BLACK CAMEL

Black Camel is a small sandwich and coffee shop right across the street from Rosedale subway station serving up juicy, tender brisket sandwiches on fresh buns.

Atmosphere: The interior of the cafe is small, with just a few counter seats in the front of the space with most people grabbing orders to go. During warmer weather there are benches outside and I’ve taken a sandwich to enjoy in the nearby park before.

Service: Service is minimal with orders being placed at the counter with your name. Once the order is ready, someone delivers it from the kitchen by calling out the name on the order. Black Camel offers a punch-card loyalty program of a free sandwich after buying a dozen. If you’re visiting in the evening, check their twitter (https://twitter.com/black_camel) because they often sell out before closing time.

Food: A sandwich order comes with your choice of 2 sauces/condiments and each additional topping is a charge of 0.90. The toppings range from arugula to a variety of roasted vegetables (like red pepper, onions, mushrooms). On this visit, I ordered the beef brisket sandwich with Black Camel bbq sauce, chipotle mayonnaise and slow-roasted roma tomatoes.

The brisket was tender and full of flavour while the bun soaked up all the sauces and juices of the meat. I liked the sourness of the tomatoes combined with the sweeter bbq sauce and the sandwich disappeared in about five minutes. It’s always a challenge to not order a second one while the first one settles. Each sandwich comes with a wet wipe, a necessary accessory to the meal.