As a new resident of Toronto, I have never experienced Summerlicious. For those (like me) who have never spent a summer downtown, Summerlicious is a celebration of food. Over 200 of Toronto’s restaurants offer a special deal on a 3-course menu for 2 weeks. To be honest, I’m not generally a dessert person, so it would probably be cheaper to just get an entrée and a drink…but it’s all about the experience, right?
Last night my friend Meredith invited me to Bent, a restaurant owned by famous chef Susur Lee’s sons. Located at Bathurst & Dundas, I was loving the atmosphere. Mere and I both thought it would be the perfect place for a date or special meal; the lighting was just right, the restaurant wasn’t too big or too small, and the patio was awesome.
The Summerlicious menu can be found here…it was nearly impossible to choose what to eat! I got a gin sour to drink, and while the $14 price tag was a little steep, I was down for the lime slushie flava.
I ended up choosing the shrimp and veggie fritters and the salmon, with the trio of desserts to follow. The fritters were AMAZING. I am insanely sensitive to spicy food, so I was terrified of the “Cajun” description…I was pleasantly surprised! Meanwhile Mere got the gazpacho, and THAT was spicy…my mouth hurt after one slurp. The salmon was good…nothing to write home about, but I’m all for a well-cooked piece o’ fish. I kind of wish I got the steak. Then there’s the dessert….good god, Lemon. They were PERFECTION. I thought I was going to favour the coconut chocolate mousse, but I was proven wrong. The panna cotta was delicious (to quote myself: “it tastes like what body butter smells like!”), and my personal favourite was the banana & jackfruit spring roll. I have no frigging clue what jackfruit is, but me gusta.
All in all I was MAJORLY impressed by Bent. It wasn’t obscenely pricey, and I left feeling like I was going to explode…always a sign of a success in my books. Chalking this one up as a winner!