B is for Black Horse Pub

For those of us who consider ourselves 'country folk' i.e. we prefer the quiet of the natural world, we are borderline neurotic with our attachment to shrubs/trees/bees/birds/insects/swamp-life and the disenfranchisement we feel in living in an urban environment we try to make up for by scouting out random spots that a monarch butterfly might find hospitable enough to drop by for a suck of nectar.

I live in the Bloor and Ossington neighbourhood. I love my moments at Dufferin Grove Park but spring and summer are overrun with dogs and children. I love both. But I don't have either so the cacophany and insanity and clubiness of that exclusive milieu saddens me and so I avoid it altogether. I don't have an outdoor area larger than a grate big enough to host two rather small folding patio chairs and the view ain't nothing to write home about. The Serbians expanded the neighbourhood church from a small provincial gathering of occasional celebration to an enormous stone castle of ongoing pleasure. For some, that is.

So now I go out when I want a cocktail and some company on a sweet summer's eve. When I'm ready for adventure on the town, and out-of-town, well, that's another story, but when I want to stay local, and wear my flipflops down a block or so, I hit up the Black Horse Tavern. The building, you can't miss it with it's two horse heads on the front facade, is historically dated back to 1891. The interior is a simple combination of square tables and chairs adorned with miniature lanterns. The bar is set to the rear of the room (smoking would suit this place) and the kitchen is out in front with an open counter and grill. If you venture way back you'll come across what feels like entering into a friend's grandmother's living room - mismatched lamps and couches and odd art in front of a gas fireplace. It's perfect for playing cribbage in front of in February. But the back patio is what I keep coming back for, that and their excellent dill/yogurt halibut dish served with fresh vegetables and basmati rice. The patio is quiet and verdant. Everything a patio should be when dining a deux.

Food, you ask? Good hamburgers and fries. Good fish and chips. Fine quesadillas. Excellent halibut special. If you're a brunch person you'll enjoy their steak and eggs, their western omelettes, etc. I hate brunch so I can't comment.