Sunday, September 25, 2011

Table 17 on Queen St. East

Queen St east of Broadview Ave is starting to go through the same type of gentrification that Queen West has experienced since the 80s.  The area, previously occupied by run down, low income housing and stores, is now sprouting art galleries, higher end shops and trendy restaurants including Ruby Watchco (and its associated grocery store Ruby Eats), Picnic, and Table 17 where we dined recently.

Table 17 features some interesting starters under its "sharing" section. First is their creamy polenta with featured slow-cooked sugo (Italian for sauce) of the day ($14).  Our sugo consisted of ground sausage and sweet peppers, accompanied with extra spices.  The polenta is presented unadorned on a wooden plank.  The chef comes out with a small pot of sauce which he spoons onto the polenta right at your table.  This is followed by the waiter bearing freshly shredded cheese and ground pepper.  This was a fun little ritual that made the course seem extra special.  This delicious dish is mean to be shared by the table.  Since there was just the two of us, Rich and I ate it right off the plank, although I'm not sure whether this was the proper etiquette.

Next we shared a trio of deep fried risotto "hot balls" which came in small (3 balls for $6) and large (6 balls for $11.50) sizes.  Each ball comes with a different stuffing and sauce.  There is a mushroom and Fontina cheese ball with a tomato sauce, a spiced lamb with mint sauce and one with goat cheese and wildflower honey.  We debated over the size and settled on a small since we were also getting the polenta, but regretted it as soon as we saw them.  We begrudgingly split the balls but vowed to get the large on our next visit.

For the main course we both had Ontario roasted leg of lamb with spicy merguez sausage, roasted carrots and beans and tiny pieces of lobster mushroom ($29).  Leg of lamb is usually served well done or else the cut of meat can be tough.  Our slices were closer to medium rare which is how I usually like my meat cooked, but indeed I found them to be chewy. 


We found the desserts to just be average - the chocolate cake with ricotta mousse and hazelnut cream and sticky toffee cake were both rather bland and a bit dry.

As we have found with many restaurants, the appetizers and starters are the most impressive and memorable and dishes I would definitely want to try again. The main course was tasty and well portioned but nothing special, and I would pass on the dessert.


Table 17
782 Queen St East

Sunday, September 18, 2011

Smores Hot Chocolate at the Blackberry Lounge in Bell Lightbox

I have officially found Heaven in a cup!  Imagine a warm mug of SOMA malted hot chocolate (from SOMA Chocolates in the Distillery?  Have to find me some!), mixed with Baileys and Frangelico, topped with a homemade semi-melted marshmallow and a sprinkling of graham cracker crumbs to complete the smores theme.

This is what I found on the menu of the Blackberry lounge at the Bell Lightbox where we were in search of a quick dessert.  Sipping this delight while enjoying the views of King St. from our window seat was a perfect prelude before heading off to our TIFF movie. 

In terms of the actual desserts, the lemon "tart" with sour cream ice cream and blueberries is a winner.  This was not a pastry tart but more of a lemon custard with creme brulee topping.  However it did have a wonderfully tart yet sweet taste, so maybe it was a play on words.

Blackberry Lounge. Luma, Bell Lightbox
350 King St. W.

RaviSoups

Our new favourite place for a quick cheap bite before a show in the Entertainment District is RaviSoups on Adelaide St. The soups and wraps are both delicious and cost around $8-10 or you can get a combo of half-sized soup and wrap for $11. The hot hearty soups are perfect for a cold day, or in the summer, they sometimes have chilled soup options.
Given my partiality for mushrooms, my "go-to" soup is the porcini mushroom with wild rice bisque topped with crispy shallots and truffle oil.  My favourite wrap is the grilled flank steak with mushrooms, spinach, yams, caramelized onion, brie and light sauce. 

The soups change regularly but some regulars include the butternut squash with Asian pear and lemon grass, curried apricot and red lentil w cilantro and lime fraiche, and Ravi stew with chicken, wild rice, edamame beans, spinach.  Most of the soups have a bit of a spicy zip to it because of the spices and herbs used.  Instead of crackers, you can order a cheddar cheese biscuit with red pepper jelly for $1.50. Other wrap choices include grilled chicken, lamb, pork shoulder or grilled veggies.

The food is ordered at the front counter, cafeteria style and then brought to you when ready. There are only a few individual tables along with a large communal table made of a beautiful single slab of wood.  In the summer, there is a pretty sheltered patio in the back for outdoor dining. 

Ravisoups
322 Adelaide St W

Sunday, September 11, 2011

Bohemian Gastropub

Traditional English pubs used to serve basic hearty food catered for the common worker, such as shepherd's pie which consisted of leftover meat lined with mash potato, steak and ale pie, or a ploughman's lunch which is basically a cold sandwich.

The term "gastropub" originated in England in the 1990s and refers to pairing beer with high end dining. The gastropub has now come to Toronto with the opening of The Bohemian Gastropub on Queen St. West.  The prices were reasonable with appetizers from  $7-10, sandwiches from $10-12 and mains fomr $17-21.


 There are some very unique appetizer choices on the menu.  Relatively large, fleshy smelts are breaded with wheat flour, deep fried and served with caper mayonnaise.  A crunchy salad of endive and celeriac mixed with tart granny smith apple slices and salty roasted pumpkin seeds is mixed with a slightly sweet pumpkin seed dressing.  In every bite all the various flavours can be discerned.  Fried pig ears come with a  smoked paprika tartar sauce and can be snacked on like exotic potato chips with the taste of bacon.  Other options that we didn't get a chance to try this time but sounded very interesting included the fried cheddar zucchini dumplings with grape chutney and spaetzle poutine covered with cheddar and bratwurst gravy .. maybe next time!


For main course, I had pan seared trout with a chive dumplings, chunks of ham, covered with a pea sauce.  Rich had the beef oxtail and mushroom stew cooked until tender in a tiny dutch oven with a layer of pastry surrounding the lid, served with sauteed pearl onion, baby carrots, potato and celery.  The portions were not overly large which allowed us to try multiple appetizers while still each having a main (although we were really hungry which helped).

The beer choices were also unique with options from various local breweries including Steam Whistle Brewery, and Rich's choice, which was Augusta Ale, a local ale brewed in Kensington Market.   This is a welcome variation from the traditional English pubs and provides a new dining experience.  Hopefully more will follow.

Bohemian Gastropub
571 Queen St. West