The Hogtown Vegan — Restaurant in Toronto

I have been a Hogtown regular for more than 5 years. It's one of the original vegan comfort food restaurants that gained well-deserved popularity with its huge portions of delicious vegan junk food for a fairly decent price. Through the years, they've understandably changed up their menu - adding new items, offering rotating specials, and re-formulating some things. Most of the changes were for the better, I felt. The "un chicken" reformulation, for example, was one of the changes I embraced whole-heartedly.

However in the past year, maybe two, every time I've visited something has been "off." The Bloor location started going downhill pretty rapidly, with portions getting smaller despite prices going up (on some visits I could count the fries on my plate with my two hands), menu items that were once tasty being replaced by bland, boring (and smaller) iterations of what they once were, lower quality breads for the sandwiches, inadequate portions of sauces, etc. The Buffalo sauce, which comes at a premium charge, smells so overwhelmingly like vinegar, I can't even eat it anymore. Oddly, that's one sauce they rarely skimp on.

So I guess you could say I was glad when the College location opened, and being the loyal dogs (or hogs?) for punishment that I and my family are, we started going there instead. At first, like all new restaurants, it was great! The fries were much better (thicker as opposed to the shoestring variety at the Bloor location), it was a quieter, less tinnitus-inducing dining atmosphere, and there was a patio! Super.

But a year or so later, it too started to nose dive. We started noticing things like the food being barely lukewarm, the fries being overcooked (I'm talking been-through-the-fryer-3-times-or-more overcooked), and the dreaded "my dining companion got way more food than I did, even though we ordered the same thing." Not kidding! They don't appear to care about quality control. It seems like the kitchen staff simply toss the food on the plates by hand and hope nobody notices. It would be unacceptable anywhere, but it's especially so here, given that a STANDARD meal without any upgrades or add-ons, will set you back almost $20 with tax. And hey, what happened to the kids' menu??!

Food aside, there are a few things that any self-respecting establishment charging such prices (or really any prices) should invest in: glass glasses, decent cutlery that doesn't bend when you try to use it, adequate napkins that aren't like tissue paper, and reusable condiment containers. Seriously, Hogtown?! If I order a side of mayo, you're telling me your only option is a disposable plastic container!? Surely you can drop some coin on proper tableware. 🤷🏼‍♀️ Oh and do me a favour and advise me that it's $3 extra instead of just adding it to the bill, mkay? These seemingly small offences make your establishment appear cheap and out of touch.

On a positive note, the service is usually great, the staff very friendly and accommodating. Apologies always abound when there is an issue (which lately, there seemingly always is). Only during their busiest times have we ever had to wait an exorbitant amount of time for food or to be greeted. The wait for a table though is hideous at times, due to the asinine policy of ensuring the entire party is present before they will grant you a table. I find that egregious and unfair, particularly as people just walk in after me and get seated while I stand at the entrance like an idiot because part of my entourage is running late.

I predict, sadly, that Hogtown Vegan will be a distant memory within a year or two, with newer, more innovative vegan joints opening up and absorbing their customer base. I sincerely hope they take the reviews of their unsatisfied patrons to heart and do some much needed work at improving things, to ensure my prediction doesn't come true. I would give them my business back in a heartbeat, but I think for the time being I'll be taking a Hogtown hiatus.

You can do better, Hogtown Vegan! I know you can,...

Some things were excellent and some were a miss.

The miss: the Philly cheesesteak was not good. While the cheese sauce was really delicious, it was only poured on top and didn’t seep down, so after eating the very top layer the rest was dry - dry bread with dry seitan. To make matters worse, the seitan wasn’t good at all - it was much too dry and hard instead of juicy, and I found the flavor off putting - like the taste of raw spices that aren’t properly cooked out. Overall, seitan was a total miss in flavor and texture. The sandwich could’ve been saved if they’d tossed the seitan in cheese sauce and then topped with extra, but the way it was done was almost inedible. Based on how tasty the cheese sauce is, I would try the Mac and cheese next.

The good: poutine was excellent, absolutely delicious! The gravy was a yummy gooey texture and really good flavor, strong on rosemary - almost too strong but I like rosemary so it was good for me. The daiya cheese hit the spot adding to the gooey texture, even though I’m not vegan. Again it could’ve had gravy better distributed as some fries underneath were dry but overall very good.

The Caesar was also really good, not spectacular but as good as other vegan Caesar’s I’ve had, maybe even better. I especially liked the bacon bits which were a really nice touch and added good flavor.

Overall, would definitely try again but will stay away from the cheesesteak (and maybe avoid all of their seitan since it was so dry, even though I usually really like seitan).

It was also well priced, not too expensive especially...

Food was decent as usual, but it seems like every time I go here the staff are less and less welcoming. They're not just disinterested the way staff are at some restaurants, but rather seem to be actively annoyed or highly stressed for reasons unrelated to any customer. I was there last week and the server was cursing under his breath and seemed irritated and distracted while working at the bar and serving customers. I'm not sure if this has something to do with their work culture - maybe they're understaffed or something - but in any event it's a very tense and awkward atmosphere, a bit like sitting in the corner during an argument that doesn't involve you. Not even rude per se, just stressed. I did see the sign on the door indicating that they would be on vacation in late January - hopefully the staff can get what seems like a much needed break.

I like they they serve collard greens, and I come here regularly in part for that reason. Typically comfort food places just stack junk food on top of junk food, so it's nice to have a somewhat healthier palate cleanser in the mix. Much better than the usual fries or potato wedges, and they're made really well. Ginger beer is also excellent.

Their fried chicken could use an upgrade. Nowadays there's really good vegan fried chicken out there, and they seem to be stuck in the early 2000s when vegan chicken consisted of a brick of soy protein that tasted meh. I'm looking for an extra-crispy, extra-greasy piece of chicken that puts South Carolina to shame. This could really bring a lot of their...