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| - At one time, one of the hippest spots in one of Toronto's hippest neighbourhoods, Shanghai Cowgril prefigured a number of trends; asian fusion, comfort food, diner classics, chicks with tattoos, ridiculously late opening hours.
Today, like the Queen Street West strip it inhabits, Shanghai cowgirl is more shabby by than shabby chic. The servers' sass is just grating, and the food is indifferently served to patrons in frayed, nearly two-dimensional narrow booths.
Service is markedly disinterested. The right orders arrive, and you're actually impressed. If you order alcohol, you're worth more effort.
Coffee is typical diner brew; more hot and wet than anything. Add some Kahlua and Baileys and it's a pretty solid B-52. Breakfast sees watery eggs and underfilled sausages sided with griddled, chalky potatoes.
If grilled cheese is your thing, then Shanghai Cowgirl is your huckleberry.
Multiple variations arrive on triple-decker challah; all golden buttery goodness. A version with avocado, havarti and jalapeno alternates creamy and spicy to good effect. It's sided with pale but crispy frites.
Caesar salad is just slightly wet, but it's salad dressing packs anchovy punch and an obscene amount of balsamic-drizzled croutons. It may not be diet food, but it's a tasty option.
A promised roasted red pepper soup is too sweet, and would do with less sugar.
The club sandwich is almost perfect; a fresh-grilled Portuguese pada bun, lightly glazed with something sweet; a properly-grilled chicken breast, mayo, crispy bacon burnt to hell, and decently fresh lettuce and tomato make a perfectly good dinner, until a mouthful of gristle at the end threatens to upend the works onto the table.
If Shanghai Cowgirl were one of it's hipster clientele, it would be that dude with the receding hairline and too much chunky silver jewellery. You know, the dude who leers while counting backwards to see if the girl nursing wine coolers meets the half-plus seven rule; and who stays well past the end of the music.
I don't care how good the grilled cheese is. Sometimes you just gotta grow up.
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