After starting out as a pop-up concept at the beginning of 2024, Jamil’s Chaat House has found a permanent home inside a lemon yellow building on Queen St. W.
“Jamil’s highlights overlooked or underrated dishes that are often found at Desi restaurants, but rarely ordered by people outside of the diaspora,” said Emma Tanaka, who co-founded Jamil’s alongside Jalil Bokhari. “The intent is to recontextualize them within Toronto’s food culture — evoking nostalgia for those familiar with the dishes and a sense of discovery for others.”
“Jamil was the surname of Jalil’s grandfather, and the restaurant was named after his love of dining and generous hosting spirit,” Tanaka says. “He has a knack for finding the absolute best when it comes to food and drink, and we aim to carry on the same tradition.”
On the menu, you won’t find any butter chicken, as outlined on the restaurant’s Instagram page.
Straightforward and minimalist, it leans vegetarian, and is a curated collection of generational Pakistani recipes executed by head chef Eric MacDonald. Chaat, a popular category of savoury snacks in South Asian cuisine, is the star of the menu — alongside other Pakistani-inspired small plates and mains.
“The recipes have evolved with our pop-ups and most recently chef Eric MacDonald has taken over the menu to work her magic and focus on spicy, punchy flavour,” Tanaka said. “The aim with our concise menu is to encourage people to try something new, potentially outside of their comfort zone.”
Choose from one of three chaat dishes: the dahi puri made with semolina, potato, chickpea, tamarind and cilantro yogurt — one of the signature dishes at Jamil’s; the papdi chaat (garlic potato yogurt, pomegranate, mint, and apple) and the samosa chaat (chole, sweet tamarind, yogurt and red onion).
Meat dishes include the beef seekh kebab done with marinated onion and cumin, and the lamb nihari served with Desi chili crisp, cinnamon and ginger. You can also try weekly specials which, most recently, have included a seared maitake mushroom and rotating seasonal achaars. “We will continue to highlight seasonal produce and are constantly developing new menu items,” Tanaka said.
Complementing the menu, Jamil’s Chaat House offers a well-curated selection of natural wines and creative cocktails that use familiar ingredients found in South Asian cooking, like the Cardamom Old Fashioned, or the Tamarind Margarita.
And, although Jamil’s is now a permanent fixture on Queen St. W., it plans to honour its pop-up roots. “We are so grateful for the many restaurants that opened their doors for us; now that we have a permanent home, the long term intent is to extend the pop-up spirit to others,” Tanaka said. “We aim to play host to travelling chefs and winemakers who we admire in the industry.”
Jamil’s Chaat House is located at 1086 Queen St. W. and is open Thursday to Sunday from 5 p.m. to close.
