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| - Overall: 4.5 (Food 4 stars; Service 5+)
I was living in Toronto when they opened but never got a chance to go. Was back early for the Labour Day long weekend so I made a reservation here to celebrate a champagne birthday. Overall I really could not have been more pleased with the entire dining experience.
In the reservation I had mentioned the occasion and that I was hoping to make it a special night. That was about all I needed to do, The Chase staff took care of the rest.
--LONG-WINDED COMMENTARY!--
We found ourselves seated at a prime corner location, lots of room for 2 people to get cozy and just a little tucked away from everyone else. Intimate without being too secluded (i.e. perfect)
Our server then proceeded to come out with 2 flutes of sparkling wine for our birthday girl and myself. No prompting required on my part.
As for the meal itself, to start we had the oyster po'boys, octopus, a selection of a dozen oysters (FYI, the red wine sauce with a splash of the hot sauce is the only sauce you'll need!), and the fish nachos. All were fantastic, with very well balanced flavours and perfect execution, albeit smaller portions than you might expect - upside, you get more variety.
Amongst the excellence described above, 2 dishes stood out in particular.
1. The chunks of chorizo + harissa that came with the octopus was a great pairing.
2. The tuna nachos were fantastic. Bite sized tuna sashimi on a taro root chip with a "mustard emulsion" (read: mustard mayo but props for elevating the foodie-jargon). What really elevated this dish was the unexpected mixing of Grand Padano into the julienne vegetable slaw that garnishes this dish. Did not expect it; would not have thought it'd have worked if I heard it; but wow does it really pair well! Just that little kick of savoury really balanced the dish.
As for our mains, we had the steamed mussels and crispy pickerel.
The steamed mussels was another standout dish... or steamed MUTANT mussels should I say. I have never seen mussels that large and delicious! They almost looked like tulip bulbs they were so big. The sauce that the mussels came with definitely had a liberal portioning of butter yet it was not overpowering. Simply delicious. It also comes with a side of grilled sourdough bread topped with apricot butter. Forget the mussels, just the butter sauce and fresh bread alone would've made for a great snack.
The crispy pickerel was both a disappointment and a pleasant surprise. The namesake ingredient was deep fried and well seasoned, but ultimately I felt they could've done more with it. Don't get me wrong, it was well executed but when put in context of the amazing flavour profiles of all the other dishes we had, I just felt they could've done more to elevate the flavour of the batter. The first of 2 surprises were the puree of corn, which when paired with the pickerel added a great creamy texture and added a nice corny taste (hehe see what I did there! ... sorry, that was awful, I know). What REALLY was outstanding was the grilled pork belly that came with the dish. WOWZERS. Grilled just perfectly to give it that fantastic hint of smoke with just the right amount of fat. These hogs definitely did not die in vain! They really should rename the dish to "Grilled Pork Belly" and list the pickerel as a garnish. I've eaten a lot of pork belly and this is definitely up there with the best.
Dessert was a chocolate cream pie. Unsurprisingly it was also well executed - the birthday candle they added was a nice touch.
As for the service, it was totally top-notch. Kudos to the entire waitstaff. There were several birthday well-wishes for my gf, including a manager at the end of the evening dropping by to add a nice personal touch. I think the only time I've had better service in Toronto was at George.
--CAVEATS!--
The one aspect that may not be for everyone is their music selection. For me, my musical tastes resemble a Jackson Pollock (i.e. all over the place) so I found it pretty entertaining to start the night with Bryan Adams, move our way over to M83, and finish with some club anthems. The 2 old businessmen across the room from us... maybe not so much.
NB. The fish & oyster restaurant is the more casual sister to the sleek and sexy venue upstairs, but I would still dress a bit more upscale. At the very least, business casual or something you'd feel comfortable wearing to a lounge on King St. The Pickle Barrel this is not.
--CONCLUSION!--
End-to-end it was the perfect dinner date and I would highly recommend the Chase Fish & Oyster.
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