Bellwood Restaurant

This was my first time in Toronto and was looking for a quick lunch on Queen West and ran into this place. I had asked a local about diners and he didn’t know so I figured that Toronto was a little too high-​class to have dive diners but it would appear not.
I found the one reviewer who mentioned the slave-​driver cook and how rude he was is completely true. Our waitress was foreign and didn’t speak English very well but she was trying really hard but the cook was just plain mean to her, despite his apparent lack of English skills as well. The food was ya know greasy diner food and cheap so I couldn’t complain. I tried to break a $ 10 to ride the streetcar and they looked at me and the cook just grunted something and i eventually got some change.

They’ve changed their menu since the last time I was in, which was about a year ago. And a year ago, I loved it (although admittedly I was drunk)! The steak & eggs is off the menu, so I settled for a steak on a kaiser. For $ 12.95, it was just that, a steak on a kaiser. No fries, no salad, just a plain old steak sandwich. My bf had a hot hamburger sandwich, which funnily enough came with fries and a salad for something like $ 8.95. So, for this reason, I’m never going back. It’s really not that hard for a place like this to have consistency.

I ate their 16 oz burger. It wasn’t very good, but fuck it was filling.
The guys running the place are hilarious.

Went for karaōke the other Saturday night. It was pretty great. A fantastic book and really great staff. Most any song I looked for was there and the host was on his stuff and kept a steady flow of singers and let people up first who had not yet sung.
Much more townie than hipster which is always good for karaōke.
I’ll be back.

Cheap n’ cheerful diner on Queen West that’s good for a quick meal. Chad M and I popped in on a rainy day to get out of the mucky weather. I ordered the BLT, which came on thick slices of perfectly toasted wheat bread. Though the bacon was nicely fatty and smoky, the sandwich was a little skimpy on it. But for only $ 6ish, I’ll take it.
Husband’s grilled chicken salad was pretty good, though nothing special. The chicken was moist and freshly grilled, but the salad consisted of chopped iceberg, onions, tomatoes and cucumbers. Nice, but maybe not worth $ 13.
Service was decently friendly and fairly expedient, but we were the only people in the diner. I’ll probably hit Bellwood up again when I’m in the area and looking for something quick and inexpensive.

To put this in perspective, I also gave The Ritz 4 stars. And I did so because you have certain expectations when you go somewhere. At Bellwood, expect the greasiest spoon you have ever eaten off of. I’m pretty sure there’s even bacon grease in the coffee. It is the classic breakfast joint that is on the verge of extinction with people expecting fruit, or fresh juice, or fancy coffee or other stupid things like that. It is a classic place that makes classic food and if you don’t like it, you were stupid to go there in the first place.
We nicknamed the place «Four Eggs» because that’s the attitude of ever plate on the menu. Nothing fancy, but an absolute ton of it. One thing I will say is that if you get the breakfast, get the fries instead of the house potatoes because they taste (and look) like slabs of soap. But otherwise, it’s a fantastic treat when you want to enjoy your morning and ruin your afternoon.

Let me first state that I’m giving the Bellwoods Diner 3 stars and giving the girl that works there 5 stars. She’s just too cute. Honestly, I’m in love.
Alright, back to the diner, it’s ok. Actually, no, it’s better than ok. There are 2 things to get here. The first is the 1 lb burger and fries for only $ 6! It’s big beyond belief. You’ve gotta cut it in half just to pick it up. However, other than being really big, it’s nothing super special. It’s a good burger, not a great burger.
The other thing to get is the clubhouse. Now, I’ve got a soft spot (aka my stomach) for clubhouse sandwiches but this one definitely delivers. Thick, charbroiled chicken and lots of bacon, lettuce and tomato. Good stuff. I don’t think you can get it without the fries and you’re not going to want to. Definitely do the gravy. Go on plumpy, you’re already eating a clubhouse and fries.
Located on Queen W, just East of Trinity Bellwoods park, this is your archetypal greasy spoon. Somehow I haven’t gone here for breakfast yet but I’m sure it’s greasy goodness. Of course, there’s more to a greasy spoon than just the grease, there’s also a fat ethnic owner/​cook who is happy to make interesting «conversation» with you whenever you come by. And, as mentioned, there’s the damsel in distress, the beautiful server paying her way through something. The Bellwood has all of this, so go check it out… just don’t steal my girl.

I went here after a particularly hard night of drinking so I needed something extra greasy to make my brain stop hurting.
I know this is a landmark establishment and it’s most certainly been around longer than I’ve been alive, but to be honest it wasn’t my cup of tea (or coffee, of which I needed several cups). I ordered my usual dirty hangover breakfast — eggs, bacon, hashbrowns and toast. The food was good — it just wasn’t quite greasy enough — the potatoes were a little hard, and the eggs were kind of bland. I guess I just wanted something swimming in grease to make me feel better. The price was right though so if you do want a quick, cheap breakfast, this place isn’t so bad. Just make sure you’re not still drunk.

If you don’t mind your food to be uninspired and greasy, your beer of the flattest consistency, and prepared by a crotchety, shouting slavedriver and served by hired-​for-​eye-​candy, usually only-​moderately-​skilled servers, this is the dive for you.
Sure, their burgers are the most massive in the city… but is it worth it if they’re completely bland? Sure, it’s the only breakfast place between Ossington and Bathurst… but how much grease can two slices of cheapo toast soak up? Sure, it’s a Queen Street staple. But so is syphillis in Bangkok.