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Food Food & Drink

Weekend eating: August 27-28

Saturday

Buca

604 King W, at Portland, 416-865-1600, buca.ca. If it’s a big room with a palpable buzz you’re looking for, this cavernous Italian trat in a converted warehouse boiler room down an alleyway is just the ticket. Chef/partner Rob Gentile’s casual pasta, pizza ‘n’ panini card is just as rambunctious, including de rigueur house-cured salumi. For a more intimate evening, book a table in the darkly lit wine bar just off the main space. Reservations recommended. Best: shareable tapas-like starters of crisply deep-fried pigs’ ears graced with fennel, pork rinds gone to hog heaven hollow gnocchi fritti dumplings paired with house-cured lardo super-succulent skewers of grilled lamb – ewe to you – in crushed peppercorns cracker-thin oblong pizzas topped with house-pickled zucchini flowers and fresh ricotta, or sardines and endive duck-egg tagliatelle tossed with shredded duck ragu, mascarpone and fresh basil to finish, chocolate mousse cannoli in lemony bergamot custard. Complete dinners for $65 (lunches $40), including tax, tip and a glass of vino. Average main $24/$16. Open for dinner Saturday 5 to 11 pm. Licensed. Access: 10 steps at door, washrooms on same floor. Rating: NNN

Jean’s Vegetarian Kitchen

1262 Danforth, at Greenwood, 416-778-1388. Jean and Harry Seow (Rasa Sayang, Sawasdee) return from retirement – for the third time! – with their swankiest resto yet. This unexpectedly upscale 30-seat room, all caramel-coloured walls, sleek banquettes and beaming Buddha on the bar, now comes with an exclusively Southeast Asian vegetarian card. Bonus: everything on the menu is available in vegan versions. Best: to start, tightly wrapped rice-paper rolls deep-fried in canola oil, packed with cellophane noodles, raw carrot threads and crunchy ribbons of cloud ear Golden Baskets, a tiny quintet of brittle pastry shells brimming with garden-fresh peas, corn, carrots and diced organic tofu mains like Pad Kee Mau, a ketchup-free take on pad thai thick with cauliflower and broccoli, basil and convincing faux shrimp sides like Japanese eggplant with sweet peppers bitter mustard greens in garlic to finish, deep-fried bananas in honeyed batter. Complete dinners for $25 per person, including tax, tip and a pot of jasmine green tea. Average main $9. Open for dinner Saturday 5 to 10 pm. Reservations recommended. Unlicensed. Access: barrier-free, washrooms in basement. Rating: NNNNN

Sugo

582 Church, at Dundonald, 416-929-9108, sugotrattoria.ca. No longer the unpronouncable Voglie, Lia Buggemi’s rustic southern Italian trat was doing nonna della cucina five years before it became cucina alla moda. An authentic kitchen, two gorgeous garden patios – one cheek-to-cheek with chi-chi Fuzion next door – and a lively late-night lounge make Sugo one of the hottest boîtes on the strip. Best: to start, alternating layers of vine-ripened Roma tomatoes and creamy fior di latte on a bed of organic greens doused with nutty basil pesto and buttery olive oil olives incassati – deep-fried house-made Casalinga pork sausage meatballs stuffed with green olives stuffed with salty diced pimento irregularly shaped thin-crusted Neapolitan-style pizzas dressed with family-recipe San Marzano tomato sauce, crumbled sausage, local ricotta, fire-roasted red peppers and house-pickled peperoncino chilies feathery gnocchi in sauce topped with beefy veal meatballs, fresh basil and shaved parmigiano to finish, tiramisu lashed with chocolate, mascarpone, Marsala and Illy espresso. Complete dinners for $45 per person (lunches $30), including taxes, tip and a glass of vino. Average main $16. Open for dinner Saturday 5 to 11 pm. Bar till close. Licensed. Rating: NNN

Sunday

C5

100 Queen’s Pk, at Bloor, 416-586-7928, rom.on.ca. Located at the pinnacle of the ROM’s new Crystal addition, this swanky supper club spotlights chef Teddy Corrado’s snout-to-tail carte as well as fabulous rooftop views facing the downtown skyline and points west. If you’re looking for a spot to impress out-of-towners, this be the place. Bonus: a separate five-course bacon menu! Best: to start, baskets of house-baked scones, croissants and pain au chocolates charcuterie platter over-the-top mains like lobster omelettes on house-baked English muffins garnished with pork loin peameal bacon, Gruyère and wilted rapini, sided with cucumber celery slaw fluffy pancakes stuffed with cherry-wood-smoked bacon and finished with peach compote, candied walnuts, maple chantilly and foie gras torchons to finish, sticky toffee pudding with cognac prune purée and blue cheese ice cream. Complete brunches for $55 per person, including tax, tip and a glass of wine. Average main $20. Open for brunch Sunday 11:30 am to 2:30 pm. Reservations accepted. Licensed. Access: Barrier-free. Rating: NNNN

Frankly

1118 Queen E, at Caroline, 647-350-1611, franklyeatery.com. Does the Leslieville strip really need another brunch spot? It most definitely does when the card is this unique, the soundtrack – T.Rex, Roxy Music, the Smiths – this artfully curated and the service so charming. Shame there are only 18 seats. Best: Indo-inspired mains like gobi parantha, thick whole wheat crepes stuffed with al dente cauliflower sided with sour cream raita, spicy house-made sausage and coriander chutney BLT built on toasted slices of St John’s Bakery’s sourdough stacked with thick Upper Cut bacon, ripe tomato and avocado mayo at weekend brunch, corn tortillas piled with tandoori-style pulled pork, perfectly scrambled free-range eggs and garlicky roasted tomato salsa lashed with avocado cream, a heap of commercial organic greens dressed in honey balsamic on the side. Complete brunches for $18 per person, including tax, tip and an Americano. Average main $10. Open for brunch Sunday 9 am to 4 pm. Unlicensed. Access: one step at door, washrooms on same floor. Rating: NNN

Naco Gallery Cafe

1665 Dundas W, at Margueretta, 647-347-6499, nacogallery.com. Don’t come to this Latin-accented coffeehouse slash alterna-queer music venue if you’re in the market for tuna tacos or chicken quesadillas. Other than a few bar snacks, they don’t do food most days. But make a beeline for this offbeat storefront every weekend for one of the most inventive brunches around. Just don’t be in a hurry. Chef Nathan Gawalko – formerly of Atlantic and La Palette – cooks everything on a two-burner hot plate. Best: the house torta, a gargantuan burger-style breakfast sandwich stacked with slow-roasted pork belly, crunchy chicharrones crackling, sliced avocado, creamy coleslaw and a runny egg grilled asparagus in mole sauce over fresh La Tortilleria tortillas dressed with vegan refried beans, meaty oyster mushrooms, lime-pickled red onions, raw radish ‘n’ jalapeño and a drizzle of yogurt enchiladas stuffed with chipotle-braised beef brisket, melted mozzarella and pickled shallots in smoky grilled tomato and guajillo pepper sauce, a crumble of Hewitt Dairy feta and yet another runny egg to finish to drink, minty house-made lemonade. Complete brunches for $18 per person, including tax, tip and a coffee. Average main $10. Open for brunch Sunday 10 am to 4 pm. No reservations. Licensed. Access: one step at door, washrooms in basement. Rating: NNNN

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