TORONTO: Harlem Underground

In my pursuit of chicken and waffles, I checked out Harlem Underground, whose former incarnation was an old favourite Jamaican place called Irie. Its owners went back in time and emerged as a Southern restaurant /live space inspired by the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s.

We went on a holiday Monday and were fortunate to have the choice of ordering from its weekend brunch OR lunch menu. (Fortunate because chicken and waffles are NOT available at brunch.)

Opposite of the homey strip-mall atmosphere of Waffle Works, Harlem Underground has a jazzy cool vibe with funky artwork and red walls.

Harlem’s fried chicken ($14.95) has the same kind of delicious spices, but the batter is thicker and the chicken pieces are bigger. The waffles are appropriate warm and crunchy. A chipotle-coriander-lime maple syrup gave the whole dish a huge zing.

Not neglecting the fibre content, a large green salad with fruit pieces was thoughtfully served on the side.

The Harlem Benny ($10.95) was a lovely twist on the original, with chili-garlic greens and sausage on a grits flapjack. The Hollandaise sauce was OK. I never really like dry English muffins in Benedicts anyway, so appreciated the thin pancake here.

Kevin’s pulled pork and waffle ($11.95) was a bit saucier and chunkier than what most of us expected. The pork wasn’t pulled so much as chunked into pieces. It also came in a black-pepper gravy with caramelized onions and mushrooms, so it was more like a stew than a shredded pile of meat. Definitely more a lunch item than breakfast.

We ran into some minor problems with the sides. First, the server forgot them. The mac and cheese ($4.95) was just OK, a tad less creamy and more watery than we would have preferred.

The corn bread ($3.95) was stale, like it had been nuked in the microwave and thrown on a plate. To add insult to injury, we later heard the server proudly declare to the table behind us, “And here’s our new corn bread!” serving them a fresh one in a mini-skillet!

Despite the hiccups, the fried chicken is enough to convince me to come back.

Harlem Underground, 745 Queen St. West, Toronto, (416) 366-4743. Open Monday 5-11 p.m., Tuesday to Thursday 11 a.m.-11 p.m., Friday and Saturday 11 a.m.-2 a.m., Sunday 11 a.m.-11 p.m.