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Food & Drink

La Bruschetta’s 80s flashback

In honour of its 30th birthday, La Bruschetta (1317 St Clair W, at St. Clarens, 416-656-8622) is not only bringing back the menu of rustic Italian classics that has made the Corso Italia cantina a favourite of visting celebs since back in the 80s, the card will also be available for the original prices.

This steal of a meal deal starts next Monday November 8th and runs through Saturday November 12th.

That means bowls of hearty Tuscan pasta e fagioli for four bucks, house-made sausage and sweet roasted red peppers over polenta for $5.50, and mussels steamed in garlic and white wine for $6.

Retro primi pastas include fettucine Alfredo ($6), penne alla vodka ($7), and spaghetti all Bolognese ($7.50) while secondi top out with scallopina con funghi ($9) and veal parmigiana ($9.50), all dished up in a surprisingly elegant room by servers that treat you like long-lost relatives. No wonder Benicio del Toro and the Olsen Twins are regulars whenever they’re in town.

“We tried it five years ago just for fun when it was our 25th anniversary,” says the resto’s Sylvia Piantoni whose father Benito launched La Bruschetta exactly three decade ago. “We’re even bringing back the ugly candles and checkered tablecloths.”

Because of its off-the-beaten track location, La Bru has become popular with the LA A-list. Most were in town to shoot a movie and appreciated the restaurant’s laid-back vibe and old world kitchen. After their meal, they were asked to sign dinner plates. A selection of the more than 300 them – Megan Fox, Matt Damon, Kristen Chenowith, Sophia Loren, Whoopi Goldberg, Bette Midler, Ryan Gosling, Dennis Leary, and Hilary Duff – are on display in the entryway.

“Ann Gillian and Susan Lucci were the first,” laughs Piantoni. “A lot of them are dead now.”

Needless to say, reservations for lunch and dinner are going to be essential. Don’t be like Tom Cruise circa Cocktail ’88 and show up without one.

“His driver called from the car parked outside and said ‘We see people lined up at the door and could we get a table for blah-blah-blah,'” recalls Piantoni. “We told them we were full but it would be about half an hour but they didn’t want to wait. They tried the same thing again a couple of nights later and my dad didn’t let them in then either. We’d have loved to have him here but we can’t turn away the people who pay our bills.”

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