February's Pick: Not Your Average Bird Joint
Average? Definitely not a word for Joe Bird's chicken joint!
On a beautiful February Sunday, a group of 6 friends happened to schedule a brunch (yes, we're basic) date at this fairly new restaurant/bar located right at Toronto's Harbourfront area! The visit was 4 hours long and even though I would love to tell the story behind the insane amount of time spent for brunch, I figured you guys would be more interested in hearing about the restaurant. :D
Brunch doesn't really start without a cup of drip (or a blissful mimosa, I'm easy :P), and in Joe's case, we paired along an aromatic & indulgent cut of banana bread!
Once we've settled with coffee, I was able to really sit back and absorb my first impression about the interior & atmosphere of the restaurant. First impression? Neat, with a splash of style and street chic.
If you look closely, you'll find splashes of colour paint all over the wooden chairs and bar stools! They goes so well with the colourful neon logo of Joe Bird! Brunch menu was very fairly priced considering the portion and the view! (~$10 - $12). All items resolve around chicken!
There is a pretty good sweet fruit waffle dish if you're the vegan friend in the group, which I didn't order but folks on the instagram community say it's good! ;)
Let's dive deeper into the food! To the right is my most favourite dish: the "Brunch-time chili"! It was one of the best bean chili I've had in a while!!! Chorizo and chicken were the perfect protein for the dish. And would you look how perfectly the toast's shape was interacting with the sous vide egg and the bowl?!! It's like a drop of water into a rich sea of food delight. Kudos to the chef behind the plating of this bowl! Delicious AND well-plated! That's how you make a winning brunch! P/s: the crispy tortilla was a nice touch as well!
Let's break the sad news to this next dish of "The signature brekkie". I can see how Joe was trying to elevate the signature avocado toast of the millennial community by transforming it to a paste form but the final verdict of the group was that nothing can beats fresh avocado cuts! Plus, the side salad was a bit under-dressed. You might want to try this dish for the playful adventure!
Ok! The last dish of our brunch visit: "Bird & malted waffles"! I think 3/6 of us ordered this because who doesn't fancy chicken and waffle??! The verdict? It's a win! The fried chicken was perfectly seasoned and fried, and the sour cream and slaw WAS THE BOOM! So fresh & well-mixed! One of the best slaws I've had! P/s: Tina stole all of my pickles. They were also good!
A tiny note: we didn't fancy the maple-coffee sauce that goes with the dish, but this is such an easy touch-up! Just ask for a different sauce!
Overall, I'm definitely coming back! The service was great and the interior was excellent on top of the good food! They also have many weekly events going on such as game nights and live DJs! During non-winter season, the bar open up till pretty late so if you're visiting for other than brunching purposes, you'll probably catch me there. :D
Check out there events here.
For more info on the restaurant, visit https://www.joebird.ca.
All photos are taken by Huy Tran.
