the carbon bar

the bbq mac n cheese here is the best mac n cheese i've ever had. seriously. perfectly cooked noodles, a perfectly-paired cheese, and it's topped with bbq'd brisket. i swear there was more cheese than noodle (i.e.: a good thing).

this post contains some images of our recent dinner at the carbopn bar in toronto. we drank steamwhistle pilsner draught and leffe blonde draught. we ate beef croquettes dill mustard; fried truffled mac & cheese; blistered shishitos guajillo spice sesame, lime; the pit master platter - pork ribs, beef brisket, buttermilk fried chicken, dill pickles, fries; tcb slaw - corn nuts; corn bread - cheddar, chili & lime butter; fries & chipotle mayo and various sauces and the house sauces.

went here with 5 girls for dinner. 1. service was amazing. they forgot to tell us they had no more ribs for the pitmaster platter (other meat was substituted) and we got some shots for their over sight. 
2. the food was amazing!!!! we got a 4 person pitmaster platter for 5 girls and we filled ourselves up and had some extra food to spare. the brisket was melt in your mouth, the fried chicken was so juicy and tasty, the pulled pork was so flavorful. the bbq sauces were so good too. 
i am such a fan of this place, form the ambiance, to the food to the service to the vibe. 
must try this spot ppl!!

wow! simply wow. high end casual bar meets southern style bbq meets seafood joint. where else do you find fresh lobster on the same menu as fried chicken? and speaking of fried chicken, these ones are addictive. i'm not talking about the typical 11 herbs and spices, my auntie from luisiana makes good chicken addictive. i'm talking about rob ford loves crack addictive.

as a huge consumer of eventing bbq in toronto, hands down best brisket in town, just the right cuts to balance fat/meat content on every bit. moist and delicious. ribs are pretty awesome too but i've been a dozen times and it's a bit of a gamble sometimes. the fried chicken however: bring on the contenders. nothing like it this side of mason-dixon line.

the seafood is great, but it's not why we keep coming back. it's all about the bbq. the sides never disappoint, but they keep changing the menu too fast to gauge consistency. no complaints here but they make you love an item only for it to disappear the next time. yes, they are that good. i'm going to start a one man campaign to bring back the "hot mess".

well done carbon team!

i've walked by this place a billion times and every time i've tries to make a reservation it was usually fully booked. so when i finally got my reservation to fall through i was pretty stoked (do people still use that word?). the outside leaves a lot of mystery so once i made my way in it was nothing like what i had expected. it was a lot more hip and casual inside. most people inside were wearing jeans and a sweater while i came in with my little black dress and heals...i guess it's better to be overdressed than underdressed right? i started with the hamachi ceviche for an app and to this day it still plays back on my tongue. as for the main i kept safe with a burger, but i must say it was in my top 3 best burgers i've had in my life. i know it's a burger but dang! and with some perfectly crisp fries on the side...i lost it! i definitely look forward to going back there!

pardis parhizgar badgalriirii is in da building and the food is awesome! the atmosphere is so cool and unique too. everyone gotta check it out!

beef brisket burnt ends. fantastic!


-----12 mar, 2015-----

coleslaw side. very good!


-----12 mar, 2015-----

octopus. not enough octopus

brisket: great. the rest: meh.. we went here for my birthday. i'm a bbq fan and want to get a smoker this spring so naturally i was intrigued by the offerings here. the service was without reproach. very attentive and helpful. the food was ok. frogs legs and beef croquettes were good but didn't warrant the price tag considering the portion size. the pit platter looked promising but the only amazing part was the brisket. fried chicken was crispy sure... but bland. same with the ribs. kinda dry and chewy. and the total for 2 people was a smidge surprising. again not all bad and the venue looks amazing but the actual bbq was just ok.

pit master platter (minimum 2 people). a little pricy for 2 actually but food is excellent.


-----21 jan, 2015-----

grits and cheddar with crispy kale and poached egg. excellent. too expensive.

went her for dinner and apps this past weekend and it was an enjoyable time. there was a wait being a saturday but we got a nice booth that was comfortable and welcoming. i think what we all liked best was the ambience and decor. the high ceilings and mirrors are definitely a nice touch.

food: we tried a few different dishes more on the appetizer side so i will have to come back to review their mains. some interesting finds with the crispy chicken skin - found this a little too greasy and underwhelming, the shisito peppers with the eggplant dip was good, with the gamble of one in every 20 peppers being hot. we also tried the tuna tartare salad that was refreshing and had a generous helping of tuna as well as a side of 'hot mess' which was great. the brisket in the 'hot mess' was definitely a highlight which is why i think their other mains would be good.

service: very friendly and attentive with great knowledge of the menu which is always a plus.

off the menu tip: portions are small more towards the tapas sides but the ambience is great for a few dishes and some drinks.

serving up southern-inspired fare, the carbon bar is brought to you by the nota bene team – yannick bigourdan, david lee and franco prevedello.

the restaurant, located at queen and church, occupies a gorgeous space with sky-high ceilings that span two stories. the space features a bar area near the front of the restaurant and a dining room with dark red booths and modern spherical lighting that hangs from the ceilings.

it had been a long week for all of us so drinks were a must:

the alibi – tequila, chartreuse, lemon, buckthorn guajillo chili syrup ($16). while i enjoyed it, i was expecting a bit more heat from the chili syrup but i guess it’s not a very spicy chili pepper.

the deal closer – tequila, campari, cardamom grapefruit bitters & ginger beer ($14). mike said it sounded better on paper and wished that the ingredients were more pronounced – without knowing what was in it, he would never have guessed there was ginger beer, campari or cardamom grapefruit bitters.

the heart of gold – bourbon, port, martini bianco, chartreuse & orange bitters ($14). i didn’t have any of this one but our friend ordered a second one so it must’ve been good.

carbon bar’s food menu consists of several sections – “first up” (appetizers including indulgent high-calorie items as well as lighter options such as sea scallops and hamachi tartare), “from the wood fire pit”, “the plates” (non-bbq items) and “fixins” (sides).

we started off with two orders of the crisp chicken skins – with sweet chili vinegar ($6 per order). since there were five of us, our server recommended getting two orders. when it first arrived, we inquired about our second order but it turns out, one order only comes with two chicken skins. they were incredibly thin, crispy and definitely tasty but i found the price a little too steep for the portion size.

with all the meat-heavy dishes that were coming our way, we wanted something on the lighter side and chose the raw salad – avocado, pear, radish, shaved coconut, corn nuts, coriander & lime vinaigrette ($12). the plate was beautiful with a wonderful combination of colours and shapes.

i loved the crispy and crunchy elements in the dish but wished there was more of the creamy avocado for some contrast. the dressing was quite tart so i’d only recommend ordering this if you’re a fan of sour flavours.

the kitchen brought out some complimentary split pea fritters – with pico de gallo. they made for a great bar snack but the thing that stood out the most for me was the side of delicious pico de gallo.

another complimentary item we received was the cheese croquettes – with apple-chipotle sauce. these deep-fried nuggets of gooey cheese were well-fried with a crisp exterior which wasn’t too greasy. just be careful when biting into them as they’re served piping hot!

you can’t come to the carbon bar without ordering something from the wood fire pit. since we wanted to try as many items as possible, we ordered the pit master platter – ribs, beef brisket, jalapeno sausage & pulled pork ($29 per person; minimum of two people). the platter was for two people. like the chicken skins, i was a little shocked at the portion size…it’s not a lot of food for almost $60!

anyway, if i had to choose, my favourite component was the brisket which had a nice fattiness to it. but was it some of the best i’ve ever had? no. the pulled pork was served dry with sauce on the side for dipping. it was decent by nothing particularly memorable. as for the ribs, they definitely weren’t fall-off-the-bone tender (which i typically prefer) and i found them a touch too salty. like the pulled pork, the ribs were served with the sauce on the side which i found a little too tangy for my liking.

we noticed that the goat ribs ($18) are only available on fridays and since we were dining on a friday, we couldn’t pass them up. the dish came with several ribs as well as a small tenderloin. the ribs themselves were quite small and didn’t have a ton of meat on the bones. nevertheless, the goat was incredible – tender and wonderfully fatty. i liked the fact that it wasn’t covered in any sauce as it allowed the flavour of the meat to shine (they had a gamey flavour which reminded me of lamb). this was definitely my favourite dish of the evening.

in addition to the wood pit items, we ordered the tcb burger – pork cheek, havarti, pickles, mustard & fries ($19). the juicy patty was cooked perfectly and the combination of it with the havarti cheese made it one solid burger. the bun was also quite nice as it held up well against the juicy patty.

a non-meat entrée we ordered was the blackened sea bass – yucca, chili lime, coriander & tomatillo chutney ($22). i only had a small bite of this and didn’t find it to be anything special but the rest of the table seemed to enjoy it more than i did.

as far as fixins go, we ordered the “hot mess” – sweet potato, cheese curds, crema, pickled jalapeno & chopped brisket ($11). c’mon, with ingredients like this, it couldn’t possibly be bad. the hot mess was essentially a loaded baked potato but with sweet potato instead. it was a pretty darn good (but heavy) side.

to end off the meal, we ordered a few desserts to share. the first dessert we shared was the carbon chocolate bar – bitter chocolate, pecan ganache, bourbon caramel ($3 each). as advertised on the menu, these little bites were “just a taste” and a nice way to finish off the meal if you’re stuffed but still want to end off with something sweet.

up next was the pumpkin pie ice cream – rice pudding, barberries, wild blueberries, candied sunflower and pumpkin seeds, spiked eggnog ($9). the ice cream had a very intense pumpkin flavour and while the rice pudding wasn’t mind-blowing, i enjoyed the bits of candied sunflower that were sprinkled over it.

the last dessert we tried was the banana toffee cream pie ($16 for two people). the pie consisted of chunks of bananas and a generous amount of cream sitting on top of a nice pie crust. even though we didn’t detect any toffee, the table still enjoyed this dish.

so, there were some memorable dishes but there were also some misses for me. i also found the prices to be on the high side, especially for the portion sizes. overall, it was a good meal but not amazing.

at a glance:

• southern-inspired fare/bbq brought to you by the nota bene team

• gorgeous space located on queen east (at church)

• open for dinner (until late) mondays to saturdays; closed sundays

• prices are on the high side, especially for the portion sizes

• loved the goat ribs which are only available on fridays

ratings (out of 5):

• food: 3.5 stars

• service: 3 stars

• atmosphere: 4 stars

we always have room for more "friends" in our life—especially when it comes to delicious, easy-on-the-budget snacks that can be eaten while enjoying live music and djs. available thursday to saturday from 11 p.m. until 2 a.m., the resto's late-night menu boasts seven items to satisfy those midnight munchies, from spicy (shishito peppers—watch out! -

the carbon bar is spacious and has great food. i was impressed with the pit master platter. it has brisket, ribs, chicken and much more. try the "hot mess" dish.. very unique dish that contains sweet potato, cheese curds and brisket. i like going on mondays for the #gbdmondays special menu. they also have a new late night menu with food items for $5 after 11pm.

it was ok - not amazing. the carbon bar is beautifully designed. the front staff and waiters were very pleasant, attentive and efficient. we were told that we had two hours to eat before the next group would come. (we just barely finished by 2 hours. hey, whose fault is that?)
the starters were nicely presented but not much food on the plate. our desired wine (pinot grigio) was not available. i hate that. someone is not doing their job. the substituted wine was not very good. the calamari and the trout were excellent. our friends had the mixed meat platter. they were underwhelmed especially since this should be carbon's hallmark dish. for dessert, the banana pie was great.
all in all, ok, but i would not bother to return.

see abbeyskitchen.com

i often get asked for restaurant recommendation for a good sexy date night or fun spots for a small group that offer awesome food but won’t break the bank. it’s a tall order, but one of my go-to’s suggestions is the almost year-old bbq joint, carbon bar.
 
located at 99 queen st. east, the carbon bar’s executive chef david lee recently launched the new late-night menu on october 8th- a unique offering of delectable dishes with surprisingly affordable prices! and when i say it’s affordable, i really mean it- all of the dishes are just $5 each.
 

since it’s always nice to have something to drink with your bbq fare, guests can get in on carbon’s signature drinks from their always evolving the menu. and if you need another reason to work your way through the entire menu, there’s also live music every thursday and friday night!
 
now that you’ve read all this, i am sure you’re excited to scroll down to what kind of delicious drinks and eats await – so let’s get into it!
carbon bar julep (2 oz)
lapsang infused woodford reserve bourbon, lime, mint, simple syrup
 
refreshing and agreeable, it wasn’t at all too strong and yet had the perfect hint of sour. i can definitely see myself drinking this on a late night.
the black mamba margarita (3oz)
charcoal infused tromba tequila, st. germain, bowmore, lime, sea salt rim
 
i may copy this idea for halloween- though i might leave the pyrotechnics to the professionals…
 
it may look chaotic, but the carbon bar folks got things under control! with the salty rim getting some solid caramelization from the torch, and the smoky tequila coming through, this was a beautifully balanced drink.
kick ass fried rice
beef brisket, steamed egg, sweet chili soy
 
fantastic fried rice- exactly the kind of comfort food you feel like eating late at night.
k.f.p
korean fried pork ribs
 
these ribs were blessedly tender, perfectly spiced and fell right off the bone – you will definitely eat the meat clean off! it may be a wee bit messy for date night, but man, it’s so good, you won’t care.

popcorn chicken
with kimchi mayo
 
tender chicken, crispy skin with a fantastic level of seasoning. i particularly loved the pungent kimchi mayo with each bite. yum.
shishito peppers
with pit-fired eggplant dip
 
a russian roulette of flavour! why? well, because these tasty peppers have one spicy black sheep in every stack! that makes for some pretty fun time with friends, and perfect with a refreshing bourbon based carbon bar julep – especially for the unlucky one.
veal tongue sub
dill pickle, pickled cabbage and french’s mustard
 
in the mood for a sandwich but looking for that special something? try this veal tongue sub. wow, talk about flavour. the tender meat counterbalanced the crunchy slaw and the pillowy fresh bread. hey subway, now this is how you do a sub.

crispy sticky tofu
chinese bbq sauce, ginger, green onion
 
for those non-meat eaters- or simply those who love amazingly fried tofu, you’ve got to try this dish. crispy on the outside, fluffy within and coated in an addictively sticky sweet glaze. love it.

 
as with my previous carbon bar adventures, the late night menu experience was truly phenomenal and a steal at just $5 each! this is perfect for all you who love delectable eats, impeccable service and affordable addictive snacks!
 
if it isn’t already, i am positive that the carbon will become one of your staple spots for great food and drink at a great price.

 
the carbon bar’s late-night menu launched officially on october 16th, and will be exclusively available thursday to saturday, served from 11pm to the wee hours of 2 a.m. in the morning. for more information on the carbon bar, visit their website and be sure to bring your friends!

contribution by ak tasters: savannah onofrey & sharifa campbell