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From Italy with love & linguine

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counter culture
counter culture

FOR THE LAST 15 years, Nino Ciuffi has been travelling back and forth between Sorrento, Italy, and Toronto in an awe-inspiring, long-distance relationship. With a restaurant in a tourist district, Ciuffi says he closed the place down during the off-season. But all that is changing with the opening of his own Toronto restaurant, Sorrento, in the Yonge-Lawrence neighbourhood. “My wife is from here, and we met at my place while she was on vacation, and I’ve been back and forth for 15 years,” says Ciuffi. “I finally found a place that reminded me of the area I’m from.”

Formerly the location of 101 Ristorante, Ciuffi says he’s totally revamped the space, where he will offer traditional Neapolitan cuisine.

“It is very casual, homemade pastas and pizzas, tasting menu,” Ciuffi explains. “We’ll have a small menu, and we’ll make our specials daily.”

Sorrento Ristorante is located at 3265 Yonge St., 647-351-0761

Burger joint for one and all

For decades, Jody Ortved ran a successful chain of hamburger restaurants called Toby’s Good Eats. After the 12-store chain shut down in 1996, Ortved thought his time in the restaurant game was at an end. But after he noticed a dearth of family-style, dine-in burger joints, he got to business seeking out the perfect location for his comeback. And Bamburger was born.

Located in Davisville Village, the restaurant features, well, burgers: pork, turkey, beef, veggie. In addition, there is a slew of gourmet fixin’s as well as other options such as hot dogs, a club sandwich, grilled portabello mushroom sandwich and salads. The restaurant had a soft opening last month as they gear up for the busy summer season. “We live in the area, and we’ve been looking for a Yonge and Eglinton location for two years,” says Ortved. “We are different from the other burger places opening up, in that we are sitdown. People can stay a while. We wanted to appeal to everyone in the neighbourhood.”

Bamburger is located at 2112 Yonge St., 416-487-2420.

Have macaroon will travel

La Bamboche is doing a booming business at their tiny patisserie at 4 Manor Road in North Toronto. The locals are loving the culinary creations of pastry chef Stephen Nason that the owners decided to open a second location on Avenue Road this summer.

“We’ve actually been looking for a spot on Avenue for over a year,” says Michael Firanski, coowner of La Bamboche. “We’ve wanted to expand for quite some time.”

The new location will enable La Bamboche to offer new products and add more variety to their existing line, including the popular French macaroon.

“The macaroons have taken off like crazy,” says Firanski.

The location at 1712 Avenue Rd. should be open in July.

The Dean of Dooney’s back in the restaurant game

When legendary Annex eatery Dooney’s closed down after more than two decades in operation, it was the end of an era. But, Dooney’s owner Graziano Marchese still had the business in his blood, so he packed up his recipe book and moved a block away and to open another restaurant, Annex Live.

Daniel Laurent, acting manager at Annex Live, says the restaurant features Mediterranean cuisine, and although the focus is food and coffee, Annex Live also has live music — everything from rock to jazz and classical, even comedy.

According to Laurent, the 3,000-square-foot restaurant, formerly the Poor Alex Theatre, was completely redone over the past two years and includes a patio, and there are plans for further expansion. Even the Dooney’s locals have started to find their way to Annex Live.

“We’ve noticed an exodus,” says Laurent, who says there are a few Dooney’s specialties to be found on the Annex Live menu.

Annex Live is located at 296 Brunswick Ave., 416-929-3999.

No North Toronto diner finer

Tony Xavier already runs one of the busiest restaurants on the Yonge and Lawrence strip, Chega, but a hankering for some bacon and eggs prompted him to open his own diner, conveniently located a few doors north.

“The joke is that I have too much spare time,” says Xavier.

“But, seriously I just saw the need for this style of restaurant.”

Hazel’s Diner, opened in a converted jewellery store, is already going gangbusters only a week after opening.

“It is fantastic,” says Xavier. “We’re doing an average of 100 to 120 people every breakfast.” The restaurant is notable for its recession-friendly pricing, with 90 per cent of its menu at less than $10.

“It is a great time to open this type of restaurant,” says Xavier, who acknowledges a drop in business at the upscale Chega.

“There are a lot of kids and young families in the area, and we’ve geared the menu to them.”

Hazel’s Diner is open Monday to Saturday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., and on Sunday, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. It is located at 3401 Yonge St., 416-850-0121.

Anhalt brothers open up shop

Milagro’s new uptown location in the Yonge and Lawrence neighbourhood opened up for business last month in the former location of the restaurant Herbs. Arturo and Andrés Anhalt opened the first Milagro two years ago on Mercer Street in downtown Toronto, and it features one of the few authentic takes on fine Mexican cuisine in the city.

Milagro is located at 3187 Yonge St., 416-487-2855.

Scuttlebutt

Marc Thuet has renamed his King West restaurant Bite Me!. Now dubbed Conviction, the restaurant will reportedly employ 13 reformed ex-convicts in the kitchen and the front of the house.

“It’s not rocket science,” says Thuet, announcing the restaurant on his website (bitemerestaurant.com). “People with steady jobs and a steady income are less likely to wind up back in jail.”And, yes, it is for a reality TV show. Why not?

Spice Room & Chutney Bar in Yorkville’s Hazelton Lanes is without chef and co-owner Greg Couillard.

The self-taught chef with a bad-boy reputation is reportedly on sabbatical in a small Mexican town.

An insider’s guide to Little India

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daytripper sitara5
daytripper sitara5

I’M ON GERRARD street east in the heart of Little India, dazzled by the sights, sounds and smells of this vibrant east end shopping district.

Corner grocers offer ripe mangoes heaped next to traditional South Asian sweets; eye-catching window displays reveal the latest in stylish saris; and local restaurants tempt me with the mouthwatering aroma of spicy curries.

As I walk, I’m accompanied by the beats of popular Hindi songs echoing between the storefronts. My guide to all things Little India is Little Mosque on the Prairie’s Sitara Hewitt, who has offered to show me her favourite area haunts.

We meet at Lahore Tikka House (1365 Gerrard St. E.), famous for its Pakistani and North Indian cuisine, and settle in to talk about the neighbourhood, the upcoming fourth season of her hit CBC show and food, of course. “This place has the best Indian food,” she enthuses. “The butter chicken here is the most amazing dish in the world, and it comes on a sizzling frying pan — you just have to try it.”

The restaurant is decorated with swaths of fabrics draped on the walls, and lit with festive strands of lights that zigzag across the ceiling. Manager Rohit Verma says that the secret to the location’s continuing success is a diverse clientele, with customers from all over the city returning regularly for their signature lamb curry and kebabs.

“When we started it, it was just a 20-seat restaurant,” he says. “Now we’ve become so popular that we are opening a brand new restaurant building next door for 1,000 to 1,200 people.” As for Hewitt, she’s busy with preparations for Little Mosque’s new season and looking forward to reuniting with her onscreen family.

“It’s the best place to go back to work,” she says. “It seems to be one of those shows that just has a really good chemistry. There’s not one department that lacks. You go to work there and it’s like, ‘OK, this is my dream job.’”

She says that she is honoured to keep playing Dr. Rayyan Hamoud, the half Lebanese, half Canadian Muslim, feminist doctor character living in the fictional prairie town of Mercy. It’s a role that has had a positive impact on viewers and beena strong role model to women and young girls.

“I get a lot of fan mail from Muslim women saying, ‘Thank you for portraying this character,’ and a lot of girls saying, ‘Your character makes me feel that it’s okay to be me,’” she says. “It’s a really cool thing to be part of.” The first seed of this lively Toronto area was planted in the early 1970s, after entrepreneur Gian Naaz decided to convert the then-idle Eastwood Theatre into a go-to Indian film destination. The theatre took off, and soon people from across the province were lining up to watch Bollywood flicks at the revived venue. Today, the sixblock stretch between Coxwell and Greenwood Avenues houses more than 100 shops and restaurants, which sprang up to cater to the influx of movie-goers.

We walk east to Maharani Fashions (1417 Gerrard St. E.), a one-stop shop for saris, Punjabi suits and textiles while also being home to one of the best selections of costume jewellery on the street. I find an entire wall of glittering bangles in every colour of the rainbow, intricately beaded necklaces and delicate, bejewelled earrings.

“I used to come here to buy all my jewellery,” says Hewitt. “I’d bring my girlfriends and we’d all buy armfuls of bangles.”

For Hewitt, who moved to Toronto at 19 from small-town Ontario, visiting Little India at that time was a revelation. “I remember moving here from Elora where the only time I could get curry was if my mom cooked it or if we went to Pakistan,” she says. “And here — I’d never seen anything like it before — people were speaking Urdu and Hindi on the street and there was Bollywood music blasting everywhere.”

We move on to next door’s Maharani Emporium (technically also at 1417 Gerrard St. E.), a store packed to the rafters with giftware, garlands, religious items and vivid silk paintings. We weave between the shelves of carefully arranged statues, carvings and musical instruments, as Hewitt searches for the perfect incense burner.

“I love these,” she says as she leafs through a stack of bright posters depicting Hindu gods and goddesses. “The colours are just amazing.”

At local fashion house Nucreation (1414 Gerrard St. E.) we meet a troop of dozens of mannequins modelling elaborately embroidered silk wedding costumes and chic saris created by in-house designers. Shelves and tables of bright, bold fabrics in blues, oranges, reds and pinks line the outer walls.

We end our tour with a stop at Lahore Chaat and Paan House (1386 Gerrard St. E.), a cozy café that holds a special place in Hewitt’s heart as the first she ever visited in Little India. Inside, you can find a wide variety of savoury snacks like bhel poori (puffed rice with potatoes and tamarind sauce) and chaat papri (fried dough wafers with chick peas, chilis and yogourt).

“It’s run by this really lovely couple,” Hewitt says. “I got to practise my Urdu here for the first time with the wife, and my mom and I have a tradition of coming here for their Kashmiri tea.”

Though she now divides her time between Toronto and Los Angeles, Hewitt says she often returns to the area to visit her parents and the neighbourhood she fell in love with as a teen. “I felt like here I found a community a half a world away from it’s origin, and the culture is being celebrated every single day.”

Area resident behind musical mentorship program

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local hero
local hero

Every week for the past 23 years Bayview resident Dan Blachford has had a standing date with the Encore Symphonic Concert Band. Here, he donates his time and talent playing clarinet with the non-profit organization of retired musicians who mentor young music students and raise money through their concerts for local churches, hospitals and charitable organizations.

But don’t call this 91-year-old retired teacher a “hero.” “I want to stay away from what they call ‘the limelight,’” Blachford says humbly. “The hero here is our whole band and our conductor, John Liddle.”

Started in 1986 by a group of Toronto Musicians’ Association members, Encore is a traditional concert band with woodwinds, brass, percussion and string bass.

Today the band has approximately 55 members, and around 35 turn out regularly for their weekly practice. Though Blachford prefers to remain behind the scenes, his passion for music making is clear. He has been with Encore since its inception and is now the oldest member of the diverse group of players, who boast an average age of 74.

“I was there from the beginning, and I am the eldest by about two years,” says Blachford. “We sounded pretty awful in the beginning, when it was just a collection of happy guys. But as the word got around, we had some very talented people come our way.”

Blachford says that over the years the band has played dozens of fundraising concerts for local charities as well as four tribute concerts to honour Canadian music personalities Howard Cable, Johnny Cowell, Bobby Herriot and Ed Graf.

“In all those years we’ve played, we’ve never really had a bad concert,” says Blachford. “We play a whole range of music, and we’re good with jazz — what they call the big band jazz. We’re very happy doing it, and our main reason for playing is just to have fun and entertain our audiences.”

With no signs of slowing down, Blachford says the band is open to invitations to play at local community events, and as each year passes, he relishes the opportunity to continue making music and spending time with his talented bandmates.

“My best friends really are in this group, and there’s not a sourpuss in the bunch,” he says. “I know it will go on long after I’m gone. They say nothing is forever, but it’s going to go on. It’s wonderful, absolutely.
 

The Post salutes Dan Blachford and all the Encore band members for making a difference in the lives of local students.

Catch of the day

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shrimp
shrimp

In the summer, I love to get away from my oven and out to the barbecue, but lately, we’ve been reading about the dangers of a diet containing excess meat. Some studies show a link between eating a high meat-based diet and chronic diseases such as obesity, diabetes, high cholesterol, heart disease and certain cancers. With that in mind, summer is the perfect time to introduce more fish into your diet. It’s low in calories and cholesterol, and fattier fish contain omega-3 fatty acids that improve our cardiovascular health by controlling cholesterol and reducing blood pressure. Fish is also a good source of protein and vitamins. Here, some great finned grill options.

Haddock with Bell Pepper Sauce

Salmon & Avocado Salsa

Pesto Shrimp Kabobs

Rose’s tip: Keep the seas sustainable

Fishing practices worldwide are damaging our oceans, depleting fish populations, destroying habitats and polluting the water. Informed consumers can help put a stop to this situation and restore the environment by choosing sustainable seafood. Seafood that is sustainable comes from fishing and farming practices that can continue to exist without compromising species’ survival or the health of the surrounding ecosystem. You can go to www.seachoice.org to get your guide for sustainable fish choices. It will provide you with best picks, good alternatives and lists of fish to avoid.

Post City Magazines’ culinary columnist, Rose Reisman, is author of 17 cookbooks, a TV and radio personality and a health and wellness expert. Visit Rose at www.rosereisman.com.

Yannick Bisson

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Alana Alvarez
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yannick bisson sm
yannick bisson sm

MR. HUGLY, YANNICK BISSON’S junior high school shop teacher, has a lot to answer for. A quarter century after the elder criticized the younger’s substandard homemade candlestick holder for its fire-hazardous properties, this former Bayview resident is lighting up screens big and small in a life that’s benefited tremendously from appreciating the importance of first laying out a plan.

“If you’d taken this home and put a candle in it, your house would be on fire,” Mr. Hugly told his young scholar of a project design that failed completely to take into account the device’s eventual purpose. “I learned from that,” Bisson says, “in a big- picture kind of way.”

Today, the big picture for Yannick Bisson, who meets me this day in a bookstore coffee shop, is huge. He has a regular gig as the title character on Murdoch Mysteries, a detective drama that has just been green- lighted for its third season on Citytv. He is the national spokesperson for the CIBC, an assignment that sees him spending several days a month shooting commercials, recording voice-overs and posing for advertising materials. And he has a lead role on a soon-to-shoot Kevin Spacey biopic about disgraced former American lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

There are other projects, too, including some of his making as the actor ventures increasingly into the world of film and television development. “That’s been a lot of fun over the past few years,” says Bisson, who undertakes these projects in the close company of his wife of 19 years, Chantal Craig. “We’ve been writing, developing, producing. That’s where I really see us getting a lot of artistic satisfaction.”

But in the beginning, there was only a dream. And an uncanny sense of prescience.

“I always knew that I would have the time to raise a family the way I wanted to, that I would have action and adventure in my life and that I would come into my own at around 40.”

Today, 40 is less than a week away — and for this positive- thinking actor, the news couldn’t be better. “I always pictured myself being successful as an actor and playing the parts — doctors, lawyers, detectives — that an actor the age of 40 would play.”

It’s an irony, really, this fixation with age, considering how fresh-faced Bisson looks with his perfect smile and tanned, handsome features. “I guess it’s because I had my kids so young,” he says and shrugs. That he did suits his 20-year-old daughter, Brianna, just fine. “He’s still young and so much fun,” she says of her dad. Last year, she and her father went halves on an Xbox, and many’s the night since the pair has worn out the hours playing Halo 3 in the basement.

“Most people I know wouldn’t do that with their dads,” she says. “He’s just cool. I have so many friends whose parents are older, and they can’t relate to each other.”

In addition to Brianna, who is in her second year studying English and history at York University, Bisson has two other daughters, Dominique, 18, and Mikaela, 12. The lot of them settled in Bayview in 1998 when Bisson, a native Montrealer who spent his childhood moving for his father’s bridge-making job, decided it was important that his kids have a home base in a city they share with family members.

The choice has been tricky to see through at times. The move from Los Angeles back again to Toronto (he settled for a second time in the Bayview area and spent two years there before taking off for East York) coincided with Bisson’s signing of a new show, Nothing Too Good for a Cowboy, which shot in Vancouver. For almost two years, Bisson commuted back and forth across the country. “That was hard,” he says.

Easier was his summoning of childhood memories from his first experiences in Bayview. Fresh from the wilds of Tampa Bay, Florida, the teenage Bisson landed in Willowdale in the middle of winter. He remembers marvelling at the melting pot that is Toronto, and the way kids from different backgrounds blended so well. But he remembers the cold most of all.

He played football in freezing temperatures on Baycrest Field, with the North York Minor Football Association (“It was really painful”), and rode his bicycle around the Seneca College campus and from his house to the Peanut Plaza. As a kid, Bisson remembers, the geography of his surroundings was incredibly spaced out. “You’d travel along Steeles and between intersections it seemed like miles and miles. You’d be riding your bike, and it would seem to take days to get to your friend’s house.”

He remembers, too, another teacher who was instrumental in helping to mould the person he would become. Mrs. Daniels was the theatre arts teacher from Highland Junior High and a contemporary of Mr. Hugly. It was in her class that the young Bisson enjoyed his first exposure to the world of dramatic arts. “She taught us so much,” he says. “She was a real no- nonsense lady and she created a great atmosphere for young, emerging artists.”

It was during this time that Bisson began his professional acting career. His first big break was in CBC Television’s critically acclaimed 1984 movie of the week Hockey Night, with Megan Follows and Rick Moranis.

Bisson prides himself on working hard as an actor, and for never taking the easy routes. He feels it’s important to stay on top of what everyone else is doing on set and so doesn’t stop when he’s nailed the expectations a particular project has of him.

“A lot of actors show up and know what they need to do really well but have no idea what’s going on on set or around them,” he says. “That slows things up. There’s a lot more to being an actor than withdrawing into your shell and becoming the right character for a week. You’ve got to be awake and participating in the process technically.”

Springing up from Bayview Village’s bookstore cafe, which has played host to our conversation, to head for the parking lot and home, Bisson stops in his tracks to review a shiny hardcover. Decks, it’s called. “I’m really into this stuff these days,” he says, his fingers stroking the book’s smooth cover. “I’m building another one.”

That he’s doing so under the strict guidance of a plan is reassuring. Mr. Hugly would be proud.

TORONTO'S DESIGN DIVA

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sarahs world
sarahs world

THE POLICE OFFICER approaching in the rearview mirror does not appear amused. Sarah Richardson and crew have been filming on a country road some undisclosed number of miles north of Toronto, and apparently driving on the wrong side of the road with a camera strapped to the hood of the car isn’t in keeping with the local rules and regulations.

Just as the siren starts to blare, Richardson pulls over, hops out and bounds toward the officer. Since standard procedure just about anywhere in the world is for the offending driver to stay in the vehicle with two hands visible, the officer might be justified in pulling his weapon. But celebrity has its benefits. "Sarah!" the man in uniform exclaims. "Can I take a picture? My wife is a big fan!"

She’s not the only one. If workload is a reliable gauge, Richardson, 37, is among the most popular of the many interior designers plying their trade on TV. Sarah’s Cottage, which played all through May, was Richardson’s fifth television series. Room Service, design inc., Sarah’s House and Sarah’s House 2 came before that, and she’s already in talks for a sixth series. Richardson also writes a frequent column for the Globe’s Style section, co-owns her production company and designs furniture under her eponymous brand.

When she’s not exciting the rural police force, Richardson is at home in her midtown neighbourhood with her husband and two girls. "I love the trees, I love the quiet of the neighbourhood," she says. "There’s lots of weekends where I park my car on Friday after work and don’t get back in it until the next Monday."

As a business owner, Richardson appreciates the extent to which local independent businesses rely on the neighbourhood to stay afloat, especially given the tumult of the current economic climate. She makes an effort to shop at Midtown shops whenever possible.

Richardson’s own business fortunes might appear similarly tenuous. Among the various home makeover shows, from Trading Spaces to Extreme Home Makeover and While You Were Out, hers is the most vanilla in concept: She overhauls a house, room by room, then sells it. That’s about it. No swapping homes with wacky neighbours, no hurried revamping while the spouse is out golfing, no arbitrary dollar limit.

That she has now completed 220 episodes over nine years ("That’s a lot of paint, I gotta tell you," she says) speaks to the force of personality at the heart of the enterprise.

Indeed, there’s no mistaking who’s in charge here: on just about every product and operation she’s got. But she’s fully aware of the risks of making her business and identity one and the same. "My name’s on the door, it’s my show, it’s my reputation on the line, and I’m also a co-owner of the production, so the stakes are pretty high," she says.

A pretty big gamble for someone who isn’t even formally trained as an interior designer. But then again, in a way she’s been prepping for the biz her entire life. As a kid growing up in Toronto, whenever she was sent to her room (which wasn’t that often, she points out), "I would just rearrange my furniture," she says.

After graduating from Havergal College, those instincts led her to the University of Western Ontario where she received a BA in visual art, with a focus on studio art and history of art.

As luck would have it, after graduation, Richardson received a call from a university acquaintance asking if Richardson would work as a prop stylist on her show. The reason? "[She] remembered that I always had really nice apartments in university and enjoyed throwing dinner parties and making my apartment nice more than I enjoyed school work," says Richardson.

The job gave her the behindthe- scenes knowledge that’s so vital to her job today, she says.

Not long after, National Post columnist and childhood friend Amoryn Engel, who was working as a segment producer for a design show called Real Life on the Life Network, came calling with a desperate request. She needed an engaging, energetic personality to lead a craft design segment. Richardson had never been on camera, but Engel had a feeling she’d do just fine.

"When I used to book talent at ABC News, they used to ask, ‘Is the person a 10-talker?’ And if they weren’t a 10-talker, they didn’t want them," recalls Engel. "Sarah was a 10-talker. And here in Canada we don’t have many of those."

Richardson nailed her segment, says Engel. "I remember [the producer] was like, ‘Wow. That girl is going to go places. She was amazing,’" she says. "We had never had a guest on like her. So from there, she became a regular, and we kept telling her, ‘You should be doing this with your life. You are amazing. You should have your own show.’"

And so in 2000, Room Service was born. Of the original design assistants from that show (most of whom are still with Richardson), the colourful and snappydressing Tommy Smythe is probably the most recognizable. Smythe serves as Richardson’s onscreen muse and creative counterpoint, and while the two bicker and cajole for the cameras, they share a very close relationship when the cameras are off.

In fact, when we catch up with Richardson over the phone, she’s in the car with her trusty sidekick, on the way back to Toronto. Just as Richardson is about to launch into a description of her husband, the charmingly fey Smythe, 38, chimes in: "Two husbands!"

"Yes, I have two husbands," says Richardson with a laugh. "Alexander is evenings and weekends; Tommy is days."

For the record, Alexander (her real husband) runs a marketing agency in the same building as Richardson’s HQ at Queen and Jarvis. His firm is on the second floor, hers on the first. The arrangement makes work very much an extension of home — and all that that brings. A few weeks back, for instance, Richardson told Smythe she wanted to discuss the details of a project, so she led him outside so they could chat while she Windexed the front door. "That’s just her," says Smythe. "She is certainly not above doing everything and anything she would ask somebody else to do," he says.

Which is important because, by the sounds of things, there’s lots of work to be done. The current project, Sarah’s House 3, has Richardson and team fully occupied renovating and restoring a rural Ontario century home — though not without their run-ins with the long (and shameless) arm of the law.

Toronto’s Italian ice capades

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NYCUwinnerJuly
NYCUwinnerJuly

1ST PLACE
PRIMO

IL GELATIERE, 647A Mt. Pleasant Rd., 416-488-2663
Chef Capra’s ruddy, expressive face is almost as well-known as his stylized whiskers, but the moment he tastes this masterpiece from il gelatiere, he turns suddenly grave. “Oh,” he utters. Pause. “That tastes good.” Recovered, he gushes about the roasted pistachio flavour, perfect density and subtle sweetness. “This says, ‘I am a pistachio,’” declares Capra. “A very good ice cream — and I don’t much care for pistachios.” Now that’s praise. Flavour: Pistachio, $3.81
 

SECONDI PLACE


Novecento, 1228 St. Clair Ave. W.
“When you finish, you don’t feel the milkiness, you taste the chocolate, and it carries over,” says Capra. Ferrero Rocher–inspired mixture makes for one happy taste-tester. Donatella, $4.34
 

GOURD & PLENTY


Gelato Fresco, 60 Tycos Dr.
“It tastes like fall, absolute October,” says Capra of this pumpkin-flavoured delight. “I’m at a pumpkin festival right now.” The “beautiful butterscotch colour” earns high praise, too. Pumpkin, $5 for 500ml
 

BURIED PLEASURE


La Paloma, 1357 St. Clair Ave. W.
“This is a complete kids’ treat. There’s just so much stuff in it,” he says of the chunks of chocolate and nuts hidden within. In all, maybe a touch too sweet for an adult palate. Rocher Caterina, $4
 

MINOR AIR-OR


Hollywood Gelato, 1640 Bayview Ave.
“This one’s moussey, with a lot of air in it,” says Capra. “It definitely says summer.” Still, Capra’s not sure how the nuts fit into the dish. Good, not great. Hazelnut, $3.75
 

Guru at the grill

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bamburger
bamburger

THE UPSCALE BURGER joint is nothing new. But besides a well-used concept, Bamburger — which opened mid-May — has much to brag of: a stylish room, a first-rate wait staff and a kitchen of grilling gurus.

Horizontal pine planks along walls, exposed brick and bunches of dried grasses on ledges contribute a down-to-earth feel to the long, thin room that ends at a semi-open kitchen at the back.

Salads serve two purposes: as appetizers and as main course alternatives to burgers. From Caesar to Cobb to Thai tango salad (with lettuces, vegetables, mango and crispy noodles in peanut dressing), there’s something for every palate.

Spinach salad ($8.95) rings in at more than most burgers, but after a few crunchy mouthfuls, the reason becomes clear. A cornucopia of ingredients jostle for space in the shallow bowl, translating into a different taste with each bite.

But why digress on first courses when we’re all here for the burgers? Six variations to choose from: Bamburger, veggie, turkey, pork, chicken breast and bambamburger. Crisp lettuce and tomato plus thin rings of raw purple onion top the patties sandwiched by fresh, moist white or whole wheat buns.


“CHEQUE PLEASE”
BAMBURGER
2112 Yonge St.
416-487-2420
Dinner for two excluding tax,
tip and alcohol:
$30

 

Patrons customize creations by adding extra toppings from four categories (25 in all). Classic toppings such as pickles and hot banana peppers plus international flavours such as tzatziki and sauerkraut compete for attention with gourmet fixings like cranberry-apple sauce.

Expert charbroiling makes magnificent a one-third pound beef Bamburger ($7.95). This is a meaty beast, unspoiled by filler ingredients with less flavour. Two strips of maple bacon contribute sweet and salt, and buttery sliced button mushrooms add earthiness. Cheddar cheese sauce is just so-so, congealing just minutes after arrival.

Pork burger ($7.95) brings an equally delectable patty of lean, ground pork, also charbroiled and therefore moist. The taste, as would be expected, is milder than the beef and pairs well with the likes of provolone and sautéd onions.

Would you like fries with that? Absolutely! Or round out your burger with great (albeit storebought) grease-free onion rings, thin-cut sweet potato fries (perfectly prepared but a small portion), greens or Caesar salad for an extra buck.

We’ve heard rave reviews about Bamana pudding ($2.95), and yet we are still impressed: a deep bowl of cream-heavy custard suspending sweet sautéd banana slices over soft wafer. A phhhhhst of homemade whipped cream tops the retro, comfort food treat.

The service is bang on. Our waitress appeared when needed. Her comments about the menu enhanced our enjoyment, her easy friendliness felt genuine.

Ratings are on a scale of one to five stars

Lining up for grill heaven

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copacabana
copacabana

NOT MUCH HAS changed in decor or format since this address’s last venture as Piatti, an all-you-can-eat Italian spot. CopaCabana’s visual elements remain funky, comfortable and airy, and an identical ordering system using table cards lets the hungry control when and how much they want to eat.

The differences lie in the details and in the execution of service —and of course in trading Italian classics for grilled Brazilian meats.

High ceilings, marble detailing, open bar with eyecatching teal blue backsplash, stunning chestnut-coloured hardwood floors with inlay, mirrors, white padded leather wall panels and relaxing chairs pulled up to wooden tables give the room a modern feel.

A continuous stream of passadores dressed in black carry sharp knives and various spits of sizzling meats from the kitchen (a dining style known as churrascaria de rodizio) offering slabs and slices to every table displaying their Fire It Up! card.

This unlimited approach contrasts with our regular server who, although friendly, is hardly ever available. Meats are CopaCabana’s forte (mostly imported from the U.S.), and if you’re a hard-core carnivore, this place might be for you. As many as 19 different cuts are available for weekend dinner.

Best of the bunch tasted is buttermilk top sirloin, savoury and impossibly tender and just plain wonderful. Other top-notch slabs sampled include boneless beef ribs, picanha Brasil and soysalty rib-eye.

Organic chicken thigh and boneless leg of lamb both disappoint, the first being dry and hard around the edges, the second torched to well past medium. Although we never had the opportunity to sample the likes of turkey wrapped in bacon and suckling pig, among others, our experience hints that the kitchen does best with red meats. Bowls and plates of cold salads, charcuterie and grilled vegetables, such as eggplant, line the all-you-can-eat harvest table.

 

“CHEQUE PLEASE”
COPACABANA
150 Eglinton Ave. E.
416-916-2099
Dinner for two excluding tax,
tip and alcohol:
$75

Dapplers dip into such salads as beet, carrot, cucumber, tomato-onion-feta, tuna and cold pasta.

Potato salad brags of blemish-free bite-sized morsels with skins on, but the starchy mound gets mushy in its deep pool of oily butter. Better is whole mushroom salad with marinated buttons cooked to a T.

Next in line: three pastas posing in pans over hot plates overflow with colourful bow-tie noodles in tomato sauce, fettuccini in cream sauce and tricolour rotini in pesto with green peppers.

Flavours are straightforward and simple and toothsome, but too much inactivity in open air has rendered them cool and sticky.

Interesting breads wrapped under cloth napkins strive to stay fresh. Bowls of salsa cruda, olives and pickles; hot plates of rice and dark refried beans; plus condiments, such as horseradish and Parmesan, round out the offering. 

Ratings are on a scale of one to five stars

A place for friends and food

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vero
vero

ON DAY THREE of its existence, Vero Trattoria on Bayview Avenue is packed by 6:30, and people are still lining up at 9:30 on a Wednesday evening. Even more peek in and keep walking, deterred by the lineup. This in a location that has put the final nail in many a restaurant’s coffin. Why?

Much of the credit must go to owner Joe Bonavota, the directing hand at Bar Italia on College Street. I arrive cranky having been assured that reservations are unnecessary, only to be greeted by a lineup.

However, before I can start whining, a hot piece of aromatic bruschetta is in my mouth. Somehow, throughout the next three hours, Joe manages to keep the line moving, tables turning, and everyone is happy. Even though Vero has just opened, the staff is slick and experienced, and nothing is overlooked.

The room is sleek and simple but punctuated by glittering chandeliers.

Vero is promoted as a home of regional Italian cooking, but other than grilled sardines and stuffed figs, there is little that is novel here. The promised bronzini is, tonight, swordfish. Other than veal dishes and one or two specials, it is all about antipasti, pizza and pasta — fine by me.

As we are choosing, we nosh on warm rosemary focaccia with an artichoke-parmesan spread.

Sarde alla griglia ($9) offers up two grilled sardines, stuffed with fresh herbs, swimming in a sea of lemon. The first mouthful packs a wallop, but by the last bite, I regret having shared it.

Melanzane alla parmigiana ($10) is that old favourite eggplant parmigiana, but oh what a difference a few decades makes. Memories of brick-heavy concoctions fade as we lose ourselves in layers of lightly panfried eggplant topped with a zesty tomato sauce and graced by a blend of grated mozzarella and grano padano cheeses.

 
 

“CHEQUE PLEASE”
VERO TRATTORIA
1580 Bayview Ave.
416-322-8376
Dinner for two excluding tax,
tip and alcohol:
$70

Since my pal is doing the pasta thing, and the pizzas at the neighbouring table would feed a small family, I opt for vitello saltimbocca ($22): veal, prosciutto and sage in veal jus served with gnocchi and vegetables. As soon as the plate is set before me, I remember why I rarely eat scallopini — the paper-thin semi-porous meat is devoid of any taste and entirely dependent upon the sauce that blankets it. Here, the jus just isn’t muscular enough, and the result is bland. On the other hand, those gnocchi are ethereal and a mere half dozen is a tease.

Pappardelle all Bolognese ($15) sees flat egg noodles in a meat ragu. The sauce is plentiful with lean meat and tomatoes but could use a bolder hand with spicing. The wine list offers a treat. Rarely do I find Amarone by the glass, and even though this one is a bit rough, it is rich and luscious on my tongue. A plentiful list of wallet-friendly Italian labels is well-suited to this menu.

The last half hour of dinner highlights what is special about Vero. We begin chatting with Chris and Chris at the next table who insist that we share their second bottle of Chianti. Is this really Toronto?

Only two desserts on offer: tiramisù and praline semifreddo, both at $7. The former is overdone but the latter offers some novelty. Essentially it’s a frozen mousse that is custard based; shortcuts are often taken by using gelato as a base. Tonight, the concoction, layered with praline and topped by meringue, is the perfect foil for the strong tastes of the first two courses.

Vero is the kind of eatery that we all hope will open on our block: casual with high energy, good food with gentle prices, and the kind of place where Chris and Chris will offer you some wine.

Ratings are on a scale of one to five stars

How sweet it is

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countershoomshoom
countershoomshoom

HIGH RESTAURANT TURNOVER may have plagued this address in the past, but Shoom Shoom’s extraordinary service and a bangfor- your-buck modern Middle Eastern menu make this venture viable. The lineup that starts from just inside the door and overflows into the mall’s hallway is a case in point. A very calm and collected hostess juggles the masses. Sunshine permeates the wall of windows along one side, echoed by the brightly lit open kitchen across the room. The decorative theme is neutral — walls, tables, chairs and fabrics a mishmash of light browns, taupes and creams.

Shoom Shoom is the brainchild of the same folks who brought us popular Mashu Mashu in Forest Hill Village. The word shoom translates from Hebrew as “garlic.” And after scanning the lists of homemade soups, hummus, combo plates, hot appetizers, salads and fish and meaty mains, it’s clear that the clove reigns supreme.

Those with a hankering for a taste of this and that should choose four cold items from a list of nine in the combo platter appetizer ($13.99). Soaring above the others is matbouh: slowcooked tomatoes, almost preservelike, with diced green peppers, paprika and garlic. Fantabulous.

Hummus comes in a close second. Dense with tahini and olivey with oil, it’s also seasoned with paprika. Whole wheat and white pitas get put to good use. Tabbouleh has lots to offer in the flavour department: parsley, bulgar, tomatoes, cucumbers, red onion, coriander and mint. Sadly, too much parsley renders the assembly dry and unscoopable.

An assortment of perfect-forplucking pickled vegetables tides over heavyweight hungers. Garlic shrimp ($7.99) sizzles in its own frying pan on a wooden hot plate. Just five of these beauties swim in the hot tub of real lemon juice, olive oil, butter and garlic, but they’re fresh and delicious.

Nine salads cover such ground as arugula mushroom; Caesar; Greek; fig and walnut; and Middle Eastern with tomatoes, red peppers, cucumbers, parsley, red onion in olive oil and lemon juice. A balsamic vinaigrette bulky with basil dresses Shoom Shoom salad, with mixed greens, popping cherry tomatoes, soft pine nuts, excellent roasted red peppers and crumbled, not-tootart goat cheese.
 


“CHEQUE PLEASE”
SHOOM SHOOM
7355 Bayview Ave.
905-731-8200
Dinner for two excluding tax,
tip and alcohol:
$65

The house salad also deserves bragging rights for its fresh mixed greens, romaine, crunchy cucumbers, tomatoes and carrots. A perfect amount of house vinaigrette brings it all together.

Two strapping beef tenderloin shish kebabs ($17.99) are as tender as can be, grilled at high heat to sear in juices. Slivers of raw purple onion and chopped parsley garnish the pair, giving the plate crunch and colour. A slightly ridiculous portion of immaculately cooked white rice fills the rest of the rectangular plate, sprinkled with roasted almond slivers and red sumac spice (fruity, astringent and similar to lemon).

Purple onion slivers also dress up sectioned rack of lamb ($24.99). Each of the five parsleypeppered pieces is tender, prepared rare (as requested) and flavourful. A generous mound of sweet potato fries crave heavier seasoning, but they’re well timed and joyously oil-free.

Our friendly waiter pulled out all the stops, making thoughtful recommendations for wines and courses, taking into consideration plates already selected. A great meal, our only criticism would be that, after asking to take home leftovers, we were brought empty containers and a plastic bag, leaving us to scrape our own plates.

Ratings are on a scale of one to five stars

Nacho, nacho man

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NYCU 200906 TravisSniderWinner
NYCU 200906 TravisSniderWinner

1ST PLACE
COVERS ALL THE BASES

CAM’S PLACE, 2655 Yonge St., 416-488-3976
“I’m a big meat and cheese guy,” explains Snider, after devouring a gooey chipful. So this concoction from Cam’s Place, with its ample portions of succulent beef and shredded Monterey Jack, is easily Snider’s top pick. He finds the lip-licking, garlicky flavour “good…mmm…really good”; the peppers spicy, but not fiery; and the chips light and crisp. The colourful presentation impresses, too: “Nice garnishing,” he says. In all, a sure bet for a post-game snack. Price: $11
 

FIRST RUNNER-UP

Rose & Crown, 2335 Yonge St.
“I’m a pretty messy eater, so I try to keep my hands clean if I can,” says Snider. “Otherwise it’ll end up on my shirt.” This tidy plate’s jalapenos, toasted chips and fresh veggies are a big hit. Price: $9.95
 

BLUE CHIP CONTENDER

Madison Avenue Pub, 14 Madison Ave.
The coloured chips are a new and welcome addition; the fresh, lively salsa earns high marks; and jalapenos are a plus, but overall the dish is just average. Olives aren’t his fave, either. Price: $12.99
 

MUSHROOM MISHAP

Bishop and the Belcher, 175 Bloor St. E.
Beef and chicken — don’t they clash? “Meats don’t clash,” states Snider. Still, double protein and A-plus cheesiness can’t make up for the presence of mushrooms (not a fan). Price: $10.95
 

POST PICKS — 905’S BEST SOLID CONTACT

Britannia Pub & Grill, 7359 Yonge St.
You’ve heard of a chilli dog, right? These nachos are along the same lines. Along with fresh tomato, onions, jalapenos and cheese, the plate also comes with a sizable dollop of chilli. Price: $9.25
 

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