourced from DiGenova’s Butcher by Nature across the street – get the best of the bunch in their $60 all-inclusive Ultimate Combo. Best: large enough to feed four Fords, the Combo includes a half-rack of baby-back ribs slathered with mustard and a sweet paprika rub, a dozen dry-rubbed chicken wings with sweet ‘n’ sour cherry sauce, half-pounds of slightly fatty pulled pork and lean machine-sliced brisket, two fennel-flecked pork sausages with caramelized onion jam, four jalapeño-studded cornbread muffins, dill pickle spears, sides of creamy cabbage slaw and baked beans laced with smoked brisket tips to finish, deep fried Mars Bars with chocolate sauce. Complete dinners for $40 per person (lunches $20), including tax, tip and a lemonade. Open for dinner Saturday 5 to 8 pm. No reservations. Unlicensed. Access: barrier-free, washrooms in basement. Rating: NNNN
Museum Tavern
208 Bloor W, at Avenue Rd, 416-920-0110, museumtavern.ca Alert the Glitter Girls – the 80s are back with a vengeance! With a lineage that goes back to such celebrated boîtes as Bemelmans, Bistro 990 and the Bellair Café, this bustling brasserie has a much more inventive and cosmopolitan carte than most Yorkville hot spots. For best results, make a meal of L’Unita chef Stephen Gouzopoulos’s multiculti starters. Best: crisply battered boneless Buffalo-style chicken wings stuffed with double-smoked bacon and blue cheese whitefish tostadas dressed with pickled cabbage, adobo mayo and crema fresca steamed Chinese buns piled with shredded duck confit and pickled veggies from the mains, the house double cheeseburger, 7 cooked-to-order ounces of prime beef on a house-baked egg bun with local aged cheddar, lettuce, onion and a sauce appropriated from the Big Apple’s legendary Shake Shack (aka ketchup ‘n’ mayo), perfectly skinny fries and Asian slaw on the side. Complete dinners for $65 per person (lunches $40), including tax, tip and a glass of wine. Average main $28/$18. Open for dinner Saturday 5 to 11 pm. Licensed. Access: barrier-free. Rating: NNNN
Sunday
Delux
92 Ossington, at Humbert, 416-537-0134, deluxrestaurant.ca Corrina Mozo’s popular Ossington bistro puts a Franco-Cuban spin on the most important meal of the day. A retro glam rock soundtrack, quick, efficient servers and a second room out back help ease the inevitable wait for a table. Avoid the booths unless you’re exceptionally slim. Best: to start, baked-to-order buttermilk donuts and dulce de leche chantilly baskets of crunchy conch fritters follow with picadillo hash – Quebec duck confit, duck-fat-fried potatoes and sweet red peppers with capers, green olives and raisins, real-deal Moros y Cristianos black beans ‘n’ rice, smashed plantain tostones and two sunny-side-up eggs layered over top French toast with house-baked challah, bananas and maple syrup signature grilled Cubano sandwiches of cider-cured pork shoulder, sliced deli ham and gooey Gruyère, sided Havana-style with chunky frites and a whack o’ watercress. Complete brunches for $30 per person, including tax, tip and a mojito. Average main $12. Open for brunch Sunday 10:30 am to 3 pm. Licensed. Access: one step at door, washrooms on same floor. Rating: NNNN
Lahore Tikka House
1365 Gerrard E, at Highfield, 416-406-1668, lahoretikkahouse.com After eight long years, the Taj Mahal of Little India is finally complete… well, almost. The rabbit warren of trailers where diners used to eat has been replaced by a chaotic open-air dining room furnished with picnic tables that spills onto a 400-seat patio tented in billowing sari fabric and lit by fairy lights. Best: slashed whole red snapper tikka, smoky from the charcoal-fuelled tandoor, skewered with lightly charred turmeric-tanged onion, potato and tomato aromatic minced lamb kebabs lemon-scented aloo gobi rich with waxy spuds and al dente cauliflower yellow lentils and pulverized spinach palak dahl vegetable biryani with chickpeas, crunchy cauliflower and carrot butter-brushed naan tossed with sesame seeds house-made almond kulfi ice cream squeezed-to-order sugar cane juice. Complete meals for $20 per person, including tax, tip and a glass of freshly squeezed sugar cane juice. Average main $9. Open Sunday noon to 1 am. No reservations. Unlicensed. Access: barrier-free. Rating: NNN
Tabule
2009 Yonge, at Glebe, 416-483-3747, tabule.ca, @TabuleToronto While owners Diana Sideris and Rony Goraichy include pita pockets on their card, this casual uptown eatery offers, instead of falafels, solidly executed grub made with quality ingredients at affordable price points served by friendly staff in a pleasant room. The recent annexing of the storefront next door now means that lineups – once very common come dinnertime – only happen during the weekend rush. Best: to start, a plate of complimentary pickles – crunchy dills, sour purple turnip, unpitted black olives, hellishly hot baby banana peppers follow with garlicky hummus with toasted whole wheat pita grilled haloumi cheese over baby arugula in pomegranate vinaigrette house-made grape leaves stuffed with rice ‘n’ tomato dipped into Lebanese cream cheese smokily grilled skewers of bell pepper, tomato, red onion and zucchini sided with cumin-kissed basmati pilaf laced with brown lentils honey-doused squares of green pistachio baklava. Complete dinners for $30 per person (lunches $20), including tax, tip and a Stella. Average main $15/$8. Open Sunday noon to 10 pm. Reservations accepted. Licensed. Access: one step at door, washrooms in basement. Rating: NNN
