Every year, beginning with The Hub’s birthday in October, is what I fondly call “birthday season”, all the way up to the end of the year. Between October 1st and Dec 31st we celebrate 10 birthdays. This means we’re eating out quite a bit and it’s the perfect occasion to try out new hot spots or share our favourite restaurants in the city with our friends and family. Branca is one restaurant that The Hubs visited without me and has been raving about ever since. They are located fairly west in the city and a birthday dinner was an excellent reason for us to make the trek out, dragging one of our best friends along.

Atmosphere: Branca was a nondescript restaurant located in the Dundas West neighbourhood with a menu inspired by Argentinian cuisine. The 36 seat dining room was super cozy and intimate with dim lighting and plush benches. One wall was exposed brick, while the other three were decorated with a dark wallpaper of lush tropical foliage. It was a great spot for catching up and celebrating with a delicious bottle of wine and seriously mouth watering food.

Service: I truly enjoyed the service at Branca during our dinner. Our server was friendly and checked in on us without hovering, we felt well taken care of through every course. He also recommended an excellent wine for us based on our price range and the food we had ordered, so bonus points there. Each dish arrived with a brief introduction. Both the tomahawk steak and fire roasted short rib were served pre-sliced.

Food: Reading through the menu, we knew right away we were getting the 30 day dry aged bone-in ribeye. With 48 oz of steak as our main, the rest of our order was a matter of balancing between dishes we really wanted to try and not ordering too much food (my eyes are always larger than my stomach). For appetizers, we narrowed the choices down to just the Pulpo, grilled Spanish octopus with potato, lemon and pickled mustard seeds. The single leg was incredibly tender, easy to chew, and flavourful. Compared to similar restaurants, the price of the plate for the portion size was comparable. Stand alone, relative to other items on the menu, this was pricey at $22.

For sides, we chose Brussel Sprouts and Crispy Potato Strings. While the brussels sprouts were good, the potato strings were spectacular. There were essentially perfectly crispy, extra long fries seasoned with fresh herbs (and maybe butter?). We easily polished off the entire plate.

Our two mains were the Fire Roasted Beef Short Rib and the Tomahawk. Three condiments were served alongside, a housemade chimichurri, pasilla chili and tomato salsa. Mixing a bit of all three made a perfect sauce for the beef and could be tweaked as I ate. We needed a few refills on the chimichurri, which has become my go-to sauce for steak recently. The acidity was a perfect contrast to the fatty, rich, ribeye. This was one of the best steaks I’ve had in the city. I loved that everything from the charred bone to rendered gristle was served. Our table enjoyed every last bite and The Hubs cleaned up the bone. The main part of the ribeye was a pink medium rare, juicy and mouth watering. There was an excellent char on the outside that locked all of the flavour in. The short rib was buttery soft and had a great smoke flavour.

Overall, dinner at Branca was a great evening. Service was lovely and the menu would delight any true carnivore. The fries were also a must order, if you’re not convinced by me, how amazing they smell on the way to tables around you will.

I first visited Le Baratin back in June when the restaurant first opened and became a big fan of Chef Jean. Le Baratin’s menu was filled with dishes that were homey and comforting, but with all the sauces and flavours that teleported me to France. From their house-made gravlax to duck confit, I was blown away by the quality of food truly good value price point. When Fastvenues.com invited me to try out their service, which included a set menu at Le Baratin, I couldn’t refuse.

Disclaimer: All food and drinks reviewed below were provided complimentary. All opinions expressed below are wholly mine.

Fastvenues.com is a new online service in Toronto that connects diners with restaurants to make special occasions easy. From “just a night out” to a “working lunch”, users can choose from a variety of set menus created by restaurants specifically for the website and filter for amenities like “full bar”, “patio” or “rooftop”. If you’ve every tried to make a reservation for more than 10 people in Toronto, you know it’s incredibly difficult and involves making a lot of phone calls. Fastvenues simplifies the process a ton by laying out all the information needed to book a venue from menu to cost to capacity in a single place. Their selection of restaurants and set-menus are continuously growing and evolving. I also liked that the restaurants are the ones setting the menus and availability, which allows them to update as needed and over great deals for non-peak values. I booked a prestige dinner for two at Le Baratin ($45 + tax and tip), and the the value of the dishes ordering straight from the menu would’ve been $20 more expensive. Seriously, a great deal.

Now onto the food. With the $45 prestige menu at Le Baratin, my friend and I had our choice of two appetizers, a main and dessert from their full menu. I chose the Blue Cheese Salad while my friend had the Soup of the day. For our appetizers we made the easy decision to split the House Made Gravlax, one of my favourite dishes in the city, and the charcuterie plate. When the boards arrived, the aroma of freshly toasted bread was mesmerizing. My entree was the fish special of the day, which was Mussels with Frites and my friend had the Steak and Frites. The thin cut fries were crispy, seasoned with herbs and I could not stop eating them. My friend’s steak was cooked to a perfect medium rare, tender and juicy. I would’ve loved a loaf of bread to soak up the sauce of the mussels, even though there was already more than enough food for the two of us.

Dessert was a combination of sweet and savoury with a rich Chocolate Mousse and delectable Cheese Platter. Dinner at Le Baratin was a great night out, perfect for catching up with friends or a special occasion. To book Le Baratin’s set menu, which is exclusive to FastVenues.com, check out https://www.fastvenues.com/restaurants/le-baratin.

Le Baratin is a new French restaurant in the West end of town, that features a menu of bistro-style comfort dishes. Karen and I dropped by for dinner to check out the new menu and ended up spending 4 hours eating delicious food and sipping boozy drinks. Prior to dinner, I had expectations of escargot and foie gras, basically the only things I ate while in Paris last April, instead our tastebuds were treated to rich, savoury entrees and the best gravlax I’ve ever had.

Disclaimer: All food and drinks reviewed below were provided complimentary. All opinions expressed below are wholly mine.

Atmosphere: Le Baratin was a cozy restaurant with a slight rustic feel. I liked the wooden serving boards and the heavy mismatched China plates. Natural light flooded the restaurant from the large front windows. Diners were relaxed and many lingered over their meals as well (although not as long as we did). Chef Jean Regis Raynaud came by our table to chat about the menu, his inspiration and future plans. We also had the chance to tour his kitchen and get a behind the scenes look at how he preps. The fridge was filled with fresh produce and trays of house-made gravlax. On the stove, a giant pot of stock was reducing and had been for hours already. The heady aroma was intoxicating.

Food: To start our meal, we choose the Charcuterie board and Gravlax. On the board was pate, prosciutto, salami and the highlight, a ramekin of duck rillettes. I couldn’t get enough of the fatty, creamy rillettes, perfect for spreading on toast. Priced at $11, this platter alone was filling and would be suitable to be shared between two people. Our second appetizer, the Gravlax ($9) was thick cut, fatty, full of flavour and just amazing. I would highly recommend both dishes. If I had to choose between the two, the Gravlax won my heart.

At this point, I was already getting pretty full from just our appetizers, but the fragrance of our mains quickly whet my appetite again. We ordered the Confit de Canard (duck leg confit) and Souris d’Agneau Grand-Mere (5hr braised lamb shank with rosemary and red wine sauce). The lamb shank was incredibly tender, fell off the bone and the sauce was rich and well-balanced. The dish was again, a generous portion and very filling. I was amazed at how well priced the menu was, meat entrees ranged from $18 to $21.

The Duck Confit brought me right back to Paris. The duck leg had a perfect crispy skin, juicy, tender meat and again the sauce was delicious. Both dishes were incredibly satisfying.

After all this food, we still had a sliver of room left for dessert and ordered the Mousse au Chocolat and apple Tarte Tartin. Both desserts leaned heavy towards the sweet side. I would’ve liked a lighter option, but that was only because we had enjoyed so much delicious food already. I did prefer the chocolate mousse that had a strong chocolate flavour and was topped with an airy puff of whipped cream.

Overall, dinner at Le Baratin was a wonderful taste of France, much closer to home. Chef Raynaud’s enthusiasm and talent shined through with each dish. If this review hasn’t been clear yet, I would highly recommend the Gravlax.

Both The Hubby and I are big carnivores and enjoy game meat. When I heard about Antler, a new restaurant whose menu features local and seasonal ingredients with plenty of game, I started pitching the restaurant for every occasion. We ended up visiting during the holidays for a friend’s birthday and sat at the chef’s table with a front row view into the kitchen.

Atmosphere: Antler was a long and narrow restaurant, lively, dimly lit and cozy. My trio sat at the very back, in front of a window peering into the brightly lit, compact kitchen. I really enjoyed watching the constant of flow of work in the tiny space and how efficiently everyone moved around each other. There wasn’t a second of downtime feeding the full restaurant. For a Tuesday night, the room was packed. I overheard many diners raving about previous meals at the restaurant already. Considering Antler only opened at the end of October, it was clear they were quickly becoming a neighbourhood favourite.

Service: Being at the chef’s table meant we saw how all of the components of our dish came together, from the first smear of sauce to the final garnish. Each plate was served and introduced by the chef who prepared it, including executive Chef Michael Hunter. I really appreciated and enjoyed the personal touch. It was also the rare occasion where I was able to interact equally with front of house and back. We realized during our appetizers that our voices could be heard clearly, as we debated about the main ingredient in a sauce and was provided an answer by one of the chefs. The front of house server made sure we were comfortable and that we always had a drink in hand.

Food: Glancing through the menu, I was worried, everything looked good. I had to remind myself that 3 people could only eat so much, there was a physical limitation. To start, I narrowed my choices down to the Wild Boar Gyoza and Charcuterie board. Before our first dish arrived, we were treated to a generous complimentary bite of pate on a crostini with a blueberry compote. Really, really good and made me happy we chose the charcuterie, The plate of gyozas arrived with a sweet soy dipping sauce, crispy on the outside and filled with savoury, lean boar. Our charcuterie board was overflowing and built with three servings for each selection. Each of the cured meats had a strong flavour; the pate was creamy, rich and I also really liked the the crab apple mustard, which was sweet and tart.

For entrees, we opted to split three dishes, the Pappardelle with braised rabbit, Spice Ash Crusted Rack of Deer and Rib Eye with a sous vide duck egg. All three entrees were delicious and I still think about them today. My favourite though would have to the pappardelle. Thick sheets of pasta coated with a butter sauce and entwined with shreds of rabbit. Rabbit is a white meat and I’ve always found it much tastier and more flavourful than chicken. Antler’s rabbit was soft, moist and delectable.

Between the two red meats, I prefered the fatty ribeye over the lean deer. The crust on the lamb chop was dark, well seasoned and each slice was incredibly tender. The deer tasted gamey but wasn’t overwhelming. This was a beautiful piece of meat. For me though, the ribeye cooked to medium with truffle parmesan fries and a yolky egg was the winner. I just like the taste of fat.

Dinner ended with a Warm Chocolate Brownie with forage black walnuts, chocolate mousse and toasted meringue, not too sweet but rich and indulgent. Antler was the last restaurant I dined at in 2015 and it was one of the best. In 2016, I hope to be back for the Game Burger and more of that Pappardelle.

My favourite time to go out these days are Monday to Wednesday, avoiding the weekend rush and being able to take my time at a restaurant. It’s also easier to get a table at more popular venues. I met a friend at Enoteca Sociale on a Wednesday to catch up over wine and Italian food. Often listed as one of the best Italian restaurants in Toronto, I had high expectations.

Atmosphere: A visit to Enoteca starts at their beautiful front doors, wood burned with an intricate map of Rome. The interior was dimly lit, cozy and intimate with simple wooden furnishings. Even on a Wednesday night, the dining room started off full. Conversation levels were quiet and there was no background music to yell over. The restaurant felt elegant without being stuffy.

Service: We mainly interacted with the hostess and our server who were both friendly and attentive. Between the two, we were well taken care of. My friend and I drank at a different pace. When I was ready for my second glass, our server noticed and came by. Ten minutes later my friend finished her glass but our server was busy at another table. The hostess noticed us trying to get her attention and came by to help.

Food: As per usual, I ordered too much food. Luckily, we stuck around for a solid two hours, which gave us enough time to enjoy each dish at a steady pace. Even with a simple menu, I had a hard time narrowing down choices, everything sounded delicious. Our first appetizer was the salumi board that came with two cured meats, chicken liver mousse and a pork terrine. Portions of each selection was generous. I enjoyed the savoury liver mousse while my friend preferred the terrine.

Aracini’s were $4 a piece and a must-try. They’re basically deep fried balls of risotto and cheese. The interior was creamy and the exterior a perfect crispy crust. With a spoonful of the tomato nduja sauce, it was rich bite. For our mains, we split the Pork Belly, a plate of Bucatini and a side of Brussels Sprouts. I think I’ve found my new favourite pasta with bucatini. I loved the thick noodles and the texture at Enoteca was perfect. The simple tomato sauce was well seasoned with a hint of heat.

If you’re looking for a healthy side dish, the Brussels Sprouts might not be the best choice. While delicious, the vegetables were covered with fresh cheese and croutons. A soft boiled egg was also hidden under the cheese shavings, the best kind of surprise. At this point, i was pretty full and for me the Pork Belly was a heavy dish. Charred on the outside, the meat was still really fatty. There was lots of flavour, The polenta was creamy and the mustard seeds added a crunch to each bite.

Overall, my favourite dish at Enoteca Sociale was their pasta. While my high expectations weren’t 100% met, it was a close 90%.