Showing posts with label halibut. Show all posts
Showing posts with label halibut. Show all posts

Actinolite (Toronto)

Posted on Saturday, June 28, 2014 by
Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 971 Ossington Avenue
Website: http://actinoliterestaurant.com/
Type of Meal: Dinner
Actinolite is what I'd imagine Noma to be like - except with a focus on Canadian ingredients and much friendlier on the wallet. Like many restaurants they use local suppliers but gone one step further by starting their own garden. Controlling their food source allows them to strive for peak freshness by picking ingredients right before serving. What they don't grow and buy, they forage from the town of Actinolite (as noted on their website). Somehow knowing that their forging happens outside of the city was a relief as the thought of eating vegetation out of the Don River (which may be perfectly safe) was a bit alarming. 

There are two menus available, the 7-course Chef ($85) or a 4-course summary ($55). The summary menu offers larger plate sizes, so you won’t be starving afterwards, but does mean you’ll miss three of the dishes. During our dinner summary diners would have missed out on the radish, squid and egg ones - the biggest loss being the egg dish which was a favourite of my husband and I. Wine pairings are an additional $65 and $40, for the Chef and summary menus, respectively.

We decided to go with the Chef’s menu which true to form was seven courses. There are no amuse dishes at Actinolite, just a slice of sourdough bread with olive oil. At least it's really good sourdough; crunchy exterior, soft interior and enough salt within the dough that you could eat it plain. 

The first radish and carrots course was supposed to resemble a garden with halved vegetables served with soil butter, crunchy grass salt and other crunchy bits. Soil appears to be the up and coming ingredient that's growing in popularity worldwide and noted for its mineral properties. Luckily, at Actinolite the soil is incorporated with whipped butter and light tasting, so much so that it's unclear if real soil is actually used as there was no grittiness at all. 


Next came four spears of the most scrumptiously grilled asparagus. We were advised it was cooked on a Big Green Egg, which my husband proceeded to explain is one of the best grills for temperature precision and its smoking properties. The asparagus was cooked through and hot yet still crunchy with a light smoky flavour. Served with a nettle puree (a relatively neutral flavour), cold thick sour cream and spruce flowers this was a wonderful dish.


Our waitress warned us the squid was chewy, and she certainly wasn’t wrong as I gnawed on it for a while. Undeniably, the squid’s texture wasn’t my favourite and personally would have preferred the addition of shrimp and fish so that it’d be more of a seafood salad and less rubbery. Nonetheless, it wasn’t a total miss as having been marinated in a tart vinaigrette and served cold the dish was refreshing. With juniper berries, olive oil and a flavourful wild ginger gelee we found it almost acted as a palette cleanser.


Eggs are a staple ingredient but when prepared well can also be luxurious. For this dish, Actinolite poached the egg slowly so that it arrives gooey and hot in the middle. Topped with light shavings of summer truffle (a very delicate flavour) and pops of onion from the chive blossoms it was a lovely egg. Simple wilted spinach surrounded it and helped mop up every drop of warm yolk that leaked out.


The halibut was perfectly cooked with a beautiful golden crust and tender meaty interior. I did find the watercress puree on the bottom overwhelming bitter and was taken aback at first. Luckily, it was served to the side so I could lift the fish off and enjoy the halibut by itself. An ingredient I’m starting to get tired of is foam; yes, it’s decorative but in most cases adds little to the dish itself. At Actinolite their foam was made with fish stock and what a genius idea as it actually complimented the fish quite well. Various sprigs of minty herbs accompanied the fish and although I appreciate the naturalness would have preferred a hot cooked vegetable (more of the delicious wilted spinach would have been better).


Our last savoury dish of the night was sweetbread or the sheep’s thymus (neck/throat gland). Lightly floured and pan fried the sweetbread was fairly good and really just tastes like tender dark chicken meat. Sitting on a bed of wilted greens and topped with these tart berries the dish was an interesting mix of sour and salty flavours, with the berries cutting the fattiness of the sweetbread.


To end, a dish of fresh strawberries with cheese curds – a seemingly healthier version of strawberries and cream. With sweet drizzles of elderflower syrup and a delicious hay dust, despite its simple presentation, this was a satisfying dessert. Every speck of dust, drop of syrup and crumble of curd was wiped up with the plump sweet strawberries by the end!


Actinolite’s menu is so different from what you’ll find elsewhere in the city. Dishes are simply presented allowing the ingredients themselves to be showcased and patrons to enjoy their natural tastes. Throughout the meal so many different flavour were presented; sour, bitter, sweet and salty all represented at different times. But, what struck me most was how perfectly Chef Cournoyer seasons everything; each element was salted (for my taste) to the right strength to compliment the other ingredients.

In addition, you still feel good after all seven courses – the dishes felt healthy and light so I didn’t get a gluttonous feeling afterwards. It’s also a good choices for vegetarians as so many dishes featured non-meat ingredients prominently already.

With its small dining room and friendly dressed down staff the restaurant has a laid back atmosphere. It was comfortable and made me feel like I was eating in the countryside despite the busy Ossington street just outside the window. Do yourself a favour and try it once, you may just fall in love with all the tastes fresh produce has to offer.

Overall mark - 8.5 out of 10
Like the blog? You can now follow me on twitter for notifications - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog

 ____________________________
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!

The Shore Club (Toronto)

Posted on Saturday, February 02, 2013 by
Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 155 Wellington Street West
Website: http://www.theshoreclub.ca/
Type of Meal: Dinner

 The Shore Club, situated beside the Ritz Carlton, is surprisingly spacious.  The enormous restaurant is split into smaller areas using wooden walls adorned with artwork and backlit decorations, which makes each section cozy despite its size.  

 As we settled into the plush velvet booths, the hostess whisked away the white napkin in front of me and handed me a black one instead.  It's only later my friends and I start noticing some have white napkins while others have black... what is causing this?  Not being able to decipher a pattern we finally ask our waiter.  It's simple, it depends on your clothing - people wearing dark clothes are given the black napkin - so that any lint that may be left on your clothing will not be noticeable.  Genius!  And it's this attention to detail that sets the Shore Club's service above the many other restaurants across Toronto.

 The service that night was exemplary.  Despite being a table of nine, five staff members served each course to ensure we could all start eating at the same time.  Moreover, I cannot remember once in the night when my wine or water glass was ever empty.  After the disappointing service at my last two meals, refer to Lucien and Urraca Resto Lounge blogs, it was refreshing to go to a place that does it right!  We were even served warm, freshly baked bread for free (once again refer to Lucien).

 I chose the arugula, pear and brie salad to start.  The poached pear was beautifully presented and was a great texture (not too soft) and flavour (not too sweet).  It would have been nice if the pear was warmed up to compliment the cold brie and arugula.  But, overall was a good salad and tossed in the perfect amount of dressing. 


My first bite into the New York striploin presented mixed emotions; I was happy with all the flavours of the grainy mustard rub and wonderful steak jus, but disappointed that my steak was overdone.  After giving away slices to my husband and continuing to eat, I realized that the remaining two thirds of the steak were cooked well.  After trying some of my husband's halibut, which I thought was nicely cooked albeit a tad under seasoned, he commented on how his fish was also overcooked on one side only.  So, it appears, the Shore Club may have some issues with its cooking surface or warming areas that is causing one side to cook faster than the other. 


Nonetheless, the meal was good.  The beluga lentils at the bottom of the halibut were great and soaked up the romesco sauce.  You can imagine them to taste like a cheesy barley risotto, except a bit firmer.  The sides that accompany our mains were served table style so we were able to mix and share: 
  • The green beans were great - thin and crispy;
  • The steamed broccoli is exactly as it sounds, a bit bland and boring; and
  • The steak house fries were disappointing and tasted like the frozen McCain variety.
To complete the meal, we pretty much all had the sticky toffee pudding with vanilla ice cream. I loved it! The warm toffee cake itself was surprisingly light and not too dense. I enjoyed that the caramel sauce was poured around the cake so that it didn't become too sweet.  As always, nothing goes better with a warm dessert as some rich, cold vanilla ice cream.


After this visit, I went back to the restaurant for their normal menu, visit my more recent post for my thoughts on this visit.

Is Winterlicious worth it?

 As a special feature to the Winterlicious blogs, I will attempt to calculate the savings being offered (based on my meal selection).   

Winterlicious - $45

 Regular menu - $68 - salad* ($10), striploin steak ($40), side of green beans ($8) and toffee pudding* ($10) 

 Savings - $23 or 34%

 * The salad and toffee pudding aren't on their regular menu; prices based on similar dish

Overall mark - 7.5 out of 10

Like the blog? You can now follow me on twitter for notifications - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog

 ____________________________
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!
For further general discussions about this blog please refer to http://gastroworldblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/welcome-to-gastro-world.html





Sassafraz (Toronto)

Posted on Sunday, January 20, 2013 by
Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 100 Cumberland Street
Website: http://www.sassafraz.ca/
Type of Meal: Dinner

 When so many restaurants are dimly lit and swathed in dark browns, it’s refreshing to walk into a bright, white-washed room.  The waterfall feature wall has been maintained nicely and still looks beautiful and impressive.  Perhaps, what is most appreciated, is the healthy distance between tables – something about not having to slide into your seat sideways and manoeuvering jackets and bags with strangers on shared bench space always starts the meal right.



My last visit to Sassafraz happened two years ago and I vaguely recall the experience.  So, when Groupon was offering a three course meal used for four people for only $105 it seemed too good to be true – an economical way to return to the restaurant.  But, since it was a deal, we prepared for disappointment; thankfully, the meal turned out terrific.


My appetizer of tempura isn’t on their regular menu.  A generous portion of crispy calamari, octopus tentacles and green bean tempura was topped with a sprinkling of chopped red chillies.  Unlike Japanese tempura the batter is heavier and accompanied with sweet chili thai and sriracha aioli dipping sauces. 

Although the dish’s presentation wasn’t impressive, it tasted good.  The batter and chopped chilis already had such great flavour that the dipping sauces weren’t necessarily required.   The calamari was cut into large pieces rather that in the typical small rings.  I like this as the seafood tastes meatier and retains its moisture; the octopus tentacles were equally well cooked.  The green beans, on the other hand, were too oily due to ratio of batter; zucchini strips or bundling the green bean before battering may be better.

The halibut, also not on their regular menu, was an equally large portion.  The fish had a nice pan seared crust and the lemon butter sauce complimented the mild halibut well.  But, what I enjoyed most were the accompanying poppy seed spaetzle and crisp Swiss chard.  Spaetzle, a German side dish of dough slivers, is not found often at restaurants.  The only time I’ve ever tried it was at O&B Café and their version pales in comparison to Sassafraz.  I enjoy the larger sized pieces which allow the dough to be softer and contrast the crisp pan fried exterior.   The Swiss chard was cooked perfectly so that it retained its vibrant red colour and crisp texture, I would have happily trade in the halibut for more of it!

My husband had their 10 oz. striplion with horseradish scented pommes puree with olive ($33).  The striplion, despite being a leaner cut of beef, was cooked well and tender.  I found the mashed potatoes to have a slightly sour taste that I found strange, but my husband enjoyed it.

For dessert I had the donuts ($12), which are three churros dusted with cinnamon sugar and served with chocolate ganache and dulche de leche dipping sauces.  Made to order, they were hot, crispy on the outside and fluffy on the inside.  There was just the right amount of cinnamon sugar and the bitterness of the dark chocolate sauce complimented the sweetness.  The dessert was a great ending to the meal.

Unfortunately, when offering deals, some restaurants treat customers with subpar service.  At Sassafraz this didn’t happen and they were as gracious as they’d normally be, attentive at filling up empty wine and water glasses.  The manager even came around at the beginning the welcome all patrons and solicit their feedback at the end of the meal.  Competing restaurants should take note of this trait – when you are offering a deal this is your occasion to promote your restaurant and obtain feedback from new customer groups, so use the opportunity wisely!

Overall mark - 8 out of 10

____________________________
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!
For further general discussions about this blog please refer to http://gastroworldblog.blogspot.com/2012/09/welcome-to-gastro-world.html



CLOSED: Four Restaurant (Toronto)

Posted on Saturday, January 19, 2013 by
Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 187 Bay Street (Commerce Court, Concourse level)
Type of Meal: Dinner
Despite Four's convenient location to work, it's been a year since my last meal, so my coworkers and I decided to head there after work. After we got over the disappointment of the end to $4.44 weeknight martinis, we decided to stay for some wine and dinner.

Four's atmosphere is like many Financial District restaurants - dim lighting, high top tables, leather chairs and open concept so you can see who you know there.  Also like many establishments, Four's new cocktail menu has also moved away from the fruity martini cocktails and has done a throwback to the old fashioned cocktails filled with bitters and non-vodka based spirits.




If you haven't heard of Four before, their claim to fame is each dish is 650 calories or less. Sounds great at first, but after eating an appetizer, main and dessert - 650 calories can really start adding up!
Their new menu consists of 50% tried and true favourites and 50% new items. We decided to order a mix of tapas to start:
  • Soft shell baja fish taco ($10) - a sizeable portion of fish accompanies each taco but the flavour itself is bland. The fish, appears to be baked, would have benefited from being cooked on the grill to add a smokier taste. The tacos were in need of more pico de gallo and jalapeno crema to flavour the plain fish and tortillas. Even some chopped fresh cilantro would have been a good low calorie alternative to adding a bit of texture and flavour to the dish.




  • Salt cod fritters ($8.50) - thankfully, this dish was more flavourful after having the fish taco, but perhaps too salty given the combination of salt cod and chorizo. Mixed predominantly with potato (rather than in dough mixture) and baked (rather than fried) made the fritters resemble salty tater tots to hot crisp fritters. This was my least favourite of the tapas.





  • Prosciutto flatbread ($10?) - Although the dough was a bit thick compared to most flatbreads, I liked it. Similar to a crispy thick pizza dough, it was warm, had a nice airy texture and well-seasoned. The toppings, however, was an interesting combination - prosciutto with blue cheese. The flavours didn't compliment well given the blue cheese sauce pretty much overpowered everything. I seem to recall a few arugula leaves sprinkled on the flatbread. Perhaps, the dish would have benefited with a bigger handful of arugula to cut through the heaviness of the cheese.



As my main, I opted for the halibut ($22.50), which sadly was another disappointment. The fish was overcooked so that the flakiness of your typical halibut was ruined. It sat on a roasted humitas which resembled a thin baked cornmeal pancake - also bland and could have benefited from some chopped fresh herbs or jalapeno mixed into the batter. Perhaps, the worse combination with the dish was the tomato tortilla slaw - literally strips of baked tortilla strips sprinkled over the fish. Given the fish and roasted humitas was so dry already, the dish needed something fresh, juicy and flavourful; tortilla strips did not achieve this.





My coworkers seemed to have chosen the better dishes, based on the piece of protein I tried from each:
  • Thai roasted chicken breast ($18), was the best of the bunch. The chicken was flavourful and tender from the coconut lime broth accompanying the dish. It the restaurant wasn't so health conscious some crusty bread to soak up the broth would have been amazing.




  • Jail island salmon ($20), a dish from their old menu which is like any typical salmon. Unlike my halibut it wasn't quite as overcooked.


  • Grilled beef tenderloin ($25) was cooked well, tender and the beet sauce paired well with the beef.

To cap off the meal we each picked a shooter sized dessert ($2.50) - chocolate mint, tiramisu, cherry cheesecake and one other flavour. The tiramisu was drier compared to my previous experiences, but overall the desserts were good enough to satisfy our sweet tooth without being heavy.

 The service was average, everyone was very attentive for the key moments (drink order, food order and bringing the bill), but, when it came to refilling wine and water glasses this is where improvements could be achieved.

Overall mark - 6 out of 10

 ____________________________
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!



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