Loaded Pierogi brings dumpling comfort to Gerrard

Photo: Dean Seguin

Shrouded in mystery and keeping passersby in suspense for months, Loaded Pierogi has finally opened the doors to its second Toronto location on Gerrard St. at the corner of Galt Ave. 

This isn't your babcia's dumpling from the old world. Plates start with traditional potato and onion pierogis — either boiled or fried — before the snack shop puts its own twist on the Eastern European staple.

'Get loaded', as its marquee sign reads, is an apt motto for the restaurant with a menu listing more than a dozen pierogi dishes piled with both savoury and sweet toppings. Choose from pulled pork, confit duck leg, kimchi, lobster and crab, apple and caramel and strawberry and chocolate.

Loaded Pierogi also has an impressive menu of Euro-influenced signature cocktails and martinis. The real standout here, though, is the vodka flights as the proper pairing with its pierogi plates.

With its Leslieville arrival, local restaurateur Ted Koutsogiannopoulos of McGugan's, Aprile Bambina and Great Burger Kitchen — all three just a few doors down — has officially flexed his culinary muscle on this block.

Loaded Pierogi is at 1044 Gerrard St. E. Visit loadedpierogi.ca for a look at the menu and more information.