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| - Generally speaking I think English food ought to stay in England. Bangers and mash, bubble and squeak, black pudding, marmite... c'mon people. But tut tut, our dinner at Queen and Beaver could hold a candle to any place in downtown Toronto serving fine food. Checked first if the Fuller's London Pride on draught (not draft) was served cold, and it was. A hoppy, amber, yummy ale with caramel overtones. We decided to forgo apps in anticipation of the sticky toffee pudding. Everyone raved about their main, from the pickerel in a curry sauce, to the tarragon chicken, to my marrow crusted veal strip loin with braised potherbs (a sprig of thyme over some wilted dandelion greens, I think, perfectly cooked and resting on a swish of mashed salsify or possibly parsnip and jus. The marrow wasn't obvious, but I think it added crispness to the panko crust. A smallish portion for $26, and the sides (brussel sprouts in bacon, e.g.) were extra. Finally the moment we came for--the pudding course. In Britain all desserts are called pudding even if they aren't. The dark chocolate brownie with cinder toffee proved warm and rich, the sticky toffee pud with vanilla ice cream was heaven on earth, and my stilton and wild cherry scoop of ice cream was rustic with occasional salty chunks of cheese...unusual and quite delicious. Service lovely throughout with ready explanations of the dishes we had never heard of before (but weren't quite ready to try). We had a lovely table with no wait even without a reservation around 8pm and would happily return.
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