Looks fantastic.
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I haven’t been there since December: didn’t know that they had a back patio! Will have to go… I really loved it!
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Went back to Ascari Enoteca with friends. As we had been relatively recently, it was a chance to try some other dishes since the menu hadn’t changed too much since last time. Food remains great overall and the wine selection continues to feature less obvious options.
Our friends tried out some cocktails including the negroni and the pesca pallida, which were apparently both good. We ordered a bottle of 2020 Ampeleia Bianco, Tuscany (trebbiano, malvasia, ansonica) - and orange wine that was very smooth and lightly tropical.
We started the meal with bread and olives:
Focaccia - salty and crisp on top, soft and fluffy inside.
Olives - served warm.
We repeated the excellent tonno all’ acqua pazza (poached albacore tuna, olive, onion, fennel, mint and tomato water poured over) and our friends also wanted the insalate verde (arugula, truffle parmesan dressing, pears, parmesan, parsley, chives), which was pleasant.
We tried one new pasta and an old favourite:
Campanelle con Salsiccia - al dente noodles, fennel-y pecorino and ramp sausage (salty but not too much), broccolini, fresh chili (not spicy).
Spaghetti alla Carbonara - homemade guanciale, grana padano, peas, pecorino, egg yolk, black pepper - still an excellent version.
We usually never get around to the secondi and originally they didn’t have them at all. This time we had enough room for one, which was a special:
Perfectly cooked moist and flakey cod over a bed of mussels almonds, peperonata, and a tarragon butter sauce - delightful.
Our friends ordered the cheese course, which they liked a lot. We ordered both desserts:
Panna cotta - still with goat yogourt, but this time with strawberries and unripe/crisp nectarines, almonds, white chocolate - pleasant but not as good as last time with the rhubarb.
Zuccotto - hazelnut semifreddo, chocolate, almond - lovely quarter-sphere with a layer of chocolate cake and then almonds on the outside - a definite winner.
To finish off, we had a flight of amaros (½ oz each): Amaro Nonino (Friuli - carmel, vanilla, allspice), Amaro Majora (Sicily - marjoram, citrus peel, gentian; strongly aromatic/minty), Jefferson Amaro (Calabria - bitter orange, bergamot) - very fun to compare pretty colours and flavours.
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Finally tried Dova, and I loved it!
Octopus croquettes, cauliflower ravioli with lobster, spinach
My friend was asking about patios on the west side.
I mentioned Union and Enoteca Sociale as patios I liked for dinner.
Can any of you think of restaurants with covered and well-ventilated patios west of Bathurst that would be open at dinner during a light rain, in addition to Bar Vendetta?
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Glad you got to try Dova. We plan to try brunch there.
What about Bar Piquette? During warmer months, the windows on the enclosed patio should be open. Still lovely food, especially the mortadella sandwich.
Lapinou’s patio is covered and very open. Myth’s patio is covered and more open in warmer months.
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Thank you! I sent my friend the link to this thread.
FK fka Frank’s Kitchen on St Clair W also has a patio that might be promising. I haven’t been yet.
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We tried brunch at the Dog and Tiger today, on College St at Euclid. The patio is fine. The Benny was good, the brunch burger was not good. The service was attentive. I don’t think the A Team is in the kitchen during this Sunday brunch. I had some nice appetizers on this patio last summer.
For brunch food in this general area, I prefer the brunch at Sisters & Co on Dundas near Euclid (a few tables on the sidewalk on sunny days), or Patois, also on Dundas W near Euclid, which has a CafeTo patio now.
I haven’t been to Old School on Dundas W recently, which has line-ups all weekend.
For supper, I plan to try Fonda Balam’s patio soon, as well as Bar Vendetta’s back patio.
I also plan to try the pub brunch at the Ladybug Tavetn, further West.
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I had one great meal there last year but a follow-up this year was less exciting.
If only they could find consistency!
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The server today was attentive, but fairly inexperienced , and a little undertrained , relative to the servers you might find at Bar Isabel, Bar Raval or Bar Vendetta.
While I liked Patois,it wasn’t quite at the same level as Bar Raval ,Bar Vendetta or Bar Pompette. I still haven’t tried Restaurant Pompette, which I would expect would have service a step up from Bar Isabel, Bar Raval or Bar Vendetta.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Dog & Tiger stops offering brunch and focuses only on dinner this fall.
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Dog and Tiger is closed permanently. But the place has already been transferred to a new team.
New restaurant at same location opening soon. Stay tuned.
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I had read on IG that the Dog & Tiger is closed and the restaurant is changing its concept.
Does that mean the the same owners, or does new team mean new owners and new staff?
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Very nice lunch with my pal @magic at Mamakas today. We had the melitzanasalata, keftedes, spanakopita and lamb shakshuka.
Worth the splurge!
I wish Mamakas would serve frappe coffees.
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I will!
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Enjoyed a patio dinner at Isaan Der on Dundas W in the Junction last night. Not worth a special detour for the food. I liked the pad si ew. The panang curry was decent. I would say the food is at roughly the same level as Khao San Road or BKK, better than Chrystal Thani, maybe slightly less to my taste than Nana.
I appreciate a Thai restaurant that keeps a patio going, so that in itself would be a reason for me to return. My friend sent this photo of our dessert since my phone battery was at 0%.
Coffee on the I Deal Coffee patio on Ossington this morning. (Skip the $7.99 breakfast sandwich- they have the eggs pre-cooked then reheated with bacon and cheese. So many better breakfast sandwiches within a 10 minute walk of this one!) Good patio for a coffee, with shade.
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Two recent concerts at Scotiabank Arena prompted patio visits to nearby restaurants for dinner. First up was Aria, which we last went to about 7 years ago. At the time we liked it, though thought it somewhat pricey. The menu has become less adventurous, so the food is well executed but not as interesting (and still pricey for what you get).
For wines, we had glasses of:
- 2020 Falanghina, Bonea, Masseria Frattasi - pleasant, sort of sauv blanc style but a little richer, quite acidic, like a mix of grapefruit peel and lemonade.
- 2019 Cabernet Sauvignon, Rhyton, Masseria Frattasi - very fruity, nice.
Burrata panzanella:
Creamy burrata, sweet tomato, and focaccia, tomato dressing - very tasty, solid.
Tuna Nizzarda:
Seared albacore tuna, green beans, cherry tomato, onions, taggiasche olives, hard boiled Conestoga egg, lemon dressing - well-executed Italian version of a salade niçoise.
Gnocchi:
Potato gnocchi, basil pesto, cherry tomatoes, parmigiana reggiano, toasted pine nuts - nice but could have used more salt or cheese and tomatoes.
Mushroom Ravioli:
Egg ravioli, white truffle butter, parmigiana reggiano - delicious, very truffle-y.
Torta Caprese:
Flourless chocolate cake, almond praline, macerated Ontario strawberries (actually mainly blueberries) - a bit too sweet.
Baba al rum
Essentially a sundae, with pastries soaked in rum, gelato alla crema, wild berries underneath, whipped cream - OK.
We asked for one of Italian dessert wines but instead were served the 2005 Sauvignon blanc botrytis, Voss Vineyards, Rutherford, Napa Valley - pleasant, honeyed.
Next concert we went to the patio at La Bettola di Terroni, another place we hadn’t been to in years. This was all-around a better meal and also much better value.
We focused on newer additions to the menu that we hadn’t previously tried. First up was
Capesante Gratinate:
Scallops baked on the half shell, carrot, celery, onion, smoked pancetta, parmigiano - as decadent as you might imagine.
There was also a carpaccio di pesca spada as a special:
House-smoked swordfish, fennel, orange, pistachio, lemon, olive oil - really lovely, with smokey notes balanced with some citrus, nuts, and the mild licorice of the fennel.
There was also a pasta special: Tonnarelli con Fiori di Zucca:
Homemade tonnarelli pasta, guanciale, zucchini flower, pecorino, parmigiano, saffron - totally inhalable, even though there were only 4 tiny zucchini flowers and undetectable saffron. Perfectly cooked pasta.
Busiate al Pesto:
Busiate pasta (like thin rotini), basil pesto, pine nuts, parmigiano, garlic, potatoes, green beans - vibrant flavours and neat to have potato in the pasta.
For wines, we had two glasses:
- 2020 Rebelle Langhe Bianco, Brandini, Piemonte (viognier) - wildflowers and honey, ripe apricot.
- 2019 Carema Classico, Piemonte (Nebbiolo) - cinnamon, nutmeg, stewed fruit.
Both desserts suffered from being a bit too sweet.
Creme brulee:
Otherwise well-executed.
Mousse al cioccolato:
Dark chocolate mousse (with little crunchy balls on top) - not very chocolate-y.
We finished off with a fine camomile-infused grappa.
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You know you could adopt me. Jus’ sayin.
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Not quite a patio, but La Piazza at Eataly had all the big windows open, so we were eating in the open. The food was significantly better than the last time we ate at Eataly, although the service was somewhat haphazard and uninformed.
For wine, we ordered a bottle of Bombino Bianco 2020, Demaio, Puglia - a beautiful orange wine, with lots of peach and tangerine.
Our friends ordered the verdure fritti, which we sampled. It was very well-executed, crispy and not oily. The accompanying pesto Calabrese had plenty of kick.
To start, we had two of the crudos. The capesante crudo featured creamy Atlantic bay scallops, burnt grapefruit, sea salt - a gorgeous combination.
The halibut crudo was also very good, with fresh and slightly firm halibut, lemon agrodolce, chili, and mint - light and clean flavours.
The pastas were both excellent, a few notches up from any we’ve previously. Particularly enjoyable was the mafaldine al nero di seppia con frutti di mare (fresh and sweet bay scallops, manila clams, PEI mussels), with an earthy tomato sauce with capers, olives, and oregano.
Almost as good was the casarecce alla Trapanese - al dente twists with a delicious tomato-almond pesto, basil, pecorino romano DOP.
By then the kitchen had closed, but we were too full for dessert anyway.
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