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- Hours:
Mon-Sun 11 am - 2 am
- Parking:
- Street
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- Yes
- Best Nights:
- Thu, Sun, Sat
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Good For Dancing:
- Yes
- Has TV:
- Yes
7 reviews for Smokey Joe's Cafe
7 reviews in English
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Review from Sara-Yan Y.
North York, ON
1/22/2012
The nachos are amazing. We ordered the platter (not the supreme platter), we got "suicide" for the chicken wings. Everything was really yummy :o suicide wings didn't really kill us though, but since I am not that tolerant of spicy food, it was enough to hurt. Haha.
The server we had was very friendly and sweet, but I guess it was bad timing; every time she came to check on us (which is quite frequent) we don't need to order anything, but when we want something we can never find her.
The prices are average. But the food was really good compared to other places so it is worth it. They also have daily specials.
The one thing bringing this place down is the dance floor. We went on a Friday night. The music was alright but the crowd wasn't that great. People step on you without apologizing and there was a crazier dude getting into everybody's face. But I now am convince there will always be at least one of those in every dance floor. It was also a tiny dance floor. -
Review from Payam Z.
3/5/2012 2 Check-ins Here
Let's get things straight, this is NOT a cafe!
Sometimes walking into Smokey Joe's is like being on the set of a David Lynch movie! An unusual DJ is spinning music that spans every generation and invites no one to the empty dance floor, the bar is surrounded by mainly forty somethings who may or may not be hiding a dark & mysterious past, there are former officers of foreign origins getting into fights at the door, and the list goes on.
Long story short, the crowd here will have you asking quite a few questions, the food is not much to write about and what comes from the tap sometimes tastes watered down.
On the plus side, they offer large beer cylinders (though this won't save you any $), there are one or two pool tables, and a 3rd floor rooftop patio that gets quite busy in the summer and might not be a bad idea. -
Review from Kevin P.
Toronto, ON
5/17/2012
Dropped by with a few friends on a sunny day to have some drinks and finger food on the patio. It was packed, stood at the bar for about 20 minutes before we got to sit down. We ordered the biggest appetizer platter available (there were 6 of us at the table), and I ordered a pitcher of Molson Canadian. Needless to say the beer was cold and went down smooth, and the platter that arrived was deep fried goodness with an assortment of dips....good bar food. The nachos were also very good, but you can't expect very much with deep fried dipping foods and nachos. The atmosphere out on the patio was nice, I had a few more drinks and made my way home. I see myself going to Smokey Joe's Cafe again, not for the food, I wouldn't sit inside to drink and eat, but the patio is the deal breaker.
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Review from Yvonne T.
4/13/2011 1 Check-in Here
This has got to be the saddest dance floor I have ever seen in Toronto. So sad that I didn't even want to get on it and be known to participate in Toronto's saddest dance floor.
Came here with fellow Yelper Tony F. after a horrible improv night that just required drinks to forget about.
I got carded... I can't remember the last time I got carded. But I guess I'll take that as a compliment?
The service was great. The server kept coming back periodically throughout the few hours we were there to make sure we were okay for drinks. Seeing as we had already ate dinner, AND had dessert, we didn't order a whole lot. For some reason I can't remember if I had ordered drinks or not, but we got the Spicy Fried Calamari to share. It was nothing special.
Although the dance floor was lacking in numbers and eye candy, the DJ played a pretty good mix of music. Tony had mentioned that it was pretty dead compared to other times he had been there where the dance floor would stretch all the way out to the door... It was kind of hard for me to picture that given my experience, but perhaps the Saturday crowd is just not as rowdy?
Its nice that for a change you don't have to stress about going downtown, parking etcetera to enjoy a night out. However, I think there's a method behind the madness of why people go downtown... For me, its because my beloved Bar 244 is there, and because I find the vibe is much more "happening." -
Review from Imran N.
5/8/2011
Ok so this is what yonge and shep has to offer. really. this is as good as it gets.
the place is funny. The main floor has your dance floor, bar, and pool area. The second floor has your over looking area thats good for parties. The 2.5th floor is the patio which is the only reason to come really.
The patio is nice, the service is slow, the beers can be sold in huge bongs.
The food is pub fare. The crowd is wrong. -
Review from Jim G.
6/12/2011 5 Check-ins Here
I love Smokey Joe's. It's a bit like taking a time machine back to the eighties, but that's okay because I loved the eighties. The dance floor is high-school-dance retro, and the same people are on the floor every week, and they still can't dance. The downstairs bar reeks of stale beer, but the beer towers and shooter girls make up for that. The staff is great. The rooftop patio is the best in North York and one of the best in the city--only patios at streetlevel are better. Smokey Joe's won't win any awards for decor or its food, but it does what it does very well.
Oh--Smokey Joe's Cafe comes up on Yelp under cafes when it is decidely a bar.Listed in: Best Happy Hour, Best Breakfast/Brunch
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Review from Jasmine L.
North York, ON
4/8/2011
I have been here twice. The first time was in the summer for lunch, and my friend and I sat on the rooftop patio, which was fabulous. I ordered a chicken penne pasta in a vodka rose sauce, and I swear it was one of the most delicious pasta dishes I have ever had! Just the right size serving, with green onion garnish -yum! Tonight I went and my friend and I sat in a booth on the first floor. The atmosphere was just right -not too crowded or loud for a Saturday night, really mellow, and a terrific, fun, down-to-earth waitress. We ordered the mediterranean dip, perogies, and a mushroom pizza, all delicious, especially the perogies. The lime margerita wasn't half bad either! And even when they made a mistake and threw out our doggie bad by mistake, they made up for it by making a whole pizza and caesar salad for us for free!! Now *that* is service! I am coming back here this summer to hang out on the rooftop patio with some more of the awesome food!
