The Football Factory

You have to realize this is the little Engine that could. Very independent that’s is always trying to recreate it’s self. Funny how over the years I fall in love with this place over and over again.
I’m not a football fan or a real sports fan. I’m a people fan :-). This little engine that could has some of Toronto’s most interesting people from the owner to its patrons. This bar caters to everyone and their sports needs.
Lately this place has been wowing me with their food. Each day there’s food special that always bring me in. From mussels to taco salads, and the best baby back ribs every Saturday in the city hands-​down.
They have one of the most underrated patios in the city. Beer specials drink specials all summer long as well with the most sun on any patio around Toronto.
The Football Factory is one of Toronto’s rare gems. Good people solid family owned ownership with some of Toronto’s most eclectic group of people with a solid staff that’s been there for awhile.
So if you’re looking for something different in a sports bar with a great name and way way above average food. This is your place. So next time you walk on by this place, walk in. You will feel at home like you’re apart of Cheers. That’s a good feeling in a sports bistro pub because that’s what it is.
This is why it gets Five Star for overall creativity. That’s the straight goods on this Toronto soon to become a landmark.
G

So, my friend and I came here to grab some Dinner last week. It was one of those places we found because we were walking passed it and we were hungry. It’s not a place we would have selected to specifically go.
He order the Bison burger and LOVED it! So, Bison burger would be worth getting, I guess.
I am a vegetarian… I ordered the guacamole and corn chips and an arugala salad. The Guacamole and Chips came first… The Chips were amazing, like seriously, really, really good. Probably because of all those GMO’s I consumed (I cannot fully attest to this, as I do not know what brand or make of corn chips they have, but most corn that isn’t organic, is often, GMO)! The guac. however… well, I can make far better at home. It tasted like there was some of those black spots mixed in… the bad parts of the avocado and usually when mixed with the good, spoils the entirety of the dish.
The Salad had wilted arugala, no almonds, which it said it came with. And… lots and lots of onions… too strong for me!
In my opinion this place is not worth returning to. There are those regulars, I am not, nor plan to become one. I didn’t even take any photos because it was simply not worth it.
The service was decent.
Good luck if you are venturing here.

I officially pronounce this place kind of gross. It has a nice patio though which catches the evening sun, so it’s also a possible destination for beers and food.
BEER: You know when the menu lists under the «Fine Beer» section such delights as multiple styles of Budweiser, Corona, and Michelob that you’re in for a real treat. Actually, I did get lucky because they had Goose Island Honker’s Ale on tap.
FOOD: I came here for Mussel Tuesday’s (just doesn’t have the alliteration of Mussel Monday’s), which is $ 5 for a pound of mussels. Mine were kind of gross and fishy tasting… couldn’t finish it. Sauce wasn’t too bad, and it was cheap.
SERVICE: Kind of what you expect… over-​worked servers who are a bit challenging to flag down.
And, as a bonus, NO SOAP IN THE WASHROOM. That’s right, it wasn’t like they were out, there wasn’t even a dispenser. Ewww! How do the employees wash their hands after using the washroom? It’s just disgusting and they lose a whole star for that.

Decent place for soccer games
The coffee is not good but overall the service and the atmosphere is awesome

Gave this place a great review previously, but my last experience here was just ok. The service before this has always been great, but this time it was meh. I was there to watch a World Cup game with my friend. Unfortunately, only two of us, but I got there early and ordered a drink. I realized that we were at a table to 6 for only 2 ppl, but the bar wasn’t busy yet. The game had already started and there were still tables open. However, I had every intention of spending more than a table of 6 on drinks and lunch. If there were any tables of 6 they were sitting in front of the big screen as the booths are too small for 6 ppl.
The server didn’t bring any menus, or offer me a drink, as though she was assuming that I was just another cheap customer wanting to occupy a table and not spend any money. I had to wait 10 minutes for her to ask me for a drink order. Sure, my friend isn’t here yet, but if you’re concerned about making money, you could try selling me some booze.
Eventually I flagged her down and ordered a double caesar. YUM! it was deliciously made and brimming with lots of horseradish! I sucked back a few more of these over the course of the game along with two entrees and a vodka soda or two. We ended up spending over $ 100 at the table. I get that they want to pack it in. But some people just don’t come out in big groups for the game. And to be fair, it’s not a big venue that I’d go to with a big group.
Anyway, the food was ok. My Taco salad was good. My friend’s pulled pork sandwich looked kind of gross and the fries seemed burnt. I’m just not a big fan of Pulled Pork in general and that’s fine because I didn’t order it.
I don’t know… I’d go back and I like the local feel. I can also see how they want to maximize their space during the World Cup. But there were tables sitting there just drinking and I’m sure they didn’t spend as much as the two of us did.
We didn’t feel valued, despite spending money.
Anyway, I’ve had great experiences in the past. So hopefully I can update and upgrade my review the next time I go.

Accommodating staff and good food. Great place to catch the game. We went for breakfast during the gold medal game (2014 Olympics men’s hockey). Bar was packed! Fun atmosphere.

i’m a pretty big fan of the beautiful game, but haven’t been to Football Factory until recently. I know they are big with TFC supporters and EPL lovers, but can usually watch everything at home.
Actually got out of the house and went to a match recently with some friends. Plenty to drink on tap and at the bar. Prices are decent for a specialty gastropub. TVs everywhere, so you dont miss a beat.
We were there during breakfast hours. 3 at the table had the breakfast burrito and i went with the fried egg sandwich, cant go wrong!
Will definitely return!

Cool little bar with good beer on tap. Super close to the Thompson hotel if you’re felling divvy…

We hit up the Football Factory on a chilly Sunday morning to watch what else but some quality EPL footy. Note — go early or else you will be screwed like us and have to sit outside on the patio. Not that that is a bad thing but brrrrrrrrr, it was cold while we watched the game.
The atmosphere is great and the people are super friendly/​obviously gung-​ho about football. If that’s your cup of tea, come here to watch games! We ordered some food which took an insane amount of time to get. We ordered when we arrived and our food didn’t come until the end of the game — basically, took around an hour and half. Sad thing is we didn’t even order anything difficult. This is what we had:
— Huevos rancheros ($ 12) — came with two eggs, bacon, guacamole, and salsa on a tortilla with side of fries.
— 2x Avocado and brie sandwich ($ 8) — name says it all. You get avocado with brie cheese, red onion, arugula and chipotle mayo root vegetable chips and a really tasty salsa. We both got rye bread. Hits the spot and the price was right, just was not happy about waiting so long to get it.
— 3x Teas ($ 2.50) — perfect accompaniment to keep you warm while you freeze your butt off outside.
Great place for footy fans and more than decent brunch.

This is usually my go to place when I do not want to have to worry about whether anywhere else might be showing a soccer game.
There is nothing that stands out and apart from it being a smallish bar on Bathurst I usually prefer to go to the Wheat Sheaf for a more lively atmosphere and a patio where I can breathe in more exhaust fumes.
Food and drinks here are pretty standard also and there will always be one guy here wearing a baseball cap.
Oh actually I lie, the TVs in the booth seating is a good thing especially if going on a day other meaningless sports are showing on their main screens, but I personally hate watching sports on anything smaller than my laptop screen.

Was here for birthday party, first time in the place. Local watering hole for Bathurst/​Queen area. There were a few parties going on it seemed and the place was rammed, and the staff seemed a little overwhelmed. Several in my group had appetizers, I did not but they looked tasty, especially the curry fries. Our server mixed up several drink orders, but like I said, it seemed unusually busy and they were struggling, so not indicative of what you normally would get.

Really good food. Good decorum. Crappy crowd before TFCvLFC.

This was a while back. I visited football factory with a group of buddies to watch a Lyon match. Not sure about watching French league. OK, we’re not in the US here but don’t know why a big city like Toronto with multicultural heritage only has a few soccer bars? Maybe its the weather. To add to this fact, the food was ‘gourmet’ by most bar/​pub grub standards, and the beer selection included some international favorites. OK let’s rip up some pitch somewhere and knock down a few blokes… sorry. Forgot, we’re not in the UK.

So a friend and show up at 10pm to watch UFC 148, headliner Andersen Silva vs Sonnen 2, and to be expected at this late hour there’s were no seats in the house. It was standing room.
Big plus going here is NO cover charge. We decided to stick it out and stand around the bar TVs to watch the fight.
My friend ordered nachos for us to split and it literally it took about 1hr to arrive!, drinks service was also very slow but the bartenders here are very nice. It’s just there ain’t enough staff to handle the flow. Many times they were hand delivering the drinks to the tables and there no bartender tending at all!
These MMA events attract young punks just wanting to start something. And under the influence of alcohol it only gets worse, one such guy in front of us was downing some weak sauce Budweiser and as the minutes passed; he seemed to get agitated trying to start something with us, before anything happened we decided to move. Good thing. cause some minutes passed then smash! I glanced over and saw he caused someone to drop their drink. Idiot.
The main event was stellar; the venue although not that great at handling this kind of traffic for this event, served up some amazing nachos and beer. The nachos were fried pita chips arranged like a happy pointed Mexican sun and the new brew I was introduced to, Delirium Tremens ‘Elephant’ was pretty dope.
I’d be back.
Recommend

I finally visited this spot to watch a UFC event. So here is the down low on this spot:
Prices have increased and some items were not available from the menu on the website.
The place was reasonably packed for the event and I would recommend reserving a table if you are a larger group. I ended up sitting at the bar which has uncomfortable seating as I mentioned in my earlier review. Good thing is there seemed to be a lot of regulars there (repeat customers are always a good sign)
It was cold day so I wanted to try the Bison Chilli and guess what they out of it. Never mind I said how veggie chips with salt out again. After asking for two other appetizer I gave up and asked the bartender what would she recommend and settled with a Nachos.
I specifically came here for Delirium Tremens (one of my go to beer on tap if available) and ordered a full glass of it.
For the mains I went for a steak and kidney pie as they don’t have the steak and fries anymore. Nachos arrived fast and the fresh fried glisten on them. The taste was actually good with half decent melted cheese and grilled bell peppers. They lacked heat even though there were chopped up chilies on them.
Decent start for now. Finally the main of Steak and Kidney pie arrived. The serving was small at first look but I was expecting it to be dense so never mind. The salad was forgetful. The pie was average at best. The steak was chopped up and the kidney were chopped real small so didn’t lend any texture. Thankfully it wasn’t salty as it would have been a disaster.
Mind you they ran out of Delirium Tremens midway through the fight Boo!
I was full so didn’t order any dessert.
Also worth noting is that UFC is shown in HD.
Overall one of the better places to watch UFC even though the bar seating if poor and the food is your regular grub. Washrooms got filthy BTW as the event progressed.
3.5 Start overall.

The Toronto Lover system:
5 stars = Must visit!
4 stars = Really good. I take my friends here.
3 stars = Somewhat worth it… if you have nowhere better to go.
2 stars = Below average. Attend only when necessary.
1 star = Do not visit!
The Football Factory did such an amazing job of capitalizing on Toronto’s new FC team that it almost deserves 5 stars for its business savvy. After seeing soccer (ahem, football) surge in popularity after the FC gave yuppies and Liberty villagers cause to care, this upscale bar has created a nice area for before, during, or after game beers. Expect to hear some debate about whether Chelsea is better than Liverpool… or whatever, as you order expensive beers and food.
That’s one of the strikes against the Factory, and I suppose I shouldn’t use the word «strike» because that means a shot on goal… or whatever. I find the beers cost more here, and the food costs more. Entrees go from $ 10-​$ 25. Now, it’s nicer, cleaner, and more thoughtful than most Bathurst/​Queen locations, so you could argue that you get what you’re paying for. I do wonder, however, if the price range isn’t intended to keep out those who don’t own condos and seasons tickets.
Whatever the case, the interior is a bit small and awkward, so come on a nice day and enjoy the patio with a group.
3 stars

Service was friendly. We went in today, they were having an event that they would be setting up in 40 minutes but they let us continue eating.
Food was not that great. The sprite was flat the first time, and when I brought it to their attention they promptly fixed it but it tasted watered down even though it’s from a can supposedly.
I had the steak and frites, fries were really salty and the steak was undercooked. When it came back it was good, but the piece of meat had alot of tendon that made it difficult to eat.
Brother had the sheppard’s pie but the pie was small in comparison to what we were expecting.
Fries were amazing but a bit too salty.
We came here with a groupon and doubt we will be back. I didn’t like how the booth seats had the plastic coating coming off, gave off a hole in the wall feeling like at sneaky dees.
Wish I would have remembered to try the mac and cheese as someone reviewed.

Very nice, quick lunch. Staff very friendly. Food very good!
We popped in from out of town after a Toronto Western Hospital appointment. It was one major block (Dundas to Queen) away, an easy walking distance.
Was brought here by their Groupon special… arrived right about noon and we were the only ones there and decided to try the patio.
Server was excellent! He answered all of our questions and even brought us a small sample of Cider to try rather than describing the taste.
It was Tuesday, so we had the Mussels special. $ 5.00 for a 1 lb plate, perfect for one person. At our server’s reccomendation we did the green curry sauce… exellent!
Also had a nice, fresh tasting hummus with Pita triangles. Very good.
And finally a plate of grilled Calamari, with sauce on the sides. I didn’t try the sauce because I liked the green curry so much I just double-​dipped that stuff. My dining partner said the side-​sauce was excellent.
Overall a great patio, great food and drink.
Service was super fast and friendly… we were heading back to North Bay in half an hour… amazing!

I visited football factory with a group of friends, (including Mr. Unilocal Bijan V!) to watch Marseille vs. Lyon.
To begin, it’s very sad to see that the only Frenchman watching THE match of the year for French league, was visiting Toronto from New York. That being said, the probable reason is that NO other bars in Toronto were going to show it, and Football Factory was the only one that agreed to do so when we called ahead. How can a city so large, and claiming such multicultural heritage only have one soccer bar that can play this game on request? In any case, this factor alone gains FF 5* as it is truly a unique space in Toronto at the moment.
To add to this fact, the food was definitely ‘gourmet’ by most bar standards, and the beer selection included some international favorites. The staff were very accommodating, and I had the feeling the first priority is really The Game.
All of this being said, I know in my heart FF can improve on a few things to truly deserve the 5* it is getting from most Unilocalers. For one, some of the food came a good while later than the others when we visited (burger came 15 min after all other dishes).
In terms of watching the match, it would be great to have a projector and large screen setup somewhere and there was some glare on the screens due to the large windows (cover ‘em with posters I say!).
Finally Football Factory can truly use some more soccer fanatics glued to bar stools. I know you’re out there… let’s make watching footie the experience it should be.

Never in my life had I ever thought that fine dining and football would ever mix. But they come together in a place that will excite the lads and entice the ladies. The Football Factory refers to soccer, known everywhere else in the world save North America as «football», but I’m guessing in terms of names, the «Soccer Sweatshop» didn’t really do much to entice. This place is new, and it provides a combination of two worlds you never thought you’d ever see collide.
The décor is modern and very contemporary, a far cry from the beer-​soaked carpeted pubs that you’re used to watching matches at. TVs adorn every wall and booths have their own television sets so that you can select the match that you wish in private. Soccer is the main broadcast but if needed, a TV can be found to put on whatever your heart desires; hockey, baseball, «My Name is Earl». WiFi is also available for those that wish to «work from home» during Champions League or UEFA Cup games.
The menu, though all over the place in its focus, is spectacular with dishes coming out of the kitchen hot, flavourful, and presented very artistically. This is not a place that you’d expect to get fish and chips, but you can. Also on offer are steak frites, duck dishes, and paella. Once the shock of the juxtaposition of soccer and succulence wears off, you’ll find this place to be a beautiful sanctuary to watch the beautiful game. Or if you don’t fancy, find a booth, ask for a remote, and watch episodes of «House». I don’t judge.