Food & drink
The Chase
This white-on-white dining room
makes a statement atop a stately
heritage building on the edge of the
Financial District, where it hosts
bankers, lawyers and C-suiters
who broker deals over glasses of
Old World wine and a heaping
Bar Isabel
platter of oysters, crab legs, shrimp
and lobster. 10 Temperance St.,
thechasetoronto.com
Jacobs & Co.
Jacobs & Co. isn’t exactly your old
man’s steak house, but it’s still a bit
of a throwback. Jacobs is a restau-
rant for big (meat) eaters and big
spenders: more than half its menu is
devoted to Japanese beef, for which
the smallest cut will set you back at
least $100. Another respectably retro
touch? The just-right Caesar salad,
prepared reverently at your table.
12 Brant St., jacobssteakhouse.com
La Banane
This modish bistro is tailor-made
to give your Instagram account
some extra love: you won’t be able
to resist snapping pics of the sea
bass en croûte (i.e., wrapped in a
lattice of golden pastry), scallops
in garlic buttermilk, or the
Ziggy Stardust disco egg—a giant,
rainbow-flecked chocolate egg
that, when smashed, spills out
Peruvian chocolate truffles.
227 Ossington Ave., labanane.ca
Top TaSTing
MenuS
aLo
La Banane
Scaramouche
Consistency is the watchword at this
Midtown institution. The contempo-
rary French menu is top-to-bottom
excellent, no matter the season. The
sommelier’s wine recommendations
are always apt (but rarely obvious).
And the service? Expect staff so
knowing, so personable, that you’ll
wonder why you ever put up with
the surly, dismissive servers at your
“trendy” local spot. 1 Benvenuto Pl.,
scaramoucherestaurant.com
Chef Patrick Kriss’s
multi-course menu is crafted
in the finest of classical
traditions. Expect meticulous
(and yes, smallish)
preparations of upmarket
ingredients: sweetbreads,
sea urchin, wagyu beef and
the like. 163 Spadina Ave.,
alorestaurant.com
Canoe
Still Toronto’s standard-bearer
for haute Canadian
cuisine, the 54th-floor resto
pays tribute to the True
North with highbrow
takes on Haida Gwaii halibut,
East Coast lobster and
everything in between.
66 Wellington St. W.,
canoerestaurant.com
DaiLo
Order the chef’s-choice
highlights from the menu
at this New Asian hot
spot. You’ll be assured
an ample spread of chef
Nick Liu’s signature
dishes—truffle fried rice,
crispy octopus tacos—plus
some welcome surprises.
503 College St., dailoto.com
LoKa
This field-to-fork resto
offers two daily à la carte
menus (one for omnivores,
the other vegetarian), but
you can request tasting
portions of every dish for a
fixed price. 620 Queen St. W.,
lokatoronto.com
MoMoFuKu ShŌTŌ
Have a drink while overlooking
the city skyline at the Chase
Don’t expect ramen here.
The most sophisticated
of Toronto’s three Momofuku
restaurants—in this case,
a kitchen ringed by
22 seats—serves an ever-
evolving tasting of Ontario
ingredients prepared
with cosmopolitan flair.
190 University Ave., 3rd Floor
momofukutoronto.com
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