The Best WVRST Night of My Life

Last updated on May 18th, 2021 at 12:28 pm

As Lisa McPhee would tell you, the west side is the best side. While I can’t completely agree (since I rep the Danforth these days), there’s plenty of things it does right.

Like sausages made from animals that make no sense being on this end of the world!

Welcome to WVRST!

Planning for the WVRST

Trevor and I had been planning to go to WVRST for a good while now, but never seemed to get around to it. However, on a day where our schedules got flushed down the tubes due to oversleeping and being too tired to bother doing anything too nuts, getting this item off of the to-do list didn’t seem like—wait for it—the WVRST idea!

Making the Best of the WVRST

One thing to keep in mind about WVRST is that it’s not your typical restaurant. Yes, reservations; no waitlist—just a lineup; no specific waiter or assigned seating—just a bunch of benches where they bring your food to you after you order and pay for it at the front counter.

And maybe it’s because they keep things so simple (i.e. a beer hall-style restaurant that serves mainly beer and sausages) that they actually manage to understand customer service!

We did get there without a reservation and had to wait in line, just like everybody else. While some people were told an hour’s wait when we were at the back of the line, it was only 15 minutes in reality. And in those 15 minutes:

One guy was a complete jerk and wouldn’t let a German tourist pass to ask the guy manning the stairs a question about the wait time, causing her and her friends to leave angrily.

Ironically, the jerk and his friends would leave angrily almost immediately after, helping shorten the line by about 10 people between the two groups

Even better, almost immediately after they left, one of WVRST’s staff came out with a ton of free fries, offering them to us to apologize for the long wait! Note to all restaurants: if patrons are waiting in line to get into your establishment, they’re probably hungry. A little food can go a long way in making that wait better!

From Better to WVRST

We got in and found some seats, but damn that place is loud!

One thing I forgot about King Street West is how trendy the area is. We’re not even 30 yet, but we were easily some of the oldest people in the room! It was a very different crowd than what I’m used to having around, but everyone looked to be enjoying themselves thoroughly.

But back to the food.

I went to WVRST to try something different, so I got some elk and kangaroo sausages, washing it down with some Church-Key beer from Campbellford, ON. The beer was a bit bitter to start with, but the sausages made it a lot sweeter! Not being a foodie by any measure, I could always tell the difference between a hot dog and a premium sausage I’d get from a butcher, but I never really appreciated the difference between different kinds of game.

What I can tell you is this—while I enjoyed both, the elk was definitely more to my tastes, with a pinch more spice and other spices. Because of the free fries, we didn’t get much more than just the sausages on buns, but next time I’d love to try some currywurst and duck fat fries!

So if you’re ever in the mood for something different, I recommend WVRST. With efficient staff, tasty food and a large list of international beers, I think it’ll do well to sate most people’s appetites. Well, you know—as long as they eat meat.

Seriously, check it out. What’s the WVRST that could happen???