The Dime
The Dime is the latest party bar from the restaurant group behind Toronto's El Furniture Warehouse and Queen Street Warehouse .
This new spot takes over the city's last remaining Rock Lobster on Queen West . It's been redesigned, or maybe better described as de-designed , to look like a rough and distressed saloon with the occasional table-top stripper pole serving as a distinct invitation to let loose.
All of the food is $4.95 and the portions are quite generous. The eclectic selection of snack food includes sharable nibbles like avocado toast, maple bacon breakfast skins and tempura battered cauliflower bites tossed in a Korean BBQ chili sauce.
More substantial offerings include tacos served three at a time. These come topped with your choice of al pastor pork, jerk chicken or Baja shrimp.
You'll find hearty entrees too, like the filling plate of tilapia over coconut rice. It's topped with a medley of sautĂŠed veg and a crisp salad of pea shoots, radish and pineapple.
The Sunset Blvd Flat Bread is among the modest offerings for vegetarians, though meat eaters are welcome to add chicken (plus $2.25) to the already loaded baked naan dressed in pesto, kale, grape tomatoes, onions, parm and cheddar.
Upfront and at the dedicated patio bar in the back, punk rockers moonlighting as bartenders serve up an expansive range of drinks. Shots of Fireball for $6.50 and tall cans of Blue for $6.25 are on the low end price scale. Meanwhile, Delirium Tremens for $14.25 and bottles of Dom for $375 are among the more premium offerings.
Cocktails range from the commendably priced Caesars ($6.75) to fancier (and yet still not outrageous) libations like the Aperol Spritz ($12.25).
Like the other Warehouse-run locations, this place is cheap, loud and fun... Just count yourself lucky if you can survive the lineup and get through the front door.
Photos by Hector Vasquez.