Restaurants
The Thompson Diner
The Thompson Diner (formerly, The Counter), the Thompson Hotel's new 24-hour diner, is a swankier take on the classic diner theme. Just south of King on Bathurst, this restaurant is decidedly more upscale in appearance than the old neighbourhood diners in the west end that I visit when in search of some good old comfort food. All sleek, retro decor, The The Thompson Diner's large space is lined with giant, velvet-detailed booths, and an elegant bar dotted with gold-coloured stools sits at the back of the room.
I'm greeted by a pleasant server in blue gingham and a bowtie, and decide to order a coffee ($2) while I wait for my friends to arrive. The coffee is a little on the bitter side, and I wonder if perhaps it's not very fresh. Forgivable at a regular restaurant, as it is two in the afternoon, but in a twenty-four hour diner I would hope fresh coffee would be on constant rotation.
From a large menu offering the kinds of classic dishes you would expect from this retro throw-back, we start with the fries and onion rings ($5), which come with a choice of one dip from a variety of options. We go for the garlic aioli, which arrives on the side of a metal basket containing three enormous onion rings and a heap of crispy french fries. The fries are decent, and the onion rings are also passable. Neither are particularly impressive, but it's a nice greasy starter for me and my starving companions.
It seems only right to try one of The Thompson Diner's burgers (all options available on veggie or turkey burgers if looking for an alternative to beef), and from a wide selection of topping choices we opt for the 'west coast' ($12 - top photo). The tower of a burger arrives on a wooden cutting board, generously topped with melted jalapeno jack cheese, spinach, crispy fried onions, lettuce and tomato. Extremely large and messy, it's a challenge to eat, but worth the effort as this turns out to be a satisfying burger.
From an enticing list of sandwiches we order the smoked turkey and brie ($12), which arrives appealingly presented on the same wooden cutting board. The sandwich is served on toasted focaccia bread with slices of smoked turkey, lettuce, tomato, mayo and lots of brie. The brie is a little overpowering, and the flavour of the turkey is much more prominent once I remove a little bit of the cheese. Nonetheless, the sandwich is enjoyable, and the nice little mixed green salad on the side is crisp and fresh (fries are an option as well).
Curious to see what they'll do with the diner-classic mac & cheese, we order The Thompson Diner's version, the double mac & cheese with cured pancetta crisp & truffle oil ($12). This indulgent dish is served in a big cast iron skillet, a mass of cheesy, gooey macaroni topped with a crispy piece of pancetta. The mac & cheese is rich, creamy and garlicky, and there's no arguing this goes beyond our expectations for this standard item.
The Thompson Hotel's retro-inspired 24-hour joint has a comfortable atmosphere, friendly service, and decent prices. The food may not be mind-blowing, but it is pretty satisfying diner food, and I can bet it tastes delicious at 3am.
Note: This post was updated on October 11, 2011 to reflect the change of the restaurant's name from The Counter to The Thompson Diner.
Photos by Taralyn Marshall
Discussion
44 Comments
Sort By Oldest First / Newest First
Subscribe
but
cheap crappy ceiling
cheap crappy lighting
could have been a beautiful art deco style diner
but no
oh well
If you want greasy spoon diner food, head to the cheaper wheat sheaf just up the street.
I haven't gotten close enough to see what the black cladding is.
I assumed it was proper black marble.
I think I'll pass on "passable"!
Horrible service, inexperienced wait staff, ho-hum food, lacklustre menu (no 24-hour breakfast???) and reservations were lost.
from sports teams to dining to architecture - it is nice, mediocre, comfortable Canadian meh - we likes it here - pretension and glory-free.
hmmmm.
the mac & cheese is to die for. this place will be great in a few months, fingers crossed.
This place rocks. Good burgers. Is it perfect? No. What did you expect? The ceiling is OK.
Try the Thompson Spiked Iced Tea.
This place looks better than most diners, with better food, just look at that picture you dopes, look at that floor! and the booths.. (ceiling? pfft..) it looks nicer than the Lakeview and the vesta put together.
(boo! it's not exactly what "I" want, it SUCKS, it's GARBAGE, BOO new independent business!)
ugh.
I walk by it every single day, and was shocked how quickly it was all pulled together.
It's part of the Thompson group (http://www.thompsonhotels.com/hotels)
It's a chain, so again, not sure what you expect.
At night the space seemed really nice and classy inside, our server was friendly, food came pretty fast. Their fries were very good and came in a cute little fake deep fry basket. My clubhouse was really great too, it really filled me up. The chicken on it was pretty delicious as well.
No, it's not groundbreaking, but it was a nice diner and I'd definitely go back again. I'm not sure about all the negative reviews but I would assume t hey're probably still working out kinks if the information is right about their switching chefs etc.
I think they now offer all day breakfast, which is a smart move. We had the pizzawich (too much bread) and the shrimp Po-Boy. Both were good, but not fabulous. The food going by to other diners looked more impressive. I think I'd go for a burger next time.
It wasn't the most amazing food of my life, but it was a nice, comfy diner experience. I'd go back.
The fact you're eating at a diner means you were too goddamn lazy to cook in the first place, let along microwave a potato or carrot and heat a pizza in your filthy oven.
The food there is decent. That's all you should expect for dinner for two for under $40-50 with tax and a decent tip.
If you want "value" don't go to a swank hotel and expect bottomless baskets of fries, and coffee, and sodas.
Expect decent fried food and decent breakfasts.
Better yet, learn to cook this food yourselves and while you're at it, go jerk off to the Food Network instead of blogging about "your experience" on blogto, you pathetic white trash.
Small-town Ontario is waiting for you.
Food=tasty, service=shitty!
must try - turkey cobb salad, mac and cheese, calamari, fried chicken!
things to pass on - shrimp hoagie, pizzawich, iceberg wedge salad
we love going for dinner during the week. they have the best staff that actually remember you and enjoy serving you. makes the experience!
also feel bad for their overnight staff as it can get a little crazy in there late at night!
every new place has to get through some things at the beginning but i am actually suprised by the negative reviews because i think it is a little gem!
I strongly recommend you avoid them. At $12, I have never seen a worse value for any sandwich in my life. I think there were 4 slices of smoked meat, the meat was maybe a centimeter thick. There was quadruple the amount of bread than meat, and the smoked meat itself (what little there was), was dry, but not entirely flavourless.
Anyone who has ever had a smoked meat sandwich at Caplanski's, Open Kitchen or at any half decent deli, will understand what a travesty this was. When I asked the server about it, she was also shocked and told me the manager was going to come over. Needless to say, the manager never arrived and after around 15 minutes of waiting, I finally gave up and ate the sandwich, I was so hungry at that point.
I might consider going back, the food was mostly good, but I'll be having the Club next time.
WANKERS!
Best 24 hour place i have been too in TO. Food is always nice and hot and needless to say tasty. Don't expect healthy alternatives from a diner, their menu is great and hearty and coming from a healthy eater like myself this place is definitely worth a cheat day. Their fried chicken is bomb, and pecan pie is always good. Service has always been great, and i would definitely come back here to indulge.