In the evenings, the back of Campo Food Hall transforms into Labora, a tapas restaurant. With the rest of the stalls closed, there’s a sense of calm as you enter the space, like walking through a short alley to get to the restaurant.
While Labora isn’t as laid back as a
small shop in Barcelona, it does have a casual vibe, which is why when our
waiter asked if we like olives (before we glanced at the menu), my husband
answered yes (even though I’m impartial to them). Soon a large plate of them
arrived with a $7 charge to match. I’ve dined in countries where a snack charge
is added to everyone’s bill. Usually, this means a plate is already sitting on
the table and the menu generally calls out the cost. To have someone ask if you
like olives, like if you want bread, and then charge you for it feels
misleading.
Maybe if it was only $3 (and a
smaller portion) it would be less noticeable. What arrives is a sizeable plate
with four different types of olives marinated in citrus so makes it less
pungent and almost sweet. As olives go, these aren’t bad. Just not my first
choice for adding to the meal.
A dish like the Joselito lomo ($13.50)
is what I would have preferred to snack on with beer. Sourced from an Iberico
pig, it’s cut from the loin instead of the leg, so the meat is leaner but still
melts on the tongue and has that lightly salted sweetness found in jamon.
It’s also a good introduction to Iberico products, if you’re not sure if you
want to shell out $30 for jamon.
The menu describes the pan
tumaca ($6) as tomato rubbed ‘Cristal’ bread. What is Cristal bread?
From what I deduced, the moniker likely references all the air pockets formed in
the well-toasted airy bread that’s drenched with olive oil and so crunchy, it
tastes deep fried. The thin layer of tomato paste is rather neutral, most of
the flavours stem from the olive oil.
For something spicy, the bocata
del calamari ($9.50 each) will have you reaching for a cerveza. Rings
of lightly dusted deep-fried calamari are sandwiched in a brioche bun with tons
of aioli, drizzled in hot sauce, and a pickled pepper is skewered through the
squid. The pepper adds a juicy freshness to the sandwich but with the siracha
was really spicy. Luckily, you can always pull it out and take
small bites to temper the spice. The sandwich was delicious and one of my
favourite dishes of the evening.
Another was the rubia
gallega ($19.50) a cured Ontario ribeye that’s prepared like Iberico,
thinly sliced then topped with honey mushrooms and truffle oil. The truffle oil
was a bit overpowering when eating the beef on its own, but with crostini the
flavours balance out. What a genius idea to use ribeye as the protein, the cut
has enough fat for that lusciousness, like ham, and lends itself to taking on
the lightly sweetened flavour.
After some heavier dishes the tumet ($19)
was a welcomed contrast. The oven-roasted terrine made with thinly sliced
zucchini, eggplant, and potato was a fairly big portion. Aside from the potato,
the other vegetables became lost in the thick zesty tomato sauce so more of the
zucchini and eggplant would make this even better.
Some dishes could have been good if
only there wasn’t one overpowering ingredient added. Sometimes it just pays to
keep it simple with seasonings like oil and salt.
The BC striped shrimp pintxos ($16),
a special for the evening, takes the tiny shrimp and lines them onto whipped
roe on toasted bread. These ingredients would have been more than enough: the
roe salty with a rich seafood essence; the shrimp a little sweetness; and
there’s even chives, adding a taste of the herb and colour. But then, a liberal sprinkling
of paprika is added, completely overpowering the shrimp and giving a slightly
bitter finish to the dish.
Similarly, the sour grapefruit used
in the serviola crudo ($18.40) covered the delicate yellow
tail tuna. Maybe it has something to do with our waiter urging us to spoon the
marinating liquid over everything, to get the coffee flavours.
In all fairness, our waiter was extremely friendly and warm, I know he was just trying to make sure we had the best experience possible. However, I couldn’t taste any coffee and the sour grapefruit so pungent I coughed. Alas, the poor tuna no match for the citrus.
In all fairness, our waiter was extremely friendly and warm, I know he was just trying to make sure we had the best experience possible. However, I couldn’t taste any coffee and the sour grapefruit so pungent I coughed. Alas, the poor tuna no match for the citrus.
How To Find Them
Location: Toronto, Canada
Address: 433 King Street West (in the Campo Food Hall)
Address: 433 King Street West (in the Campo Food Hall)
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____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
- Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
- 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
- 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
- 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
- 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
- 10 - absolute perfection!
Is That It? I Want More!
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