Restaurant Appraisals: Quince Restaurant in Toronto

Quince is one of the Toronto must-try places – a Mediterranean-inspired bistro with reasonable prices and fresh, innovative flavours. It has been rated as outstanding by the Eye Magazine and after receiving some mixed reviews from Toronto Life, also one of the Toronto’s Best New Restaurants of 2007. Placed just a few blocks south of the busy intersection at Yonge and Eglinton, this new midtown digs was opened in fall of 2006 by the husband and wife team consisting of Jennifer Gittins and Michael van den Winkel, former members of the acclaimed Stork on the Roof.

Enclosed by a pretty patio graced with teak furniture and plenty of cushions in bright, primary colours, Quince is directly across the street from the abandoned hulk that was once Cheaters, an infamous nudie bar. Two doors down, next to the famous restaurant Coquine, a neon sign proclaims “Adult Video & Novelties”, a bit of a surprise in a neighbourhood touted for its blossoming business district and family-friendly parks. But this stretch of Yonge Street between Eglinton and Davisville has always had, at least for the latest twenty-five years, an interesting selection of stores. You can find pretty much anything, starting from clothing boutiques to bead and paper stores, home decor to adult venues.

A hostess warmly greets us at Quince’s door and offers us a place near the bar on low, cushioned banquettes. Pleading excessive height, we’re offered a selection of tables, which is a nice surprise for a Saturday night in this lively neighbourhood. I ask: “What’s downstairs?” We get an answer from our hostess: “Oh, that’s our private dining room.” You can enjoy lunch or dinner there. The space offers its own bar and lounge and all is nicely decorated, although the tile floor reveals it’s in the basement. This room can host corporate or private groups of diners up to 40 people or cocktail receptions of up to 70 people. You can get a recommended menu along with matching wines, showing that the personnel takes care of all the details.

Our waiter is arriving with a brief list of specials, just a moment after we have chosen our table. I want to say a brief list of specials containing a long explanation of ingredients and preparation methods, and how the meals go together. We can see that the waiter is apparently an expert, he doesn’t even need to refer to his notebook as he tells us what is garnish vs. a side dish. He’s personable, friendly and efficient. While I can’t decide whether I should order a whole sea bream (“Most people order a side with it, it’s just the fish,” our waiter warns me apologetically), we can look around a bit. The space of the dining room is airy and seemingly large, as clever lighting enhances its depth while adding a pleasant warmth and maintaining at least some level of intimacy. Another nice thing is the volume level – even though the room is nearly completely full, we can still easily have a conversation or listen to the background music (probably D’Angelo and Stevie Wonder). The loft-style exposed brick walls are graced with modern art in earthy hues, adding balance to the exposed ductwork painted in chocolate brown, probably not to look too sterile. Amazing for voyeurs, a semi-open kitchen offers a glimpse of the wood-fired oven behind the bar. If you want to see the rest of our review, see the Quince restaurant write-up.