I live in Toronto, which has a plethora of fantastic restaurants. You can literally find food from around the world. Sometimes, though, you need a tried an true place for dinner whether you are going out for a date night, after work drinks or a larger gathering with your friends. The Keg Steakhouse has been a staple in Canada since it opened its first restaurant in North Vancouver in 1971. It was then called Keg n’ Cleaver by its founder, George Tidball. According to The Keg Steakhouse’s website, Tidball had one formula in mind: “elevate the every day for our guests by surrounding great food with good times.” And that it does.
Before I delve too far into the review, The Keg Steakhouse has a bit of nostalgia for me. It was the very first restaurant that I ate at as a teenager with my family when we visited my sister in Toronto. When I moved here, years ago, it was a place we continued to frequent. Who hasn’t had at least one Billy Miner Pie for their birthday dessert? Not only is it a place filled with personal nostalgia, it is one of those restaurants that you can go to where there is something for everyone on the menu and the quality is always consistent.
Now for the review of The Keg Steakhouse*:
The Location
There are over 100 locations of The Keg Steakhouse across Canada and the United States. We visited the North York location at 5015 Yonge Street in Toronto.
Find a LocationThe Service
The Keg always has some of the best service in the industry. I have never been to a location and had anything less than stellar service. The servers know the menu inside and out. They know the feature menu. They make great recommendations and they are always friendly. It creates a welcoming environment.
The Food
A flexitarian (I eat chicken and fish), a pescatarian (fish only) and carnivore (meat eater – meat is his priority) walk into The Keg Steakhouse. It sounds like the beginning of a joke doesn’t it? Really, it was to see if everyone would be happy with their meal.
The Feature Menu Drink
We tried the Kegnog to have something from the features menu. With Havana Club 7, handcrafted eggnog, and freshly grated nutmeg, it tasted like the holidays in a glass. It’s worth a try if you are an eggnog lover, but try it fast, it will be gone after the holidays.
The Appetizers
Going with two men who came hungry meant trying more than my typical mixed greens as an appetizer. We ordered the Keg Caesar salad, the crispy cauliflower, the garlic cheese toast and the Caesar brussels sprouts. The server was great about putting the bacon on the side for my meat loving friend. We also had The Keg’s great bread which comes free with your meal. It is always a favourite.
All of the appetizers were excellent. My favourite was the crispy cauliflower – it was AMAZING. You can never go wrong with a Caesar salad either and this was perfect – it had enough dressing but not so much that it wilted the lettuce. If you like garlic cheese toast, you won’t be disappointed, but I’m a Keg great bread purist – just give me that sourdough ciabatta and I’m happy.
The Mains
Three people, three different mains. I had the blackened chicken (minus the confit garlic butter confit and hot honey). I was just too full after the appetizers. It was really good, but likely would have been even better with the sauce. Their garlic mashed potatoes are always a treat – it’s something that I never make at home. The star, at least in my opinion was the oven roasted salmon with honey mustard glaze. They cook it like their steak – how you like it, and it was perfect.
Finally, it’s called The Keg Steakhouse, so one person had to go for the main that the restaurant is known for. The 7-ounce filet mignon is wrapped in bacon. My friend likes his cooked to medium-well, and that is exactly what he got. How you like your steak is how you get your steak – blue rare, rare, medium rare, medium well, well done or Chicago style. He was very happy. His only caveat – the fries were not his favourite. In fairness though, the server recommended the twice baked potato for him. Always listen to a recommendation.
The Ambience
North York is a relatively new Keg location. It has the same wooden tables and cozy booths that you expect from The Keg. Modern gas fireplaces add more visual warmth. They really design the restaurants to be modern, chic, yet approachable. Every table was filled with different age groups living up to their good food, good company and good cheer brand promise.
The restaurant was busy. Make sure that you make reservations so that you can get a table and avoid disappointment, particularly on weekends.
To find out more about The Keg Steakhouse, visit the website at thekeg.com.
*Hosted for review purposes. Opinions are my own.
