| rev:text
| - As a young barrister I often visited Red's older, fancier sibling further downtown. Now a seasoned public servant I prefer things a bit more casual, a bit less expensive, and a lot less pretentious.
While Yonge and Gerrard is hardly "midtown" in my book, this Reds outpost has managed to downscale somewhat while keeping food quality high and prices at the upper end of affordable.
The room itself is huge; taking up a quadrant of the Aura condo behemoth. Decor is standard vague industrial; poured concrete and reclaimed wood and exposed metal. Nothing we haven't seen before, but done to reasonable effect here. There are a few odd design flourishes: a (non-working) retro cigarette vending machine at the front, and back-lit curios throughout filled with tchatchkes like sunglasses and lighters and keychains.
I'm deducting half a star for inconveniently-located washrooms. Unless you nab the accessible unisex guy on the main floor (in plain view of everyone-HEY MA!!! LOOK!!! I'M GONNA PEE!!!) you're running up a few flights of stairs and through a busy alcove.
I'll take another quarter-star for the mix of seating. Dining with a small party, we get comfy chairs on tables. As part of an office party, we are directed to a horseshoe of high stools around an elbow-level counter. Let me be clear: I hate the whole high-stool thing. I hate not being able to comfortably slide my chair into dining position under the table. I dislike feeling like I'm teetering during my meal, and while I'm hardly short, I resent feeling like I need a boost to sit in my high chair. This particular seating arrangement also puts one far enough away from the diner directly across from you that you can't make out a goddamn word.
The last half-star I deduct is for wait times. Reds proudly proclaims it's a scratch kitchen, which is admirable. At lunch hour, it's a liability. I've never been during a work emergency, but if I did I'd be back on my horse to the office before I even received my menu. I imagine Reds is designed with local office workers in mind...so a few quicker options would be helpful.
It's hard to find fault with the food itself. A luncheon steak frites arrives hot and done to a perfect char outside with a bleeding medium.rare heart. The potatoes are a cooked few shades beyond amber, and shatteringly crisp. I could do without the gratuitous bitter raw greens, which I suspect are meant as garnish...I just usually eat everything on my plate (see: mint leaves at dessert).
A return visit yields tender butter chicken, a bit spicier than expected (I usually expect the Indian equivalent of Big Mac Sauce) sided with rice and naan. I'd gladly trade one of the starches for a second veggie curry-saag paneer or chana masala or even roald daal. As it is, the only veg in the house is a fair bit of coarsley chopped onion. There are also appetizers; fries and dips, and beet hummus (which tastes better than it sounds, but is unremarkable).
A warm, custom-baked apple pie with ice cream is the highlight.
Coffee is strong and refilled frequently.
Sometimes, a little bit downscale is just right.
|
![[RDF Data]](/fct/images/sw-rdf-blue.png)
![[cxml]](/fct/images/cxml_doc.png)
![[csv]](/fct/images/csv_doc.png)
![[text]](/fct/images/ntriples_doc.png)
![[turtle]](/fct/images/n3turtle_doc.png)
![[ld+json]](/fct/images/jsonld_doc.png)
![[rdf+json]](/fct/images/json_doc.png)
![[rdf+xml]](/fct/images/xml_doc.png)
![[atom+xml]](/fct/images/atom_doc.png)
![[html]](/fct/images/html_doc.png)