Italian Cuisine @ Paese Ristorante

We were craving for some European Food when Sam suggested we try out Ristorante Paese on Bathurst St. and Hwy 401. Browsing their website I found their motto of "Inspired in Italy, Made in Canada" interesting and was excited to find out what I would assume to be Italian Food cooked with Canadian Ingredients would taste like!


Bread

I'm not usually a fan of Cold Bread but the one served at Paese was quite good. It had a hint of Garlic Butter on top with a decent dose of sea salt. It went well with the dip which I believe was a Butter Nut Squash or Pumpkin Puree


Seared Scallops wrapped with Smoked Meat and Celery Root Puree

Scallops were perfectly cooked and the Smoked Meat gave it a nice salty touch. Unlike Bacon the Smoked Meat was a lot leaner.


Special of the Day: Seriously Stuffed Lobster Crepe

The waiter wasn't joking when he told us the Crepe was stuffed with "a lot" of Lobster Meat. The Spinach Crepe was very soft and went well with the perfectly cooked Lobster Meat. The flavors were very clean allowing the Lobster's taste to stand out.


Grilled Octopus

This was the best thing I had. The Octopus had a very meaty texture which I thoroughly enjoyed and wasn't chewy at all. It was simply grilled with Olive oil and Sea Salt.


Special of the Day: Yellow Perch with Dungeoness Crab

A combination of both the Atlantic and Pacific Ocean. The fish was perfectly cooked and so was the Dunegeoness Crab. The Acidic Tomato Broth was good with the fish. However I couldn't figure out how the Crab complemented the Yellow Perch. I felt they were both best eaten as a separate dish.


Smoked Meat Wrap Veal Tenderloin

This was Sam's dish where I had a couple of pieces. The Veal Tenderloin was cooked Medium as ordered and was quite tender although it lacked flavor.


Saffron Papardelle

This was Verna's dish. I tried a quite a few strands and found a couple of Papardelle that were actually clumped together which resulted in an under cook Pasta that had a crunchy rather than Al Dente Texture. The Veal and Fennel Sausage however was meaty and full of flavor.


Calf's Liver

Rick's Dish and was my favorite of everything we had. The Calf's Liver did not have a gamey taste and was tender but maintained a bouncy texture from being cooked medium. The Balsamic went really well with the Calf's Liver. A simple but really good dish. I actually liked it so much I stole an entire liver of Rick.


Roasted Black Cod

This was Lynn's dish. The Black Cod was cooked just right and was very moist. The fish however was a little bland and I did not taste any Truffle Honey.


Pumpkin and White Chocolate Cheese Cake

The Cheese Cake was quite good. It was quite rich and dense especially when served with the thick chocolate syrup with white chocolate shavings and pumpkin seed brittle.


Cioccolato

Basically a Flourless Chocolate Torta that was served with Mascarpone and Cranberry Marmaleta. The Torte was a little too dense for my liking. The Cranberry Marmaleta gave it a nice torte flavor.


Tiramisu

My favorite of all the desserts. The Mascarpone Cheese was creamy but yet feels light in texture. One could taste the Marsala and Espresso flavor all inter-playing with one another. It was delicious.


Dessert of the day: White Chocolate Mousse

This was my dessert and it was way too dense and sweet for my taste. I didn't really taste much White Chocolate Flavor. I eventually swapped my dessert for Lynn's Tiramisu.


Monte Cristo

Verna's Coffee that was made with Kahlua and Grand Marnier.


Overall the food at Paese was average with the exception of the Calf's Liver, Grilled Octopus and Tiramisu.

Food: 3.5/5
Ambiance: 3.5/5
Service: 4.5/5
Price: $$$$$ (Under USD $50 per person)

Contact Information:
Address: 3827 Bathurst Street, Toronto, ON M3H 3N1, Canada
Tel: +1 (416) 631-6585
Web: paeseristorante.com‎
Map:

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