My first summerlicious stop this year was dinner at Ganzi Osteria. I had heard great reviews on twitterverse about the restaurant and liked the options of their set menu. I do temper my expectations during summerlicious to account for a set menu, rushed service and sometimes pre-prepared plates, but I still believe the meal to be reflective of how the restaurant operates normally.

Atmosphere: Ganzi Osteria is situated inside a beautiful, red brick, mansion with a spacious paved patio surrounded by hedges. There is more space on the patio than inside the house itself. It was a warm day so we started out on the patio but had to move inside when it started to rain. The interior of the mansion was well preserved, doors had been removed to create a more open concept and marble tables were spread out. Dark woodwork and elaborate chandeliers mixed with bright contemporary artwork in each room.

Service: For the most part service was professional and efficient. When the skies began to darken outside, our server asked if we’d like to move inside. When we agreed, he went off to find us a table but we didn’t see him again before it started to rain. This left us scrambling to move our plates, wine and cutlery inside ourselves. It was a bit of a mad dash to not have a sopping wet steak. Had there been umbrellas outside or any kind of cover, I would’ve happily waited out the droplets, but as is, my dinner was getting wet. We were quickly settled at a table inside and once our server found us again, service returned to normal. The space is versatile and would be lovely for a private event, large group or romantic dinner.

Food: In general, while I liked all of my dishes, nothing stood out or wowed. For appetizers, I ordered the Grilled Scallops while my friend had the Leek and Potato soup. We were both expecting a creamy soup rather than broth based. The flavours were savoury and rich but I wasn’t sure if I liked the chunks of goat cheese, which overpowered the rest of the dish. My scallops were good, buttery and served with a splash of balsamic reduction.

I was trying to avoid carbs that day (needed to fit into a dress that weekend) so I went with the Steak Tagliata, cooked medium rare, for my main. The steak itself was cooked to my order and the portion size was very generous. I wasn’t a huge fan of the gravy and could’ve done without it. The roasted local vegetables were delicious, fresh and naturally sweet. My friend had the Tilapia Marinara and was also content with her dish. Both of us chose the tiramisu for dessert. The cake was just the right amount of coffee, chocolate and cream, topped with a fresh raspberry.

For the $25 price tag, dinner at Ganzi was a great deal. Looking at tables around us, if I hadn’t been avoiding carbs I would’ve ordered the pizza or penne dishes, both of which looked amazing. Clearly, I need to re-visit Ganzi when I can enjoy a big bowl of pasta.

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The organizers of Winterlicious are brilliant to hold the event in February. After a long winter in Toronto and a month after the holidays it’s easy to hibernate. 2014 especially has started with cold winter weather and personally I’m starting to count down to spring. So having a reason to get dressed up, leave the house and eat an amazing meal is a welcome light in the midst of dreary weather. I started this year’s Winterlicious adventures with a return visit to Starfish being enticed by their 3 course $35 oyster dinner.

Atmosphere: Large booths occupy one side of the restaurant across from the oyster bar and smaller tables for two fill the area between. I love the plentiful seating at the bar to watch the live shucking action. For a Monday night, I was surprised at how busy the restaurant was, even during Winterlicious. The noise level was lively but not loud and there wasn’t any background music to compete with. With the intimate lighting, I would highly recommend Starfish for a romantic date out.

Service: Walking into Starfish, I was greeted and brought to my table. The host offered to take my jacket but I was carrying too many things (lunch bag, purse, gloves, hat, etc) and flustered from running to the restaurant (because I’m always running “just 5 minutes” late) to get all my things in order to hand off. Once my friend arrived, water and bread was served while we looked over the menu. It was a busy night and after placing our order I was warned of a wait for the oyster meal, and it was quite the wait. My seafood platter didn’t arrive until my friend was basically done her entree. All three “courses” were shucked and arrived at once. I would’ve preferred if the appetizer oysters came out first but it was easier to dress all the oysters at once.

Food: I was there for the oysters but I was happy to share and I’m lucky all my friends have gotten used to sharing their meals as well. My friend ordered the haddock fish cakes, rainbow trout and sticky toffee pudding. While I waited for my meal, I snuck bites from her plates. I loved every component of the fish cake dish as evidenced by our very clean plate afterwards. The haddock was flakey, the roasted beets sweet, the sweet onion jam tangy and the perfect pickled green bean. I tasted a bite of the rainbow trout and almost wished I’d ordered that instead. The flesh was pink, moist and the skin was a beautiful crisp.

When the server arrived with our oysters, I was eager to dig in. I always taste one oyster undressed before adding lemon juice, seafood sauce and horseradish. Between the three types of oysters, my favourite were the Sawmill Bays. They were sweet, not too fleshy and were easily slurped in one try. Next, I enjoyed the Kumamotos followed by the Green Gables. The Kumamotos were the “dessert” oysters and I was expecting a sweeter taste, but they were actually very mild, needed a few bites and had a rich almost creamy flavour. The Green Gables were classic PEI flavour, salty and fresh. This was my first time trying out raw clams and they had the strongest seafood flavour of the night. They were much chewier than the oysters and musclely.

Our meal ended with a slice of The Sticky Toffee Pudding and oh my, it was a good piece of pudding. The cake itself was moist, warm and not overly sweet, perfect for soaking up the generous spread of toffee. I’m glad I don’t have access to this dessert on a daily basis because my dress pants are still snug from the holidays.