I just love this pub. It's such a perfect little bar for the Roncy strip. Small enough to feel cozy but big enough to fit a decent number of people. It's always been pretty full any time we've ever been. A few of the reasons I love this spot: The atmosphere is great (friendly, buzzing, dim lighting...all the things you want a pub to be). The staff are really friendly and helpful. They carry a great selection of beer (including one called "The Local"). The food is good (we've been here for dinner a few times). The have regular live music with some pretty impressive musicians. Their walls are decorated with an eclectic mix of everything. They have board games you can play if you are in the mood. If you live in the area, you probably already know about this little gem, if you don't, you should come and check it out. It's one of the better pubs in this city. read more

I'd come here to hang out and listen to music. It's a nice pub. We went for dinner one Wednesday night though and finished out meal before the live music started unfortunately. Food was fine, mediocre, nothing to write about. We shared four items: the perogie platter, curry chips, bangers and mash, and the Irish stew. My least favorite was the Irish stew - it had lots of good ingredients and nice big cuts of meat and potatoes, but the broth was somewhat flavorless. read more

I went here with a friend for dinner and drinks. Everything was great until our server overcharged both of us on our separate bills by an extra drink each. To be overcharged is one thing, to be overcharged and then have my server tell me I'm wrong and she knows better than I do how many drinks my friend and I had is another. She must think we're stupid. I wonder if she does this to other customers- adding extra drinks to their bills hoping they won't notice, to get a larger tip on a larger bill. After I refused to pay for a drink I didn't have, she changed my bill, begrudgingly, and my friend spoke to her separately to have hers changed. The server gave me a death stare when she was changing my bill and was incredibly rude about the whole thing. Terrible customer service. I will never go here again. read more

Despite being in Roncesvalles (Capital of pretentiousness in Toronto) The Local is an excellent spot for food and amazing live music. Loses a start for being in an arrogant area. read more

The food is not the best. It tastes like microwaved frozen food. The beer selection is decent but the service staff can be rude. My waitress accused me of having a fake ID instead of asking for a second piece of ID first. I look younger than I am and I get waitresses asking to verify all the time with a second piece. I appreciate them trying to validate and verify because they are doing their job properly. But this waitress outright stated `this is obviously fake` because it was a non-Ontario ID and she has not come across it before. As for the food, I got their soup and it was not great. The portions are big. read more

Came to Toronto to visit family and this was one of the main bars we frequented. Staff was great, drinks were reasonably priced! Great live music everytime we went in. Ordered the poutine and the portion was absolutely huge. Will recommend to anyone I know that will be going to the Toronto area read more

My boyfriend and I stopped in here after an afternoon in High Park on a recommendation. We absolutely loved it! The backyard patio is so cozy and I'm sure it's a great vibe at night with the little bistro lights. Our server Kathleen made us feel right at home and was a pleasure to talk to and gave great tips on the menu. My boyfriend had the Pakora Platter which is a new menu item. Not the type of Pakoras we are used to, but amazing! I had the special which was fish tacos. The fish was super fresh and the combination of lime mayo and salsa was perfect. We will definitely be stopping by the Local again! read more

For food I would rate this as place below zero. Place was pretty busy on a Sunday evening....Soggy perogies dripping with oil. Store bought doritos and salsa that had more juice than bites of actual salsa?! Stew, lacked spice (including salt and pepper) but had serious potential. LIVE MUSIC WAS AWESOME just eat before you go and don't expect your drinks to be replinished much :( read more

I've been here a few times since I've moved to Liberty Village and it's always really great service. The food here is great. They have great little quesadillas that taste amazing. I've also had the perogies & I've heard really great things about their soups as well. Super yummy and great atmosphere. read more

Catering mostly to - you guessed it - locals, this spot is relaxed and homey. Even if you don't live in the neighbourhood, if you find yourself on the inside of this Parkdale pub, you'll feel as though you fit right in. The service is friendly and lights are low - perfect for a romantic rendezvous. read more

I'm a dyed-in-the-wool east-ender but had to meet a friend near Roncey last night, and she suggested we have dinner at a local restaurant. Line-ups were bad everywhere, so we ended up at the Local, which was busy but had some nice places close to where the band was setting up. Nice vibe, good service -- the right balance between helpful and casual. We had a side order of sweet potato fries. Great aioli, and the best done sweet fries we've ever tasted. In fact, we ordered another dish for dessert. Great selection of local and craft beers; i tried the Wellington extra bitter, which was excellent. We each had fish taco. A bit messy (too much mayo???), not enough firmness in the tortilla, but nevertheless quite good. I heard that West Queen West just got chosen by Vogue Mag as second coolest street scene in the world. Wow! As the author of Food for City Building, I like to think that coolness of scene has a lot to do with the food scene -- not that city planners every work at stimulating a lively restaurant scene anywhere, because they have yet to get the food thing. I also want to be the first to say that this international fame also owes a lot to the spirit of activism alive and well in the area, and all the people who fought to make it a great place for artists, families, and other diverse groups, including people facing serious poverty and mental health issues. The Local is part of that scene, and good on them. read more

We stopped in for an early dinner and drinks. This was quite a pleasant surprise. Great vibe. Christmas music was playing along with jazz and French jazz and some bluesy tunes. This was around 4:30 on a Tuesday. We each a draught. They have a supply of board games so we played a little Trivial Pursuit while we drank. My friend had the fish and chips, she thought they were good, I had the pulled pork sandwich with a salad, nice, not the greatest but really no complaint. The Local has a such a cozy feel. We will be back. read more

Food is OK, pretty good pub fare, although nothing is healthy. Great place to have a beer with friends though. read more

The Local is a great place to have a few pints and snacks with friends. The ambience is wonderful, and the selection of beer on tap is excellent. They have a great assortment of local brews, and flavors that will suit everyone in your party, from stouts, to ales, to lagers, and some seasonal tastes as well. The fish and chips here is outrageously delicious, and I love sharing the Bombay Poutine. I've also tried the bangers and mash, and while it was over a year ago, it was memorably delicious. Hands down one of the best places on Roncesvalles for a delicious and comfortable drink. Be sure to get here early if you plan on coming with a larger group on a weekend! Seating fills up fast, and it's the kind of place where you want to stay all night. read more

I've been in for dinner a few times and definitely will keep coming back for the Local Vegetarian Burger. As a vegetarian, it's always a treat to see that someone has crafted a unique and tasty item as their veg option. Their burger is 'home made' and uses tofu and black beans as a protein. The rest I think is potato and onion but I am not sure. Anyway, it holds together well, it's filling, and goes down well with a beverage. read more

The atmosphere was amazing and the drinks & food were a good price. The food was okay. I would definitely go back for the drinks. The staff was really friendly too. read more

I really enjoy coming here for lunch or dinner. I often can grab one of the smaller tables by the window or sneak out to the patio in the summer. The atmosphere is great, staff are friendly. Food is tasty pub style (the fries are amazing). Comfort food for sure. read more

Great music, great nachos! The servers are very friendly.

Just went for a pre movie (at the Revue, next door) with my family and it was great. Great atmosphere, service. Drinks were great and the food was excellent. Good pricing too. What more could you want? read more

Four of us decided to come to this highly recommended pub last night to hear some live music and enjoy a few micro brews and a casual dinner. Well, for every requirement they hit a home run. The music was outstanding. A gentleman who goes by the name of Jay Aymar and his band were playing original folk songs and he was brilliant. They seemed much too well traveled and professional to be playing in this pub but we heard him say he was on tour so perhaps they were just having a fun night. Then the 'Wellington' beer was served by our very engaging server who we all agreed should have been on stage as a comic. He was superb. He suggested a variety of wings and salads and they were again - superb! In fact we were so impressed we drew straws at the end of the evening to see who would write this YELP post! I lost - but really - I won. Definitely check this pub out. It's about as good as it gets. read more

I have Never experienced racism before in Toronto, abd really thought it was a great city and place to live. Until I went to "the local", we were there around 1230 and knew we were cutting it Close considering bar close was at 2 but decided to grab a few beers. For Some reason the Server took a very long time to come to our table so my friend decided to investigate and go up to the bar. He returned 10mins later and said he was not being served by the bar tender so I laughed it off and decided to step up myself. (having worked in the service industry before as a bar tender I know all the tricks of the trade) I finally flagged him down amd ordered then he promptly said "no". Thinking it was a joke (I give people the benefit of the doubt wayy too much) I said ok seriously, our drinks please. He said you guys-meaning me and my friend- do not tip. Now..this was our first drink there, so te tip was still pending right? I laughed and asked again for the drinks and he said "FUUCK OFF". We walked right out. I suddenly realized what he meant by "you guys". It was not about us but the people we are. This guy has a problem. And needs to be stopped from behaving like this. I wont tolerate that kind of treatment. Especially when its unprovoked. Down with the local. read more

A very fun place in the neighbourhood--the decor is cool, and they often have great acoustic music. The menu is a little limited (no brunch on weekends) but above-average for pub fare. read more

One of my all-time favourite places in the city! Food is great and they always have wonderful live music. Excellent selection of beers on tap too! read more

friendly bartenders, a highly eclectic decor, reasonable prices. can't comment on the food as i drank my dinner there, but i'd definitely come back. read more

I love this place. It's actually what is should be. Good live music every night. Food is great (chicken & brie club is my favourite). Service is friendly and relaxed. One of my favourite places in TO. read more

Very rude towards people with families. My son is autistic and the servers where looking at him with strange looks. Our server kept walking past us so I ultimately got up to place our order. read more

Came to the Local Pub to see a friend of mine perform a couple of sets. His performance was fantastic, and I did love the ambience of the place, but the food and customer service were terrible! I ordered a very simple dish, steamed edamame (Japanese-style soy beans, served salted). All you do is stick some frozen edamame in the microwave, not difficult - so why did it take ages and ages to be made? Meanwhile, other customers were getting their fancy dinners served before my order. And when my edamame finally did arrive, half the beans were still semi-frozen! Unbelievable. I brought this to the attention of the staff. Weirdly, they acted like I was the one who was somehow being annoying and unreasonable. No explanations, no apologies - they accepted it back emotionlessly, and asked what I wanted them to do with it (??). I thought for sure the chef at least would be quite shocked and apologetic about their mistake, maybe steam me up a brand new batch for me, maybe add in a little extra something to make up for it... But no - the server just brought me back the remaining beans, re-microwaved, and not only that, it took them _ages_ (again!) to bring me back the re-heated beans. No apologies either, of course. Needless to say, I will be warning everyone I know to stay away from this place, and will never be returning - even if my friend performs there again in the future. :( read more

Came here on a Friday night to pick up take out. Appreciate that Fridays are busy nights for restaurants so when we placed the order we asked what time we should pop by to pick it up. We were told it would only take about 20-25 minutes so planned accordingly. I swung by to pick up our food and had to wait an additional 40 minutes. Was not offered any water or drinks or apologies for the delay. When I asked if my food was coming shortly a very rude waitress responded "I don't know" when asked if there was any way they could please go check it out I was told brusquely "NO" when I pointed out it had been an hour I got an explanation that there is only one cook and one fryer and that they are clearly busy. Made me feel like I was in the wrong for questioning the wait. After I opened yelp on my phone all of a sudden two waitresses went and checked on the food and it arrived shortly after. Still no apologies for the delay. A couple nearby seated for dinner also were quite upset abut the delay for their food, though they had 50% of the bill docked. The food was ok but not worth the wait and definitely not worth the rudeness. On a strip of restaurants happy to serve I'd give this one the skip. The bartender and music were good though so maybe this is a drinks only kind of spot? read more

I liked the atmosphere and the live band playing at the back was quiet enough to still have a conversation. sitting in the window overlooking the street seemed to be the best seat in the house and was empty when we arrived-cause it's very cold to sit there. I had the philly cheese steak sandwich and 2 hours later was writhing around in my bed with stomache pains. it seemed to be the reaction i've had in the past by eating something with MSG in it but why put that in a steak sandwich? can't go back there, at least not to eat. read more

New to the neighbourhood and stopped by to check out The Local. I liked the live band and the ambiance. I got the fish and chips and it was good! My sister tried the butter chicken and she wasn't overly impressed. We had a very friendly server and enjoyed our experience! read more

The thing I like the best about a bar/pub/restaurant is the atmosphere and The Local has an excellent one. It's the kind of place that just feels cozy and makes you happy just to be there... the craft beers help. I love that they have live music most nights of the week... and I love the fish and chips. Great place! read more

I went there a few times with friends for lunch, it's better to go in summer and sit at their patio. It has a very layback feel and I like that, the waitress was an Irish lady and she is really cool. Service was good. Food is real average though. I had their "Local beer" and it was no good. I have tried their Local Burger and it's average for the price, $14 I think. Fish & chips were better though. read more

After having some good pho decided to walk the neighbourhood and do a local patio.. Ended up in Roncesvalles and thought this was the spot. Their backyard patio is quite small, but very cozy with many different window panes as part of the decor attached to a neighbouring brick home. An old retro Coke Fridge sits hidden underneath the balcony steps, climbing vines and flowers make it sound, for a great place to chat. Warning the patio does close early because of the residents (11pm). Now, onto the service..We seated ourselves (there were 3 of us) and decided to pull 2 single tables together to accomodate us, as soon as we did this we were greeted by our server who asked us if we would be dining this evening which we politely declined and said drinks would be our poison. The server then said in a matter of factly voice if that's the case one table should suffice so they could fit more patrons. First of all are we not paying customers? That 3 of us were pretty much squeezed onto 1 lil table making the patio seem even more awkward?? Yes indeed the people that took that table definitely seemed uncomfortable...i'm sorry for that. Other than that the place is a-ok...Oh yeah one more thing for the gals..the bathroom is more than a tight fit be prepared!! read more