The County General

Birthdays are for celebrating, books are for reading, and weekends are for brunching. I would brunch 7 days a week if I could, but alas, that isn’t how the world works. After subjecting myself to two whole brunch-less weeks, I could not have been more excited to eat my weight in eggs and pancakes on a sunny Saturday. After researching intently for days, I decided on The County General, a place I’d heard too many great things about to resist any longer.

A feeling of belonging washed over me immediately upon entering when I noticed one of my fellow diners standing up to get an aerial shot of her food. Not to mention the overwhelming aroma of food and the cozy vibe of the restaurant itself. Where had this place been all my life? We placed our orders, and after hungrily waiting, our food finally arrived.

The Duck Confit Cassoulet for me, the Buttermilk Chicken Sandwich for Nish, and Chocolate Chip Pancakes to share.

Maple baked beans, crispy duck, and a perfectly poached egg. Everything was cooked to perfection and bursting with flavour. I proceeded use the fries to mop up the remnants of the beans. Judge all you want, you’d do the same with beans that good.

Doesn’t this baby have you counting down to next Saturday so you can go try it yourself?

Nish says his sandwich was good, but not nearly as good as mine. I’m not surprised, I’m pretty sure I got the best thing on the menu. His sandwich came with an avocado chutney and of course, fries on the side.

Before long, we were on to the chocolate chip pancake which was topped off with the most delectable banana caramel I ever did eat. Now I’m not exaggerating when I say this, but this was genuinely the best pancake I have had in my life. I’m someone who generally hates banana flavoured anything (other than smoothies), but this pancake was something else. It was fluffy, soft, and all sorts of delicious.

This was quite possibly the best brunch I’ve had in Toronto. A hundred percent worth the visit, even if you have to haul ass from the other side of downtown (I sure did).

Afterwards, you can head off on a walk to burn off all that food, and explore what Vogue calls the second coolest neighbourhood in the world. The only problem is resisting the urge to hop into the numerous dessert shops… well, a post-brunch macaron never hurt anyone, right?