Debus Nouvelle Indian Cuisine

When you think Indian cuisine, do you imagine the standard fare of butter chicken, kormas and curries? If you are looking for something new and exciting in Indian food, Debus Nouvelle Indian Cuisine is a place to try. The menu is very small, offering only a couple of choices for appetizer and entree, and changes frequently. But what is offered is refreshingly unique compared to other standard Indian restaurants. Even traditional items are served with a special flair and presentation and taste.

We started with the best vegetable pakora I've ever had, served as a towering mound stuffed into a papadum basket. The pakoras had an extremely light panko-bread crumb-like coating and I was fighting Rich over the last ones. It was presented on a pretty tear-drop shaped dish with dabs of various sauces that were delightful both visually and to the taste buds. This was followed with a tandoori shrimp salad consisting of huge succulent grilled shrimp on a bed of greens and tomato.

The main course offered either chicken or halibut "served three ways". We opted for the halibut and got a minature fish and chip (note - not chips but one big chip), a fish cake with mint sauce and pan-seared halibut crusted with tandoori spices and curry leaves. Being able to try small amounts of different items really appeals to me. Rich ordered the same thing so that I wouldn't be able to steal of sample of his meal.. I've noticed he's used this trick quite a bit lately!

Rich ended the meal with Rice pudding which I just had a small taste of, since the Chinese-ness in me can't get used to rice being sweet. Given how often the menu changes, you can go back repeatedly to try new things. Entrees run from about $16-22 while appetizers are $10 and up. This is a great place to get a new dining experience in Indian cuisine.

552 Mount Pleasant Road
416-927-9340
http://www.debusaha.com/

Frida - Mexican Fine Dining

In general, I don't like beans - navy, lima, kidney, and definitely not refried or mushy beans found in traditional Mexican food. So generally I don't like the usual Mexican restaurants with the tacos and burritos (except for Burrito Boys, but that is a different blog entry). I got a taste of what high-end Mexican dining could be like when I went to Topolo-Bampo in Chicago. Ever since then, I've been seeking something similar in Toronto and now I've found it in the restaurant Frida, named after the painter Frida Kahlo. It was a bit disconcerting to be surrounded by photos of the bushy-browed artist, including the photo for the women's washroom (a hobby of mine is to collect photos of bathroom signs for men vs women's washrooms and this was an excellent addition).

We started the evening with the best tortilla chips and avocado dip that I've ever had. The chips were light, crispy and not oily while the avocado dip was flavourful with just enough spice to make it interesting. My main course consisted of jumbo shrimp covered in a tomato based guajillo pepper sauce, served with rice, spinach and grilled artichoke. Rich had a slow braised lamb covered in morita sauce (chiles, goat cheese) with roasted potatos and the only type of bean that I like - green beans!

We ended the meal with churros filled with caramel accompanied by a blueberry coulis. And while we were eating, we were serenaded by a guitar player and jazz singer that opened her mouth so wide while she was singing that I could not help but stare at her.

The menu was wide and varied and featured authentic Mexican ingredients and spices and dishes that were different from the "North-Americanized" versions of Mexican food. Most entrees were around $18-28. This was a very enjoyable experience that needs to be repeated soon.

999 Eglinton Avenue West
416-787-2221
www.fridarestaurant.ca/

Mezzetta Café Restaurant - Mediterranean Tapas

Having just been to Barcelona, I am quite familiar with the concept of Spanish tapas, which involves eating many small dishes of a variety of meats, seafood and vegetables. Since I love to sample and grew up on Dim Sum, this is the ideal style of eating for me. So imagine my delight to discover Mezzetta, which is a middle Eastern, Mediterreanean tapas place with very cheap but good food. Mezze means little appetizer and they certainly have a huge selection to choose from.

Dishes range from the traditional dips (hummus, baba gannous), grilled/steamed/fried vegetables (eggplant, cauliflower, green beans, mushroom, falafal, etc.), all types of meat and fish dishes including kabobs, puffs, wraps, and a limited selection of desserts.

While each dish is usually $3.50, there is so much to choose from, that the most fun and economical way to go is "Chef's Choice". The Chef will choose 10 selections for $32 for 2 people, or 20 selections for $64 for 4 people. Four people is the way to go since you all get to try so many different things. On Mondays, every second selection is $1.42, Tuesdays all selections are $2.42 and Wednesdays have live music at 9 and 10:15pm for a cover charge.

681 Saint Clair Avenue West
416-658-5687
www.mezzettarestaurant.com

Japanese Kobe Beef at Edo

For Rich's birthday, we finally satisfied one of his long-standing wishes - to taste authentic Japanese Kobe beef. Kobe beef refers to Wagyu cattle that is raised according to specific practices in certain parts of Japan. These practices include feeding the cattle sake and beer, and giving them daily massages to relieve muscle stiffness. This results in extremely tender, juicy, well marbled meat that is enhanced in flavour, and can cost up to $300+ per pound. Because the meat is so dense and fatty, a little goes a long way, which is lucky given the price!

I've always thought that if I had to be reincarnated in my next life, there are worst fates than to be a pampered Kobe beef cow.

Edo Fine Dining Restaurant on Eglinton Ave West of Avenue Road, offers a 7 course omakase tasting menu (chef's choice of dishes) featuring "Kobe beef". When making the reservations, I quickly discovered that the term Kobe beef is used very loosely in North America and that you need to make a specific distinction to ensure that you get the real thing. I was asked whether I wanted the "American Kobe Beef" for $125 per person, or the Japanese Kobe beef for $150, or the Japanese Wagyu Kobe beef for $170. Using the old adage "In for a penny, in for a pound", we selected the highest grade of beef for our meal.

We had been to Edo once before for Summerlicious, and found the food was not only delicious, but extremely innovative in form and presentation. When we arrived at the restaurant and announced our reservation, there was some quick excited chatter amongst the hostesses, which gave us the impression that the Wagyu omakase tasting menu is not ordered frequently.



The meal started with tuna carpacchio artistically drizzled with a criss-cross of two sauces of contrasting colours, one like hoisin sauce and the other seemed like it was mayo-based. This was followed by a beef brisket salad with mixed greens. So far both courses were tasty, but nothing extraordinary in comparison to other high end Japanese restaurants.


But the next course pushed the meal into an entirely different plane. It was a dish of fluffy egg custard topped with the most flavourful lobster bisque, containing large chunks of sweet lobster and edamame beans. It's times like this where I wish it was socially acceptable to lick the bowl.


This was followed by the sushi course, which consisted of two pieces of spicy himachi maki (sushi wrapped in nori seaweed) and two pieces of nigiri (mound of rice with a topping). The first nigiri topping was called toro (fatty blue fin tuna belly) and melted in the mouth like butter. The second nigiri was topped with a piece of grilled American Kobe beef, which was tender and delectable - closer to fois gras than any other slice of beef or steak we'd had before. This was an unexpected treat that would let us compare the American versus the Japanese Wagyu beef. If this was just the third best grade, we could hardly wait for the real thing!


The next course arrived as a parcel wrapped in parchment paper, which was slit in front of us to expose a steaming salmon fillet and scallops and enoki mushrooms. This was another good dish, but at this point, everything before it seemed like just a warm-up for the main attraction - the Wagyu beef!



Before the highly anticipated course, we were presented with one more surprise, to help set the stage. Placed before us was a plaque labelled "Certificate of Authenticity", which described the lineage of the Japanese Wagyu beef cow who would soon contribute to our meal. Details included his date and place of birth, gender, breed, grade, and date of "harvest", a euphemism if I'd ever heard of one. Though meant to assure us that we were getting what we paid for, this came very close to being too much information regarding my dinner .. at least they did not provide "our" cow with a pet name and a photo!


Finally came the moment we'd been waiting for all evening. The dish came as three slices of genuine Japanese Wagyu beef (total of 3oz) grilled perfectly to a reddish medium rare, sitting on a bed of mushroom risotto and topped with a delicately battered slice of tempura squash.

From the very first bite, it was apparent that the Wagyu beef lived up to its reputation and that all the hype was well deserved. The beef was so tender that you could almost cut it with a fork. Each bite emitted a huge burst of flavour that lingered in your mouth for a few seconds. This is something you need to savour slowly, to extend the heavenly feeling for as long as possible. While the price makes it prohibitive for most people to enjoy this delicacy regularly, it was definitely a chance of a lifetime experience that was worth every penny to try at least once.



The last dessert course was the perfect way to end the meal. Rather than serving a heavy or overly sweet dessert that would have overwhelmed the food that came before, dessert consisted of lusciously fresh pieces of fruit accompanied by a sauce made from the highest quality chocolate.


The meal ended with one final treat. It was announced that the executive chef, Ryo Ozawa, was coming to our table to greet us and personally thank us for partaking in his masterpiece. We chatted with him briefly, laying on the praise for the wonderful feast that he had dreamed up for us. Then with a final bow and a two-handed presentation of his business card, he was gone and the evening was over.

This is an experience that we will never forget. Unfortunately it may have spoiled Rich from eating a "normal" steak ever again...

Cava - Tapas in Midtown Toronto

Who says wishes don't come true? Cava, the new restaurant which has opened in the Delisle Court at Yonge and St.Clair specializes in Spanish Tapas with influences from Mexico and Italy mixed in. And it is owned by Chris Macdonald, the reknowned chef who formerly resided at the now defunct restaurant Avalon.

Tapas is the generic name for a variety of Spanish appetizers, similar to Chinese Dim Sum. Tapas are served in small portions, but can span all traditional courses, from cold dishes such as salads, olives, cheese, to hot dishes consisting of vegetables, seafoods (e.g.calamari, fish, shrimp), meats, rice dishes, etc.

The location is a bit of a challenge since it is tucked away in the back of the Delisle Court and not visible from Yonge Street. This has possibly contributed to the failure of its previous occupants. So having a chef as famous as Chris Macdonald might be just what is required to make this spot a success. His reputation alone can make this a destination spot that patrons will go out of their way to come to. And being just a block away from the restaurant owned by another famous chef, Didier Leroy, could just make this midtown area the new hotspot for fine dining.






In an extremely savvy move, for the first few weeks of its opening, Cava offered a promotional sampling of 8 tapa dishes for $30. The samples featured some of the best offerings from the menu including:

Crostini of garlicky rapini, white bean puree and manchego cheese
Chipolte caramel popcorn
Cabbage and mixed green salad with fig and rhubarb dressing
Tuna tartar with taro chips
Grilled sardine with black olive tapanade
Black cod on a black risotto
Duck Confit with roasted red peppers
Dessert tapas consisting of a trio of sweets including churros with chocolate sauce

The food was all delicious, using unique combinations of spices and sauces. However at the regular price of $5-17 per dish, it would cost a pretty penny to feel full from a Cava meal.

So far, Cava seems to be a big success, doing good business even during the middle of the week. In the summer months, patio tables are set up for al fresco dining.


Cava Restaurant
1560 Yonge Street
Toronto
416-979-9918

Baldwin Street - An Eclectic Gathering of Ethnic Cuisine

Have a craving for ethnic food but can't quite decide what exactly you're in the mood for? You can delay your decision by heading down to Baldwin Street, just a few blocks NW from the St. Patrick subway station. For a stretch of about 3 short blocks, Baldwin Street is the Mecca for ethnic dining.

You will find about 10 different types of Chinese eating establishments, from traditional restaurants, ones specializing in seafood, a Hot Pot restaurant, to a bakery serving pastries and Dim Sum.

My current favourite Chinese restaurant on Baldwin Street is called Eating Garden. We randomly picked it late one evening after being out since 7pm participating in Nuit Blanche, the only criteria being that it was still open, we were starving and needing to rest our weary feet. We ordered a steaming bowl of wonton soup, a plate of lemon chicken with rice and a plate of fried rice noodles with beef and vegetables. The food was delicious and we devoured it quickly. The lemon chicken was lightly breaded to perfection and the lemon sauce burst with flavour on every bite. The only word of warning is, that if attempting to stay awake all night for Nuit Blanche, eating a Chinese meal full of MSG is probably not the smartest thing to do.




There are also multiple French, Italian, Japanese, Thai, Indian, and Continental restaurants, and at current count, one each of a Korean, Mexican, Persian, Malaysian and Vegetarian restaurant. All these different foods and cultures are interspersed and happily coexisting next to each other, within a span of about 3 city blocks. I think the United Nations could learn a lesson from the cohesiveness of this group of eateries.

And next time you're not quite sure what you want to eat, head down to this street and check out all the menus. Or just close your eyes, point your finger and spin yourself around to see where you land.

Greek Dining at Christina's On The Danforth

A couple of friends and I went to Christina's on the Danforth for Greek food on a Friday night. Our reservations were for 7pm at which time the restaurant was still relatively empty. The hostess guided us to our table towards the back of restaurant, past many empty tables and farther and farther away from a booth that seemed to be set up for live entertainment. Making a mental note to request a table closer to this entertainment next time, we asked what time it might start and were told curtly that it would be around 9pm. This was by no means the friendliest wait staff I've encountered.

Looking around, I took in the decor of deep rich maroon and golden yellow. Attached to the ceiling were large exposed pipes painted to blend in with the walls, giving the place a warehouse feeling. On the walls were huge mounted colour photographs showing scenes presumably from various Greek towns. On back wall of the restaurant was what seemed to be a fire exit, but it was painted and decorated artfully to blend in with the decor. Surrounding the door were wires with lights and metal leaves attached to them, that formed an pretty archway.


We started the meal by sharing some breaded calamari which was cooked perfectly with a light tasty breading and served with a taziki-like sauce. For the entree, on the recommendation of the waiter who said it was one of the favorites, I ordered the Kotopoulo which is a stuffed chicken breast with mushrooms and peppers, served with rice, lemon roasted potatoes and fresh seasonal vegetables. It sounded really good and when it came, the portions were huge. Unfortunately I found the chicken to be dry (could have used a good sauce) and the stuffing to be lacking. The vegetables were also overcooked for my liking since I like my vegetables to be crisp and crunchy. Maybe I just chose wrong, since my friends who ordered the Atlantic Salmon filet and the Chicken Soulvaki both enjoyed their meals.

Every once in a while, the tables around us would order the flaming saganaki, which according to the menu is a Greek kefalograviera cheese that is flambeed in a shot of brandy right at your table. With the cry of "Opa", the plate roars with a flame that raises what seems to be several feet before it is quickly doused. The saying "Don't try this at home, kids" came to mind.

By around 8pm, the restaurant was packed so I guess the regulars knew to come a bit later to get ready for the live entertainment. At around 9pm, the music started and the sounds of coins rattling followed. Soon the belly dancer was making her way up the stairs and towards the back of the room. At each table, she would give a quick little dance and invite the occupants to get up and join her. Our table firmly declined the offer, thinking we did not have the right "equipment" to try this (i.e. thin waists and double jointed hips). Several men were coherced to give it a whirl and seemed to enjoy the close proximity to the pretty dancer. Finally a woman got up after much persuasion from her male companion and when she started dancing, it was obvious that she was a ringer and had done this before. The two women gave quite a duet much to the enjoyment of all around them.


Finally around 9:30, the belly dancer gave way to live musicians who played some rowdy greek tunes. It got a bit difficult to continue to carry on a conversation at that point, but it was fun to listen to the music. All in all, this was an enjoyable experience and I think I would give the food another try and order something else next time.

Congee and Noodle Houses

There are many forms of Chinese cuisine, with different restaurants catering to specific styles of food and food preparation methods.  In addition to the traditional restaurants that offer choices of entrée items for communal dining, some popular ones include Dim Sum, Hot pot, Hong Kong style diners, as well as Chinese bakeries.



The type of Chinese restaurant we tried this past weekend was the Congee/Noodle House. Congee is a hot rice porridge, seasoned with parsley, green onion and salt.  It can be cooked with any combination of meat, seafood or vegetables, adding to the flavour of the broth.  Interestingly, the spice provided to give congee more zip is a white pepper powder, not the traditional black pepper.  A hearty dish which is great on a cold day, congee is usually consumed with deep fried dough fritters that can be dipped into the congee.  Topping off the experience is a plate of Chinese vegetables, blanched then stir fried in oil and served with oyster sauce.

While my parents usually like congee with seafood(shrimp, scallop, white fish, squid) or duck meat, my favorite for some strange reason happens to be pork liver and meat balls. This is unfortunate since liver is the only thing my husband Rich cannot eat even to be polite The first time I introduced the concept of congee to him, he was sick with a cold. For me growing up, congee was comfort food, like chicken soup, so I thought it might make him feel better. When I described to him my favorite congee, he turned two shades greener than he already was, and to this day, he cannot eat any type of congee since he forever associates it with liver.

One thing that even Rich cannot dispute is what a great bargain congee is in Chinese restaurants. A good sized bowl of congee with various ingredients ranges from around $3.75 to $6.00 and makes an extremely satisfying meal for 2 or more people. When Rich was in Vegas recently, he stayed at the Ceasars Palace hotel, where they were offering plain congee for $19 US Currency (remember - congee is basically water and rice)! The chicken congee was $27US!




Luckily congee places also offer many styles of noodle and rice/fried rice, so Rich has something he can eat.  There is quite a variety of Chinese noodle dishes usually stir-fried with sauces and different combinations of meats, seafood and vegetables These include crunchy chow mein, rice noodles, glass noodles and vermicelli. You can also get shrimp wonton noodle soup, which is another great choice for a cold day.


Congee Wong
3235 Hwy 7, Markham, ON L3R 0J5
905-474-1844

Yung Sing Chinese Bakery - OUT OF BUSINESS

Tucked away on Baldwin Street is a little gem of a Chinese bakery called Yung Sing. The place is family owned and operated and has been in business for at least 35 years, which is how long my Chinese wife Annie has been going there.

What keeps her coming back long after she left the neighbourhood is the fabulous custard egg tart called Dan Tat. Dan Tat, when done well, has a moist, almost runny custard filling that has just the right amount of sweetness, supported by a very flakey and tender crust. Too often, Dan Tat that is found in Dim Sum places or lesser bakeries is overcooked, resulting in a custard that is too firm and a pastry that is hard and dry - not so at Yung Sing. If you time it just right at Yung Sing, it will still be warm from the oven. Whenever we approach the bakery, Annie would quicken her pace and scoot ahead of me in excitement and anticipation of the treat to come.



Apart from the Dan Tat, Yung Sing also has a selection of delicious deep-fried treats such as shrimp wontons, Fun Gok (shrimp, pork, and water chestnut), and Woo Gok (taro paste with a flakey breading). All have generous amounts of filling and are not too greasy. Also available are Chinese buns well-stuffed with things like curry chicken, barbequed pork, ham and egg, or beef, and they are much better quality and larger than most. One makes a great snack. A limited number of cook-to-order dishes are posted on a chalkboard menu, including the Dim Sum favourites, Ha Gow and Sui Mai.

All of these delicacies are offered at incredibly cheap prices, many for less than a dollar. You can also get refillable cups of Chinese tea for 50 cents. Make sure that you go early, as most of the good stuff sells out fast and we have been disappointed
more than once when we arrived in the middle of the afternoon. This will also help you avoid the lineups which can get quite long around lunch time.

What makes Yung Sing stand out is the fact that all of their goods are freshly prepared, daily, on-site. As they start to run out of Fun Gok for example, the person behind the counter will yell downstairs to the chef to make sure that more is on its way.It's a great place to get a snack or a cheap light lunch, but be prepared that you may have to stand in line for a few minutes. Yung Sing is a take-out place, but during warm weather they have a picnic table on the front lawn.

Yung Sing Chinese Bakery
22 Baldwin Street
416 979-2832

Artisan Breads by Thuet at All The Best Fine Foods

Yesterday, I dropped into the bakery section of All The Best Fine Foods, one of the set of gourmet shops on Yonge St. south of Summerhill which is affectionately known as the "Five Thieves". On display in the window front is a large sign indicating that special breads were now being supplied by Marc Thuet (former chef at Centro Grill and Wine Bar and The Fifth, and now proud owner of his own self named Thuet Restaurant).

They had some of his breads available for sampling and they were moist and tasty. But the item that left me wanting for more was an Alsacian "Stollen" loaf. A stollen is a light and airy bread-like fruitcake, usually eaten during Christmas Season. This one contained marzipan and very lightly candied fruit, almonds and spices and was sprinkled with icing sugar. It was not too sweet and was absolutely delicious! I had my wallet out ready to buy some when I learned that it was currently only being offered as a promotional teaser, but would be available for sale shortly. Then Marc Thuet himself arrived at the shop to inspect the display, so I got to tell him how much I liked his version of the stollen. Can't wait until I can buy some!

Pumpkin Pie in a Mug at Starbucks

Let me warn coffee lovers up front - I am not now nor have I ever been a regular coffee drinker. It's not that I dislike it, I just never acquired the habit of needing my daily fix. This puts me in a distinct minority, as most of the people I know drink it by the potfulls and are loyal to their favourite cafe (Starbucks, Second Cup, Tim Horton's etc.). This means that I am not a coffee purist, so judge my opinion accordingly.

I recently wandered into a Starbucks for my monthly cup of joe, and noticed that they had something called the Pumpkin Latte on the menu. I have loved pumpkin pie since I was a kid, and as an adult I have also grown fond of pumpkin ravioli, pumpkin soup, and other inventions starring my favourite orange vegetable. Choosing the Pumpkin Latte was therefore a foregone conclusion.

What I got could only be described as pumpkin pie in a mug. All the flavours were there; pumpkin, nutmeg, cinnamon, and of course coffee. This qualified as "comfort food" as it instantly took me back to memories of Thanksgiving dinners with the family. I ordered my latte with whipped cream on top, just as I do with the real thing.

Organic Ice Cream in Kensington Market

Let's assume that you have a craving for ice cream, but you're an adult. Most ice cream vendors tend to sell overly sweet concoctions that appeal to the average 10 year old. These often have some ungodly additions such as sprinkles or even gummi bears.

Imagine my surprise when I stumbled upon an organic ice cream parlour located inside Sanci Tropical Foods in Kensington Market. Without a kid in sight, I was able to examine the rather unusual flavours. These included Ginger chai, Vanilla cardamom (East Indian spice), Chocolate ginger with chocolate chips and Rose petal vanilla. For a real kick, I sampled the Chocolate Doo Dah, which combines chocolate, coffee, and cayenne pepper. What I first tasted was a pleasant chocolate flavour, followed by a strong coffee hit, and just when I started to think that the cayenne was absent; that's when the heat kicked in with a vengeance. They also make savoury ice creams such as Blue Goat, which combines blue cheese with goat cream and sun-dried tomato. Savoury ice creams were popular during the Victorian era, and I have seen some in Italy.


For those who are less adventuresome, don't worry; they also have less scary flavours such as Dutch chocolate and Tempo, with consists of green tea, white chocolate and raspberry. The organic, homemade ice cream is available in small, medium and large containers, where the containers are the old fashioned cardboard Chinese chop-suey takeout boxes. Two scoops in a small container costs $3.50.

So go to the market, enjoy the ice cream, but leave the kids at home and don't ask for sprinkles.


Sanci Tropical Foods
66 Kensington Avenue,
Toronto, ON M5T 2K1
Tel. : 416-593-9265

Takara - Japanese Dining - OUT OF BUSINESS

While not in the same league as the high end Japanese restaurants like Hiro Sushi or Edo, Takara is one of the better mid-range Japanese restaurants that I’ve been to. It offers an impressively large selection of menu items at fairly reasonable prices. Choices range from sushi, sashimi, bento boxes, hot appetizers and complete dinners including teriyaki and tempura courses, soup and salad.


I've been to some places where the sushi is one big rice ball with a miniscule portion of fish. Takara's sushi contains significantly more topping than rice. They offer all the traditional types sushi including nigiri (oval shaped rice with topping), maki (rolls), hand rolls, as well as 22 house specialty rolls. These are the ones I usually get, as I now find the traditional types of sushi boring in comparison. My favorites are the Gold Dragon Roll (Deep fried shrimp, cucumber, avocado, tobiko and salmon; 6 pieces for $7.95), Spicy Tuna Roll (Tuna, green onions, tempura butter and some spice that has a kick to it - $5.95), and the Spider Roll (Soft Shell Crab and cucumber- $9.95).

Takara offers free deliver for orders over $25. Better yet, you get a 15% discount on pick-up orders over $5, which is great for me since I live across the street from the restaurant. Considering I'm also saving on the 15% tip for a sit-down dinner,
this is a 30% savings overall.

On the weekend, they offer an all you can eat 'buffet' for $11.95 at lunch and $19.95 for dinner. You order the choices of from a menu and get freshly prepared food, rather than normal buffets where serve yourself from pre-cooked food getting cold and dry sitting in serving trays under hot lights. The buffet includes sushi, tempura and many other appetizers. While it is 'all you can eat', you must eat all that your order or you will be charged full regular price for any dish not fully consumed.

Takara Sushi Japanese Restaurant
416-921-3388
1502 Yonge Street
Toronto, ON M4T 1Z6

Perigee - The Ultimate Tasting Menu Experience - OUT OF BUSINESS

I love the concept of tasting menus. Since I like variety, I’ve always preferred eating small portions of many different items to eating a large portion of a single item. This is also what compels me to try to sample whatever my husband Rich has ordered, much to his consternation. We’ve had many the fork duels as I try to sneak a taste and he tries to parry my advances. A restaurant which offers a tasting menu appeals to both of us. It lets me try a little bit of many dishes and if we get the same menu, I don’t need to poach from Rich’s plate. At the same time, each dish is freshly cooked just for us and served to us by a waiter, unlike the buffet where you don’t know how long the food has been sitting there and you have to get it yourself.

Perigee, a restaurant in the Distillery District, is the ultimate tasting menu experience. Many of the seats, including the ones we got, surround the enormous open kitchen, full of gleaming stainless steel appliances. Watching the group of six chefs scurry around preparing the various dishes is like having a front row seat to the TV show “The Iron Chef”.

Perigee’s tasting menu is chef’s choice. You indicate whether you want 5, 6 or 7 courses and tell the waiter what ingredients you explicitly don’t want included, and then the chefs take it from there. This gives you a great element of surprise and anticipation as you don’t know what you will get next. We decided to go for broke and selected the 7 course menu. I said I didn’t like any hard beans (navy, lima, kidney , ... yuck) and Rich didn’t like liver. We were open to anything else. Rich then elected to have the wine pairings, where they match wines with the courses.



We started with the most delicious selection of breads and breadsticks, served with a homemade butter, and a duck pate spread.  One of the criteria I use to judge a restaurant is by the quality of the bread. Unfortunately I pigged out on the bread with still 7 courses to go!



Next came what is called the “Amuse Bouche”, French for amusing the palette. It’s usually a little mini taste of some delicacy that is offered fancier restaurants in addition to your meal. I got the avocado and lobster taco with tomato and leek while Rich got a mushroom consume with truffled cream froth served in a mini cappuccino cup. Mushroom is just about my favorite food in the world, so you know that I needed to have a little taste. Poor Rich … Perigee is so inventive that we were going to get different dishes for each course! Rather than not needing to taste his meal, I was going to need 7 tastes! Note that we’ve eaten two pre-courses now, and still have not started in on the 7 courses yet. I was going to be in trouble as I was already starting to feel a little bit full!

The courses started to come after this. We waited anxiously before each one arrived, watching the chefs preparing different dishes and wondering if they would be for us. We craned our necks to follow the path of the waiter, disappointed when he walked by us to place the scrumptious looking concoctions on another table. When our courses arrived, the head chef would lean over the kitchen wall and describe in detail what each creation consisted of. It was fun to eavesdrop on our neighbouring diners to find out what they were being served, which was different from what we got.

The food kept coming and coming … it seemed like it would never end! In addition to our 7 courses, we also got a “Mezzo” palete cleanser, a “Pre-dessert” and at the very end, a post dessert of chocolate truffles and petit fours. Including the bread and amuse bouche, that made 12 items for each of us! Here is what we had:



Appetizers:
1. Baramuda fish (like Mahi mahi), fingerling potato, tomato & leeks w saffron sauce
Marinated octopus salad w melon & seaweed sauce
Wine: Boigner
2. Goat cheese souffle w pumpkin & sesame seeds and port reduction, asaparagus & leek salad
Duck & Ham tart with peach and cranberry chutney
Wine: Pinot Gris



3. Corn crusted squid with lemon/basil orzo, olives/onions/tomato sauce
Chunk lobster meat w roasted garlic & caramel, basil crisps, fennel/apple curry, basil/lemongrass sauce
Wine: Chardonnay

4. Veal sweetbreads w rutabagen, bitter greens, fried sage, toasted hazelnuts & dried sherry sauce
Veal sweetbreads w almond meat & sour cherry sauce
Wine: Pinot

Mezzo
Melon & peach w cherry sauce
Cucumber/mint tapioca


Main

5. Beef tenderloin, seared fois gras w cherry sauce, seared greens, potato chive rosti
Wild bison, wilted brussel sprouts, cornelle of goat cheese, apple
Wine: Zinfindel
Cheese

6. Piavey - Parmesan like with jello, poach pear
Belsum - Cow's milk cheese with proscuitto & melon
Wine: Late Harvest Riesling



Pre Dessert:
Strawberry sorbet w lichee/plum sauce
Chocolate mouse funnel cake (whip cream & cookie crisp)
Wine: Boetchilus

Dessert:

7.Ganache of chocolate mousse with toffee crunch topping & phyllo wrap, english cream and berry sauce
Orchard berry crumble with cream of wheat sauce and flaky cheese twist

Post Dessert:
Chocolate Truffles and Petit Fours



It costs $110 per person for the 7 course tasting menu, not including the wine pairings so this is not something you would go to every weekend. But for a special occasion or if you want to make an impression on that special someone, this is definitely worth a try Hey, my birthday is coming up ... maybe it’s time to hint about going again. But next time, I’m going for the 5 course only... I couldn’t eat that much food again if I tried! My stomach hurts again just thinking about it.

Perigee
55 Mill Street, The Distillery District
The Cannery Building #59, 2nd Floor
416 364-1397