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Q&A with Susur Lee: the chef discusses Lee Lounge’s new dishes, lower prices and new flavours

Lee lounging before the opening of Lee Lounge (Image: Renée Suen)

On Monday night, we found ourselves at the highly anticipated Valentine’s Day opening of Lee Lounge, the new restaurant from Susur Lee. The room was buzzing, with all hands on deck working to the beat of the floor manager’s Iron Chef-like calls. A bartender was making frantic last-minute adjustments to one of the new cocktails, the very dirty ume plum martini. Amid this chaos, Susur Lee was the eye of the storm. He spoke with us at length, excusing himself with only thirty minutes to go before the service started. Our conversation, below

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The Dish

Restauran-TO

February 1, 2011 | 4:15 pm

10 Comments

A first glimpse inside the renovated Canoe

A caribou etching adorns the wall near the soapstone bar (Image: Suresh Doss)

Last December we reported that Canoe would be closing up shop for a million-dollar facelift. Unlike most construction projects in the city, the restaurant was remodeled on schedule, and opened last night with insiders reporting (ok, tweeting) its down-to-the-wire progress. We snagged some images at the start of yesterday’s service for this first look at Canoe’s new digs.

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The Dish

De-licious

January 26, 2011 | 5:08 pm

1 Comment

Alternalicious: a roundup of this year’s Winterlicious rebels

Few subjects are as divisive among Toronto diners and industry people as the merits of Summer- and Winterlicious. While the biannual culinary event may help restaurants fill empty tables during an otherwise slow season, as we’ve explored before, participation in the city-run festival can have its limitations (dining rooms filled with stingy tippers, owners bound by the city’s rules). As in previous years, a number of restaurants have decided to strike out on their own with prix fixe specials.

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The Informer

Urban Diplomat

January 24, 2011 | 8:54 am

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Dear Urban Diplomat: how do I say no to philanthropic colleagues who invite me to $1,000-a-plate dinners?

(Image: Gavin Schaefer)

Dear Urban Diplomat,
I have several philanthropic colleagues who regularly invite me to attend their $1,000-plus-a-plate fundraisers. It’s good for my image, and some of these colleagues are friends, but it’s getting expensive. How can I decline without jeopardizing my friendships (or my career opportunities) and looking like an uncharitable tightwad?
—Out-of-pocket calculator
KING WEST

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The Dish

From the Print Edition

January 13, 2011 | 9:14 am

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Good Stuff Cheap: four standout dinner dates for penny pinchers

(Image: Lorne Bridgman)

FOR A CINQ À SEPT
Devoted locavores should head to Beast after work Wednesday through Friday, when former Jamie Kennedy chefs Scott and Rachelle Vivian serve up nose-to-tail small plates—including pig’s head pappardelle for only $4. Lovely Quebec and Ontario beers for pairing are also just $4; a number of wines are $5 a glass. 96 Tecumseth St., 647-352-6000.

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The Dish

De-licious

January 4, 2011 | 4:15 am

5 Comments

The Best of Winterlicious 2011: Toronto Life’s 62 favourite restaurants

(Image: Renée Suen, from the torontolife.com Flickr pool)

January is upon us, and for many hungry Torontonians, that means one thing: Winterlicious. The menus are less predictable than previous years—crème brûlée’s out, lentils du Puy are in—so even the ’Licious haters might have a reason to take advantage of the festival this year. We’ve already named the 12 menus that we think are the best bets, but that doesn’t begin to cover it. Here, find Toronto Life’s 62 favourite Winterlicious restaurants, complete with menus, reviews and reservation numbers.

Winterlicious runs from January 28 to February 10. Reservations are accepted from January 13 onward (January 11 for American Express users).

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The Dish

Locavoracious

January 3, 2011 | 3:54 pm

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Invasivores rejoice: Five edible species from our own backyard

Vegans, freegans, locavores: eco-conscious dining takes many forms. The New Year could herald an addition to that list with the emergence of “invasivores.” According to the New York Times, the inklings of a new “green” culinary movement are underway, wherein participants seek out, kill and dine on destructive and invasive species, like the venomous lionfish that’s been wreaking havoc on marine systems in Florida and elsewhere. For Torontonians looking to join the party, there are a number of out-of-control, detrimental and perfectly edible alien species to choose from. Unfortunately, we couldn’t find a way to include bed bugs or giant hogweed onto the list, but below, five invasive species worthy of the table.

The Dish

De-licious

December 21, 2010 | 1:51 pm

23 Comments

12 best bets for Winterlicious 2011: our chief critic goes through the menus so you don’t have to

A steak dinner at Noce (Image: Renée Suen)

Big-spending downtown Torontonians have taken in the past few years to whining about Winterlicious, but the two-week dining festival, running from January 28 through February 10, remains popular for a reason: it offers great value, particularly if you choose your reservations well. Here are a dozen of Toronto Life’s best bets. They’re older, more established places, generally, with kitchens that clearly care. And though we haven’t yet tasted the restaurants’ 2011 Winterlicious menus, they’re full of interesting, delicious-sounding picks.

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The Dish

Opening

December 20, 2010 | 12:00 pm

2 Comments

Introducing: Sorrel, the new Yorkville spot from Prego’s former chef

Prosciutto-wrapped figs stuffed with goat cheese (Images: Jon Sufrin)

Back in its halcyon days, Prego Della Piazza was chic even by Yorkville standards. So when landlords opted not to renew its lease, forcing it to close earlier this year, it was not without a bit of foodie sentimentality. The good news is that executive chef and general manager Faro Chiniforoush—previously of Sperling’s and Rosewater Supper Club—has taken nearly the entire Prego team and opened his own place slightly north on Yorkville Avenue. Welcome to Sorrel.

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The Dish

Restauran-TO

December 10, 2010 | 3:45 pm

5 Comments

More Canadiana! The inside details on Canoe’s forthcoming make-over

Fourteen years after first opening, Canoe is closing its door to undertake a major renovation starting New Year’s Day. The million-dollar revamp, which partner Michael Bonacini calls “a 30-day extravaganza,” will include top-to-bottom redecoration, Canadiana accents and a fresh menu. “We need to continue to reinvent to keep Canoe pointed true north,” says Bonacini, “and, of course, afloat.”

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The Dish

Opening

December 3, 2010 | 3:30 pm

14 Comments

Introducing: E11even, MLSE’s attempt at fine dining

Cookies are served on a glass pedestal with milk

MLSE’s Maple Leaf Square follow-up to Real Sports Bar and Grill is E11even, an unpretentious spot also in Maple Leaf Square designed to fill the void of fine-dining options in the waterfront area. It should be an easy task, considering it’s next door to the ACC and in the same building as the newly opened Le Germain hotel.

The decor—dark wood and sleek leather banquettes—and executive chef Robert Bartley’s gourmet comfort food menu are meant to appeal to a wide group of diners.

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The Goods

Shop Talk

December 2, 2010 | 3:06 pm

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Introducing: Calligaris, King Street East’s newest home decor shop

Calligaris is home to sleek, multifunctional Italian-made furniture

The place: Toronto’s largest selection of Calligaris merchandise is housed in a heritage building, originally built in 1907 for the Sovereign Bank of Canada, on King Street just east of Jarvis. Of course, King East needs more furniture stores like Queens Quay needs more condo buildings, but this Italian import offers a sleek alternative to the more traditional styles of Up Country and the antique stores that dot the strip.

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The Dish

Restauran-TO

November 19, 2010 | 8:47 am

14 Comments

When it comes to making restaurant reservations, is OpenTable a friend or foe?

From a customer’s perspective, OpenTable might seem like the perfect dovetailing of the Internet and dining: restaurant reservations are made and confirmed instantly. There’s no favouritism, waiting for a return e-mail or negotiating with front-of-house staffers. Lots of restaurants use it (290 in Toronto alone), and, perhaps best of all, it’s free. For all that convenience, restaurant owners foot the bill.

That’s where the problem comes in for Mark Pastore. He’s the chef at San Fransisco’s famous Incanto restaurant. In an eloquent, if long-winded, indictment of the service posted on his eatery’s Web site last month, Pastore notes that OpenTable’s fees are exorbitant. “OpenTable is out for itself, the worst business partner I have ever worked with in all my years in restaurants,” one anonymous restaurateur from NYC told him. “If I could find a way to eliminate it from my restaurants, I would.”

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The Dish

Restauran-TO

November 1, 2010 | 3:19 pm

44 Comments

Proposed law would make “tipping out” illegal at restaurants

Destination known: if passed, a new bill could ensure that tips go entirely to restaurant staffers (Image: Carissa Rogers)

The gravy train could be coming to an end at Toronto’s restaurants, as well as at city hall. Many restaurant owners are in the habit of pocketing a portion of their servers’ tips—a practice some call “tipping out” and others call “stealing.” A private member’s bill introduced by Toronto NDP MPP Michael Prue (Beaches–East York) might put an end to all of that. The proposed law would ensure that the money clients leave as a gratuity would go entirely to the people who served them. The bill is being greeted with enthusiasm by all parties at Queen’s Park.

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The Dish

Restauran-TO

October 21, 2010 | 2:00 pm

4 Comments

Dineline wants to revolutionize how we eat out, but can it?

The premise behind the new bargain-hunting Web site Dineline.ca is an interesting one: rather than simply offering notifications on sales and specials at restaurants, its focus is on “off-the-cuff” or one-time deals. The idea is to help famished deal seekers spot resto bargains in real time. A restaurant happens to be in possession of food that could go bad unless cooked immediately? Dineline is there, ideally offering it up for a greatly reduced price. A restaurant wants to spice up an unusually slow day by offering an impromptu sale. Dineline is there, too.

Basically, this is Priceline for food. But does it work?

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