IS THIS A restaurant with an identity crisis or is it an allpurpose eatery? These burning questions bring us to the latest outpost of Le Gourmand or LG3 as they call this Midtown location at Yonge and Eglinton.
The dinner menu does not overreach — charcuterie and cheese boards, pâté, cured ham and a few specialty salads make up the first section of the decadent menu. I read the cheese list and discuss the listing with the knowledgeable waitress only to learn it is the chef who makes the choices.
I opt for two and receive allegretto from Quebec and mimolette from France. My only stipulation is that, if one is hard, that the other be soft or semi-soft, but my request never made it to the kitchen. Both are rock hard and are cold ($10).
Grilled calamari does not appear to have actually met a grill, but the generous portion arrives sitting atop a delicious red and yellow tomato and olive salsa ($11).
The mains are where this restaurant really shines. There are three pizzas, priced from $9 to $13, but we keep on browsing until we hit the pastas. After all these years and all these carbs, we are hard to impress, but Sicilian gnocchi is noteworthy.
At first glance, we think the kitchen must have made an error as these guys look more like penne but are, indeed, light, toothsome gnocchi.
The large soup plate dwarfs the portion, but it is bottomless and stays steaming throughout the meal.
“CHEQUE PLEASE”
LG3
2177 Yonge St.
416-487-9900
Dinner for two excluding tax,
tip and alcohol:
$70
The sauce is succulent, slowbraised pulled oxtail in a tomato and vegetable ragu and is graced with lashings of excellent Parmesan. This dish pops with flavour ($16).
Crispy rock hen is proof that the most humble of ingredients can soar when handled with respect and a modicum of creativity.
Two breasts have been flattened and crisped without a hint of oil yet without any loss of moisture — always a challenge with white meat of any fowl.
A gentle bed of sliced fennel is a provocative counterpoint to the spicy and creamy chipotle mayo, which, in turn, is bliss for the flawless matchstick frites.
Caramelized onions are dense and sweet against a forest of peppery arugula. Two unadvertised Parmesan biscuits don’t really add much but do amuse. A simple and perfect entree for which I would be happy to return ($15).
This level of skill is undercut by serving thin slices of baguette that have obviously been cut hours earlier.
Dessert choices are limited.
Out of the corner of my eye, I espy a multicoloured pastry case, which is promising, but it turns out that all cakes are mousse based and rather uninteresting. In that light, the offer of beignets perks me right up.
Rarely seen in these parts, how a Toronto resto will interpret this famous New Orleans dish piques my interest. Eight small balls have been deep-fried and rolled in cinnamon — think Tiny Tom with a Cajun accent. Decadent and delicious ($6).
This part of the Yonge and Eglinton corridor needs a general appeal restaurant for shoppers, movie-goers and diners. Le Gourmand can be that place if the fine tuning is consistently applied. The room is small and welcoming while the passing parade is amusing — definitely worth a visit.
