Cafe Boulud, Brazilian Court, Palm Beach, Florida.

Chef Daniel Boulud has a deservedly great reputation, but, not all of his restaurants are equally good as his very best or represent his deservedly vaunted reputation equally well.

Terrific arancini.

A delicious mushroom veloute with black barley and creme fresh (which I opted not to have). 

Dover sole meunier was frankly a bit disappointing. It was a touch mealy. It was served with a nicely textured three grain pilaff. In Palm Beach, the "dover sole gold standard" is the dover sole at Bistro Chez Jean Pierre. In fact any resto anywhere would have a tough time besting that standard.

Good french fries (but not great). They were not crispy enough.

Warm, upside down guanaja chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream. Very good. 

Beignets hot from the oven. My eating partner loved them and asked for extras to take home for tomorrow morning's breakfast.

Petit Fours.

Piano Piano Restaurant, Toronto.

Piano, Piano is chef Victor Barry's labour of love resurrection of his previous resto, one of Canada's best, Splendido. And, the food and ambiance bear no similarities except that the exceptional comfort food of this new resto bears chef Barry's sophisticated charms on his new rustic renditions.

The resto has a large wood fired pizza oven and also wood fired grill. These cooking implements add a unique and very pleasing taste to the food prepared with them.

For example, take his recipe for what is essentially a dish of fried and roasted chicken for 2. Chef Barry brines the chicken, then smokes it before he prepares the legs as fried chicken and the breast as roast chicken! And the gravy, in any typical resto, a reduction, whereas chef Barry deglazes the roasting pan with wine and flavour concentrated chicken stock and then finishes the exceptional gravy with mustard, lemon juice and rosemary. Now, all you see is the bistro-simple fried and roasted pieces of chicken with gravy, but, what you experience is gustatory heaven! It all comes together and is presented in a big cast iron pan, buried in a tossed "salad" of kale, dandelion, pickled onion and olives. NOW THAT is comfort food for any palate sophisticated person, and for those who may not know or appreciate the great subtle complexities of Chef Barry's cooking, simply a great tasting dish.

And another aspect that sets apart this resto is the price for this sophistication: 9 bucks for "snacks"; 15 bucks for apps; 23 bucks for mains! Great value!!

So, the following courses were our experience.

House brined and smoked salmon of exceptional quality on wonderful fire-made toast, topped with chives, capers and crema fresca.

Terrific, tasty and crispy russet potato fries accompanied by perfect house-made malt vinegar flavoured mayo. 

Fabulous, marinated, very fresh sardines with crispy house made chips, banana peppers and chimichurri sauce. This is how sardines should taste and the texture was perfection. Nowhere in Canada, in my opinion, will you experience sardines this good.

Fabulous chopped salad, combining so many pleasing textures and tastes, with salami, olives, feta, brussel sprouts, oregano, crisp polenta, arugula and dandelion.

Shishito peppers with raisin agrodolce, a unique touch.

The excellent house made pastas are made both in house and at Pasta Fresca Baldassarre, by 2 former Splendido chefs.

Supernal agnolotti, maybe the best you will have in Toronto except perhaps at Buca Yorkville. This rendition is cacio e pepe with ricotta, black pepper and parmigiano.

Spaghetti vongole e cozza, with clams, mussels, pancetta, lemon, garlic, chili and parsley. This was wonderful pasta, perfectly cooked.

My version of "bitter" pizza, with no cheese, other than a dusting of fresh parmesan. A very good crust, crispy and tasty, with toppings of kale, dandelion, garlic, chili and lemon. 

The same pizza as above except with the addition of mozarella and fior di latte cheeses. 

The "true north" pizza, moazzarella, fior di latte, n'duja, cremini mushrooms, fried onions and banana peppers. Another wonderful pizza, my fave, but, I would have preferred it without the cheeses even though the taste was so good. 

The fabulous aforementioned chicken: "brick oven chicken for 2".

This  fabulous dessert was brought to the table under a glass dome, a return to Splendido dining, and the dome removed at table. 

Ginger carrot cake for 2 with pumpkin ice cream, rum raisins and spicy pecans.

Then, the above cake is splashed with creme fresca, et voila!

Goat cheese and mascarpone and cream cheese cake with a blood orange topping.

Book your reservations well in advance as with the word of mouth, this resto will become jammed.

The NEW Nota Bene Restaurant

Nota Bene, owned by one of Canada's most renown and talented chefs, David Lee, (formerly co-owner and head chef at Splendido, pre-chef Victor Barry) has just been completely remodeled and redecorated and the menu completely revised. The new menu is worth a journey.

Slow roasted celeriac crusted with fennel seeds, cumin, coriander seeds, caramelized blood oranges, candied coriander seeds, home made crema, celeriac salad, lemon juice and sea-salt. A great dish for vegans/vegetarians.

Tunisian octopus with capers, shallots, pimenton and pancetta all dressed with olive oil. This was a very tasty dish. 

Salt cod fritters were perfectly crispy on the outside with a very tasty filling.

Suckling pig jowl topped with heirloom egg, tomatillo, gaujillo chili (quite mild), shoestring potatoes, cotija cheese and pickled onions. Another terrific dish!

Perhaps one of the best steaks to be had in Toronto, Cumbrae Farms 60 day dry aged ribsteak, accompanied by chimichurri sauce. Beef Boy's rating system, each category ranking out of 10 (10 is best): taste 9; texture 4; juiciness 9. 

Texture is something that can never be predicted in any good steak because any aspect of the appearance, when optimized, is no predictor of texture. Texture is the luck of the draw with the best steaks. This individual steak was a bit tough and chewy. However, the flavour and juiciness were fabulous (I never have given 10's). In general, in blind beef tastings over the past 10 years with our group of 5 chefs and 4 serious amateurs, invariably, Cumbraes steaks when tested against 8 other sources, is in the top 2 best and most often the winner.

Wonderful St. Canut Farms suckling pig with savoy cabbage, boudin noir sauce and Kozlik's mustard. This is pig at its best: wonderful porky flavour; crispy crackling; succulent meat. The Boudin noir sauce was a flattering flavour complement.

Deep fried mushrooms. Very ungreasy and crispy. 

Rhubarb compote with avocado sorbet, dried organic apricot and nut granola and wild blueberry powder. A terrifically refreshing dessert!

Grapefruit and white chocolate brownie with green matcha tea crumble and caramelized ginger. Another very refreshing dessert.

Chocolate ganache "fleur du sel" with caramelized milk powder, seabuckthorn, toasted marshmallow and milk ice cream.

Salted caramel truffle, crafted by the talented chocolatier Laura Slack for Nota Bene, a wonderful finishing taste to this meal.

Shoto Restaurant at Momofuku

What is remarkable about Shoto restaurant, is the harmonious and exceptionally apt combinations of ingredients in each dish, and if cooking is required, the degree of doneness is perfect. Shoto should be on the best of the best lists of the Toronto GTA. It is easily one of the top 4 restaurant experiences in Toronto and one of the best in Canada.

I enjoyed this meal quite some time ago, and although it is not a current experience, based on my visits to Shoto, it is representative.

When you are seated, you are seated at a counter looking directly into the kitchen. When you are served, the chef who prepares you dish serves you. There are no waiters for food service.

Oyster with mignonnette sauce.

Spot prawn with tamarind, pig's ear and cabbage.

Scallop with celery, water chestnut and poppy seeds.

Lamb  with sesame and wasabi.

Dungeness crab with grilled asparagus, kimchi and yuba.

Looking into the kitchen.

Alkaline noodles with clam, octopus and kombu.

Fried duck egg with radish, crushed rice and herbs.

Skate with peas, ramps and spring allium.

Chicken with seaweed, nori and cucumber.

Beef short rib, fabulously tender, juicy with very good taste, with beech mushrooms, fava beans and fiddleheads,

Looking into the kitchen.

Duck foie gras with morel, duck tongue and rhubarb.

Coconut ginger ice cream with black tea, honey and bee pollen.

Hootenanny with maple and orange ice cream.

Buca Yorkville: The Astoundingly Good, Exclusive Tasting Menu.

I just published a blog about my experience at Buca Yorkville with a great Italian guest chef who worked with resident chef Rob Gentile and his talented staff. But, now I MUST publish this blog about the great experience I just enjoyed, spearheaded by chef Rob Gentile, who deserves accolades for his own wonderful talents. 

I think that for one of the very few times in Canada, I have now experienced a meal that would prompt Guide Michelin to grade a restaurant 2**! 

Of course Buca yorkville is a wonderful eating experience of rustic seafood, pasta and pizza with an Italian flare, but the tasting counter, with it's unique tasting menu (menu degustazione), is a highly sophisticated, world class experience.

The menu degustazione at Buca Yorkville, is only available at the limited seating counter that looks into the kitchen. 

An up-front noise caution: Buca yorkville is particularly noisy and it is indeed difficult to properly hear conversation. So, for anyone with hearing issues, and I suggest that may be true for anyone over 60, please take note, I love the food in this resto, but I am hesitant to book at times because of the very high noise factor. Both of my table mates were concerned/disturbed by the noise as well and one guest was relatively young. The safest table, if ambient sound is of concern, is to request a table immediately beside the south facing window, right by the entrance, where the ambient noise is quite tolerable. There one can enjoy the regular menu.

Appetizers

Mollica fritta, sea urchin bottarga with senape yogurt, on toast.

Pizzetta with taleggio cheese topped with sliced black truffles from Molise.

Gnocco fritto, crisp squid ink dumpling served with ahi tuna n'duja salumi.

Crudi

Presentation of raw branzino (crudo).

The ingotto, dried sturgeon caviar.

The bronzino, raw Cypriot sea bass with prosecco, unfiltered olive oil, all topped with shaved ingotto.

Raw rainbow trout topped with leek ash and buttermilk crema.

Antipasti

Baby squid filled with ricotta di pecora, parsley olive oil, squid ink and taggiasche olive.

Salume di mare, cured fish and shellfish with seasonal preserves: 

left to right: lobster and scallop sausage (lemon above); cured sword fish; smoked albacore tuna; shrimp and pistachio mortadella  (pickled red onions); cured trout, smoked eel; hot smoked herring preserved in oil; octopus soppressata (seabuckthorn above). This dish in itself was a remarkable gustatory experience.

Focciacia with Sardella kneeded into it (fermented whitebait with lots of chili traditionally calabrese), a terrific accompaniment (served with) for the salumi di mare.

Antipasti

Raviolo: this dish was indeed a culinary masterpiece: scallop, lobster, saffron, fermented butter and trout roe.....but there was no pasta. The shell for the filling was made of sheets of scallop. The lobster filling was finished with fermented butter, trout roe and parsley olive oil. 

Another incredible dish of agnolotti stuffed with black trumpet mushrooms, finished with sun choke puree and accompanied by taggiasca olives, chicken tails and sunflower. 

Intermezzo:  suco di fruitta consisting of pureed grilled abate pear and mint.

B.C. octopus, ragu bianco and smoked rosemary, grilled over a flame at the table.

The octopus.

B.C. clams being added at the table to a heated seafood stock (brodo di mare) and pork n'duja.

The seafood stock being heated with the clams.

Preparation until clams begin to open.

More ingredients added.

The finish!!! Wonderful, truly fresh, plump clams in the rich, complex seafood broth, a huge flavour hit.

Torta caprese: hazelnut, lingonberries and maple.

Granita with fernet menta and buffalo yogurt.

The Espresso maple zabaglione being finished at table with grated maple sugar brick.

Presentation: Espresso maple zabaglione. A sensational finish!