Restaurant Review: When The Pig Came Home
WHEN THE PIG CAME HOME
3035 Dundas Street West ~ whenthepigcamehome.ca Instagram: @when_the_pig_came_home Co-Diner: Tim Golem
I don't know about you but When the Pig Came Home kind of feels like one of Toronto's best kept secrets. This little delicatessen in The Junction has been around since 2012 and they keep a rather low profile. I personally feel like they deserve a lot more attention for the delicious things that are going on there. Thankfully Toronto Life listed WtPCH as #20 on their Toronto’s 25 Best Sandwiches Right Now 2019 list and I took notice. The thing that caught my attention the most about this list is that of all the 25 sandwiches on the list, only one of them was a peameal sandwich (Toronto's signature sandwich). And it's the one at When the Pig Came Home. So I mean... This has gotta be the peameal to try, amirite?! The shop's hours are a little bit tricky. They're closed entirely on Mondays and Tuesdays and are closed by 7pm on weeknights. They close even earlier on the weekends. So they're certainly more of a spot for lunch or an earlier dinner. I visited late on a Friday afternoon and the incredibly friendly and informative staff had no trouble feeding me a most delicious dinner. Another key item to note is that there really isn't much for seating or tables at the shop. There are a few benches that you can (and should) make due with but do not expect to settle in comfortably for a sit-down meal in any sort of way. I basically sat on a chair and ate in my lap - which I was fine with - but only because the quality of the food was worth it. Otherwise, the deli is cute and fairly simple. They have a small "pantry" retail wall that sells a lot of interesting items and there's a menu on the white wooden-slats wall. The vibe is cool. They aren't trying to impress anyone and that in itself is impressive. They're just doing what they do. I excitedly pondered the menu, almost surprised by some of the offerings that I found. I knew to expect peameal but had no idea that they specialize quite heavily in jerk chicken as well - an interesting combination and quite possibly the most Torontonian thing that I've ever seen. The deal at WtPCH is pretty simple and pretty awesome: their specialty is the highest quality, naturally raised, grass fed, hormone and anti-biotic free meats available. All of their sandwich meats are either cured, seasoned, smoked or roasted in-house fresh daily. It's the kind of operation that you'd hope to see everywhere. They're making real food and taking the time to do it properly. Most famous for their $5 original peameal sando, this was obviously the main thing that I had come in to try. Although I had to kick mine up a notch and ordered The Fully Loaded Original Peameal ($8.25).
My sandwich arrived after a short and reasonable wait. I've spoken about peameal bacon and it's deep connection to Toronto before, but ultimately, peameal is the most "Toronto food" available, if there is such a thing. It was invented in Toronto in the 1850s, thus helping to secure Toronto's eventual nickname of "Hogtown." The unsmoked back bacon is made from centre-cut pork loin, trimmed of fat, wet-cured in a salt and sugar brine and then rolled in cornmeal. It is not the same as Canadian bacon although the two are often confused for one another. The peameal sandwich has become somewhat of a signature sandwich in this city and this particular one is supposed to be one of the best of the best. I was excited. My sandwich was handed to me piping hot and oozing with golden egg yolk. I dove in and paid special attention to the peameal itself at first. Thick cut and briny in flavour, it tasted extremely legit and a lot less processed than other versions that I've come across. The meat was juicy and tender, ready to party with all of the other ingredients. I loved the way that their simple and basic bun managed to house so much goodness. The runny egg was fried perfectly, the vegetables were bright and fresh, the cheese was super melty, and sure, throw some delicious salty bacon on there, 'cause more pig products are better than less. The sandwich is actually fairly small but it packs a big, messy, delicious flavour. Grab some extra napkins for this one. Also. If you're feeling extra fancy you can add truffle sauce and/or foie gras to your sandwich. So... Keep that in mind. I know I will. There are other sandwiches available as well. Their porchetta and smoked meat are very popular items. However, as a jerk chicken fan, I loved seeing the prevalence of it on their menu. I noticed the Jerk Chicken Leg ($4.95) and knew that this would be the perfect way to try what they've got going on in the world of jerk.
The blistered and spicy skin was seasoned to perfection. I loved the heat and the char and appreciated that nothing was being held back in terms of big, bold flavours. Inside, I was delighted to encounter the most juicy and delicious, perfectly cooked chicken. This is what jerk chicken can and should be. When the Pig Came Home also makes JERK. CHICKEN. PATTIES. So. I will be back for that as soon as absolutely possible. In an attempt to eat a little bit more than only meat, we grabbed a Potato + Kale Salad ($3.75 for small size).
I was literally expecting almost nothing from this - yet it was incredibly delicious. The sprinkling of fried onions on top sealed the deal. Creamy and decidedly addictive, this is like no potato salad that you've ever tried before. What do they put in here??! All I can say is that we should have ordered the large size because we polished this thing off instantly. If I could have ordered one more thing, I would have tried a Juicy. What's a Juicy? Brace yourself. You pick any type of patty that you want (they make several types, but again, jerk chicken is an option) and then they open it up and stuff it with creamy slaw, Cheez Whiz, and green onions. I mean... I will be returning to When the Pig Came Home very soon. Everything tasted so good and I can't wait to try even more items off of their menu. This kind-of-Jamaican yet ultra-Torontonian with a hint-of-Montreal deli is doing something that I've never seen before and their flavours are there to back them up, that's for sure. I grabbed one last thing before we left from their pantry...
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