During dinner hour, the Ossington masses flock to any restaurant to see and be seen.

And Burger Shoppe Quality Meats at 210 Ossington Avenue is one of those places, where it’s nearly impossible to find a seat during rush hour.

If nothing else, the place passed the people test, for sure.

As with most specialty food stops, people have militant opinions about the best burger and best poutine in town, but it’s difficult to find a place that does both well. And for Burger Shoppe, a restaurant a step above a fast food joint, their offerings are hit and miss.

My first visit had me downing a Hawaiian burger, oddly tasty despite my aversion to fruit on burgers, and their Uber poutine, with the most awesome chorizo sausage I’ve ever consumed in my life. (My eyes rolled back, and I swear, I saw the light.)

My not-so-hot second visit involved a too-sharp macaroni and cheese. However, the All Night Long espresso martini quickly projected me to happy land.

Beyond the food, however, the best thing about Burger Shoppe Quality Meats (the Ossington location in this instance – sorry Riverside) is the staff. On both occasions, we were greeted with genuine salt-of-the-earth types, who had no qualms about yelling back to the floor supervisor for beer recommendations or just making their customers feel like they’re family.

In fact, the business owner and operators are very hands-on and seem genuinely interested in their venture and keeping the spirit of the neighbourhood alive. It gives me that warm “I’m part of a community!” feeling that outsiders never expect of snobby Toronto.

It was the poutine that got me in the door, but it’ll be the people that bring me back.

And with that new martini menu, I just may be nestling up to the bar counter on a daily basis, in a place where everybody will know my name (like Darren’s take on the Cheers-like staff at Flying Tiger), and they’ll always be glad I came.

Connie