by Queena Kwok
Smoke’s Poutinerie 218 Adelaide St West, Toronto ON M5H 1W7 natural born killers divx beetle juice dvd
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Nothing screams “Canadian, eh…” like a piping hot poutine, full of artery clogging goodness: cheese curds and gravy smothered on a mountain of fries. Unlike many of our Canadian faves, which are brought from the “old country” by our immigrants, this is truly a Canuck invention originating in Quebec in the late 1950’s, with several Quebecois communities laying claims to its invention. This is our “soul food” – delicious, comforting and decadent; and loaded with flavorful fat!
As a Canadian fast food staple many fast food joints and grease spoons have poutine on their menu, yet, there hasn’t been a franchise specialized in this niche until recently.
Smoke’s Poutinerie is definitely one of a kind. It opened its doors in November, 2008, just above another clubland favourite, the Burrito Boys. The only food item Smoke’s Poutinerie sells is poutine with about a dozen variations and a few different kinds of sodas to wash everything down.
I had my first visit to Smoke’s shortly before Christmas on a dinner date. Someone sure knows how to win my heart gastronomically! Since then I’ve been eating there on a weekly basis. This place is full no matter what time of the day- I was lucky to grab seats on two occasions.
They open until 4am on Friday and Saturday nights which is perfect for when me and other club crawlers are hungry, drunk, and crave an alternative to pizza or street meat. The décor is hoser-chic, lumber-jack plaid with cheeky portraits. Also impressing is their ventilation as the restaurant did not smell like greasy fried food.
Their variations on the classic poutine are fun and creative. They range from the likes of pulled pork, nacho grande, veggie deluxe and yes… curried chicken. With about 15 variations ($5.95 – $8.95,), you can also customize your poutine, i.e. extra cheese, gravy or meat for an additional cost.
I truly enjoyed the “heart attack in a box,” as they sure know how to make an authentic poutine. Their “Traditional” is the true and tried classic, covered in nice thick gravy with a hint of rosemary and plentiful Eastern Township cheese curds from Quebec. The gravy has a perfect consistency which doesn’t turn into a gelatinous mess after 5 minutes. I prefer mine with extra gravy ($1). The servings are so hearty, that I (the bottomless pit) have yet to finish an entire serving in one sitting.
During my first visit I really enjoyed the “Hogtown”, which my dinner companion had ordered. The bacon, mushroom and the caramelized onion is a really good combo with the poutine. The salt and smokiness of the bacon brings out the earthiness of rosemary in the gravy, while the cheese curds hold the entire artery clogging goodness together.
I then tried “Montreal,” which has all the fixings of the traditional plus a heap full of Montreal smoked meat, French mustard on the side and a dill pickle on top. This combination was a full meal and then some (although I would have preferred the smoked meat hotter than just luke warm.)
On my next visit I will try the curried chicken version; I can only imagine the east meets west combination. I will update you, the reader, on future issues of my poutine journey, I intend to try everything on that oh so enticing menu!