Junked Food Co.
Junked Food Co. is both an homage to and a reinvention of junk food using some fresh ingredients prepared in house. It was located on Dundas West, but moved near Queen and Spadina.
This space used to be the formidable P & L Burger, but Queen West should be just as happy with a more casual and equally epic snack spot. They won't be open as late, but they'll be delivering some exciting new treats 'til 3 a.m. some days.
It certainly doesn’t look like P & L anymore: a bare white aesthetic and custom lighting have been replaced by navy blue and orange branding.
Savoury Belgian waffle sandwiches here are $8.95. We go for the Pulled Junk (don’t expect the names to get less hilarious) with pulled pork cooked in Dr. Pepper, topped with a BBQ sauce made using all the flavours of Jolly Ranchers. It’s sweet, meaty, cheesy, and pickles and slaw add crunch.
For a vegetarian alternative, try the Easy Caprese: a nice thick slice of mozz topped with tomato, basil and balsamic make for a fairly basic sandwich, but in a more exciting waffle-y package.
The deep dish Jurasic Junkie pizza ($13.95 for a personal, $23.95 for shareable) is their second most popular pie, only to the straight up mac 'n' cheese. The Dr. Pepper pulled pork is in here too, along with their mac 'n' cheese sauce, and why not throw some sausage in?
If they can get the formula right, they might just start selling these frozen.
With this new location came the introduction of cookie scoops, cups ($4.95) and waffle cones ($5.95) of raw cookie dough. Flavours rotate and when we came in they had a birthday scoop with rainbow sprinkles topped with Sweet Tarts, and a golden oreo scoop.
Cones are rimmed with sprinkles or homemade vegetarian marshmallow fluff, and they don't melt like ice cream, making them easier to transport.
The treats play off the idea of eating a spoonful of raw dough while making cookies, or scooping it out of a tube, and the ultra sugary, dense treat delivers that sensation.
Junked Food Co. is about breaking rules, so why not defy those who sneer at taking photos of food before eating it? Frames at the ledge tables encourage perfect square photos, and light boxes and charging stations at the back are prepped for all your Instagramming needs.
Hector Vasquez