Toronto Life
April 8, 2010

Best New Restaurants 2010

by James Chatto

I admit it—I miss the old Splendido. Toronto needs one or two restaurants of genuine grandeur and sophistication. I love the new version, too. Front-of-house veteran Carlo Catallo and chef Victor Barry are now the owners, and they reopened last summer with a contemporary flourish. The sky blue paint and the shelves of preserves on the rear wall say it all: Splendido redux is lighter, brighter and more relaxed, and the kitchen is determinedly in tune with the local harvest, which isn’t to say the place has suddenly turned hillbilly rustic. There are still truffles grated over the butter-poached lobster risotto, but the foie gras parfait is now mitigated with chicken livers, and juicy rabbit meat and sleek chanterelles become part of a hearty dish of pappardelle—no luxurious bells or whistles, just wonderfully rich flavours. Catallo pairs it perfectly with a hearty Piedmontese barbaresco, a reminder that he’s one of the city’s most accomplished sommeliers. There’s a breezy mood in the dining room, and it’s good to see the bar so busy again, as it used to be in the old days—a lively scene to anchor Harbord Street’s eastern reaches.