Hogtown Cafe - this Place will NOT help the Vegan movement

Dry Dry Unchicken and Floppy Waffles

I first heard of this place on the TV show You Gotta Eat Here!  I've found the places recommended on that show to be VERY hit or miss.  When we lived on the west coast, we used to visit a lot of places on Diners, Drive Ins and Dives and for the most part, the places lived up to the hype.  The show tries to find places that go out of their way cook real food despite outward appearances.  Whereas, I think, You Gotta Eat Here! is largely based on visitor reccos.  Well, I visited and I would not recco.  I specifically even tried the dishes they covered on the show and feel like the show was describing another restaurant.

I got the unChicken and Waffles and lil T got the Peanut Butter and Banana French Toast w Fake-on.  D had hoped he could order the Philly Cheese 'Steak' from the lunch menu but they won't serve anything but the brunch menu during brunch so he, reluctantly order the BLT.  It was difficult enough trying to get him to go to a Vegan restaurant so he wasn't a happy bunny when he couldn't have the dish he thought he was willing to try from the show.

Service was PAINFULLY slow.  They were very friendly and nice when we saw them but that was like never.  We waited well into 'lunch' for our order.  There was a lady sitting next to us who was a tourist who had come because of the show too.  She heard lil T complaining for his food and she had ordered the PBnB French Toast as well and hadn't touched half and offered it to us for lil T.  Since we had waited for ever and she seemed okay, we took it.  He was well into his brunch before our actual food even arrived.

The Fake-on or fake Bacon was like plastic.  Yes yes, carnivores, are rolling their eyes and shaking their head saying 'duh', it's fake on.  But I've had decent faux Bacon and this was NOT it.  Lil T loves bacon and bacony things and he spat this out.  It was worse than jerky.  The portions are huge but in a bad way.  The bread on the French Toast was very very thick and not well soaked and the fresh natural Peanut Butter was laid on thicker than plaster.  We will be scraping from the roof of our mouths for days.  We all tried and barely at a third of it and the extra the nice lady offered T.  The unChicken and Waffles were not enjoyable either.  That said, the Potatoes that came on the side were quite tasty. Again, I can hear the likes of D moaning. What were you thinking Vegan.  I like Vegan food.  Though I will admit, I prefer Vegan food that doesn't try to be fake something else.  Anyhoo.  The Waffles were doughy, rubbery and bland.  The unChicken was tough and also BLAND!  D's BLT would have been somewhat okay if not for the aforementioned Fake-on.  Again, with the bread cut slightly too thick, it was too dry and tough.  The side salad was uneventful premixed greens.

Thick, pasty, dry PBnB French Toast

The place itself is like a dive which I'm not fussed about if you can bring the goods with the food.  This place did not.  The service was excruciatingly slow so if you have kids, do not come here.  Or if you value your weekends, do not come here.  The staff was friendly and nice but it didn't redeem how long we waited for our food.  Oh side note,  I know it goes without saying that a Vegan place had no milk for lil T but they didn't even have any Soy as beverage.  Plan ahead.

Service: SLOOOOOOOOOOW
Food: Bland, flavourless and well, bad. (and I love Vegan/Vegetarian food)
Ambiance: Dive

Hogtown Vegan
Dufferin Grove
1056 Bloor St W
 Toronto, ON M6H1M3