Everyone welcome at Wahlburgers' new Toronto location -- even Leafs fans

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Everyone welcome at Wahlburgers' new Toronto location -- even Leafs fans
By Maryam Shah, Toronto Sun
First posted: Saturday, November 15, 2014 07:15 PM EST | Updated: Saturday, November 15, 2014 07:29 PM EST
TORONTO - They hail from the home of the Bruins but the Wahlberg brothers insist Leafs fans are more than welcome at the first Wahlburgers in Canada


Boston’s Paul and Donnie Wahlberg — who, along with their brother, actor Mark Wahlberg, own the city’s newest burger joint – said they will gladly serve Leafs fans some of chef Paul’s Dorchester, Mass.-inspired gourmet patties.


“We, as Bruins fans, may not root for the Leafs but we respect hockey, we respect the Canadian love of hockey, and certainly Torontonians’ love of the Leafs,” Donnie said with a smile.


“So I won’t call them the Loafs in this interview at all,” he cheekily added as a parting shot.


As executive chef at Wahlburgers, Paul’s life revolves around food, while Donnie is well-known from roles in hit movies such as the The Sixth Sense, his current hit TV show, Blue Bloods, and notably as a member of the 1980s boy band, New Kids On the Block.


Located at 46 Blue Jays Way, a few steps south of King St. at the SoHo Metropolitan Hotel — opposite Wayne Gretzky’s restaurant — Wahlburgers hosted its official opening on Saturday, rolling out a green carpet in front of a line of fans keen on a selfie with any Wahlberg they could sweet-talk into posing for their cameras.


Toronto seemed like a natural choice to open the first Wahlburgers north of the border because of the Canadian partners involved in the business, Paul explained.


“For us, it just made total sense,” he said. “Mark and Donnie are both adopted sons of Toronto. We’ve got so many partners up here.”


The menu boasts burgers described as “Thanksgiving leftovers on a bun” and “a triple stack, like the house we grew up in.”


The three brothers grew up in a crowded Boston home — nine children meant that at times, there wasn’t enough money to pay the bills or enough food to go around.


Reminiscing about gathering around the family table at mealtime made Paul light up instantly.


“Sitting around the table, eating the food that my parents prepared, and being with my brothers and sisters, and just, even if there were arguments, whatever, you were still there, you were still enjoying that time,” he said.


That’s the experience he’d like people to take away from Wahlburgers.


“When he talks about food and cooking and comes up with different recipes, you can feel him channelling right back to those times as a child when meal time was really everything for us,” Donnie pointed out.

Everyone welcome at Wahlburgers' new Toronto location -- even Leafs fans | Toron