Churchill

I’ll give Churchill credit right away for one very important amenity: It has a patio.
The inherent downside to this patio is that its on the east side of the building, meaning by 5pm the patio is completely shaded from the sun. Despite that fact, it’s a patio in an area of limited patio options, so we made it our destination of choice.
Upon first arrival, service was friendly and on point. Within an hour of our arrival, we began sitting with empty glasses and plates, struggling to get table service for more drinks or food. The beers that did come out got poured worse and progressively foamier with larger amounts of head, and it ended up taking over 3 hours for a few drinks and couple orders of food.
On the food tip (which is admittedly the reason that encouraged me to go here), the Almighty Bao has taken over the kitchen where Luthers used to sling fried chicken from. Almighty Bao is offering a multitude of fusion inspired bao sandwiches and other bastardized asian foods.
The pork belly bao was perhaps the most traditional of the bao sandwich items, and was the best thing I tasted during the night. The chicken club bao was well liked (save for the seaweed chip placed in the middle), but the hamburger bao is admittedly the least impressive of the food items. Beyond the bao, the chicken dumplings were pretty good, and the hot sauce they came with complimented them well.
All in all, the place was decent. If things weren’t such a struggle on the service front and taking as long as they did to wrap things up I’d even be leaning towards a 4^th star. Unfortunately the time spent vs money spent vs enjoyment had ratio just doesn’t balance out.

This is also a review for the new popup restaurant currently residing in Churchill — «The Almighty Bao»
Came across the almighty bao and it’s review on another site one day (don’t remember where exactly) and instantly I was curious. I love bao’s and haven’t had a great one in quite a while, and the fact that this was a popup located within a bar was great. The fact that they were also playing the Raptors playoff game (Game 6 — smh at that game), was even better!
Got to the bar around 7pm and slightly hungry after walking around the Ossington strip for a bit and it was fairly empty at the time. I assume people were making their way to more spacious/​bigger name bars with larger TV’s at the time due to the game though. Churchill has a single TV which is at the bar but I wouldn’t say Churchill is a sports event type of bar, if that makes sense? Servers were very attentive however and attended to my table fairly quickly.
The almighty bao, once you walk inside Churchill, is literally a hole in the wall of the bar. Manned by at the time what seemed like two men, I was slightly worried that once the bar got more packed that service would slow down for the food, but I was happily surprised that food was still served quickly. We ordered a 5piece of the Mighty Dumplings, a California Club Bao, a Pork Belly bao and finally a Fried «Fried Rice» ball. Each dish was tasty and delicious, with the California club and the dumplings being the standouts!
The baos are almost the size of a burger at a fast food joint, which is a great size imo, and paired with the dumplings, I definitely left satisfied with my choices that night. Will definitely be back to check the place out again, regardless if Almighty Bao becomes a permanent establishment or if a new business takes its place.

I give 1 star.
For reasons because I was there on March 24 on my birthday Thursday night just before easter weekend.
Got to the place and good food and good music. But when my friends came late and there was no line the security told my friends to wait on top of that people came after them and the security let’s them in with a hug and hi but my friends they had to wait — what kind of customer service is that?! I asked him how come they have to wait and the other people just walk right in? He replied very rude and hostile. saying I don’t give a EFF about them. That is not the way you treat people and customers by being biased and hostile. Then I told him I wanna speak to your manager and he replied I don’t give a EFF about what you have to say to the owner or manager. I spoke to the owner and told him the situation about his staff by the door he said he’s having a bad night. Regardless that’s not how you talk to your customers. the owner seemed to side with his staff when all of my friends that were inside saw and heard what happened because they were right beside me. That security should be fired for talkin to your customers like that. No respect.

I’ve been here a few times and have enjoyed every occasion except the time when my girlfriend got too drunk and ruined my night. She puked like 50 times — i don’t think it had anything to do with Churchill, we actually ate somewhere before arriving. Come to think of it I think it was food poisoning. but from Jack Astors, not Churchill. I can’t really get mad at her for that though, not really her fault. It just kind of sucked because I was working and studying so it was my only chance to go out in months.
Anyway, I really like the atmosphere at Churchill — both for dinner or for drinks. Dinner is really chill and they have great fried chicken & sides.
The place is small, but I enjoy cozy places with great music where you can hang with friends. I threw my birthday here in November and I had a great time for the parts that I remember. I forgot my sweater and Churchill staff kept it for me. I was glad because it was a new sweater. they could have easily sold it on Kijiji or something but they kept it. Thanks guys. Quality joint.

This place is ridiculous… There’s barely anyone in the bar, yet there’s a huge line outside. Like hello… NOBODY IS IN HERE!!! Let people in!

***This review is for Luther’s Fried Chicken***
From the comfort of your seat at this hip cocktail bar, you can point and laugh at those poor souls across the street at KFC. Little do they know (or perhaps they do, and just prefer not to spend the extra couple bucks?) that Luther’s is one of the best fried birds in the city, bar none.
I’ve had Stockyards, I’ve had Harlem… and Bar Isabel. I’ve had what are considered to be some of Toronto’s best fried chicken. And I have to say: for me at least, Luther’s bird is best.
I’m a white-​meat kinda gal, and the meat here was so tender, so juicy, so delicious… covered by a super crunchy, perfectly seasoned layer of crispy skin. TO DIE FOR.
For sides, I got fries and coleslaw. Next time I’d skip the slaw and try the bacon collard greens or macaroni salad.
So in conclusion, why did the chicken cross the road? To get its ass the hell out of KFC and over to Luther’s where it belongs!
(PS This being a proper cocktail bar, I also tried the Cosmo Kramer cocktail – bourbon, Campari, egg white, lemon. Very good, but a bit overpriced at $ 14. Should’ve stuck with a $ 4 Grolsch.)

This is establishment that doesn’t understand customer service. No one greeted us or took our order until we flagged down the grumpy looking server behind the bar.
One of our friends arrived to join our table but the doorman refused to let her in because they were «at capacity». 5 minutes later, his buddies arrived and they waltzed right in to watch the jays game — my friend was left standing out in the cold. By herself. No line. How did this guy get his job?!
I will not come back here and I will never reccommend it to anyone.
That said, it’s a cute little spot on a corner lot and they serve my favourite local beer, Woodhouse amber ale, but what a waste of prime time real estate. The fried chicken was MEH. KFC is accross the street, though.

I liked this place. The cocktail menu looks interesting but they are a bit pricey so we stuck to beer which they have a good selection of. On a Friday night around 10pm the place was alive but not crowded and the dj was playing good music. We were still able to order Luther’s chicken. I enjoyed the fried chicken and the price was reasonable for what you receive. None of us was very impressed with the fries though. The service was decent and the server let us know that the food takes some time since it’s made fresh to order. The server was available when we needed her but didn’t hover around us. I will definitely be back to check out the patio and some of the cocktails.

I have been many times for the clucking bird and it is my favourite in the area. Could give Stockyards a run for their money (though admittedly they are slightly different styles — but if you are catholic in your tastes for that chicky, you shouldn’t have a problem). Plus the macaroni salad is really really good.
Keep on cluckin’

Went here on a Saturday night. Very unimpressed.
1) the service sucks. Took too long to get drinks and a menu, and we didn’t get any refills.
2) the food is mediocre. Chicken is average, I’m pretty sure they got the corn out of a can, and the fries were nothing special.
Next time, I’m going to KFC across the road. The colonel would never do this to me.

Classy, fun, no bs type place — one of my faves on Dundas W and TO, in general.
Really liked the music, the drinks, apparently the food’s good, too, but haven’t tried it.
The bartenders could be nicer — hence a 4.
It gets pretty crowded and it’s not open on Mondays + Tuesdays, I made a mistake once and I was bummed when I brought a friend from out of town on a Tuesday night.

Great location, amazing food and awesome ambiance. But the waitress was ridiculous. Wouldn’t serve us. Like at all. Had to go to three different spots along the bar. Finally the other waitress working took pity and took our order. The ‘meanie’ waitress, no kidding here: hip checked me repeatedly. I mean… it’s the raptors game time, it’s busy sure, and I’m waiting for a stool to open up. So I’m pressing myself against the table my buds are at, so as to be as unobtrusive as possible. And she has 4 feet behind me and to my side to move. But nope… a good 3 times she whacks me physically with her side. Not awesome. :’(it kinda just hurt. Will go back. but maybe with goalie shorts on or something. Bc it’s a super cute place otherwise

A cozy, hip bar and fried chicken place on Dundas and Ossington, just a block west of Ossington. The fried chicken was only OK, the skin was crispy but lacked flavour or spices. (Honestly, I think Bar Fancy’s fried chicken is far superior!) As a snack, I recommend getting 2 pieces of chicken, $ 4 for white meat and $ 3 for dark.
The venue is nice, and it’s good for groups of up to maybe 6 – 8 max, but it’s more for groups of 2. The bar is long and the place is darker than a cave. The drinks were icy cold and service was slow with maybe a hint of pretentiousness.
I agree with the other reviews about it being quiet at times. We were here on a Friday night at around 8 pm and it was not crazy busy, but not graveyard dead. This could be a nice place for a pre-​drink before pub crawling along Dundas West.
Pro tip: Don’t come hungry as the fried chicken takes at least 20 minutes to make.
Pro tip 2: No debit. Cash or credit.

I’ve been to Churchill before for a couple of drinks, and I’ve always had a decent time. Dark, full of people having fun, all of the hoorays. However, the best thing about this bar is Luther’s Chicken…
I had a fried chicken take out feast from here this past weekend, and it was pretty incredible. Excellent crispy fried chicken, tangy macaroni salad, good greens and a chicken soup-​like gravy. It was a pricy feast, but it’s among my fave fried chicken I’ve ever had in Canada, so I will be back. Lastly, I’m deeply amused that it sits across the street from one of Toronto’s only downtown KFC locations. If you don’t do take out, eat your chicken while people watching (and pitying) the fools that go in and out of the Colonel’s den of grossness.

Luther’s Chicken is great! The batter is crispy and not super oily; while the skin remains super moist. On Thursdays they have a $ 2 special: one piece of chicken and fries — each person can order two servings of the special.

The service can be excruciatingly slow, but I’ve never minded too much, as most times I’ve been there I’ve been catching up with old pals. That being said, if the the food wasn’t so mind-​blowing, I probably wouldn’t tolerate it.
Prices are worth the fare. And they have tofu bites if you’re not into meat.
Nomnom.

Came here last night around 7 to try Luther’s Chicken and was pretty disappointed.
First off, they were out of collard greens. Understandable if it were later in the evening but at 7pm, unacceptable. Chicken looked beautiful but little taste, gristly, and biggest problem was the breading. It was too thick, separated from the skin, essentially steaming the chicken inside. Nobody likes steamed flabby chicken skin. One extra star for the fries which were dece.
$ 13 for a 2 piece with 2 sides, combined with indifferent service, I unfortunately won’t be returning.

This a great little bar if you’re looking for an easy spot on a weekend, or a quiet, intimate place to bring a date on a weekday for drinks. I’ve never tried the food. They’ve got a good selection of cocktails.
The bar is dimly lit and the décor is very warm, notably the hanging lights over the bar. Everyone that I’ve brought here thinks it’s a very chill spot. They also set up a small patio outside in the summer.
I’d say it’s a great first stop of the night as it’s usually never busy before midnight. If you want to jam on a weekend, across the street on Dundas and you’ll find a couple of bars catered more to getting your dance on. If you stay late enough at Churchill, the crowd gets going there too. Attracts a bit of a hipster crowd, but you really can’t beat a no-​hassle entrance and $ 5 labatt 50s. They also just got that new steigl grapefruit beer on tap, which is a big hit with the ladies.

In the matter of 45 minutes, this place turned from a low-​key bar serving woodford bourbon cocktails, to a packed frenzy where you could barely hear yourself. Thank God we came here early enough to grab a table, but even then, they stop servicing the tables after a certain time! I guess that’s to be expected on a Saturday night.
Service wasn’t slow, bartender seems to be very concentrated and on the ball. The vibe is what you would expect of a bar on Dundas. The DJ was throwing back some old school hip hop, which was cool.
Now, the cocktails: for $ 14/​pop (somehow we only got charged $ 12.38, maybe the menu was wrong,) I would have expected them to be better… more complete. Actually, I really liked the Pan Am and the Full Metal Jacket, but the others lacked a balance. They were quite strong so ultimately – I didn’t mind that.

A beautiful little bar which I believe is an extension of The Beaconsfield — a few of the bartenders from the Beacs seem to have located to this popular Dundas location. And so far the overall vibe is similar between the two establishments.
The two things I like about Churchill is the location (Dundas is very accessible to me with a few great bars in the area) and the layout/​atmosphere. The bar is large but away from the door with plenty of space around it to prevent the ever-​annoying bottlenecking. The chalkboards surrounding the place are carefully scripted and look fantastic. The lighting makes the place seem golden and exposed brick never looks bad.
I’ve not ate here but might in the spring/​summer months. The venue does have a patio so I think Churchill might explode in popularity once they crack it open. Stay tuned…