West Seventy6 Grill

http://www.west76grill.com/

I was invited me to come in as they re-designed their menus since the beginning of the year. To be honest  would've probably made it at West Seventy6 Grill sooner or later, judging by their substantial urbanspoon score.

APPEARANCE
a rich yellow-gold, with some legs
Its a tricky entrance - from of the Marriott Hotel and then to the left. An orange wordmark screen next to a bright entrance welcomed us with menus and wine bottles on a barrel to the side. I do think the wordmark can use a 3D signage treatment, though. There is something about spelling out a number which feels right and the elegant sail illustration - varying line thickness gives it a passionate feel.

NOSE
honey, oak, peechy
We entered the main, spacious room - stone bar base, maroon curtains and chair pillows, dark wooden floors and tables with glasses and white napkins waiting. For a second there, we both thought we are completely under-dressed, however as we joined the crowd outside, we realized there's nothing to worry about. We were instantly greeted and asked to take a seat. A small table waited for us with chairs angled towards the lake.

SWIRL
earth hints, strong character
My prejudice for a restaurant inside a hotel by the lakeshore, would be that it is snobby and overpriced. I was more than pleased to see that stereotype get blown away, with the pleasant light breeze on the terrace. The lunch menu was a single page - clean and simple. The classy drinks menu stood up waiting - black scratch-textured skin with the logo screen-printed in the middle. I was curious to ask for the chef's special. My mouth watered as I listened, so I went with their Farmer's Field Salad. Cheri being a Pulled Pork fan, decided to give it a try, eventhough he was tempted by a few other dishes. I wanted to try a glass of the Baco Noir, and we decided to ask for a recommendation to go along with the pulled pork. The trick was that we wanted a white one. Our waiter recommended a Pinot Grigio, and so we followed his advise. The bit of the parking lot in our view was easy to forget, as we watch people go along the green lakeshore.

PALATE
full-bodied complex and smooth
Our wines arrived. We sipped them, both light with interesting bouquets, sitting in the shade with a flower pot on the side. It was quiet and peaceful as the time slowed down. You can only hear people's quiet chatter, as if everyone was careful not to ruin this precious moment. Our only wish was for a soft sound, perhaps a light wooden wind-chime to make these moments even better.  Our dishes quickly arrived . My salad was a piece of art - vibrant colours and textures painting the white plate. Tender salmon over a bed of arugula leaves, covered with apples, and.. I though macadamia nuts. I asked a waiter about the spicy sauce and this mystery nut and he informed me it was peanut salsa. Cheri's pulled pork came on a pretzel baguette with a side of thinly slices fries. The pork was cooked perfectly - in a chipotle, coke braise. It was a bit on the sweet side but it was beautifully complemented with mango coleslaw and onion.

FINISH
evolving and interesting - deepening the experience
As we finished licking our fingers we asked for the dessert menu. The waiter, who mentioned it was his first day, was perfect in his descriptions. We decided to try both dessert options: whisky-maple creme brule and the lemon, mint cheesecake. Both presented beautifully and making my tastebuds purr. On top of that, since I was curious how the whisky-maple was worked into the creme brule, the chef himself came out to explain his secret to me - how exquisite! He also is a big fan incorporating the local market produce into his dishes.
Dave, the restaurant supervisor, came to let us know that dessert was complimentary. I have to say, no matter what that number at the end was, it was definitely worth it.

overall... an intimate, complex Chardonnay

Geneva Crepe Bistro

http://www.genevacrepecafe.com/

Late Sunday morning, Kingston is a dead man's city, and also heaven for free street parking.

APPEARANCE
pale straw, a bit unambitious
Not hard to find, but rather hard to notice from the outside,  was this European inspired creperie.

NOSE 
complex meledy of fruit aromas, pear
Once inside, small marble-like tables with pink flowers look great against the bright yellow and red walls.
The day was gloomy but warm so we went for their patio - a bit lonely, and too wide and open to be European. The unique black, plastic chairs added as well as the black umbrellas. It is rather cute that it is on a small side street, by a church.

SWIRL
citrus, with a honey backbone
The menus were my least favourite part in  this restaurant - populated with their low resolution wordmark and very text heavy. The idea of their logo is not bad - a combination of an elegant script (unfortunately very spaced out and with a white outline) and an intriguing serif typeface underneath, but placing it on a heavy black stroke-of-lowres-paint texture is the problem. The part of it I liked was the short paragraph at the beginning stating the importance of supporting local farmers and seasonal produce. I think every restaurant should somehow inform what they do which makes them special - most other industries so.
Cheri went with their Vegetarian Panini, which he found on the separate sheet with specials. I was very interested in trying their Bombay Crepe (curry, chicken, cranberry and cocos) but it didn't really feel like breakfast to me. I went with another interesting one Cordon Blue. Reading though, they specialize more in their fancy coffee drinks. I went for their Nutellino - espresso topped with whipped cream and a spoon of nutella, I got it decaf but the sweetness woke me up. 

PALATE

sweet but subtle aromas
Our order didn't take long. My Cordon Blue savoury crepe was nicely layed out on the plate - square fold with Hollandaise sauce swirled on top. Little piles of tomato and parsley on all four corners seemed to be signature for all dishes. My favourite part was the fact that my crepe was a bit on the well-done side, almost as if there was traces of cheese in the batter. Inside it was an interesting combination of chicken, ham, baby spinach and swiss cheese - all very light. May be my taste-buds were out after that flavourful Nutellino, though.
Cheri's ciabatta Panini was cut in half and tightly packed with some  tomatoes, provolone, lots of mixed greens and hint of garlic. It said that there would be fresh herbs but I just tasted basil. An herbs de provence mix would've been ideal, as well as some flavourful balsamic vinegar, in my opinion.

FINISH

crisp and dry near the end
Next time we decide to check out this place, we are sitting inside and trying out their sweet crepes.
I have to add, I find it odd that their website stresses the fact that this place is 'A Taste of Paris in the heart of Kingston' but why name it after a city in Switzerland?

overall.. a light Pinot Gris

Le Papillon

http://www.lepapillonfront.com/

I had no idea we were even going anywhere.. spur of the moment decision from cheri.

APPEARANCE
dark, chalk red
It is a cute area right where front and wellington meet - a tall, brick building on the south side. If it wasn't for the bright yellow awning, it wouldn't be the same. Lots of black elements - siding, frames, chairs. It was a light evening, relatively warm and their patio was on, so the decision was easy.

NOSE
heavy, hint of deep black berry and american oak
A filipino man greeted us after we opened the glass, heavy, long front doors. Inside was dark, kind of romantic, dim candle-like lights, red and black on the furniture and walls. The host followed us with the menus, as we sat ourselves down. Charming wood plank tables with metal black chairs were all around. Warm, yellow-orange napkins, cutlery, plates and glasses were all waiting.

SWIRL
bell pepper, tar, bacon fat

These menus had nothing to do with papillons (butterflies). The white pages looked plain, missed the excitement of the name. As we said we are coming in for a snack, we got the lunch menu. Cheri said this place is known for its crepes, and so we picked out two Galette Ratatouille and Crepe du St Laurent Marche. Our polite french waitress gave us some more time to explore the Les Boissons menu as she poured us water. We went with a Pinot Grigio and a Sangiovese, as this month is dedicated to our Italian wine exploration. Fresh, warm buns quickly arrived at our tables as well as a lovely shot of the chef's gazpacho. It turned out to be very windy, half-way though - the yellow napkins and cutlery flew - almost like butterflies.



PALATE
medium tannins, lean, good balance

Our crepes arrived - wrapped from all sides like squares with all ingredients seen from a window in the middle, topped with sprouts. The Crepe du St Laurent Marche was very special - bacon on top, melting the cheddar underneath and all on top of spliced apples. It came with a side of maple syrup - beautiful flavours both savourily and sweet. If the cheddar was ages, it would have been ideal. Cheri's Galette Ratatouille looked colourful all veggies and egg, but missing gruyere or another worthwhile cheese. For a french place, emphasizing on cheese would have been ideal, but unfortunately not the case - based on our dishes.

FINISH

long, a bit bitter

Lots of interesting dishes to try out. I would challenge them and take Soupe à l’Oignon Gratinée or perhaps a dish with béchamel sauce. Also their brunch menu sounds interesting as well as their location in Leslieville.

Overall.. a complex Cabernet Franc 

Okinomi House

http://dine.to/okonomihouse

Have been planning to try this place for some time now. My sister makes great Okonomiyaki at home, so I was curious what a commercial one in Toronto would be like. I tried the one in Japan too long ago to remember, so I had to go with her - a japanese culture enthusiast.

APPEARANCE

cold, plain

A lonely corner house on a small street off of Bloor or Young. From the outside nothing special, even a bit cold and cheap-looking.

It is rather deceiving, because as soon as we entered we were greeted, seated and realized the restaurant is not as big as it looks. As a matter of fact if it would have been a longer space, as I suspected from the outside, it would have lost its feel and turned into a cold cafeteria.

NOSE

intimate, herbaceous, a bit nutty

Inside it was all wood. The red paper lanterns and the red highlights add a warm vibe. Almost all walls were windows and most had their charming logo in the middle - a kids' face inside two round plates, with a tall circular red hat. There was a main bar-like area and the rest was short tables - blue tops. It was somehow cozy - the warm sunny spring weather definitely added.

SWIRL

grassy, bouquet of citrus 

You are given a menu as well as acheck-in-the-box sheet, probably to make sure there are no miss-understandings but it starts feeling machine-like. Our waitress seemed more than capable to take down our order, judging by the way she answered our questions. We decided to share a noodle soup, a sunomono salad and go for 2 okonomiyaki plates - beef and pork.
So what is Okinomiyaki? A kind of Japanese pancake, made from cabbage, flour, egg, meat, hints of ginger and topped with special sauce. As we waited, we were impressed to see a girl next to us drinking Calpico juice - a white milk-based juice, favoured in Japan.

PALATE
lovely complexity, acid balance
Our soup and salad came quickly. The noodle soup was light and simple. The sunomono was very nice - rice noodles, cucumber, shrimp, sesame seeds in a light vinaigrette. That is the way appetizers should be - light and small. I hate it when I get stuffed before the main dish. The okinomiyaki plates came, they were selves in small frying pans. As they came darker with dark okinomi yak sauce and a big spot of mayo, we realized we forgot to tick off the menu option saying - Dried Sea Weed and Bonito Flakes ($0.50) - a must.
The lady brought it as soon as we asked, no questions asked. We loaded them with these two on top. They were very good. The beef one, I was not too crazy about as the meat dried up the dish, while the pork one was perfect. They only part I was not crazy about was the ginger, but I am just not used to having it in there. I was kind of glad they did not give us forks instantly, once they noticed we are not japanese. It looks like a challenge to eat with chopsticks but it is really not that bad, plus it helps us savour the food.

FINISH
refreshing, light
I would definitely be back here. The food was too filling and the choices of okonimiyaki dishes is wide - chicken, bacon, vegetable, shrimp, scallop, squid, seafood deluxe..on top of that there is a specials part of the menu we did not even look at. And more importantly sake and japanese beers are offered!

Overall.. a light and refreshing Semillon

Yellow Cup

http://yellowcupcafe.com/

I had no idea we were going anywhere special on our way to Burlington. To my surprise, this place really brightened up my Friday morning.

APPEARANCE
rich pear yellow
Wood and brick front, a nice patio and an energetic yellow cup logo. To be honest, the cup by itself would be enough.. The screaming letters through the elegant cup of balance plus they remind me of Texas for some reason. Perhaps embracing the concrete flat plaza, lots of empty space for parking.

NOSE
floral tones, lots of variety (a bit overwhelming)
It was kind of chilly so the patio wasn't open. Inside, yellow, yellow and some more yellow! Ever though it's relatively a big space, it's homey. We started reading the boards with the menu. The are quite a few - crapes, waffles, wraps, soups, sandwiches, and ahh breakfast! A lady interrupted us saying this line up is for after we have ordered. I felt incompetent but there is so much clutter than I didn't notice any signs to help us newcomers out. So we ordered to a lady who was by the kitchen. They had a wide variety of loose-leaf teas. By the cash, the credit machine is inside a cup cut in half hanging on the wall like a holder. We lined up to pay, took our teas and number to sit down.


SWIRL
backed pear, hint of walnut
I would say these guys paid a lot of attention to details but it's more like this place has to many details to begin with, the big picture can be lost. It feels like you are in the house of a lady who is into arts and crafts. Its cute, don't get me wrong. We were lucky to see an open table and quickly took it. The tables and chairs were simple, wooden and tall. I guess they helped create some order in this place.

PALETTE
smooth, sweet, complex
Cheri was convinced these guys are famous for crapes so he had taken a Ham and Asparagus Crape, while I decided to give their Benedict a try. While we waited, he showed me the ceiling - each square plank was covered with a different coffee bag - that was probably my favourite part of this place. Overall the food was good, nothing out of the ordinary apart from the fact that they used parsley in everything, possibly because the owner is polish. My benny was decent, the hollandaise was a great texture but lacking in flavour. The fires had quite a few spices on them.. i quite enjoyed them. Cheri's crape was good, but the marinade on the asparagus was a bit too overwhelming. 

FINISH
good acidity at the finish, surprisingly refreshing and light
I wished we had more space to take a dessert. I am leaving this for next time, as I am bringing my sister here for her birthday, she'll love this place.

Overall.. a Vidal Icewine - fresh but with a unique history.