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| - Wow. Just...wow. Went here for brunch with friends yesterday and I was blown away. Since it was their first weekend doing brunch, and there have been no major reviews yet, it was completely empty, and we had the place to ourselves. That won't last long.
It's a cosy, sophisticated, intimate space (with a great view into the massive kitchen). There's attentive, friendly service, surprisingly pleasant--even fancy!--washrooms, and the food... oh, the food. Delish. The chef is apparently ex-Buca, and that pedigree shows. The prices, however, are eminently reasonable (especially for such good food)--mostly because the dishes are so unpretentious and what I guess is called "rustic" that it would be inappropriate to charge too much. (Take note, Stout Irish Pub.) Most of the dishes were around $13-$14. Big tick number one.
The brunch menu is a shorter rendition of their full card but there were still plenty of enticing options. I was highly impressed by the fact that it wasn't just the same old boring eggs benny--big tick number two. There was an egg and pork belly dish, which one of us ordered, but I had a pork belly panino with fig jam and gorgonzola; and we also got a pasta dish with albacore tuna, and a dish of mussels with fennel, basil, white beans and San Marzano tomato. I only got to try the panino and the tuna pasta, but both were fantastic. My sandwich came on a beautifully crispy bun--kind of like those incredible subs you get with a really good Vietnamese banh mi sandwich, but round. The pork belly was cooked to crunchy, fatty perfection and beautifully offset by the sweetness of the jam and tanginess of the cheese, which had melted to a kind of creamy sauce. Amazing. The accompanying salad was simple--just greens and some shredded radicchio; slightly bitter with just the amount of tangy dressing, it was a perfect foil to the fatty extravagance of the bun and even, somehow, made the meal feel semi-healthy. I only managed to snag a bite of the pasta but it too was gorgeous--thick, wide strands of luxurious pappardelle with chunks of tuna and roasted olives. Really, really good (even if, as I suspect, it was conceived as a way to use up tuna that needed to be used). The mussel-eater also reported favourable resuts. Our round of Caesars were also well made, with a spicy pickled chilli in each and the glasses rimmed with some kind of tasty spice mixture--including, I think, black pepper, and either onion or garlic flakes--instead of the usual celery salt.
Toronto can't seem to get enough of rustic Italian comfort food, and when it's done so well at such good prices, who can blame us. I will definitely be back to try out the full menu. Long Live Parkette!
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