Hence my excitement when Guu, the Vancouver mothership, opened a branch in Parkdale. Guu has been fooling around with the Toronto market for a few years. They first opened a fabulous Guu on Church Street and a second one on Bloor West.
I want to adore this restaurant. Guy Rawlings’ pedigree is sterling. Most recently he was operations manager at the esteemed Bar Isabel and Bar Raval, and long before that he was sous chef at Il Mulino on Eglinton, when it was great, and pastry chef at Celestin when it was great.
I understand now — and did not see then — that the teachers wanted the student, not his mother, to be in charge of his education.
Chantecler 2.0 has nothing to do with the Asian fusion lettucy thingies of chef Poon, but the room is unchanged — still a small and incredibly sweet bistro with thick wooden tables, some high-top, some regulation height, white tile floors a la française and a cheerful atmosphere with friendly service.
This new (to us) form of pizza is called Detroit-style and is on offer in an unassuming 22-seat hole-in-the-wall in Leslieville.
This peak eating moment has made the good stuff less exciting. And the Kwan dim sum isn’t. Exciting. All the regulars are here and done pretty nicely.
John Bil, the owner, pours shots of skull vodka for a couple of regulars and says he never wanted to open a restaurant that a lot of people made a fuss over. He only ever wanted a neighbourhood place, which is why, he says, “It’s only 20 seats.”
T.O.’s frozen treat purveyors are dishing out wild and wacky creations for everything from soft serve to frozen sandwiches. We invited chef Cory Vitiello of the Harbord Room, Flock and the TV series Chef In Your Ear to taste these over-the-top sammies and find out who has the cream of the crop.
I’m guessing they like El Rey for its cocktail extravaganzas and Mexican munchies. After all, this is Kensington. People need munchies. Which don’t have to taste great.
The slowing down part is why he named the new place Piano Piano (which means “go slow” in Italian). The family part is why his two-year-old daughter’s art is on the walls and the place is informal, family-friendly and inexpensive. Lotsa pizza ’n’ pasta.
What does it mean when someone pursues a career against their parents’ expressed wishes? And sticks with it? It means you’re a person of enormous grit and passion. This is chef Noureen Feerasta and Rickshaw Bar is her dream come true. She is not about to screw this up, which is why the lovely little bistro receives 110 per cent of her passion.
If I were orchestrating a Big Night Out, let’s say a date with somebody I wanted to impress, and that somebody was not a sushi lover … and money wasn’t really an object, hands down I’d take them to Miku.
