Restaurants › Bistro
Paramour
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- 94 Ossington Ave. (at Humbert St.) • View on map »
- 416-953-2356
The name is also the theme here—plush pink cushions, pulp romance paintings (heaving breasts, throbbing loins etc.), cocktails named “Hot Teddy” and “Happy Ending,” even a server who wears a red feather behind her ear in the style of a Charleston madam. It’s all very louche. Some diners might even call it fun. But it’s fun in the way a honeymoon hotel is fun: you’re going to need a few of those blush-as-you-order-them cocktails, and fast, before your suspension of disbelief craps out. Chef Laura Malin cooked briefly under Jamie Kennedy at JK ROM, but while she’s grounded in the fresh and local school, she doesn’t seem to have developed many new ideas since then. Pan-seared pickerel is one of her best dishes: the fish is properly cooked and adequately seasoned, while the French beans and cherry tomato confit and ultra-smooth cauliflower purée underneath it lend a touch of easy luxury to the plate. The chowder is also good—honest seaside soup with potato and a seared scallop on top. The $32 rib-eye, however, could hardly be less impressive. It’s a thin, flavour-challenged slab that looks like it came from a supermarket meat counter, overcooked in a smoking pan and then slapped on a plate flaccid and alone in a pool of its own juice. The fingerling potatoes that come with it are fine, but their lemon mayo tastes a lot like it came from a jar. The tiny wine list could use a little loving—the only white from Ontario is an off-dry riesling. Mains $24–$34.
- Closed Monday
- Bring your own bottle
94 Ossington Ave. (at Humbert St.)
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