PaiGu

Quince is a modern bistro in midtown Toronto opened by a couple returning to the neighbourhood after a trip to Europe. It was nominated Best New Restaurant in 2007, so I took advantage of Summerlicious to try this place out.

The architectural design of the space is ingenious. The store-front is small and assuming, but the inside feels like walking into a cavern filled with light. There is even a spiral staircase that leads down to a bar/lounge in the basement for private parties.

The Moroccan spiced lamb “bricks” came in a spring roll, surprisingly. Light and golden on the outside, the lamb inside was well-balanced and tender. The harissa dressing was a sweet after-thought.

Confit of duck leg was sparkling in juices when it arrived. The duck on bean cassoulet tasted like home-cooking; down-to-earth, bold flavours surrounded tender duck meat cooked to perfection in a crispy skin.

House-made gnocchi was equally impressive, but when has house-made pasta ever gone wrong? (Don’t answer that.) The gnocchi was chewy, with light flavours from the green olive and oregano.

Dessert was Belgian dark and white chocolate terrine in raspberry coulis and caramel sauce. Sounds impressive, tastes just like ice cream. Not that I’m complaining.

Lemon, almond polenta cake was a disappointment. The cake was not fluffy or cake-y and the almond flavours were too subtle.

Their wine selection was surprisingly poor, and service was below-average¹.

Rating:

1. Although that may have been due to the fact that we were ordering from the Summerlicious menu (but we did order wine); nonetheless, that shouldn’t be an excuse for poor service. [↩]

Summerlicious is here! Summerlicious is here!
I have already made my list and check it twice, so there will be some reviews coming shortly.

When I am not frequenting Summerlicious restaurants, I will be eating my way through the local/organic food joints of the city. I also have a list of vegan restaurants that I am dying to try.

Finally, I am still on the lookout for the best brunch and best Thai in the city.

How will I fit all this eating into the next two months of summer? We’ll see!

One Up is a chic restaurant/lounge in the heart of the entertainment district. It’s categorized under “Italian/International,” but due to its attempt to be “po-mo” (post-modern), it is really just another resto-lounge with an Italian flair in its menu. The atmosphere is much like many other resto-lounges in downtown Toronto these days, with its sleek furniture and peculiar light fixtures and big glass windows and prominent bar. The actual lounge area is tucked away into a different room though, so you don’t have to worry about disturbances during your meal.
The waitress was very attentive and brought a round of drinks promptly soon after we’d sat down. The Baby Mix Greens were boring, even for a salad, and the Gazpacho (a soup, it turned out), was very strange, and we could not figure out what it was. The Penne Pesto was a delightful surprise of just enough taste, but not overdone and not too salty (like some pastas tend to be), with a healthy ratio of chicken breast to pasta. Unfortunately, the chicken breast was a bit burnt, but it still tasted good. The ravioli was rather saucy and cheesy, but enjoyable nonetheless. The best was the dessert – Ice Cream Truffle. Absolutely heavenly. And the Apple Strudel was surprisingly similar to the authentic bakery kind. All in all, a nice meal that was perfect in serving size, in a very pleasant ambience for relaxed conversation. It was a little on the expensive side though, but then again, this is an upper class restaurant.

Rating:

One Up
130 Dundas St. W.
Toronto, ON
(416) 340-6349