In opening their new bar, Food and Liquor, owners Vincent Ng (Victor), Nigel French (Campagnolo) and Ginny Tam managed to overhaul Poor John’s Cafe in a mere two weeks. The triplet transformed the Parkdale stalwart from unfussy day venue into an unpretentious (but polished) evening destination. They muted the colour scheme, opened the space up a bit and installed a walnut bar that seats seven.

The menu of hearty bar snacks tops out at $9, which is surprising, given the premium that Ng and French have placed on sourcing things sustainably and locally. The produce is sourced from 100km Foods, the seafood is from Hooked and the meat is provided by Sanagan’s.

Like its décor and its name, this new Queen West haunt — which opened earlier this month — is focused on simplicity. The cocktail list is limited to classic quaffs (Martinis, Negronis, Manhattans) and the menu has fewer than a dozen items on it.

Long-time pals Ng and French have collaborated on the succinct menu, which represents a fusion of their culinary heritages. Ng has left a Chinese imprint, while French’s Anglo-Canadian influence shines through in subtle touches like the addition of mint sauce to the scallion pancake-rolled lamb tongue ($7).

Asian flavours (like cashews with green onions, chili and lime, $4) pervade the menu, but that’s due in part to French’s recent trip to Thailand. A Canadian play on edamame (fresh peas still in the pod, $2) and a dish of radishes with goat butter and fennel salt ($3) make up the CanCon quotient of the menu.

Duck plays a big role in the protein options: there are duck hearts ($5), soft-boiled duck egg ($5) garnished with shrimp roe and served on slow-roasted pork, and duck tongues ($5) done in a chili-honey glaze. The duck tongues might alarm some eaters, but they taste like one-bite chicken wings. And they’re more elegant to eat on a date.

Food and Liquor serves food until 2 a.m., and there’s also a 38-seat patio.

Published on: Jul 11, 2013