Its dark, sleek, purple, black, and pack with Toronto’s “in” crowd. This is one of those restaurants where the atmosphere/ambiance greatly outweighs the food. Of course the environment around you does play a part while you’re eating your food, but it shouldn’t outshine the food. I started out with a cocktail in the lounge area where I waited for my table, sinking into the couch, I could barely place my drink on the ultra low table in front of me. The hostess came over and walked me to my private table in the back, I’m joined by three others. I open the menu and let out a big sigh, 40 dishes to choose from. There is no doubt that Chef Claudio Aprile knows his gastronomy, quite frankly one could say he pioneered it in Toronto; my point is he over complicates his dishes, not everyone knows what sous-vide means. I did like the deviled eggs with souffletine, herb, and smoked bacon; the truffled popcorn is extremely interesting – love it or hate it. The Japanese tuna salad is good but boring, I’ve eaten this salad in many restaurants, overdone. I did enjoy the 32oz rib-eye with citrus butter and truffle salt, a tad over cooked and over priced at $79, yikes. I really want to stress that is food is alright, the pricing – I have a problem with; it’s just not worth it. Drinks on the other hand are inventive and refreshing, a nice stop on a pub crawl.
