Showing posts with label steak frites. Show all posts
Showing posts with label steak frites. Show all posts

CLOSED: Furlough (Toronto)

Furlough Toronto

The bar is a prominent feature at Furlough: it’s the first thing you see at the entrance, whomever’s at the bar will likely be the first to greet you warmly, and the array of bottles (including house made bitters and syrups) on display will peak interest. Cocktail aficionados know of the restaurant as a place to get tasty liberations - don’t be surprised to see guests coming in after 9pm on weeknights for a night cap.

Furlough Toronto: barFurlough Toronto: bitters and syrups

After all, when a drink menu is bound and wrapped in leather (compared to printed note cards used for food), you get a sense of what the restaurant specializes in – although to be fair the food was fantastic. In light of this, having a cocktail to start and end the meal, at least, is ideal. Although Furlough concocts a lot of the classics (Sazerac, Moscow Mules), there’s some interesting contemporary offerings that you won’t find elsewhere. Just imagine what they could be by the names: Tibetan Peach Pie, Monet, and Ask Me Tomorrow… getting interested yet?

Furlough Toronto: cocktails

To start we had a cocktail flight, which provides half portions of each drink. Offered on Wednesdays for $18, the flight is inspired by a theme that changes weekly - ours was an ode to gin:

  • Having had numerous French 75s ($14), I finally learnt the name doesn’t have any romantic wistful cogitations to the olden days of Paris; rather is named after the French 75mm gun on account of the kick from the absinthe incorporated in the original recipe! This compared to the cocktail we know today as refreshing gin shaken with simple syrup and lemon juice, then strained into a champagne flute and topped with sparkling wine. It’s hard to imagine such an easy going drink once being deadly.
  • A favourite of the table was the Last Word ($14), a concoction that seems strong as it enters the mouth but transforms into an utterly smooth finish; the herbal Chartreuse sneaks in first but everything’s mellowed out by the Maraschino liqueur and lime juice.
  • To end, an aptly named drink: the Happily Ever After, best described by my friend as “birthday cake in a cup”. The gin is infused with strawberries to give the liquor a vivid red colour and berry notes. Shaken twice, first with the egg whites and then with the other ingredients (pineapple syrup, vanilla syrup, Pinot and aperol), the resulting gin sour is silky smooth with the foam adding a frosting quality to the sweet cocktail.
Furlough builds their cocktails by using a variety of house-made bitters, syrups and infused spirits. In this end, it’s balancing the bitters and the sweets you get a boozy drink without it tasting like one.
The Basil and Elderflower Fizz ($14) is the perfect hot weather sipping drink. Refreshing muddled basil and vanilla is mixed with cooling cucumber, gin, elderflower liqueur and lime. Since it’s topped with sparkling water, it’s also a cocktail that helps quench your thirst.

Furlough Toronto: basil and elderflower fizz

If the cocktails on the menu doesn’t catch your eye, feel free to sit at the bar and throw out ideas. Wanting something with their delicious strawberry gin again, but also the bubbles of the sparkling wine, I concocted the Strawbasil Fields Forever ($14) (thanks to my friend J for the fitting name). Similar to the French 75, the strawberry gin is shaken with ice along with rosemary syrup and muddled basil, then strained into a flute and topped with sparkling wine. It’s exactly what I was craving and a little bird told me that you can order it as an off menu item.

Furlough Toronto: strawbasil fields forever

Throughout the process I was marveled by how much passion Gabriel Quigley exuded: a history professor when recounting about the origins of a cocktail or even bringing a scientific angle to the drinks while explaining why some have to be shaken vs. stirred (turns out James Bond has it all wrong). In the end, a mixologist is not unlike a sommelier: you need to know about the drink’s origins and how its properties will work with whatever it’ll be consumed alongside.


As much as I love a good drink, food is what wins my heart (the French bistro inspired dishes made by Chef Thomas O’Neill certainly had me swooning). Starting with the classic moules and frites ($15), the mussels fresh and swimming in a fantastic leek and confit garlic broth with pieces of chorizo on top for added flavours and spice. The shoestring fries were deliciously hot and crispy; the perfect vessel for dipping into the broth and sharing. 

Furlough Toronto: moules and frites

In fact, Furlough has a selection of starters that are great for sharing. Arriving with a heavenly scent, the ham hock croquettes ($9) are deep fried nuggets of hot mashed potato laced with pieces of pork. Sitting on the plate are a selection of condiments including a beer mayo and ramp mustard, but it’s the crunchy pieces of salted chicharron (pork rind) that made the dish.

Furlough Toronto: ham hock croquettes

Thankfully, there were plenty of crostini (on the plate and as a side) accompanying the Albacore tuna tartar ($15). The meaty diced pieces of fish were tossed with sesame oil to give off a fragrant aroma and all the crisp vegetables (radish, cucumber and pickled shallots) lightened the dish, a great choice for the warmer months.

Furlough Toronto: tuna tartare

Of course, Furlough also offers the sharing crowd favourites: freshly shucked oysters, that evening a dozen Mallet St. Simon ($42 for a dozen) served with a lovely mignonette, shaved horseradish and cocktail sauce (these go particularly well with the French 75), as well as a charcuterie board ($19) featuring a selection of delicious meats made in-house (a meaty chorizo, flavourful and rich mortadella, and salty Genoa salami) and cheeses (aged gruyere and stilton). Mixed throughout the board are toasted bread, a thick fig jam, lovely pickled beets and gherkins.

Furlough Toronto: oystersFurlough Toronto: charcuterie

The house-made bread even makes its way into their mains - the brioche chitarra ($19) incorporates the bread crumbs into the buttery topping. This pasta oozes the taste of spring with peas, sweet cipollini onions and bright mint. Touches of cream ties everything together into a hearty main.

Furlough Toronto: brioche chittaria

Of all the meat-based larger plates, the duck confit ($28) was the only slip as the fowl was extremely salty. Nonetheless, the duck was cooked perfectly with a crispy well-rendered skin and moist interior and the dish was salvageable by mixing slivers of the duck into the citrusy spaetzle, which helped mellow out the saltiness.

Furlough Toronto: duck confit

The striploin in the steak frites ($29) was also well prepared arriving spot on medium rare and having a lovely sear. Although the meat was good, we were all just excited to see more of Furlough’s fantastic fries … a bowl of these with cocktails could satisfy me any day.

Furlough Toronto: steak frites

What will have me returning for more is their fried chicken ($21) … it’s not French but oh so fantastic! Having been brined twice (soaked in liquid for flavour and then buttermilk for further moisture) the chicken is juicy and flavourful. The crust has enough coating for crunch but not too much to be overwhelming. Even the baby cabbage coleslaw on the bottom is jazzed up with pickled cauliflower and almond. There not a thing I’d change about the dish … except maybe include some of the Furlough fries on the side.

Furlough Toronto: fried chicken

For dessert we shared a combination dessert of their Curds & Cookies with a Deconstructed Black Forest cake. The bowl of curds is reminiscent of the British Eton Mess: plenty of whipped cream, a citrusy orange curd topped with crunchy shortbread crumbs and hazelnut praline. Meanwhile, the roasted chocolate flourless cake on the side is rich and slightly bitter with moist chocolate cake on top.

Furlough Toronto: cookies and curds

The dessert went really well their signature cocktail, the Furlough ($14). Essentially a digestif, the mixture of bitters and syrup helps to settle the stomach after the lovely meal. Unlike the earlier cocktails, this has a stronger bourbon base infused with a tobacco essence (sounds strange but actually works). It’s all lightened with patchouli syrup, cacao bitter and sweet vermouth; the finishing touch lighting the drink on fire with a spritz of atomized essence of cigar. In the end, the drink provides the smell of tobacco but tastes of cacao and an almost vanilla essence.

Furlough Toronto: the Furough

You’ll have a difficult time deciding where to sit: the bar (where all the action is) or the patio in the back (so tranquil and airy). Of course, you can always follow our lead and start with cocktails and nibbles at the bar and move into the patio for the main meal.

Furlough TorontoAdditionally, if $14 cocktails aren’t in your budget, consider visiting on Tuesday when the bartender on duty invents an innovative special for the evening for only $10. Of course, there’s also the aforementioned $18 cocktail tasting flights offered on Wednesday that gives you three half-cocktails. Combine these drink specials with their $35 3-couse prix fixe meal (that offers the fantastic fried chicken as one of the mains) and you’ll have an affordable meal.


Going on a furlough is essentially taking a leave of absence from work. At a time when the economy is a little shaky and work can be somewhat stressful, we could all use a break from the “real life”. The attitude at Furlough is relaxed and care free - expertly made cocktails and food without the snobbery. Dinner at the restaurant was lovely: its easy tasting drinks and secluded patio surely allowed me to leave my worries behind. 

Overall mark - 8 out of 10

Disclaimer: The above meal was complimentary. Rest assured, as noted in my mission statement, I will always provide an honest opinion.


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 924 Queen Street West

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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!


Is That It? I Want More!

Other Gastro World posts similar to this:






Bier Markt Revisited (Toronto)

Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 58 The Esplanade
Website: http://www.thebiermarkt.com/
Type of Meal: Dinner



The Bier Markt has long been a popular destination, especially for larger groups in the downtown core. With over 150 types of beer available, there’s bound to be something to satisfy all tastes. Even for the beer challenged (like me) there are plenty of easy drinking brews – I personally like the Stiegl Grapefruit Radler, which is refreshing (tastes like grapefruit juice), affordable (only $5) and low in calories (88 for a 12oz portion).

While visiting during Oktoberfest, I felt a celebration was in order opting for a pint of a German brew and pork schnitzel ($24). The schnitzel is huge and easily shareable with the addition of a salad or appetizer. The meat was thin and crispy, but could have been cooked a touch less to allow it to be juicer. The lingonberry jam helped a bit and the fruity sweetness went nicely with the pork. There was also a Leffe Brune Abbey Ale demi-glace on the side as well but I couldn’t acquire the taste for it.


The highlight for me (and what Bier Markt should consider offering as a side) was the spatzle on the bottom. Covered with melted gruyere (?), it was comforting and delicious, akin to a German mac n’ cheese. I thoroughly enjoyed the toasted crust encapsulating the soft spatzle mixed with a good portion of cheese.


My friend ordered my go-to dish - the Bangkok mussels ($21). It arrived looking and smelling as it always has - a generous portion of mussels cooked in a flavourful broth made of lemongrass, chilies, coriander, ginger and shrimp. Moreover, the soup is perfect for dipping fries into.


Another friend tried Bier Markt’s steak frites ($32), which contained a decent sized striploin topped with butter. In the end, she noted it tasted okay but a little lean. 


For dessert, the four of us shared the chocolate, pecan and bacon waffle ($9). I know, it sounds like a lot of for one dessert! The hot fluffy waffle was covered with a warm milk chocolate ganache, candied pecans, sweet caramel coulis, whipped cream and crumbled bacon. Although I wasn’t a fan of the bacon (crispy pieces instead of soft blobs would work better), I still enjoyed the rest of the dessert. With it’s big portion, this is great for sharing (pictured below is only a quarter of the waffle).


All in all, this dinner experience was in line with all my previous meals. There’s a consistency to their food quality and presentation that you can come to expect. During the day, Bier Markt offers a lunch menu. You can refer to my post on my lunch experience from earlier in the year here.

Overall mark - 7 out of 10


Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog

____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System

  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • - 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!







CLOSED: Le Sélect Bistro (Toronto)

Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 432 Wellington Street West
Type of Meal: Dinner

Located on a quiet street between a night club and an office building, you wouldn’t think there’d be a charming French restaurant nearby.  Le Seléct Bistro is a delightful surprise, with its quaint patio and accented staff.  Also a great spot to bring wine aficionados as the restaurant boasts an 80-page wine list which changes seasonally.  Patrons can get a glimpse of their 10,000+ bottle cellar while visiting the restrooms in the basement.

My first choice for a main, the bison steak frites, was disappointingly sold out on my visit.  In the end, I opted for the 3-course price fixe meal ($35) instead which offers a choice of soup or salad, selection from three mains and two desserts. 

Le Seléct’s house salad (salade maison) isn’t just your regular spring mix based salad; theirs packs an assortment of greens, kale and beat slices.  The oil vinaigrette coating everything is tart but enjoyable, not sweet at all for being honey mustard as noted on their menu.

My friend ordered the French onion soup (soupe à l’oignon gratinée) ($10.95), which arrived covered with a gooey layer of cheese and is would be perfect for cheese lovers as its the ratio to soup was extraordinary.  The two slices of crostini packed in the soup stayed surprisingly crispy despite being soaked in the broth.  The broth itself was good but lacked the rich onion flavour I expected.


The steak frites (bavette d’aloyau aux echalotes) arrives haphazard looking on the plate.  Despite the poor presentation, the steak itself was perfectly cooked to a medium rare and tender.  However, I found the beef under seasoned; there was some caramelized onions topping it but they were a bit too sweet for my taste.  The frites were thin and crispy, which I happily gobbled up.   


The duck confit (confit de canard) ($27.95), is the better choice and is also offered with the price fixe menu.  The skin was rendered to a wonderful crispiness.  Although the duck itself was a bit underseasoned, the dish at least had a demi-glace with it to dip at your leisure.  A side of thin crispy green beans and triangle of potatoes au gratin presented with the fowl were equally adequate.


To end I opted for the crème brûlée.  The custard was smooth and not overly sweet, which I prefer. But, the torched  layer of sugar topping it was way too thick; to the point that it was difficult to break through.  An almond glazed chocolate biscotti accompanies the dish, which is equally hard but would have been good with a cup of coffee.


Ultimately, the food at Le Seléct isn’t outstanding but is respectable.  I enjoy the selection and hope to try to bison steak in the future, likely a better option given it being sold out.  Overall, I enjoyed their atmosphere with the comfortable curved booths and the unhurried service.  Le Seléct is a good venue to take things slow and pretend you’re in France somewhere where life is meant to be enjoyed one glass of red wine at a time.


Overall mark - 7 out of 10



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




CLOSED: Far Niente (Toronto)

Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 187 Bay Street
Type of Meal: Lunch

After having not visited the restaurant for two years, the surroundings still felt the same when walking in - comfortable banquette style tables and open layout of the dining room. This Winterlicious, I had a chance to eat here with my coworkers. Going on a Monday, they weren't overly busy and were able to keep a good serving pace. However, it still took over an hour and a half to get through the meal.

I was skeptical about getting the roasted cauliflower soup as was afraid it would be bland, but, ordered it anyways as felt like something hot on the cold winter's day.  But, the soup was surprisingly rich with a dollop of cream mixed throughout and drizzles of hazelnut oil. Topping the soup were some salty briny bits that tasted like fried capers, which was an interesting contrast to the smooth soup base. 



For the main I had the steak frites.  When ordering, I was surprised that the waitress didn't ask how I'd prefer the steak to be done in terms of wellness, but trusted that the chef knew best. Mine ended up being medium, a little more cooked than I normally prefer, but it was still tender and pink throughout.  The flat iron steak was a nice thick cut, which was great as sometimes restaurants slice it too thinly.

The steak had a Spanish twist of being rubbed in a chimichurri coating.  I appreciate Far Niente trying to mix up different flavours, but would have loved to have a sauce topping the steak instead to dip the generous portion of fries into. The frites itself weren't the normal shoe string thinness of most frites, but to be fair Far Niente did warn it was "home style".  The frites, although thicker, were still crispy and hot.  The garlic ketchup accompanying the frites was light tasting and not overly garlic tasting.  Finished with some vinegary coleslaw, it was nice to have to help cut the heaviness of the meat and potatoes.




I opted for the banana & Nutella s’more for dessert, thinking it would be a real s'more like their regular dinner menu.  But, this one was made "deconstructed" style. As always, the homemade marshmallow was great; although quite dense, it is still smooth in texture and not overly sweet. This dish included some caramelized bananas, drizzles of Nutella and caramel sauces and a sprinkling of graham crackers. All the ingredients went well together and wasn't too heavy.






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 - $20

Regular menu - $46 - soup ($9), steak frites* ($28) and banana s'more* ($9)

Savings - $26 or 57%

* The steak frites and banana s'more isn't on their regular menu; prices based on the "bacon steak" and chocolate s'more

Overall mark - 8 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!


CLOSED: Fare Bistro (Toronto)

Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 1097 Queen St East
Type of Meal: Dinner

The dark, jewel-toned candlelit restaurant certainly resembles a classic bistro and makes a great date location. However, with limited seating, you should make a reservation to avoid disappointment.  On the night of my visit with girlfriends, we found a similar crowd - groups of friends catching up over glasses of wine and traditional French cuisine.

We decided to start with their appetizer of the day, pork belly with tempura shrimp ($14). The shrimp was the better of the two proteins but I wouldn't consider it to be tempura - more like lightly battered. The pork belly, although crispy, was too lean for my taste; a thin layer of fat would have given it more flavour and contrast to the crisp skin.

I ordered the duck confit with a black current glaze ($26). It was refreshing to have a confit that wasn't overly salty so that the taste of duck could still be enjoyed. The meat was very tender and went well with the black current glaze. The skin could be rendered more as most parts of it were slightly soggy. Surprisingly, the crisp green beans accompanying the dish were one of the most enjoyable parts - perfectly cooked and flavoured.

You can't be at a bistro without trying the steak frites ($27) which is what one friend had. The frites were exactly what I like - fresh potatoes fried until they are crisp on the outside but still dense and flavourful in the middle, only lightly salted. The strip loin (?) was a generous portion and tender but lacked the stronger "black Angus" flavour I prefer.

My other companion had and the daily risotto ($25), on this day was with lamb and goat cheese. Keep in mind I'm basing this review on only one bite - I must say it's not what I like. The tangy goat cheese didn't merry well with lamb and risotto in my opinion. Its slightly grainy texture ruined the creaminess of what I enjoy about risottos.
Given I don't have a sweet tooth, I rarely order desserts. But, my friends are very different from me, so we ordered two things to share. If anything, I thought their desserts were the highlight in the meal.
  • The chocolate terrine was a cross between a ganache and mousse and was a melt-in-your-mouth creamy texture. It also went wonderfully well with the raspberry and vanilla custard sauces that decorated the dish.
  • The blackberry upside down cake was my favourite. Cooked in a skillet, the dish was served warm and topped with generous amounts of sweet black berries which baked right into the cake. I thoroughly enjoyed the plump blackberries popping in your mouth and combining with the sweet warm vanilla cake.

Dinner for three with a bottle of wine and three cafe au laits came to $199.
 
Overall mark - 7 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!