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| - When I first moved to Toronto, The Imperial became the closest thing to our "local". We used to go there all the time, and every time we went we always ended up asking ourselves the same thing "Why again do we come here?".
Ironically, it was some sort of user-supported review website that first led me to the pub, long before the days of Yelp (I think). After reading a review that described the Imperial as a dark, interesting, character pub, I convinced a few of my friends to come along and try it out.
Certainly, it is a character pub. The lighting is dim, there's a large, circular bar on the main floor and a few pool tables upstairs. I'm not sure if we were right about this but we got the distinct impression that the main bartender was the owner. There's a large aquarium on the main floor and an awkward patio upstairs. You feel like a fight could break out at any time and we certainly came close. The bathroom is enter at your own risk, if not for the cleanliness, than for the sketchiness. I walked in on at least 2 deals going down.
And now for the negative points. The beer. They're always tapped out early of domestics and whatever they do have is as flat as Debra Messing. No excuse. Go for one round, just for the experience, then go somewhere they serve alcohol properly. Like the Fillmore.
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