We finally got around to trying Restaurant 20 Victoria. We know that others on HO have been a bit underwhelmed with the tasting menu, but we thought we would give it a chance. Overall the food was very good, with only a couple of minor missteps. Some dishes were excellent. The meal didn’t have the same “wow” as other tasting menus in the city can; maybe they were never aiming for that. The wine pairing was solid, with some interesting selections.
Service was friendly, informative, and attentive. The room is fairly simple and not particularly eye-catching - again, maybe what they were aiming for. The soundtrack was mostly early 70s. I counted selections from at least 4 Van Morrison albums, including 4 from Moondance.
They started us off with a couple of snacks:
- Fried oysters in lovage and caper creamy dressing - tasty, but a little oily
- Marinated mussels with pickled habanata peppers - simple and more successful
Wine 1: Chablis cremant, Piuzé “Non Dosé”, NV - toasty, apricot, and peach.
Mahone bay raw scallops, kombu, green garlic chive, and pickled white asparagus - very fresh scallops, with everything else providing nice accents.
Wine 2: Gruner Veltliner, Alzinger, Austria, 2023 - green apple, grapefruit pith, maybe a touch of green pea.
Fogo Island snow crab with pickled ginger, rolled inside yellow beet slices, and watermelon radish with Queen Beluga Ossetra caviar and pumpkin relish - fun presentation, but a little too vinegary and the caviar was lost amongst the stronger flavours.
Wine 3: Albariño, Nanclares y Prieto, Porta Franca, Rias Baixas, Spain, 2022 - honey, ripe apple, golden colour, a little mushroom.
Halibut, perfectly poached in olive oil, with wild fennel sauce, potato “risotto”, and a gorgeous smoked mushroom sauce, garnished with pea tendrils.
Moist and fluffy housemade milk bun with butter - so good we got an encore.
Wine 4: Riesling Kabinett, PJ Kühn Lenchen, Rheingau, Germany, 2022 - off dry, gasoline-y, lime, and delicious.
Roasted, caramelized sunchokes, pickled beech mushrooms, sauce raisinette with grapes raisins and anchovy, vermouth cream with scallop skirt sauce, and fresh dill - excellent bridge between the fish and the meat course next.
Wine 5: Listan Negro and Listan Blanco, Envínate ‘la Santa de Ursula’, Canary Islands, Spain, 2021 - almonds, floral, and a bit of raspberry, with soft integrated tannins.
Veal loin and sweetbread with sesame crust, celeriac puree and escarole - the loin was juicy; the sweetbread was perfect, fully cooked and still creamy, with a crisp crust.
To Eris, golden apple and quince cider from upstate New York, 24 months in old French oak - great pairing with the cheese.
Niagara Gold, cow’s milk from Jordan, lavash, and side salad (citrus vinaigrette with Boston Bibb and gem lettuces) - Niagara Gold is nice, but it would have been more interesting to have a less common cheese in a tasting menu.
Barolo Chinato, Chinati Vergano, Piedmont - low yield grapevines with fresh herbs from surrounding area - complex, lots of bitter herbal notes.
We had a choice of two desserts, so we ordered both:
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Orange and almond cake, meringue, orange caramel - pleasant, but not remarkable.
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Goat cheese mousse, rhubarb, wild fennel, buckwheat crumble - also pleasant, a bit more interesting.
