Botham’s — Restaurant in Toronto

Soon after The Junction became our home, Botham’s became a steady presence in our lives. While lockdown restrictions limit their ability to deliver on their full potential, we can say for certain that they’ve “made the pivot” and are killing it nonetheless.

The Sunday roast beef special is absolutely to-die-for. Generous servings of succulent, tender medium-rare roast beef accompanied by a killer Yorkshire pudding, insanely delicious roasted potatoes, three kinds of roasted veggies and an absolutely off-the-charts wine gravy (and always a surprise dessert) make this a steal of a deal at $60 (+HST). It’s worth noting that the roasted potatoes were some of the best we’ve EVER had. They had this insanely crispy texture to them that was oh so very addictive. We’re considering ordering just the potatoes and eating a whole tray. This has us very curious about their Saturday fire roasted chicken dinner for $45. We’ve not had it yet, but we’re gonna - and we know it’s gonna be great!

Their wood-fired sourdough crust pizzas are some of the best we’ve had in Toronto. Great sauce, high quality toppings and a perfectly fired sourdough crust keep us coming back for more. And the two for $25 special Mondays - Wednesdays always makes us feel like we’ve committed theft whenever we take those home! Because we’re trying to control ourselves these days we always have leftover pizza for breakfast, and it’s equally delicious the next day (either at room temperature or gently warmed over). The pepperoni pizza has superb meat and cheese. Their Arugula and Cherry Tomato pizza with sundried tomatoes is amazingly fresh tasting and perfect for a Spring/Summer mid-day meal.

On top of these hot dinner options they have a well stocked, creatively curated and reasonably priced market. We’ve tried a number of the products and everything has been first rate. Some highlights include: pre-prepared frozen pizza that’s ready to eat after 15 minutes in a 450F oven - way better than anything we’ve gotten from a grocery market; superb beef broth; delicious hickory smoked BBQ sauce - we love it on chicken and ribs ; potted cheese (OMG!!) - great on a bagel; and, frozen cookie dough (OMG x 2!). Throw in a small but really well thought out bottle shop - and delicious pre-mixed cocktails (get the Negroni - trust us on this one) - and you have everything you need to help lift the lockdown blues.

Oh, we just about forgot: to top it all off they make absolutely first rate, wood-fired sourdough bread, and scrumpdillyicious baked goodies like doughnuts (including doughnut holes!) and cinnamon buns. What more could...

Botham's is owned by brothers Jack and Ben Wilkinson, who both live in the Junction. So it was a natural place for the hospitality industry brothers to look when they wanted to open a place of their own. They started by opening a bar The Hole in the Wall T.O., in October 2012 and it quickly became a neighbourhood favourite. When the space next door to the bar became available, they got the idea of taking over and turning it into a restaurant - and we’re glad that they did!

In the past, Ben and Jack worked in more upscale dining environments that had rigid rules around service. But the Wilkinsons envisioned creating the type of place that you could visit wearing jeans and a t-shirt (with the servers similarly dressed-down!) and still get an excellent meal. They opened just six weeks before Covid hit. Botham’s, like many eateries, did a pandemic pivot. “The storefront, baking and the donuts are a function of the lockdown and having to adjust our business plans,” Ben explains.

The wood-fired oven is definitely a draw of Botham’s. It adds a nice touch of smoky char to their sourdough pizzas. I had the bacon pizza and it was delicious! It came topped with Mozzarella, organic Bianco Di Napoli tomatoes, bacon, pineapple, cherry tomatoes, chilis and fresh basil. The pizza had the perfect amount of cheese and sauce and a really satisfying chewiness to the crust.

We had a spirited conversation about the culinary brilliance that is pineapple as a pizza topping. It’s clear what side of that debate we come down on, pineapple on the pizza for the win! They also bake up loaves of sourdough bread and Montreal-style bagels in their wood-fire oven. And I am a big fan of both! Oh and the donuts, you gotta go...

It is utterly disappointing to go to a restaurant where staff engage with customers as though they are inconvenienced by their very presence. One should expect to dine out and either leave feeling neutral or good about your experience, not worse. I came with my two kids and partner , we were shuffled into the back corner of the restaurant. It seems like all of the bipoc folks were seated far into the back near the kitchen. Both servers seem insulted that we had the audacity to be in their presence, which was indicated by glaring looks, not answering questions and a lack of communication. I don't expect much from servers, but hostility towards people trying to have a nice time out is unacceptable. We considered leaving right after ordering as our interaction with the server was that awkward, but we decided to just make the best of it. The food was decent, but the service was appalling and overshadowed the food. There are many restaurants in the area that have staff who care about creating a welcoming and positive dining experience. If you like being served by miserable humans, then this is the...