What a great idea! This I’m going to make at home. Baked/roasted grapes are delicious.
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Although my wife had gone with a friend to Prequel & Co. Apothecary, I didn’t get to try it with her until last week. Like a number of the speakeasy-themed places, you go through a back door in what seems like a shop to get to the darkened bar itself. Even more silly, you exit through another door into the back alley.
The cocktail menu is in a book and most of the offerings include many ingredients, resulting in multiple layers of flavours. The bar staff also put on a good show, shaking drinks dramatically and aerating some mixtures over a span of several feet from one vessel to another.
For our first round, we tried Notes of the Alchemist [right] - spiced rum, Amaretto, Islay whisky, ginger, orange blossom, rose, sherry, thyme, coriander seed, orange bitter - visually simple, but complex notes of spices, herbs, and floral. We also had Ember Woods [left] - Cynar, cachaça, coconut, pomegranate, ginger, gunpowder bitters, fresh lemon, tonic, fresh mint, cranberry leather - smooth, fruity, and balanced.
For our second round we had Bianco Brise de Pandan - palo santo-infused tequila, Grand Marnier, lemongrass bitter, pandan, lime leaf agave, aji limón, fresh lime, pineapple, ancho and guajillo sale - lots of vanilla, fruit, and not too sweet.
Equally satisfying was the Kyoto Forêt - Japanese whisky, in-house sweet vermouth, Montenegro, balsam fir, caraway, fennel, oregano, rosemary
The food is all small plates and butter dominated.
Truffle lobster roll featured a decent amount of lobster, lots of brown butter, a brioche roll, fresh fennel, dill, fresh truffle, with lovely chips beside.
Steak tartare came on more of that buttery, toasted brioche, with tarragon crème fraiche, sous vide egg yolk, fried capers, fresh basil, and cornichons - good, if unremarkable.
The fried chicken normally comes drenched in an herbes de Provence beurre blanc, so we asked for this on the side; it made for lovely dipping. The frying was very good, with crispy edges and moist meat. There were also fried basil leaves and some lemon.
The one refuge from butterfat on the menu is the beet salad, with orange vinaigrette, feta, frisée, sunchoke chips, and smoked mascarpone - simple and lovely.
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We tried Overpressure Club, sitting on their simple patio. The main cocktails are all on tap and are generally excellent, with interesting contrasts and nuances. Their presentation is usually fairly straightforward, with a simple and tasteful garnish on top. The Japanese-leaning menu of small dishes is quite enjoyable.
We tried 4 cocktails:
- Tobermory Trail - (thrown) gin, mastiha, dry vermouth, palo santo, aloe, clarified citrus, cedar mist - herbal and foresty.
- Smooth Operator - (nitro) Japanese whisky, banana liqueur, chocolate, caramel, gentian, hojicha, pineapple - a smooth and luscious dessert.
- Hokkaido Glacier - (carbonated) sotol, barley shochu, yuzu cordial, coconut soda, tonic, seasoned black rice chip - refreshing, citrus, and a bit of grassiness.
- Powerpuff Pisco - (carbonated) pisco, junmai ginjo sake, aromatized wine, hyssop and lychee soda, absinthe - charming and the anise was really subtle
Kura gomae - spinach, black sesame, mirin - simple and yet delicious, one of our favourites
Grilled mushrooms with maple, soy, sesame, leek - also very good
Grilled flat iron steak, with ponzu, daikon, green onion - straightforward and tasty.
Chicken yakitori - yakitori tare, green onion, black garlic mayo - moist, but a little bland
Overpressure karaage with shichimi, cured egg yolk, preserved lemon slaw, Japanese mayo - nice frying
Tofu"Yaki" - fried tofu cubes, takoyaki sauce, Japanese mayo, green onion, bonito - very fun and another favourite
Corn croquettes with corn puree, chili oil, leek salt, nasturtium - also nice frying and a little sweet
Loaded curry fries with furikake, Japanese curry, cheese curds - fun and yummy
Cucumber salad with micro cilantro, sesame, pickled chili - nice
Matcha edamame tiramisu - matcha, edamame, ladyfingers, creme - good, but unremarkable
Nori honey toast - burnt honey, miso caramel, sweet furikake, arare, red bean butter - more interesting and engaging
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Can’t wait to try this place!
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We also went to Mother, sitting on their street patio. The cocktails are some of the better ones we’ve tried in the city and the food is very good.
First up was the Toasted Chai Piña Colada [below right] - lemongrass rum, toasted chai cream, caramelized yogurt, piña juice, coconut sorbet, lacto-fermented pineapple and ginger - like a slushy dessert, with lots of cardamom.
Caprese Fizz [below left] - gin, tomatoes, balsamic, clarified yogurt and basil - savoury, a little sweet balanced with the tanginess of the yogurt.
Porcelain [below right] - dry sake, violet liqueur, toasted wild rice, lacto-fermented pear, jasmine baijiu, spiced coconut, and clarified lime juice - super floral and beautiful.
For Symbiosis, you pick the spirit, you pick one of three fancy ingredients they made, and tell the server your flavour preferences. We picked rhubarb and Pedro Ximinez confiture and asked for something fruity yet bitter and sour. So we got blood orange amaro, salted lavender honey, lemon and lime, with the confiture [below left] - amazing, lots of bitter and well balanced overall.
For food, we started with the koji aged beef tartare, featuring short rib, sous vide egg yolk, sauerkraut, capers, Dijon mustard, rice cracker - really great blend of flavours, with the richness balanced by the sours.
Beetroot and pistachio salad - mainly greens with roasted pistachios, beetroot air, avocado crème, and a lovely dressing.
Mother udon noodles - the noodles were overcooked, but the sauce was a fun riff on carbonara with miso egg yolk, unnamed cheese, pickled shiitake mushrooms, ginger, garlic, and furikake.
Jerk chicken karaage with togarashi, roasted black sesame, fermented pineapple-habanero aioli, and scallions - not reminiscent of jerk and little heat, but the pineapple flavour was great.
We tried two of their tacos:
- Cochinita pibil - braised pork shoulder, pickled red onion, cilantro, pineapple sauce - moist pork with lots of pineapple flavour.
- Picanha steak - shio-aged top rump steak, chimichurri, avocado cream, onion, cilantro, and salsa verde - tender, well-flavoured meat.
For dessert, we had the tres leches cake with strawberry crème, dulce de leche, and fresh mint - lovely, very milky/creamy, gently strawberry.
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I had a very positive experience at Suite 115. I suspect they will get a lot busier and show up on lists later this year. Highly recommend.
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BarChef has long been on our list of places to try. However each time we did try in the past, they were full and had too long a wait. We even tried their sister bar Prequel & Co. Apothecary (see above) before finally making a reservation to secure a table at BarChef.
We decided to first try some of the elaborate (and expensive) cocktail presentations that they are known for:
Piña colada - their version featured a glass of clarified piña colada served beside a giant bowl, ringed with ice and flowers. Inside was a coconut disk, pineapple and cedar sherbet, roasted pineapple paper, pineapple and ginger ice gel drops, micro coriander, maraschino and rose, lime cells and zest. The drink itself was delightful, smooth and well-balanced. The accompaniments were beautiful and delicious, though the cedar was difficult to detect.
Rose gold margarita - this included pequin pepper infused tequila, roasted agave, lime leaf-infused Lillet, hibiscus-infused Campari, fresh lime, coconut, green cardamom, saffron, smoked floral tuille, rose gold salt rim, white chocolate encapsulation of spiced citrus. The drink was dwarfed by the setting in terra cotta, with a plate with gels and the tuile that included some of the flavour components. This was maybe a little less successful, with more emphasis on the vegetal pepper flavour and other accents getting a bit lost in the mix.
For round 2, we went with one class and one fall feature:
Strawberries and lavender - apparently established in 2012, this mixed strawberry-infused gin, fresh lemon, strawberry and elderberry bitters, lavender-infused Grand Marnier, balsamic and lavender reduction, and lavender sugar. This was beautiful, with a complex balance of bitters and sweets.
Pumpkin spice and cedar - this was based around brown butter vodka with pumpkin spice cordial, pear liqueur, chai bitters, clarified lemon, cedar soda, and a candied pear slice with reverse caramel. A really smooth blend of spice, fruit, and a hint of forest.
We weren’t hungry enough for a meal, but did sample a couple of snacks:
Japanese fried chicken, with a sake marinade, soy and sesame glaze, and scallions. The frying was good and the flavour was nice, but the chicken could have been trimmed better of cartilage and other bits.
Truffle lobster roll had 3 small brioche rolls, plenty of brown butter, less lobster, and precious little pickled fennel slaw, cucumber and dill. OK, but I would have preferred more balance with some of the slaw. It came with overly salty and oily chips.
So overall, we’ll be back for more cocktails but might skip snacks.
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Papi Chulos had a long line of 20somethings at 7 pm on a Sunday night, a night when most bars and restaurants, other than Mamakas and sometimes Union, are fairly empty on Ossington.
It turns out Papi Chulos has a festive pop-up selling Holiday Cocktails, which look a little like the Holiday Cocktails I’m seeing in a San Francisco holiday pop-up post.
(I didn’t visit. )
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There is always a line up there!!
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Add Slice of Life to your to do list. Very nice cocktails.
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The Tribbles Revenge.
I haven’t been to this bar. I found it when I googled Grasshoppers in Toronto.
409 College Street
Despite it being in our neighbourhood and despite it being run by the same people as Wynona, one of our favourite local restaurants, we had never tried The Comrade until tonight. It’s a great neighbourhood bar and we plan to be back.
The interior is dark, loud, and full of taxidermy. The cocktails are well-balanced and delicious. And the snacks, not surprisingly, are very good.
Cocktails:
- Vignette: Tanqueray gin, Lillet, St. Germain, absinthe (spritz), lavender & mint (housemade syrup), lemon, grapefruit, egg white - loved it, the lavender came through clearly.
- Calling Doctor Sunshine: Espolon reposado tequila, bergamot-infused Aperol, rosemary, ginger, lime, egg white - nicely herbal.
- Nautilus: El Gobernador pisco, sloe gin, passionfruit, lemon, ginger, fire tincture (habanero bitters) - lots of passionfruit, with a great subtle kick.
- Seven of Nine: cognac, rye, Aperol, haskap, fernet, lemon - the grape-skin-y flavour of the haskap came through nicely.
Snacks:
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Hokkaido scallops with aguachile, (Asian) gooseberry slices, pink pomelo, sumac - very fresh and light, with a decent kick from the aguachile.
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Pan con tomate with white anchovy and great toasted sourdough.
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Beef tartare with sunchoke (chips and puree), shallots, pickle, and endive instead of bread - a lovely take on this standard.
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Prime rib burger with cheddar, special sauce, caramelized onion, and pickle - small, but delicious, gorgeous brioche bun and lovely char with crisp edges on the meat.
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That Comrade burger is my friend’s favourite burger in Toronto. It’s definitely worth a detour for me!
The cocktails and other dishes look great.
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The Comrade has a small patio in the warmer months.
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We tried Bar Mordecai recently. The drinks had good complexity, with emphasis more bitter and sour instead of sweet (except for one). The food was surprisingly good, with north African and Middle Eastern leanings. Although we booked a reservation, it looked like there was space for walk-ins early on a Friday evening.
We tried 4 cocktails:
Content Creator: El Gobernador pisco, Select aperitivo, amaro montenegro, passionfruit, lemon, glitter. and was served with a shot of prosecco on the side. An LED light in the base of the glass made it extra fun and it gave off an aroma of roses and orange blossoms.
Smuggler’s Punch: The Glenlivet 12-year, guava, coconut, peppercorn, lime, Angostura, petal confetti - a tropical drink, but not particularly syrupy and sweet.
Rat Boy: Lot No. 40 rye, fino sherry, Genepy, salted oat orgeat, lemon, Angostura - perhaps our favourite, with lots of divergent notes than blended well together.
Chocolate Peanut Butter Banana - peanut butter whiskey, Dillon’s chocolate liqueur, Giffard banane, chocolate, vanilla, coconut - soft serve and very fun but really, really sweet.
We started with whipped labneh than came with smokey charred eggplant, sour barberry, sweet pomegranate molasses, mint, chili oil, and bannock to scoop it up with.
Chicken Saloona featured moist chicken thighs, creamy coconut, ajvar, baharat spice, chives - very tasty.
Winter squash was sweetened with maple syrup, and was accompanied by shatta aioli, aleppo chili, pomegranate, olives, and tomatoes.
Roasted cauliflower was nicely spiced with ras al hanout and came with laban, raisins, plantain chips, and angelica.
Saffron Pulao was long grain rice, perfumed with turmeric, rose, pine nut, barberry. This went really well with a sublime slow-cooked lamb shank, with machboos spice, almonds, dry rose, sultanas, ajvar, and loomi.
Our one dessert with a lovely and not-to-sweet milk cake, with rose chantilly, cardamom, pistachio, rose water, and rose petals.
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We made a return to Writer’s Room. The cocktails remain very good and we decided to try out the food also and were pleased that while fairly straightforward, it was all very well-executed. Plus the view from the patio is great.
The most interesting cocktail was Refuge - Makers Mark bourbon, dark maple, Park Hyatt spruce & candy cap bitters. It was a stroll in the woods in a glass.
Ambition featured Bulleit rye, Hennessy VS cognac, Cointreau, crème de banane, Peychauds bitters - very straight up and spirit forward.
My favourite was East Meets West: Don Julio blanco tequila, Grand Marnier, absinthe, lime, lime leaf, Thai spice, sencha green tea, whole milk clarification - a smooth blend of many accents.
For food, roasted corn ribs were dusted with espelette pepper, lime, and corn miso ranch - if only bar food was more like this.
The lobster rolls were cute little bite-sized nuggests, with celery, pickled carrot, Old Bay.
Crispy and non-greasy fried maitake were dressed with katsu sauce, cabbage, pickled ginger, kewpie, and nori.
Fresh albacore tuna sat on creme fraiche, dill oil, and were decorated with fermented banana pepper and black tapioca crisp.
Korean fried chicken also showed expert frying, with a sweet “yum yum sauce”, scallion, and sesame.
Butternut squash came in a pool of Thai red curry, with coconut, peanuts, cilantro, and purple shiso - great, but could have used some rice for the sauce.
Perfectly grilled calamari was smokey and charred, lightened with green papaya, lime, and coconut dressing.
For dessert we had cute little horchata and dulce de leche ice cream sandwiches.
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