One time for Yelp guiding me to this hidden treasure. We were leaving Caribana and looking for a great meal to finish the night. Everything in the nearby vicinity of Lake Shore was jam packed with crowds leaving. That's when we realized we needed to get away from the area. A quick look at the photos of food from Antler and I was sold.
The street that it sits on is not a restaurant hotspot. It looked like the typical local neighborhood, with dry cleaners and fast food. Inside was another story. Great atmosphere, dim lighting, and early 90s-mid 2000 hip hop/r&b playing. That's all I could hope for. Then the hostess asked if we had reservations and we were instantly deflated. Luckily there was space at the bar and we were seated immediately.
The bartender (who made a perfect old
-fashioned and instantly gained all credibility) walked us through the menu and his favorite selections. Most of his choices aligned with ours and was affirmation of our yelp photo scanning skills. We decided to share plates and the Wild Boar Gyoza (pot stickers for us less cultured folks) were a nice starter. I preferred them without the accompanying soy sauce, so the flavor isn't drowned. Next we had the pappardelle pasta with rabbit and apricots. Oh my...I wasn't ready. I should have been prepared for how good this tastes but I wasn't. I blame myself for years of ordering pasta with red sauce. We finished off the food order with the Bison flank steak and frites. And by finished I mean I wasn't hungry but I still finished because it was that dang good.
If you have the chance, you owe it to yourself to get here. I'll be back the next time I'm in town