The Rude Boy

There is so much to like about this place, I don't know where to begin. The Rude Boy sits on Roncevalles Ave, just south of Dundas St W. And being in the Roncy area, it sees a fair amount of burger enthusiasts. It opened in 2013 and knowing the Roncy area quite well myself, it needed a decent hangout that offered good quality burgers for a fair price.

After hearing about it from a close friend and being encouraged to try it out, we decided to go on a rainy day in late April. We looked them up and it was a place I really wanted to check out. Their website, not being too fancy, gave me the impression that this was a small 60s-like diner and was still trying to find their brand.

We went in and we were quickly greeted by the waitress. The interior resembles an old diner with booths and a small little bar. In other words, it was like a small pub that I'm sure sees lots of nightlife. I was pleased to say the least. Not too many people were dining when we arrived and made for a more engaging conversation with the waitress. We sat down at the table near the window and the waitress brought us the menus. She left and came back a few seconds later with glasses of water.

We quickly glanced over the menu and I couldn't decide what I was going to order. Two things caught my eye and that was "the Sting" and the Rude Boy's original creation which was named after the joint. The Sting sounded like it was going to be spicy and I took into consideration the small glass of water I had on the table in front of me. So without any more thought, I went with the "Rude Boy".

Within minutes after saying our orders, the waitress brings out our meals. The burger combo comes with some kettle chips on the side, and as an extra side, Mark and I shared an order of onion rings. The burger portion was small. "The Rude Boy" has peameal bacon, red onions, cheddar cheese, mustard and a fried egg to top it all off. Now I'm not one who orders a fried egg on his burger (see Hero Burger), but this being its own signature creation, I thought I may give it a shot.

The first bite I got was all egg. It was messy and dripping out of the sides. But it was a nice combination with the peameal bacon and the house-smoked bacon, too. The burger was soft and cooked to perfection. But it really didn't matter as my taste buds were blown away by the flavours from the toppings. I can understand why it was called "The Rude Boy." It was a small little burger that packed a big punch, and it was a mouthful.

Blanche de Chambly-battered Onion Rings/Photo by Andrew Hockridge
After using all the napkins available, the waitress brings out the onion rings and to my surprise, they were huge! I've never seen onion rings this big in my life. And as if I wasn't already full from the burger, I still had the onion rings to share and some leftover kettle chips in my basket. Needless to say, I was prepared weeks in advanced to eat a big meal.

We finished our meal and right when it was time to pay, Mark and I decided to share the bill and pay with the cash we had in hand. And, we left a pretty big tip, too. And if you are the waitress who served us on this day, I'm sorry I didn’t catch your name, but you made our meal a delight and I want to thank you for the tremendous service!

Overall, The Rude Boy is your typical pub with excellent, custom-made burgers with thousands of options on the menu. If you're ever in the Rocesvallles area, give this place a walk-in and be amazed that more places like this don't exist. And keep in mind if it's a Rude Boy you want, then it's a rude boy you'll get.

Nash and I hadn’t had a gourmet burger in a while so we took a walk to Roncesvalles to The Rude Boy. The place has a casual vibe, a bar and cool posters like this one:. I ordered the Greek Spot (top photo of post) which had cucumber and tomato salad, oregano vinaigrette, feta cheese, pickled red onion and tzaziki. I added a piece of their home-cured double smoked bacon for fun. I thought it had a good combination of flavours and perfect amount of juiciness to the burger.

I had the Booya LT and it was the best "BLT" I've ever had. Bar none. Amazing baguette, delicious thick cut bacon, and...baconaisse! Very reasonable craft beer as well.

This was a delicious burger with well curated toppings. The fries and rings were great too. The kid didn't like the burger not sure why. Friendly service. The ketchup was rationed out like nylons during war time.