Two incredible reasons Black Hoof gets 5 stars:
* Items on the menu I've seen no where else
* Awesome service from the woman who sets the beer menu
Black Hoof exceeded my expectations. I'd read about it on Yelp from my home in Los Angeles and it was my first destination after landing in YYZ. Even with such high expectations Black Hoof exceeded them.
Why I am I raving about the menu? It has items like a Raw Horse Sammy, Beets and Lamb Tongue, Crispy Pig Ear salad there's bound to be something on the chalk board menu that you haven't had before. I had to officiate a wedding the next day so was more conservative than I might have been otherwise so I had a charcuterie plate (that did include horse mortadella) and a spreadable salumi on taglietelle.
When Erin and I let the server know that we're into beer and were interested in trying some beers from Toronto or Ontario, the server's face lit up and she shared that she creates the beer list. Erin wanted a porter and she recommended Wellington Porter. I asked for one of her favorites and she recommended an IPA from Mike Duggan. She then ran across the street to Black Hoof's sister restaurant to get these bottles (more beers are stored over there because they have a larger fridge). We were quite impressed and pleased with our beer selection.
Finally the vibe of the place is my kind of place.
Big Kudo's for the server's recommendation that we out-of-towners stroll down Ossington after dinner (at 12 am) to find something to do. We were impressed with how many people were out and about, moreover with the number of people riding bikes that time of night. I saw more people riding bikes in 5 minutes at midnight than I've seen in one year in Los Angeles.