Food Review: St. Francis Table in Parkdale

And he took the seven loaves and the fishes, and gave thanks, and broke them, and gave to his disciples and to the multitude.
— Matthew 16

Neat trick. But try doing it every day. Father Terry Boland, a friar of the order of Capuchin Franciscans, has been running a restaurant in Parkdale for seven years. At St. Francis Table you can get a meal for a buck.

"Nobody sings for their supper," said Boland. "It's a restaurant, not a soup kitchen."

Whether you are stoned or straight, jonesing or stumbling, you're welcome at St. Francis. Thursday evening is everyone's favourite: baked chicken night!

A queue starts outside fifteen minutes before the doors open. At noon you pay a dollar and are seated by a gracious maître'd. Four per table. The dining room is a comfortable blue and has a home decorated feel — very trendy on Queen West — with customer artwork and a little painted Mary who looks like an unflattering Birth of Venus.

At your table you may meet Parkdale regulars like Michael Graham, a renown southern gent resettled in the streets for five years now. He is ornery but always fun. Or you may be seated with Melvin Tipping who has, after thirty five years, given up the booze and is now in big demand as a public speaker. Most in the crowd are familiar faces but a new one is always asked, "How's it going?" People are respectful when they are respected.

Posted on the chalk board are the two entrées that you can choose from. Each entrée comes with soup or salad, coffee or tea, milk or water, and something sweet for dessert. The volunteer waiters and waitresses are always prompt and pleasant. After dining you can move to the smoking lounge to socialize a little further with your table mates. After all, food may nourish the body but company nourishes the soul.

The menu is set by what is in stock. There is a basement storeroom filled with canned and dry goods, wich the cook, Sam Kumarasamy — the only full-time employee — uses to augment what ever fresh goods have arrived.

The most amazing part is that nobody has ever been turned away because the cupboard was bare. While it has come close at times, Father Terry said miraculously someone with a truckload of food always shows up to save the day. Since its inception the restaurant has relied on generous donations from 1,500 contributors who help out on a quarterly basis. But, while food companies keep the pots boiling, it takes cold hard cash to keep the roof overhead and the heat turned on.

The Franciscan monks are wonderful people — very warm and open. They make dining at St. Francis Table about more than just food.

Annotated by Deborah Waddington from an article by Heather Bird of the Toronto Sun.

• St. Francis Table
  1322 Queen St. W.
  Toronto, ON
  M6K 1L4
  (416) 532-4172
  Charitable Number 007-9389-01