From pickle-flavoured cocktails that’ll make you pucker up to desserts sure to tickle your taste buds, Toronto fully embraces the pickle life. So much so that we’re gearing up for Canada’s biggest pickle festival in October! Say goodbye to avocado toast, because pickles are the hottest culinary sensation in town!
The new pineapple
Out with pineapple, in with pickles! Pickle pizza is the latest “should I or shouldn’t I?” topping trend causing a stir. At Beast Pizza (96 Tecumseth St.), the pickle pie boasts mozzarella, dill pickles, cornichon and dill. Meanwhile, Slowhand (99 Pape Ave.) adds a twist with a Carolina gold mustard finish on the sourdough crust. Conspiracy Pizza (858 Eglinton Ave. E.) goes all out with the Bay of Pigs ‘za, loading it up with pulled pork, bacon and heaps of dill pickles. Meanwhile, Get Well (1181 Dundas St. W.) serves up a unique twist with a pickle-packed pie, featuring a garlic cream sauce base and tangy pickled pepperoncini peppers.
The dirtier martini
Ah, the classic dirty martini — a blend of gin or vodka, vermouth and olive brine. But have you ever ventured into even dirtier territory? Enter the pickle martini. Swap out the olive brine for pickle juice, and you’ve got yourself a tangy twist on the classic cocktail that some say takes the “dirty” to a whole new level. At Doc’s Green Door Lounge (3106 Dundas St. W.), they elevate the martini game with a “make your own” martini option. Pick your poison from a selection of Plymouth, Titos, Ketel One or Hendricks, then customize it with your choice of fixings, including a tangy pickle brine.
Dill-icious doughnuts
Food mash-ups are all the rage these days, so it’s no surprise to see some unexpected creations popping up in the city. But a dill pickle fritter? That sounds … questionable. But hold up because it turns out it’s dill-icious! Picture this: yeast-risen dough infused with chopped dill pickles and dill, then dipped in a homemade dill sour cream glaze and topped with crispy deep-fried dill. It’s a savoury-sweet sensation that might just blow your mind. And guess what? You can snag one from one of the best doughnut shops in the city: Machino (1556 Bloor St. W.), and they’re even vegan! So ready to give it a try?
Forget the fries
We all know how highly addictive french fries can be. Whether you’re into shoestring, curly, thin cut or wedges, fries in all shapes and sizes are downright irresistible. But here’s a twist: ever sampled pickle chips? No, we’re not talking about the reigning champs of the snack aisle, but “chips” in the British sense. At Rudy (619 College St.), the deep-fried pickle chips deliver the perfect crunch, especially when paired with the zesty Valentino sauce. And over at Michelin Bib Gourmand Chica’s Chicken (2853 Dundas St. W.), thinly sliced pickle chips come loaded with a sweet seasoning, perfect with the ranch dip.
Holy cannoli
Italian cuisine is celebrated worldwide for its incredible savoury dishes, like pasta and pizza and desserts like gelato and tiramisú. But would Giada De Laurentiis approve of a pickle cannoli? At Toronto’s Cannoli Crunch (850 King St. W.), renowned for inventive twists on Italian classics, the pickle cannoli steals the spotlight. Imagine creamy ricotta blended with secret seasonings, piped into a crispy shell, and then topped with pickle slivers and dill. It’s a flavour bomb that’ll have you rethinking everything you thought you knew about Italian desserts!
