Introducing: Red Fish, a new West Coast–inspired seafood restaurant on College
(Image: Megan Leahy)
Ever since brunch favourite Mitzi’s on College closed late February, Little Portugal residents have been crossing their fingers for a worthy replacement. Enter chef David Friedman and sommelier Jamie Duran, who recently left their gigs at Fishbar to open Red Fish, a new seafood restaurant, earlier this month.
The decor is a bit of a step up from the old diner: white table clothes, dim lighting, cream and crimson walls with dark brown wainscoting. The result is an intimate, cottagey feel. Hanging from the ceiling and walls are nautical-themed lights and art from A. Shay Hahn, a friend of the owners. The patio has been transformed with new flowerboxes, tables and umbrellas, making for a much more inviting space. They’ve also engaged Jake Summers to paint an oversized mural on the west wall.
Friedman, who trained in Vancouver, notes the void of good seafood restaurants in Toronto. Those that have established themselves almost exclusively look to the East Coast for inspiration, whereas Friedman turns to the West. Rather than being restricted to smaller dishes as at FishBar (which nevertheless remain on the menu for patio diners), the focus will be on the traditional three-course-style dining experience. “The fish should be the star of the plate,” says Friedman. “Whether raw, pickled or cured, the main flavour should be fish.”
The menu is locally driven, and Friedman has partnered with Ocean Wise for guidance on using sustainable fish. The seafood charcuterie plate has the Seussian name “the Chef’s Bored” and comes in a small ($18) or large ($35) size. For appetizers, there’s a pan-fried B.C. herring with chermoula and roasted eggplant ($11), beet salad with mache and goat’s milk dressing and figs ($9) and octopus ssam with chili-miso dressing, pickled vegetables and black sesame ($12). Mains include beef cheek tortellini with crab consommé and maitake mushroom ($23) and arctic char with apple and horseradish gnocchi, bacon and chanterelles ($25). And for dessert, at least while summer lasts, there’s a house-made ice cream trio with ginger, plum and green tea flavours. Coming soon: an in-house smoker and an all-important seafood brunch, which will surely be a consolation to Mitzi’s old fans.
159195 Ginger, plum and green tea ice cream trio (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish14-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish14.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish14.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish14/ aug12redfish14 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159193 Arctic char with apple and horseradish gnocchi, bacon and chanterelles ($25) (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish12-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish12.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish12.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish12/ aug12redfish12 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159192 Beef cheek tortellini with crab consommé and maitake mushrooms ($23) (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish11-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish11.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish11.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish11/ aug12redfish11 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159194 Octopus ssam with chili-miso dressing, pickled vegetables and black sesame ($12) (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish13-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish13.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish13.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish13/ aug12redfish13 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159191 Pan-fried B.C. herring with chermoula and roasted eggplant ($11) (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish10-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish10.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish10.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish10/ aug12redfish10 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159190 Beet salad with mache, goat’s milk dressing and figs ($9) (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish09-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish09.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish09.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish09/ aug12redfish09 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159189 The “Chef’s Bored” fish charcuterie plate ($18/$35) (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish08-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish08.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish08.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish08/ aug12redfish08 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
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(Image: Megan Leahy)
159187 (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish06-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish06.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish06.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish06/ aug12redfish06 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159197 (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish16-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish16.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish16.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish16/ aug12redfish16 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159186 (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish05-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish05.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish05.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish05/ aug12redfish05 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159185 (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish04-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish04.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish04.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish04/ aug12redfish04 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159184 The art and nautical-themed light fixtures are by A. Shay Hahn, a friend of the owners (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish03-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish03.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish03.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish03/ aug12redfish03 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159183 (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish02-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish02.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish02.jpg 416 624 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish02/ aug12redfish02 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
159182 A more upscale vibe than when the space was Mitzi’s (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish01-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish01.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish01.jpg 624 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish01/ aug12redfish01 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
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(Image: Megan Leahy)
159181 Red Fish takes over the space formerly occupied by Mitzi’s on College (Image: Megan Leahy) Introducing: Red Fish Introducing: Red Fish https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish_intro-96x96.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish_intro.jpg https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/aug12RedFish_intro.jpg 656 416 [] https://torontolife.com/food/introducing-red-fish/slide/aug12redfish_intro/ aug12redfish_intro 0 0
(Image: Megan Leahy)
Red Fish, 890 College St., 416-733-3474, redfishresto.com, @redfishresto
I stopped by ‘Red Fish’ this Sunday after or weekly soccer match with a bunch of friends and let me tell you we were really impressed with the menu and the patio is awesome! I good recommend this to any true sea food lover that enjoys high quality eating!! Yum yum!!
I will be back!!
The last paragraph opens with, “The menu is locally driven” then goes on to describe herring, octopus and crab consumme. Even the title calls the restaurant “west coast inspired”. Not all restaurants need to be “local” but let’s have some respect for the integrity of the description.
Sorry, speaking of word integrity, that’s “consommé”.
Should be popular
for Toronto people