What’s on the menu at Doc’s Green Door Lounge, a gorgeous new cocktail bar in the Junction

More New Bars

Food & Drink

What’s on the menu at Rhapsody, a new bar on Ossington for Nikkei cuisine and cocktails

Food & Drink

What’s on the menu at Bar Notte, a St. Lawrence cocktail lounge serving Italian drinks and snacks until 2 a.m.

Food & Drink

What’s on the menu at Saint John’s Tavern’s new second-floor oyster house and raw bar

Name: Doc’s Green Door Lounge
Contact: 3106 Dundas St. W, @docsgreendoorlounge
Neighbourhood: The Junction
Owners: Jayson Green, John Leddy and Matt Malloy
Head bartender: Nicholas Elliott
Accessibility: Fully accessible

Jayson Green used to live in Brooklyn, where he worked as a touring musician in a hardcore punk band called Orchid—but he also ran a business importing natural wine. He and his wife relocated to the Junction to be closer to her parents, and one day their new landlord casually mentioned that he wanted to open a bar nearby. Since Green had spent time in the natural wine world, he was put in charge.

“I told him that I didn’t have a lot of experience opening a bar. But then I realized that I walk by this building every day, and I would be very upset if it turned out to be a bad bar,” says Green. Buoyed by the thought that a lifetime of patronizing such establishments would at the very least lend direction to the project, he accepted the job.

Related: Six of Toronto’s best dirty martinis, ranked

And so, Green built the kind of bar he would want to go to and named it in honour of his late grandfather. There’s a solid wine list in which responsible production is the minimum barrier to entry, a focus on classic cocktails and a handful of simple but delicious snacks. Friendly and unpretentious, it’s the sort of local that already feels like a staple.

The drinks

Doc’s is equal parts cocktail and wine bar. One distinguishing factor here is the use of premium spirits, like citrus-forward Plymouth gin or Ketel One vodka. And with high-quality spirits as a solid foundation, the cocktails are deliberately alcohol-forward without being overpowering. Martini aficionados will feel right at home—there’s a build-your-own martini menu where guests choose the base spirit and the fixings. There’s also Doc’s flagship drink: a dirty martini with a funky combination of olive and blue cheese brine.

For the wine program, responsibly farmed grapes are the minimum standard, and anything with added sugar or juice won’t make the list. Naturally, there are quite a few organic, biodynamic and/or low-intervention bottles. There’s also a selection of local brews and some delightful mocktails.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The food

There’s no full kitchen here, making for a tight menu of snacks, but effortful details keep them from feeling like afterthoughts. Think house-marinated olives and pickles, whipped brie with crunchy pistachios, and a vegan cashew “gorgonzola” that has absolutely no business being as tasty as it is. Guests also get a complimentary snack (Japanese rice cracker mix, dried and salted broad beans) as soon as they sit down.

 

 

 

 

 

The space

Doc’s is a lounge in the true sense of the word. It’s in a corner building with big curved windows looking out to the action on Dundas West. There are cozy banquettes, a beautifully backlit oak bar and soft (read: flattering) lighting. In the back, guests will find the Deep End, a small bottle shop where each wine is accompanied by a hand-written card that lists details and tasting notes.