Tutto Pronto has been opened for over 10 years, quite a feat in the competitive Toronto market. The dining room is warm and comfortable, with fireplaces and candlelight all around. You almost feel as if you’re having a home cooked meal – in a home that has the most gorgeous sliding wooden barn door. Behind the door is their retail location, so if you had a great experience you can also purchase something to go as well.
When a fellow food blogger tweeted Tutto Pronto’s
dinner deal it was too good to pass up. A choice of appetizer, main and glass
of wine (with some exclusions) for four was only $95. But, since this
opportunity is only available until March 2015, their regular menu prices have
been included below for your information.
Wanting some crunch to start the night, the calamari fritti
($13) seemed to be the right choice. The calamari was just lightly battered and
arrived piping hot. The salsa rosa, a tomato mayo, was a miss for me. But,
eating the calamari plain was still good as it was well seasoned.
Personally, I enjoyed the sauce that came with the mussels
marinara ($13) more. The tomato sauce wasn’t too acidic and well balanced with
garlic, herbs and splash of wine. Moreover, it was quite the substantial
portion and easily could substitute for a main when accompanied by the soft
crusty complementary bread.
The eggplant involtini ($12) was an interesting choice not
normally found elsewhere. Slices of eggplant were filled with a ricotta &
spinach filling and then baked in tomato sauce. A nice alternative to salad
during a cold day.
I’m a little torn about the beef carpaccio ($13). On one
hand, the drizzle of truffle oil, thick slides of parmigiano and dressed
arugula were great. But, the meat itself was a bit disappointing requiring more
flavour and was served much too cold.
Alas, the appetizers were much better than our mains. Don’t
get me wrong, they are in no means inedible and in fact had great flavours.
Rather they faltered because of the overcooked proteins. The linguine pescatore’s
($21) scallops, shrimp and mussels were shrunken and rubbery. Luckily, there
was plenty of marinara sauce with it to mask the texture. But, the pasta itself
was nicely cooked and the sauce had a great fragrant shellfish aroma.
Chicken is one of those dishes that can be a miss at
restaurants. Tutto Pronto’s pollo al mattone ($22) was overcooked and dry. So
despite being beautifully presented and well flavoured from the rosemary rub
and red wine reduction, it could have been better.
The scaloppini ai funghi ($24) is another impressive looking
dish - as soon as it was placed in front of my friend I had a pang of order’s
remorse. Two large pieces of pan seared bread veal were drenched in a mushroom
and marsala wine sauce. The sauce was tasty but the scaloppini just wasn’t as
tender as you’d expect for pounded out veal.
Even for me, a person who likes well-seasoned dishes, I
found the penne al pollo ($17) a tad salty. But, if you can get past that the
pesto and pasta was quite nice.
Luckily, the meal ended off on a high note. The tiramisu
($8) was a great representation: well soaked lady fingers, a balanced
combination of mascarpone & biscuits and only a sprinkling of unsweetened
cocoa powder (don’t ruin it with chocolate shavings or syrup). Absolutely
delicious!
Fellow food blogger #Parv instantly knew she wanted to try
to the coppa pistachio ($9). I had doubts – after all, Tutto Pronto isn’t a
gelateria how good can a gelato based dessert taste? But, I stood corrected as
the slight nuttiness of the pistachio mixed with the neutral white chocolate
was a great combination. The bits of crushed pistachios sprinkled on top were
just right.
Tutto Pronto, in Italian, translates to everything is ready. Alas, based on my experience it likely has been ready for too long. If the Chef could just take the dish off the flame a few minutes earlier, their proteins would be much tastier for me. To be safe, ordering a vegetarian pasta may be the better choice. But, the appetizers and desserts were enjoyable and for the price we paid, I definitely wasn’t disappointed.
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Gastro World's Grading System
- Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
- 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
- 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
- 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
- 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
- 10 - absolute perfection!
