Review of Royal Meats in Etobicoke Ontario

This week I’ll be reviewing the burger I had at Royal Meats in Etobicoke.

See this is what friends are for, yet another burger joint I only discovered through referral.  This time I am pleasantly surprised at what I had, something similar yet different.

Royal Meats stands out amongst its bland surroundings and just seems like something special.  You walk in and everything from the flooring to the lighting is top notch and modern.

You pick what kind of meat you want; they have beef, chicken, and various sausages.  The meats are all fresh and on display right in front of you as you order.  This doesn’t seem like so much a burger joint as a butcher shop.  They only have one type of burger, and several meat platters for take-out orders.

I ordered a 1/2lb royal burger and sweet potato fries.  With a drink this total came to about $15.50, which is actually a tad expensive considering I didn’t order any cheese or bacon.

They have the usual toppings but there is freshness to everything.  The lettuce isn’t the usual fair, but seems like something more suited for a salad. They don’t have any gourmet toppings aside from a red pepper paste and some white stuff that I got (seems like cream cheese).  The main problem I have is the lack of cheese options.  Don’t come here expecting to get a cheeseburger, although they do have feta.  It doesn’t seem as if burgers are their thing, they just happened to have buns and added it to the menu.  The bun was incredibly soft but the meat was just a bit too thin and bland.  I could’ve went for the full pound burger but that would’ve added another $3.00 and it’s already on the pricey side.  The meat was perfectly done, not greasy, and had a smoky taste to it.  The meat just seemed a bit small.  It says ½ lb but it’s much smaller than ordering a ½ lb at Wendys.

Lettuce Burger?

I ordered sweet potato fries which were typical fair and I did try their regular fries as well.  Regular fries are skin on and crispy, not greasy at all.  I feel like they could’ve been fried for a little longer but this comes down to personal preference.

Pros:

• Very Fresh
• Good Fries
• Don't feel like you hate yourself once you ate it.

Cons:

• No bacon,
• Meat shrinks,
• Lack of cheeses.

This doesn’t seem like a place I’ll go to get burgers.  I feel that grease and cheese are necessary.  This is definitely a place I’ll go when I want to get good food, and even though it may not seem like a burger joint, they do make one of the best burgers in the GTA. 

8/10

Magoo's in Etobicoke Burger Review

Went to Magoo’s  in Etobicoke on a recommendation but I must tell you it was not my first choice.  I desperately wanted to review Dangerous Dan’s; however, when I arrived there they had some problems with their equipment and told us to come back thirty minutes.  I could not wait this long and after longing into the window from across the street wondering if they were ready, my friend and I gave up and hit a pub on the corner.  So screw you Dan you won’t be making the final list! I'll be reviewing Magoo's this week instead.

Now onto Magoo’s, this is gonna be a short one.  Basically it’s as if there used to be a Lick’s in the same location that was sold to Mr. Magoo, and then Mr. Magoo decided not to change a damn thing.  The appearance, layout, and set up is the same as Lick’s save for some colour choices, and the menu is very similar plus or minus some minor details.  There’s 50’s music and it seems like a place to take your kids, in fact, everyone else had kids with them.

The burgers come in 4oz or 6oz and you can get a combo with fries and a pop for $10.  I ordered a 6oz with cheese (.95) and bacon (1.50) for a total of $12.62, about $4 less than I’ve been paying at most of Toronto’s burger joints. They also have regular fries, spicy fries, onion rings, chili fries, and poutine.  There are no substitutes with combos so you’re stuck with regular fries, they won’t even let you pay the difference.   They have all the standard toppings with the few exceptions of guacamole, bruschetta, and Magoo sauce (AKA Lick’s Guck Sauce). The burger was good even though it was well done; the only problem was that the cheese was not melted; it was just kind of sitting there hating its existence. 

The fries are where the difference from Lick’s comes through.  If you can remember, Lick’s fries were the worst I’ve had so far and thankfully Magoo’s are better.  Fries were fish n chip style and a bit bland.  A friend of mine ordered the spicy fries and they are much better.  They’re not spicy despite their name, but they’re the perfect crispness especially compared to the soggy regular fries.  Very pissed that I got trapped into getting the regular fries when I asked if I could get spicy fries!!  If you wanted to order a-la-carte style, you’d be spending quite a bit more and it just seems like they’re gouging you at that point.

Note the classy trays

I must say that most of the staff were incredibly friendly and seemed to know the customers very well. 

I honestly can’t get over how similar Magoo’s is to Lick’s.  It’s not a bad thing, Magoo’s and Lick’s are both good places, it’s just disappointing to review two places that are so similar.

Pros:

·         Good Value.

·         Friendly Staff.

·         Great Spicy Fries.

Cons:

·         No gourmet toppings

·         Non-melty cheese

·         Can’t substitute my fries?! You kidding me?! Change that ASAP and your score would go up half a point!

The few changes from Lick’s make Magoo’s the better joint, but not worth passing a Lick’s on your way there.

7/10

Woody's Burger Bar and Grill

This was my first review based on a referral from a friend. 

I had never been to Woody’s before, I’ve never even heard of Woody’s before, but after my first I have mixed feelings.

Woody’s is a small place that has a bit of a pub atmosphere.  

When you walk in you see the grill, menu, and cashier to your right with 4-person booths to your left. 

There is a small bar eating area with a large flat-screen playing sports, in the corner.    

Seating is limited so be prepared to take it to go.

The menu is written in chalk and they do have quite a selection.  

They have beef, cheddar or blue cheese-stuffed beef, chicken, turkey, veggie, and even bison as meat options!   The way the menu works is that you pick your meat and any additional-cost items like cheese or guacamole.  You can then pick your toppings from a wide selection once your burger is ready.  

They have quite a few more options than you would usually and everything looks good, but a lack of labelling will lead to a lot of people asking for “the white stuff”.

They also have a dozen suggested options like a Greek burger with feta and onions if you’re like me and incapable of choosing for yourself.  T

hey also have pulled pork sandwiches if you’re in the mood for that.

There are no combos to choose from so you’ll have to order drinks, fries, sweet-potato fries, or onion rings separately. 

What may be the best part of Woody’s…THEY HAVE BEER!!!   

Choose from Corona, Steam-whistle, and a host of Molson products at the usual restaurant prices.

You order your food and then they give you a pager…so you can wait…for 20 MINUTES!!!  Now they do have the 20-minute wait written on their menu and at least you have a pager so you don’t have to wait around and you can call in your order in advance, but I just don’t understand why it takes so long.

Now for the actual tasting, I ordered a beef burger with pulled pork, crispy-fried onions, salsa, and I forget (maybe I had 1 too many).  

The meat was very thick and juicy and overall delicious; unfortunately, the meat-to-bun ratio was off and the meat was sliding around in the bun with every bite.  

The bun breaks up very easily and eating this burger was a very messy affair.  

I must also say the toppings lacked any flavour.  The pulled pork was flavourless, and the crispy-fried onions were cold.

Fries were OK but very greasy. 

Burgers are reasonable at $5.95 for a burger with $1.00 extra for cheese.

Overall I paid $18.00 with fries and a beer!! Which I find very fair compared to wait I would expect to pay at a restaurant.

Pros:

•  Good quality meat
• Reasonable price
• Selection of toppings
•   BEER!

Cons:

• Wait!
•   Bland topping flavours
• Limited seating
• Buns fall apart

Overall I recommend this place if you want to hang out with friends and have a beer, but I don’t think I would ever have a craving for their burgers and see no reason to get it on my own. 

7/10