Mangal — Restaurant in Richmond Hill

Delicious food, friendly staff, exceptional service, and a heated patio that's a perfect getaway during these tough times. What more could you ask for!

I was out for a walk when I stumbled across this place and noticed they had a heated patio. With lockdowns in place and seasonal temps being what they are, I hadn't considered patios as a reasonable option. Intrigued, I decided to drop in the following day to find out for myself.

A friend and I walk in Tuesday night and are immediately greeted by a very friendly gentleman who seems genuinely happy to see us and leads us out to the patio. He fires up one of the heaters and within a few minutes we are nice and cozy in our jackets and the temps are no longer a concern. Wonderful!

We proceed to order a couple pints which arrive with some fresh crunchy peanuts. Love it! We're off to a great start already. For mains we decide to go with the lamb chops and a pound of hot wings. As we sip on our beers and throw back some peanuts waiting for our mains to arrive, the same gentleman who greeted us and took our orders (which I think is safe to assume is the owner), brings out a couple complimentary soups! The soups are comforting and the perfect temperature. Just hot enough that they come out steaming, but also cool with the ambient air perfectly with each spoonful. At this point, we both agree that we have found a new gem and haven't even tasted our mains yet!

Just as the soups are taken away, the chef himself comes out with our mains which I can only describe as meticulous perfection. The lamb chops arrive arranged on a bed of crispy golden fries with a side sauce, grilled cherry tomatoes on the vine, and a side salad all beautifully arranged on a charcuterie board. The lamb itself is crispy on the outside, yet so incredibly tender it basically falls off the bone, and pairs well with the tangy BBQ style sauce. Even the fries are damn near perfect!

The hot wings arrive in a basket with the classic veggies and ranch sauce. They too are fried beautifully and sauced to perfection. Most places serve their wings doused in a bucket of sauce which throws off the ratios and leads to soggy wings. Not these guys. They know how it's done! The light breading on the wings seemed to absorb the hot sauce beautifully making them full of flavour, but still allowing them to retain their crunch. No need for 10 napkins and 5 wet wipes.

I can honestly say, this has been one of my best dining experiences in the GTA, and only minutes from my home. It's a tough time for businesses like this, and I can only imagine the stress the owner(s) must be under after only opening up a couple months prior just to be hit with another lockdown. Nevertheless, they seem to be doing everything they can and doing a near perfect job of it as well. If you're looking for a heated patio and some excellent food, then look no further. They deserve every bit of business they get. I'm already looking forward to going back!

Compliments to the chef...

Terrible experience and if I could do zero stars I would. I had looked at the menu online and was excited to see that this was a British pub and served British dishes. I called just before noon on Sunday January 2 to get the hours of operation and was told 12pm to 9pm. I also specifically asked if the brunch menu was available and I was told it was.

My friend and I got to the pub around 12:30pm. There was no one at the hostess stand and the doors to the dining area were closed, so we just waited. After overhearing patrons say "oh there are people here" (it was clear they were friends of the manager/owner), we walked through the doors into the bar area. We sat down and my friend ordered a spicy caesar and I ordered a mimosa. The waitress didn't seem to understand what a mimosa was so I repeated myself. She then asked if it was on the menu and I showed her it was in fact on the brunch menu. She went to speak to whom I assume was the manager and he came over to tell us that the bartender wasn't in and they couldn't make the mimosa, but could make the caesar. How hard is it to mix champagne and orange juice 50/50? It's harder to make a caesar but not difficult. Meanwhile there were others there drinking beers but I guess we weren't as important as they were. Anyways we passed on the drinks and asked for coffee, but when I asked for decaf, I was told there was none. So we passed on the coffee too.

Next we both ordered the Crowne Royal (smoked salmon eggs benny) from the brunch menu. My friend asked the waitress if the dish was good and she said yes. The waitress walked away and then came back shortly after saying the brunch menu wasn't available. I told her I specifically called earlier to ask if the brunch menu was available and was told yes. She asked if I called today and I said yes. She walked over to the manager again and by that point my friend and I were getting our coats on to leave. I told the manager we had called before coming to enquire about the brunch menu. We just said forget it and walked out. As we left I overheard the patrons and the manager commenting and laughing about us wanting brunch close to 1pm. Considering the pub opened at noon and a traditional brunch is from 11am to 3pm, I was quite put off by that comment. I was also not impressed that the server and the manager were communicating in another language in front of us.

As a smart serve and food safety certified former Food and Beverage manager, I was appalled at the service, the lack of communication and lack of menu knowledge. I will not be returning to...

First time back here since the covid pandemic and the new name. WOW! The grand opening isn’t for another couple weeks, so there’s gonna be more to love, but it’s already such a fantastic upgrade! The place has been redone and is truly beautiful. The new deck is amazing and they will be putting space heaters there to make it enjoyable through the fall at least. My wife and I split the fish and chips (also comes with peas for that authentic British feel) and the potato skins. Both were exceptional -plus they have malt vinegar and that’s a cherished childhood flavour for me! The potato skins are brushes with BBQ which made my wife very happy as it brought a whole new flavour to an old favourite. My wife had the house red - a lovely CabMerlo and I worked my way through their 11 beers on tap…okay, not all of them…a guys gotta have somehow to look forward to next time - and there will be a next time, and next time, and so on. If you decide to try it out (and you should, unless of course you don’t like pub grub, British culture or alcohol - in which case I question why you’re reading a pub review this long…I mean I don’t judge, but I question) anyway, if you do come, make sure to ask for Cidian and if you’re really good, Gail might even share the epic playlist she has - but...