In the heart of the bustling Beach neighbourhood, Neruda is spreading Latin, Middle Eastern and Mediterranean flavours over the world’s longest open flame. Executive chef Romain Avril behind the city’s La Societé and Lavelle, aimed for the skies when constructing the inside of this restaurant. With one of Canada’s biggest dry-age room and a capacity of 400 guests, this fine dining establishment is a place poet and namesake Pablo Neruda would be proud of. The space is illuminated with soft lavender lighting and natural light from its floor-to-ceiling windows that look out onto the Toronto waterfront. The steak house setting encourages you to try something off the grill: maybe the heritage breed pork chop or the rack of lamb with chimichurri. Of course the 36-ounce T-bone ($148) is the real star, served with herbed confit potatoes and flaked salt. Make sure to save room for dessert because the tropical tart ($11) is just as delicious as it is beautiful.
