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(Image: Davida Aronovitch)
Aptly named for its proximity to Trinity Bellwoods, Parkette is yet another new, rustic Italian outpost, this time only a couple blocks away from Terroni, which, arguably, launched the trend in Toronto. Cheery and warm, the 30-seat space features sandy blond woods, exposed brick, a playful park bench banquette in classic picnic green and a kitschy vintage Coca-Cola sign.
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(Image: Matthew Fox)
This cozy Corktown diner is a weekend brunch favourite and a budget-friendly hangout for George Brown students. Church pews, thrift-store mirrors and kitschy tableware add to the charm, while the menu features an assortment of sandwiches, a daily omelette and soup. A traditional pan bagna (which translates unappetizingly to “wet bread”) is essentially a Niçoise salad on a bun. Here, it’s done vegetarian style (we add sliced ham for a quarter), with some assembly required: the loads of fresh greens, sliced tomatoes, onions, black olives and piave cheese seem as though they couldn’t possibly fit inside the crisp Ace Bakery bun, but we manage to wrangle it all together. A bowl soup ($4) adds a little warmth before we head back out into the cold.
The cost: $5.50, with tax and tip
The time: About an hour, arriving just after the lunch rush
Morning Glory, 457 King Street E. (at Gilead Pl.), 416-703-4728.
Origin’s fabulously mustachioed bartender Taylor Corrigan prepares cocktails (Image: Davida Aronovitch)
Claudio Aprile is about to dive into the most sacred of Toronto meals: brunch. Starting Saturday, February 5, Origin, the chef’s ten-month old restaurant, will serve the ritual feast on both Saturday and Sunday. The menu will feature Aprile’s unorthodox twists on classics, like dim sum-inspired French toast and elderberry mimosas. We caught up with Aprile to get a preview of what to expect.
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Sukhothai's amazing khao soi (Image: Sukhothaifood.com)
With so many new restaurants popping up on Ossington and in Parkdale, it’s refreshing to hear of new culinary destinations making their way to the pretty much passé entertainment district. This time, it’s an upscale Thai joint known as Khao San Road, named after Bangkok’s legendary backpackers’ ghetto. It’s set to open this January, and what’s especially exciting is that the new restaurant will be helmed by Sukhothai’s chef Nuit Regular, the mastermind behind the life-altering khao soi.
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(Image: Giamatti by Stefania Yarhi)
It was hard to tell who came for the networking, who came to hear Stomp the Yard director Robert Adetuyi, and who just came for the eggs at the ReelWorld brunch on Monday. The goal of the organization, which Young and the Restless actor Tonya Lee Williams started as a film festival for racially diverse filmmakers in 2001, is to nurture emerging talent. As Williams puts it, “It’s the incubator stage. TIFF is the big leagues.”
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(Image: Karon Liu)
Trust star Catherine Keener had brunch at the Drake yesterday (one of her favourite Toronto hangouts) and returned after dark for a cocktail. Between visits, she was spotted shopping at LAB Consignment on Ossington. Justin Long (in town promoting Robert Redford’s The Conspirator) also stopped by at the hotel last night, getting his groove on in the lounge. If only Bill Gates had shown up to challenge him to a Mac/PC dance-off.
= Find this story on our Celebrity Sightings Map, where we plot the locations of stars spotted throughout Toronto
The revamped Wellington West hot spot nails that perfect brunch ratio of sweet to savoury—even on Monday
The traditional breakfast at an untraditional time
The place: Marben’s recently unveiled renovation—undulating ceiling slats, exposed-filament light bulbs, reclaimed wooden shelves, jarred preserves—is worth a peek, but it’s summer, and this is Toronto. We immediately request seating on the sunny front patio, where unmatched chairs, a green wall and a rustic communal table echo the interior’s cottage-chic design.
The crowd: King West’s polo-shirted bourgeoisie is in full force. Nearby are a clutch of hip, mature businesswomen and a pair of chatty designers with five cell phones on their table. In the corner sits a Dragons’ Den judge with two-tone hair and sunglasses that fool nobody.
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We’ve become a city obsessed with provenance. We know the politics of the farmer who collects our eggs, whether our T-shirt designer plays in an indie band, and which Japanese artisan hand-carved our kid’s non-toxic forks. We gossip about the people behind our stuff like they’re celebrities because notable origins almost always mean a superior product—and loonies well spent. This year, our crew of expert consumers dug deep, bravely comparing the gleam of cufflinks, road-testing fixed-gear bikes, sniffing perfumes, measuring poolboys’ biceps, and sampling an entire summer’s worth of steak, ice cream, fresh-squeezed lemonade and more. Here is our guide to everything exemplary in Toronto in 2010
Leaf fan: Matchbox Gardens grows rare and wonderful lettuces (Image: Jay Shuster)
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Huevos Ahogados
Frida
999 Eglinton Ave. W., 416-787-2221
Jose Hadad, the chef at this Forest Hill restaurant, offers an authentic Mexican breakfast. Our favourite: fluffy scrambled eggs bathed in glittering, tart salsa verde with a dollop of rich house-made sour cream. On the side, cotija cheese, beans and tortilla. $13. Read the rest of this entry »
The strip of Dundas West between Ossington and Lansdowne has not been immune to the wild gentrification going on directly south of it. New restaurants, stores and bars have been cropping up for the past couple of years (Red Canoe, a swank Canadiana shop, opened two weeks ago), but there is a hesitation in the ’hood to turn Little Portugal and Brockton Village into the next Ossington. Incoming business owners make a point of blending in with the long-standing family-owned bakeries, soccer bars and pho stops. Even in new establishments, the decor has a thrift shop feel, and the prices cater to locals rather than destination diners. From east to west, here are our 21 favourite Dundas West spots for cheap eats, good music and authentic Portuguese cuisine.
Say “hello” to one of the city’s best bakeries, which also happens to serve a pretty fantastic lunch.
The place: The best French bakery west of Leslieville is as famous for its pastries as it is for its weekend brunch (and lineups), but on a weekday afternoon, we’re seated in no time on the cozy, shaded patio. The small interior, cluttered with baker’s racks, is charmingly no frills.
The crowd: From Riverdale families to work-at-home freelancers to shoppers taking a break from antiquing, everyone on this sunny Wednesday seems to be moving at a languid, mid-summer pace.
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Carl Heinrich with a companion in the newly redesigned Marben (All images: Karon Liu)
Splendido did it, then Centro, then Brassaii, and now Marben. Sure, they’ve all been renovated, but more specifically, they’ve all received make-unders.
Back in March, Marben auctioned off bits and pieces of its former self, including the famous glowing onyx bar, in order to make way for understated pieces, vintage fixtures and reclaimed wood. General manager Sarah Evans says the Wellington West restaurant’s overhaul was meant to lighten up the place and make it known for its food rather than its scene (Brassaii cited similar urges). Still, with the restaurant open until 2 a.m. every day and Bavette—a separate downstairs party space—set to open at the end of the month, Marben isn’t retiring from the revelry. “The city needs a rowdy restaurant,” says Evans.
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This room's on fire: Dundas West's Musa on Sunday, July 4 (Image: Aaron Leaf)
By the time we arrived at 847 Dundas Street West yesterday there was already a crowd of neighbours and passersby scanning the apocalyptic scene: 22 fire trucks, blocked streets and up to 100 firefighters scurrying around in the heat, pouring vast amounts of water onto what used to be Musa restaurant. Eventually the roof seemed to cave, sending the chimney plunging into the street and bricks flying everywhere.
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Beastly setting: the dining room at Beast (Image: Lisa Paul)
“I don’t dislike vegetarians, but my style of cooking is heavy on meat,” says chef Scott Vivian. It’s more of a warning than a defence: the Montreal-born chef has just opened a new restaurant with his wife, Rachelle, and it more than lives up to its name, Beast.
The carnivore theme is evident in the changing weekly dinner menus prepared by Scott and Luca Gatti, the sous-chef who came along when Scott and Rachelle left Wine Bar. Starters include such seasonal items as soft shell crab with foie gras, greens and jalapeño ($19), and mains include such meat-heavy dishes as pig’s head pasta with pea shoots, yolk and spaghetti ($16).
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