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Toronto Restaurants that are an *EXPERIENCE*

J

judge wopner

TRIBE Member
just went to Niagara falls casino and i have to admit, the resto in the casino called 17 Noir (i think?) looks like the jetson's version of the keg but the food is really impressive.

im not exaggerating when i say i had one of the best steaks ever there, (about the same price-wise as steakhouses in TO). service, wine selection (mostly Niagara wines no surprise) and even the cheese plate were very good. some thought was put into the menu,

the decor is not as much my style. but it is a casino so i understand they need to be flashy in that kind of gaudy way.

i dont know where they get their steaks though, i had a strip steak, and it was like beef crossed with pork. it came with a peppercorn sauce on the side but it wasn't necessary. it was a thick cut but cooked med. rare the whole way through, so i suspect it was cooked sous vide style, im liking that more and more.

if you win some $$ at the casino i highly recommend this place.

my thoughts on the club there (dragonfly) are an entirely different matter...
 
Klubmasta Will

Klubmasta Will

TRIBE Member
i hit BISTRO CAMINO again, which was first reviewed by vox in this post: http://www.tribemagazine.com/board/...to-restaurants-experience-52.html#post4136219

great meal and great times. the waitress actually remembered us from our last visit (in may 20009), including - no joke - what we were wearing and what wine we ordered.

it was another great experience and we will go back again soon.

i was saddened to see the restaurant so empty. ours was the only group the entire night, although granted it was a wednesday. hope the place is doing alright financially.

if you haven't tried BISTRO CAMINO yet, give her a go. it's amazing value/quality for the price. my favourite main on their $28 prix fixe menu is the rack of lamb.
 
S

She

TRIBE Member
I went to Nota Bene a couple weeks ago and after reading so many positive reviews, I was disappointed after a mediocre dinner, at best. We had the hot and sour soup to start, along with the lobster salad…both of which were nothing special. The lobster on the salad was chewy and there didn’t seem to be anything else in the salad aside from lettuce; the blue cheese/bacon/avocado was so sparse it was barely visible. I had the braised beef short ribs, which were ok and my friend had the sucking pig..which was also just ok. The basket of onion rings were probably the best part…well, that and watching a tall busty blonde take a major wipe out in front of our table! I suppose that maybe my expectations were high, but we left not overly impressed with the food, although the ambiance was great and the staff phenomenal.
 
R

rudebwoy

TRIBE Member
Went to "The Old Prune" in Stratford Monday night. For those who aren't aware, it's run by the Stratford Chef School, and they bring in 'guest/real' chefs to work alongside students in a real restaurant environment. Monday night Daniel Burns was the guest chef, who works at NOMA in Denmark (#3 on Restaurant magazine's Top 100). They prepared a tasting menu of some of Noma's best nordic/scadinavian dishes from the last few years including: Carrots and radishes in malted soil, razor clams wrapped in parsley gel with horseradish snow and dill oil, Icelandic Langoustine with oyster emulsion and dried seaweed, an 'scandinavian take on french onion soup', musk ox with bone marrow and beats, and for dessert walnut ice with berry dust.

c.
 
S

starr

TRIBE Member
cabbagetowngirl said:
I'm sure you'll LOVE Lee.. One of my favorite places in TO for sure.
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I hope so too. Any 'must get' or 'definitely skip' dishes?

She said:
I went to Nota Bene a couple weeks ago and after reading so many positive reviews, I was disappointed after a mediocre dinner, at best........I suppose that maybe my expectations were high, but we left not overly impressed with the food, although the ambiance was great and the staff phenomenal.
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I'd agree with your assessment of Nota Bene, but my partner ADORES it. If you go again, I'd recommend you try the 60 day dry-aged tenderloin if you like beef. That's his favourite thing there.

rudebwoy said:
Went to "The Old Prune" in Stratford Monday night.
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Your dinner sounded interesting. I love that place and would love to go again. My dinner there was one of the best, if not the best, that I've ever had. Wish it was in Toronto instead of Stratford really.
 
B

Booty Bits

TRIBE Member
at Lee, i would say that the Singaporean style slaw is a must-have. it's got like, 15 ingredients, and it's super tasty.

i personally think that the matchstick potatoes with mayo are a pass, but other people love them. i just find them messy and unrefined and not particularly interesting (same flavour profile as eating regular fries and mayo).
 
S

skyparty

TRIBE Member
Klubmasta Will said:
^ o noir has been discussed in this thread. from what i've heard, the food is sub-par, but it's an experience.

i've decided to pass.
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There's a lot of pages in this thread, and I think I've popped in here maybe twice.

We tend to eat cheap. ;)

thanks for the replies guys! I appreciate it. :)
 
S

starr

TRIBE Member
Booty Bits said:
at Lee, i would say that the Singaporean style slaw is a must-have. it's got like, 15 ingredients, and it's super tasty.

i personally think that the matchstick potatoes with mayo are a pass, but other people love them. i just find them messy and unrefined and not particularly interesting (same flavour profile as eating regular fries and mayo).
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Thanks for the tips. Will try and review it later in this thread.

I managed to convince my better half into going to Delux tonight. It's one of my favourite dinner places in town, but we haven't been in ages. Yay.
 
H

H2Whoa

TRIBE Member
I went to Toque on Saturday and it was grand. We skipped the tasting and stuck to the a la carte.

Started the night off with a pair of marvelous manhattans before moving to fresh shucked oysters with minerally glass of Chablis. Then it was on to a Boxler 2007 Grand Cru Riesling, Sommerberg. Some of the starters included the caramelized foie gras terrine with beet vinegar purée, roasted walnuts and brioche, & a roasted half quail with cretons, blackcurrant in smoked fat and beer sauce.

I was hoping for the suckling pig cooked sous vide but they were out so i went for the venison tenderloin. The beef bourguignon (12 hour cooked), chervil roots, roasted onions and hearts of palm in butter also made it to the table. The venison was done with similar company. To drink I ordered a A. Chabanon, 2000 Coteaux du Languedoc, Les Boissières. I miraculously stuck to my self imposed under $125 limit for the vino and was very happy. It had rich blackcurrant flavours and sweet silky tannins. A little bit of age had done it wonders and it meshed beautifully with the deer and cow.

For dessert we had caramelized pineapple cake with rum, coconut sugar and vanilla ice cream and paired it with the suggested Brut, Cava Nature, Parès Baltà, Mousseux.

I will definitely go back.
 
T

TaCk OnE?

TRIBE Member
we did the canoe tasting menu the other day. Their octopus salad was so insane, I want to figure out how to make it.

generally, we were really happy with the food. I thought they could have done a few more courses though.
 
C

Chris

Well-Known TRIBEr
TaCk OnE? said:
we did the canoe tasting menu the other day. Their octopus salad was so insane, I want to figure out how to make it.

generally, we were really happy with the food. I thought they could have done a few more courses though.
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Interesting, how did you like the wine during each course? We were pretty knackered during our Canoe tasting.
 
T

TaCk OnE?

TRIBE Member
we opted to get a bottle rather than the pairings actually. the pairings were mostly ontario VQAs I'd tried with the exception of one or two from the west coast so we got a bottle of henry of pellham and a glass or two on the side.

I also added a cheese course, because again, I didn't think there was quite enough food.
 
T

TaCk OnE?

TRIBE Member
3 real courses, plus desert...we also added a cheese course with a scotch for me at the end.

not going to count the amuse bouche or intermezzo...
 
Thunder

Thunder

TRIBE Member
Klubmasta Will said:
i hit BISTRO CAMINO again, which was first reviewed by vox in this post: http://www.tribemagazine.com/board/...to-restaurants-experience-52.html#post4136219

great meal and great times. the waitress actually remembered us from our last visit (in may 20009), including - no joke - what we were wearing and what wine we ordered.

it was another great experience and we will go back again soon.

i was saddened to see the restaurant so empty. ours was the only group the entire night, although granted it was a wednesday. hope the place is doing alright financially.

if you haven't tried BISTRO CAMINO yet, give her a go. it's amazing value/quality for the price. my favourite main on their $28 prix fixe menu is the rack of lamb.
Click to expand...


This is just down the street from my place so I gotta check it out!
 
B

Bacchus

TRIBE Promoter
Tried Arepa for the first time.

The service was slow - considering the style of food, but the food was AWESOME!


I had the roast pork w/ cheese Arepa. For dessert i had the fried plantain layered with soft cheese, honey and pistachio.


Two thumbsway
 
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