The Diner’s Corner – 678 Yonge St, Toronto, ON M4Y 2A6
Country: China
Seating: Indoor seating
Must-try dish: Oxtail Stew
The high: Everything on the menu looks good, and there’s an awesome lunch deal if you’re in the neighbourhood.
The low: They ran out of Fried Plantains at our order. 

The Diner’s Corner was originally based on Nicholas Street but moved before the pandemic to Yonge Street, which is evidently a positive thing as the restaurant is constantly busy with people eating in and others picking up takeout. The interior is decorated in a way that it can  double up as a restaurant during the day and over dinner service, and easily shift into a cocktail bar at night. 

There are two smaller tables by the open window on nicer days that are the ideal place to sit for people watching. That’s exactly where we decided to enjoy our meal on a sunny Wednesday night. With such a great dining location, it was a no brainer to order the signature Rum Punch to sip on while perusing the menu. Everyone adds their own special touch to a Rum Punch, and in this case, it was a heavy handed pour of Jamaican rum, but no one’s complaining over here! 

For starters, we opted for Jerk Shrimp and Jerk Chicken Wings, since the Fried Plantains were sold out on the order before ours. They looked amazing though. The Jerk Shrimp had a nice flavour profile, but it left lingering (and very spicy) heat in your mouth for minutes afterwards. On the other hand, the Jerk Chicken Wings were perfectly seasoned with a balanced medium level of spice. Each wing was meaty, and a drumstick, which we loved! 

Of the server’s three recommended mains, we dismissed the Jerk Chicken as we opted for the jerk appetizers and instead went for the Curried Goat and the Oxtail Stew. Each plate was served with a festivals (fried and sweetened Jamaican dumpling), rice and peas, and a green salad. Both entrees were delicious, and come highly recommended, but we loved the Oxtail because it fell off the bone with each bite. The Curried Goat also came with gravy for the rice, which was decked out in flavour. Neither dish was spicy, instead just well seasoned and tender meat. 

During lunch, The Diner’s Corner offers a special that’s good value and generous on food, and during the weekend, you can sit in for Jamaican-style breakfast. Judging by the success of the dishes, it’s likely that the Jerk Chicken main and the seafood mains are delicious. It looks like there’s an excuse to have Jamaican food again soon! 

Eat with you soon, 

Mandrea Bike
(Mat & Andrea)