Here’s a bargain-priced Riesling from Ontario. Pale straw in colour, with a green tint. A nose of petrol and grapefruit with a lifted honeyed note. It’s medium-bodied and off-dry, with grapefruit and lime flavours, plus a touch of honey and a light spritz on the palate.
One of my favourite wine stories comes from the end of a winery tour I took a few years ago with some family members. We had seen the barrel cellar and the fermenting tanks, and we had been given tons of tasting notes. One of my younger cousins leaned in and quietly said, “Dave, I think I get it all, but where do they add the strawberries?”
Reds Wine Tavern has upped its game following a recent revamp. With Top Chef Canada’s Ryan Gallagher stepping into the kitchen, and a décor do-over adding conversation-prompting wooden tables and eye-catching chandeliers, the restaurant has shrugged off its slightly stuffy past. Though the locale is known for, um, wine (it does have over 350 types of wine at any given point), a cocktail menu — much like the shuffleboard table — keeps things interesting.
Fans of Grant van Gameren likely know that come January (we hope), the renowned chef will be opening up his own restaurant: Crown Cooks. Taking over the former Grappa space, the upcoming College Street eatery will be turning out tapas-style sharing dishes in addition to a late-night menu — both influenced by van Gameren’s recent European jaunt.
Friday Restaurant Recap rounds up the week’s Toronto restaurant news. In this edition: two new restaurants for Baldwin Village, a British food truck, the new College Street Bar and ramen. Lots of ramen.
Last night, a swarm of Toronto’s keenest mallrats headed north, awaiting a glimpse of the Yorkdale Shopping Centre makeover. Costing a cool $220 million, the 145,000 square foot expansion officially opened to the public today.
This is a well-made sparkler that could fool some into believing it’s champagne. It has a pale straw colour with an active mousse and small bubbles. Boasting an apple and citrus nose, it is medium-bodied with apple and green pineapple flavours. Good length.
Opening a bottle of this rauchbier is like tending a grill stacked with ribs or leaning in towards a bonfire to blow out a flaming marshmallow: there is no avoiding the powerful aroma of wood smoke.
Baldwin Village received a much-needed culinary injection earlier this year with the opening of Kinton Ramen, and now another Asian concept aims to continue the upward trend. Veteran restaurateur Sang Kim is set to open two restaurants — to be known as Yakitori Bar and Seoul Food — which will share a space at 1 Baldwin Street.
Ditch the fat-laden comfort foods of the season for a warm hug from one of these nutritious alternatives
Disgraceland beckons passersby with its strands of Christmas lights twinkling in the window — regardless of the season. Inside, the Bloor Street bar caters to a mixed crowd, with patrons entwined in board games (plucked from a hodgepodge on the shelf), cheering over a foosball match (there’s a table dead-centre) or noshing on food (the menu is vegans and vegetarian friendly).
Friday Restaurant Recap rounds up the week’s Toronto restaurant news. In this edition: a new resto-bar takes over The Double Deuce Saloon, Live Organic Food Bar announces an expansion, Liberty Village gets a new cheese shop and more.
