Downtown Toronto looks different when you get above the traffic and rooftops of neighbouring buildings. Aera’s location at The Well offers the sweeping city skyline on one side (including a prominently placed CN Tower) and the tranquil Lake Ontario on the other. Direct yourself towards the Lake if you want a spectacular sun set view, although getting a table right by the window will require prepayment first. No one said these views come easy.

The views don’t come cheap either. Aera’s prices are on the higher end of the spectrum, but the dishes are at least solid and a respectable size. The Maritime lobster spaghetti ($52) uses fresh spaghetti to create a chewy pasta that soaks up the buttery tomato and lobster bisque sauce. This was heavenly, and I’d happily have a plate to myself. Just don’t go expecting for a ton of the crustacean.

Kazi, our waiter, notes Aera’s is known for their steak and sushi … so many of Toronto’s new Financial District restaurants say the same (Black + Blue, Blue Bovine, etc.) so we heed his advice and try both. The Canadian prime striploin ($85) was cooked a perfect medium rare with a nicely salted crust. The cut was tender and meaty, everything you’d want in a striploin. Check, Aera’s a good steakhouse.

Conversely, while we ordered the spicy scallop roll ($28) they must have thought they do the creamy tuna crunch roll ($30) better as that’s what arrived. We let it go as it was a close second anyways. The maki had a thick layer of tender tuna and was adequately stuffed with avocado, picked radish, and crispy bits. There rice was just too cold and too stark and brought down the experience. Sushi house they are not.

The sticky bourbon toffee pudding ($16) was beautifully presented adorned with a lattice cookie maple leaf that makes you hear “True North strong and free” before the first bite. The scoop of vanilla ice cream covered with crushed walnuts was certainly solid and strong, so difficult to cut through without squishing the soft cakey pudding on the bottom. It’s a good dessert but would be even better if the caramel sauce was thinner and less sugary.

For those seeking a view, Aera probably has one of the best in the city. Whether it’s enjoying the sights with a glass of wine and steak in their dining room or on the open-air rooftop during the warmer months, you’ll marvel at the beauty of the city. Oh, Canada!

Visiting Halifax in July means a greater chance of good weather and lobster season. The time when these tasty crustaceans are at their prime and the reason Café Lunette offered a special Ooh La Lobster ($54) three-course menu.

But to start, an oyster ($3) to sample Nova Scotia’s array of seafood. It had a sweet finish, the restaurant using a lemon herb mignonette studded with chives, which wasn’t too pungent and just lightly flavoured the oyster.

It was a much better starter than the lobster bisque that had a bitter aftertaste. At first, I thought the bitterness stemmed from the Pernod, an anise liqueur, used in the soup but finally tracked it down to the crackers of all things. Once you scoop those out, the remaining soup was a bit salty but edible and incorporated a lot of lobster throughout.

The lobster spaghetti uses thicker strands of pasta and sauce, so everything sticks together well. The spaghetti had a great chewiness and while it doesn’t look like there’s a lot of lobster, the seafood was cut into small chunks and sprinkled throughout so each bite had a bit of lobster. It was a great main.

You can see the seafood in the truffled lobster and mushroom roll, but the truffle oil was too overpowering. I only had one bite and already my mouth was flooded with so much flavour that I can’t imagine having an entire sandwich. If you love decadence, you’ll want to try the lobster roll.

No lobster was used in the dessert but there was seaweed in the lemon posset. While it’s an interesting maritime addition, the seaweed does add an earthiness to the posset that’s an acquired taste. The consistency of the dessert was nice, almost like a panna cotta but thinner since it doesn’t incorporate gelatin.

The sea salt caramel crème brûlée was very rich and somehow both very sweet and salty. It’s a bit much on its own but when combined with the lemon posset the tanginess earthiness of that counteracts the flavours of the crème brûlée nicely so we ended up eating the desserts together.

Café Lunette’s cute atmosphere made us feel like we wanted to stay there and chat forever, the dining room is open and airy but there’s still a sense of privacy as ample space is given between tables. They are also so friendly – much like Halifax’s general populace – our waiter coming by to say goodbye as they were handing off shifts for the evening. We had a wonderful night and what a sad ending when we finally had to bid the café and its delicious lobsters au revoir.