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| - The first time I went to Spice Route was for my company's Christmas Luncheon this past year, and we we're quite impressed with the surroundings (it starts right on the curb with the tiki-torches leading down a covered lane to the oversized wooden entrance, then the huge internal space with numerous skylights and stylized decorative touches like 12-foot tall paintings of Buddha on the walls, etc.). The food was decent, and as another reviewer mentioned, the washrooms are utterly spectacular - each private cubicle features a floor-to-ceiling glass wall looking out on an enclosed zen garden (it takes a minute to realize that it's fully enclosed, and there's no danger of anybody strolling by unexpectedly, but it's still a little odd shucking your pants inches from a floor-to-ceiling window...).
Despite the obvious input from an excellent interior designer, though, the overall experience was a little disappointing, and I think it was because the quality of the food didn't quite live up to the space. It was fairly regular Asian Fusion, and perhaps its an indicator of how spoilt we in Toronto are for international cuisine, but there was a definite sense of "been there, done that" with most of the dishes that we got. Not that they were necessarily poorly prepared, or didn't taste good, it's just that with so many other options to choose from in this city, and especially considering that it is definitely on the pricey side, Spice Route is going to have to up its game to keep a steady clientele.
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