Alobar Yorkville

162 Cumberland St,
Toronto, ON M5R 1A8
About the Restaurant

Alobar Yorkville, the restaurant by chef and famed restaurateur Patrick Kriss, is an oasis of elegance tucked into an alley off of Cumberland Street in Toronto. The small 75-seat restaurant is a setting that is part lounge, part dining room, part bar โ€” and all class.

This opening marks the third restaurant in a series headed up by Kriss, including the ever-popular Alo (consistently topping Canadaโ€™s Best 100 restaurants list), and Aloette (an elevated diner with a killer burger). This member is a casual addition; the diners show up in jeans, but the fare is as elevated as weโ€™ve come to expect from Alo.

โ€œIโ€™ve always wanted to do a restaurant that mirrors what the bar [at Alo] is doing, but in a larger format. I thought it was the perfect space, not too big, not too small and with a patio,โ€ says Kriss. โ€œI love that neighbourhood of Yorkville. Itโ€™s a great energy there with lots going on.โ€

This is the place you can nip in for a quick mid-afternoon snack, or spend several hours poring over the menu, discovering which cocktail perfectly compliments your king crab or which wines best wash down beef tartare.

โ€œWe started Alobar with a focus on wine and cocktails but, as the menu developed, we couldnโ€™t help but push for more menu options, and eventually that turned into fish and chops off a charcoal grill,โ€ Kriss explains.

As a result, there are trademark touches of Kriss' gastronomic mastery at work, with dishes like the ricotta ravioli topped with pine nut, spinach, maitake mushroom, the burrata topped with the truffle-hazelnut honey and pear; and Aloette's now-iconic wedge salad, with creamy avocado, parm, chive cream and wild rice.

Looking forward, Kriss says. โ€There will never be another Alo, thereโ€™s only one. We will probably do more fun, casual fun places that are value-driven.โ€