After reading the disappointing critic reviews about Café Boulud, my excitement to try
the Toronto output of the NYC’s celebrity chef’s restaurant waned. Since they were part of Summerlicious this
year, it was the perfect opportunity to try them and the experience was
surprisingly wonderful.
Situated in the new
Four Seasons Hotel the lobby is opulent and a great improvement from the old
Yorkville location. Located on the
second floor, Café Boulud’s dining room is much larger than I would have
imagined and toned down compared to the hotel.
Paintings and artwork adorn the walls and shelves amongst an eclectic
mix of “natural” materials such as wood, stone and glass. A mishmash of chairs, some a reminder of ones
you’d find in an office, are sprinkled throughout the restaurant. Somehow the hodgepodge of décor works, although
a bit busy for my taste.
Alas, it’s really the food that matters and
the night started off on a high with the seared Digby scallops. Two large Nova Scotia scallops arrived
sitting on a sweet corn succotash and avocado mousse, with a flavourful shrimp
chip topping it all off. The scallops
had a beautiful caramelized sear on them and were perfectly cooked - warmed and
barely cooked throughout. Sadly, what I
loved most was the humble sweet corn succotash which was a rich stew of large
corn kernals in a buttery sauce. I
simply want to slather that over everything – fish, bread, rice, you name it!
The roasted Cumbrae beef was laid out in a
beautiful fan topped with a generous dollop of salsa verde. Tender and lightly seasoned, the tenderloin
allowed the salsa’s fresh herbs and hint of vinegar and chilies to shine
through. Large sticks of fries accompanied
the dish making this a great alternative for meat and potato lovers. The fries were amplified with fried salted
rosemary which is my new favourite combination for potatoes.
My husband’s Mediterranean daurade (a fish
that’s also known as sea bream or orata) was good – the fillet’s skin was
crispy and meat flakey – but wasn’t a match for the beef, in my opinion. The boulliabaisse sauce was deliciously thick
and deep tasting; almost like having lobster bisque, but without the bisque’s
creaminess.
For dessert I opted for the tonka bean
sundae, which my patrons agreed was the best of out the three offerings. I loved all the flavours and textures that
were in the sundae. The ice cream was
maple caramel and had a hint of coffee to it so gave the sundae a deep
butterscotch smell. You really need to
dig into the bottom of the sundae as sitting on the bottom are pieces of
chopped pecans, cubes of brownie and crushed chocolate cookies. Surprisingly, where the tonka beans, the
namesake of the sundae, comes in is in the dollop of Chantilly cream topping everything. After some research on Wikipedia, I now
realize they are essentially like a vanilla bean. Sadly, not being a whipped cream fan I had
scooped it out so really can’t comment on the “tonkaness” of the dessert.
You certainly won’t leave hungry given the
respectable dish sizes and a generous bread basket and plate of savoury cheese
puffs given before the meal.
Unfortunately, I was hungry and dove into the carbs before snapping a
picture. If you order the daurade, save
a slice of the bread so you can dip it into the delicious sauce.
Overall, my experience with Café Boulud was thankfully much better than
the critics. My husband and I agree that
we’ll likely return to try out their regular menu where tasty sounding dishes
are abound. If you’re looking for a
Summerlicious choice, try out Café Boulud.
With $45-$55 bottles or a $25 pairing option, now is the perfect time to
try out the restaurant at a decent price.
