Patios seem to be open on nice days.
Which are your favourites?
Bar Raval is probably my favourite, when the plastic walls are down on nice days.
I’m hoping to try Restaurant Pompette and Parquet this summer.
I will likely try Amal and Kasa Moto in May.
I like Union, especially in the summer when it’s less enclosed.
When the weather warms up, Actinolite mostly uses their outdoor backyard space instead of indoor. But they only offer a 7-course set menu. On Wednesday and Thursday they often do have a shortened less-expensive neighbourhood menu.
Other casual joints I enjoy are Contrada and Maison T, both have patio space as well.
Henry’s has a very nice back patio! Also, they make an excellent espresso martini (I substitute vodka with brandy/cognac, I feel vodka cocktails have zero character).
I’ve booked Union for the first time, will be there in a few weeks. Will report back, menu seems great!
I will add Henry’s to my list!! Thank you!
Right on! I hope to try Contrada once I see that the patio is open.
I do like the Croque Monsieurs and cocktails at Bar Pompette. They have a nice back patio, and a few tables on the sidewalk during nice weather.
Oh man, I love patios! These are sporadic and spread across the city, and Phoenikia I remember you mentioning you’re immunocompromised or sensitive (sorry if I got it wrong) so I’ve done my best to recall how enclosed they were.
That’s all for my ramble today - probably have more to report back on!
I love Parallel on Geary as well as Parallel Basta in Kensington, which has a few tables set up in front in warm weather.
I also like the various Boxcar Social locations , and Rebel House!
I have actually been visiting Rebel House for more than half my life. 
I remember visiting in 1998 when I lived in the neighbourhood.
I will have to visit Volo. I bought a couple Au Pied de Cochon tourtieres from their shop at Xmas, but I still haven’t gotten around to trying their patio! I walk by fairly often.
Chadwicks has great food. I used to go for brunch when I lived in the Annex. I had take-out a couple times in 2020 and 2021. I haven’t checked out their patio yet. Will have to do that this summer.
Going by the places with patios last year, we are looking forward to (at very least):
I enjoyed lunch at Bar Raval today. We had tortilla, boquerones, marinated octopus, patatas bravas and olives. Everything was excellent.
The Patatas Bravas.
Good patio, but meh food at Parcheggio.
I’ll still add the info because it’s a patio in North York with free parking.
I had the steak and eggs. Ordered steak medium. Half was well done, half was pink. The Parcheggio kitchen staff doesn’t know how to cook steak. The Parcheggio kitchen staff also doesn’t know to add lemon juice or vinegar to the grated potatoes they’re preparing in advance, to prevent the potato cake from oxidizing and becoming grey inside. ( Vilda’s also doesn’t know this - maybe the cooking schools are slacking!)
The eggs were okay.
The tiramisu tasted like the refrigerator according toy friend. I had thought maybe it tasted like pre-frozen lady fingers.
O & B seems to be running into some quality control issues in its kitchens. The food at Parcheggio was around the same level of meh (that is me being nice) as my last meal at the O & B Grill inside the Blue Mountain Westin in Feb 2022.
The server was very friendly and accommodating.
The space seems a little tired inside. The bathrooms are pretty dark.
Went to Pinkerton’s Snack Bar for the first time this year, now that they have their patio open. The vibe seems to have shifted from quiet cocktail bar with fun Asian-ish food to a loud neighbourhood bar, with loud patrons alternatingly yelling and singing lustily along to Don’t You Forget About Me.
Fortunately the drinks remain great, not as complicated as the fancier cocktail bars, but still well-balanced and enjoyable. New on the menu is the Piña “Butta” Colada [left] - Skrewball peanut butter whisky, banana liqueur, pineapple, citrus, coconut - though the peanut profile was subtle at best, it was still a fine tropical treat. They also had a new version of their Floral French [right] - Empress 1908 gin, jasmine, butterfly pea, lavender, elderflower, citrus, sparkling - light, floral, and an eye-catching colour.
Their pork neck pancake has always been our go-to dish (braised pork, kimchi, candied peanuts). But the dish is now a bit too salty and the pork neck seems to be braised not as long.
New on the menu is the Korean meatbal, served ssam-style with rice, ginger scallion relish, gochujang, pickles, and lettuce - tasty and enjoyable, if not particularly interesting.
The baos have become their main strength:
Grape Witches at Dundas W & Dovercourt just launched their new open-air, enclosed back patio - haven’t been but looks well done. Very wine forward but fun tapas list.
Just took friends to the patio at Ascari Enoteca. The food and wine selection remain very good.
We had a bottle of 2021 Villa Job Sudigiri Venezia, Italy - sauvignon blanc orange wine, very acidic, lemon, green pineapple, some floral, even a touch of mushroom. Great with food.
We shared a bunch of antipasti:
Arancini Cacio e Pepe - pecorino fonduta, black pepper - crisp coating and a great cheesy sauce.
Insalata di Burrata - creamy burrata, pressed apricot, candied almonds, castelfranco, radish, smoked white balsamic vinaigrette.
Asparagi Grigliati - grilled asparagus, lemon ricotta, shreds of soppressata, bagna cauda, hazelnut pangrattato - smoky and juicy asparagus, with great salty garnishes.
Caulalini Arrostiti - roasted caulalini, luscious blue cheese spuma, crispy shallots, fresh chives.
Tagliatelle di Mare - bay scallops, cold water shrimp, peas, fresh fava beans, mild chilis, preserved lemon butter sauce - my wife’s favourite, I felt a little less butter would have been better.
Agnolotti di Ricotta - supple ricotta stuffed pasta, button chanterelles, crispy speck, lovely sour sorrel, chardonnay butter sauce - the acid made this sauce much more balanced.
Torta al Cioccolato - a sort of ganache rectangle with hazelnuts on top and some olive oil and sea salt - our friends loved this one.
Goat cheese panna cotta (very firm) with pickled rhubarb and strawberries - the sweetness of the strawberries was well-balanced by the sour of the rhubarb and the tang of the goat cheese.
I tried Terrazza on Harbord tonight. I ordered the watermelon, spinach and feta salad ($16), fried shrimp and calamari ($27), and broccolini ($8). Blackcurrant soda ($7) to drink .
The salad was fair, just regular bagged baby spinach but nice dressing. I ate the watermelon and tomatoes and left behind the spinach, cucumbers and onions. 
A good version of fried calamari, and a generous portion, at least 30 pieces of squid and 3 shrimp. The fried calamari maybe are not worth a detour. The serving seemed to be twice as plentiful as my last order from Terroni. The portion would be better for sharing among 2 or 3 people as an app, rather than as a protein for 1 person. I guess that’s usually the case for a basket of fried calamari.
The broccolini with garlic and oil was fine, as a side.
Complimentary warm bread with olive oil and 5 olives.
No photos!
The patio is nicer than most, lots of plants.
There are a lot of pastas and pizzas on the menu. The people at the next table had pizzas.
Probably pizza, pasta or one of the mains is the best way to go at Terrazza. I am trying to eat less carbs, and all the mains came with either pasta or potatoes.
On Harbord at Shaw, north side.
At 1727 Dundas W near Lansdowne.
I ordered take-out. I will post on a take-out thread.
Had brunch on the patio at Completo (Broadview location) on the weekend.
We started with two cocktails, because you can never have cocktails too early:
Maracuya Sunrise (below right) - Brazilian passionfruit puréed with sweet cream, cachaca, maraschino cherries and a coconut rim - fun and tropical.
Sevilla-75 (below left) - Spanish brandy, fresh lemon blackberry syrup, Cava and loads of fruit - a refreshing cross between a spritzer and sangria.
Food remains hearty and full-flavoured:
Breakfast burrito - housemade chorizo, scrambled eggs, salsa fresca, and refried beans, wrapped in a flour tortilla and griddled, served with salsa verde, house hot sauce, jalapeno-lime crema, and home fries.
Huevos Rancheros - griddled tortilla smothered in refried beans & salsa tomate, topped with 2 sunny eggs, salsa verde, avocado & goat cheese, with (buttered) Blackbird sourdough, home fries, and salad.
We started off on the patio at Grape Witches. They have a nice selection of natural wines by the glass, although curiously they don’t list the years or offer to tell you much about the wines unless you ask. We opted for two different flights of 3 wines each:
“Staycation”
“Head to Germany”
Then we had a whole glass of Apffel ‘Avant La Tempête’ Jacquère, Savoie, France - lots of malolactic yogourt.
The snacks are by Ellen Shrybman (Bar Piquette). We just sampled the in-house made options (there are also tins of seafood; charcuterie, cheese, and bread from elsewhere):
The Gilda - Cantabrian anchovy, olive, guindilla pepper - salty, spicy, and pungent.
Butter beans in a tasty tomato and dill sauce, topped with brioche crumb
Sweet heirloom tomatoes in a creamy tonnato sauce, with nori and crispy leeks.
A fine fingerling potato salad, enhanced with green garlic, dill, green beans, and topped with egg halves and white anchovy.
While all of the above was very enjoyable, we were in need of something more substantial, so we next settled into the streetside patio at Superpoint.
Our main mission was to order the beef cheek reginette, which had returned to the menu after a tragic absence. It did not disappoint, with tender and slightly gooey beef, tangy tomato sauce, and just done noodles.
To our dismay, they offered two other pastas that we wanted to try and we only had room for one, so we went with the casarecce with B.C clams, fresh and sweet yellow tomato, toasted breadcrumb, and a kick from some unmentioned chili.
Not done with wine, we had a glass of lightly chilled Val de Combres, La Lumiere 2022, Rhone - lots of blackcurrant, with some tannins.
Then we walked over to Death In Venice for dessert:
I’ve been enjoying Enoteca Sociale’s weekend brunch.
