DINING OUT: Japanese Cuisine & Jazz Bistro
{ written by Adam Waxman}
Ki Modern Japanese + Bar
(181 Bay St, Toronto. 416-308-5888. www.kijapanese.com)
Recently we’ve seen a growing sake trend in Toronto restaurants. Inspired by Japanese cuisine, the sake menu at Ki is unrivalled in Canada. Michael Tremblay is a veritable sakepedia whose unique insight and passion for high-quality sake converts skeptics and thrills enthusiasts. Unlike wine, sake doesn’t fight with food. Comfortably seated in a leather bound booth we pair mature pasteurized sake with sashimi, and pair un-pasteurized, youthful sake, with bolder flavoured dishes. Adding a unique dimension to our meal we experiment with boutique chilled premium sake; sake on draft; even a cheesy, nutty sake from a can. A torched hamachi roll of shiso, shredded ginger and sliced jalapeno; and torched salmon with sesame white miso, red pepper, green onion, yuzu and crispy ginger, are both are disarmingly delicious. There is a lot of flavour packed into these bites. Puck-sized Kasu miso scallops with togarashi and mushrooms are a silky texture, and amply filling. Kasu-marinated pork ribs are prepared with sake lees from Ontario Spring Water Sake Co. and are the most tangy lip-smacking, craving-inducing, meaty ribs in Toronto. We polish off our sake course with a Ki original, Kyoto Sour of sake, yuzu juice, fennel seeds and honey. Kanpai!
Jazz Bistro
(251 Victoria St, Toronto. 416-363-5299. jazzbistro.ca)
A one-of-a-kind red Steinway piano adorns the stage on which the top names play. The audience files in for the live band. They sit at bistro tables, booths and up top on the second floor overlooking the balcony, all with anticipation of great music… and food. No other venue can match it.
Chef Brad Macdonald’s challenge is to create an accessible yet exciting menu that can wow a different audience every night of the week. Vibrant dinosaur kale and brussels sprout salad plays all the notes with light lemon citrus and toasty pine nuts, while a colourful medley of beets scores with creamy chèvre mousse, blood orange coulis, and maple-walnut pralines. The rooftop patio crowd loves the chicken karaage. Crunchy morsels of meaty Japanese-style fried chicken with yuzu aioli are lively pop-in-your-mouth bites.
During the applause, our waitress appears in perfect time with risotto—a rich confluence of sweet corn and smoked bacon with plump seared diver scallops. Tender red wine-braised short ribs sing for a wine pairing. Chandeliers and velvet drapes raise the romance of this eclectic gem, where every nook affords a different view and feel. The Jazz Torte of chocolate sponge, pecan-praline butter cream and luxurious dulce de leche mousse makes us applaud the chef.
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