Martini Boys
August, 2006

Martiniboys Rating: 4 Stars

Review by Brad Jamieson

There’s something old-fashioned about Splendido. Maybe it’s the cast-iron chandelier hovering overhead, the rich burnt-orange and dark woods hues of the room, or the white-napkin formality of the table settings, but the place has an unmistakably '80s feel.

Even the crowd that fills the room - accented with post- theater, ballet, and opera types -looks a bit older than what you find at neighbouring Harbord Street spots. However, age brings wisdom, painfully evident, as people here know a good, tasty deal trumps trendy packaging every time.

Everything on Splendido’s eclectic new menu has a singular Mediterranean touch. Chef David Lee’s food varies though, from the inexpensive and traditional but delicious. Pappardelle Pasta with wild mushrooms and Cookstown Purple Snow Peas to the fancier Hawaiian Yellow Fin Tuna Tartar with ratatouille, quail egg and shaved truffles, which though rather lacking in tuna, was bursting with truffle-enhanced flavour.

In a brilliant stroke of anti-chic, Lee serves up a B.C. Dungeness crab cake with a raspberry tarragon vinaigrette and pairs the whole thing with a side of peaches & cream corn salsa, a novel way of preserving the delicate freshness.

For mains, presentation is even more striking than the menu. A delicious charcoal grilled rib eye (Cumbrae Farms) comes with Muntok peppercorn sauce that bumps the naturally raised beef selection into a new dimension;

Try the slow roasted Haldimand County Dorset lamb saddle with rosemary garlic lamb jus or the grilled whole hard shell Nova Scotia lobster with Duca Farms green asparagus, the Queen Charlotte Island halibut filet with delectable arugula pesto and Niagara pancetta are standouts among more conventional suburban fare.

The wine list is extensive and not for the faint of pocketbook; the wines by the glass, though pricey, are worth the cost. The room fills up early at Splendido, and if you're not there when the reservation book says you should be, don't expect any miracles. But if you plan carefully, you'll eat magnificently.