Trevor - Wellington

[mkjr]

Anyone been yet? I do not see a menu on the web site yet.

[Stalder]

Anyone been yet?  I do not see a menu on the web site yet.

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I haven't been but toronto.com "To Dine For" gave it a fabulous review.

I have no idea how much stock can be put in this reviewer, but the food sounds might good .

Here is the link

http://www.toronto.com/restaurants/article/000-381-535

[Endy']

just went. Enter, go down a flight of stairs, and the restaurant is split into 2 halves: dining room on the left and bar on the right. The dining room seats 35-45, I was told (pushing 50 if it's booked off for special events). The bar side, where I ate, seats about 20 (at a guess) plus another 8 at the bar. Bar side was quite dark, with a dark wood and exposed brick look going on.

biggest impression is that it's LOUD inside. The music was pumping (I arrived around 9:15 on a Thursday night) and the music was loud enough to prevent quiet or regular conversation (loud conversations could and did take place). I strolled through the dining room side -- same volume, same not-quite-shouting.

service was fine, neither horrible nor outstanding. No problems there.

food: there's a bar menu, and a full menu (which is served on both sides of the restaurant). Standard apps/mains/desserts split on the full menu.

mac and cheese (bar menu): nice crust on top, pasta had a nice texture, creavy without being heavy. One wintery night I'll go back and line up like 4 of these and demolish them. Very happy with this.

trio of Kobe beef burgers (bar menu): wasn't impressed. For one, I thought 3 was too many, not in terms of size, but because they're quite rich and heavy. Better choice for splitting. When it arrived, I thought it was a trio of differently dressed burgers (it's not), which I think would have worked better. The one preparation isn't interesting enough to justify having 3. (It's arugula, northern mushroom, and garlic-truffle mayo, and gherkin skewered on top.) Bun was too large and a bit hard. Also thought it was kinda expensive.

seared quail (full menu - app): fine, but overall, not for me. The quail was nicely cooked, but I thought a bit unevenly seasoned. There was a sweet-salty reduction that I couldn't pinpoint (caramel?) that I didn't think paired well at all. I did quite enjoy the "root vegetable and chestnut hash" that it came with, and there was a fried quail egg on top that was nice, although I don't know that the egg fit in with the rest of the dish.

overall, the food was reasonably executed but a bit uneven in terms of "design" (flavours etc.) of the dishes. I did think most items were just a touch overpriced, maybe 5-10%. Not sure if the location/crowd justifies it.

I thought the volume was a serious problem -- if it was just the bar side, OK, but in the dining room it's way too loud. Hope it's quieter earlier in the week or at an earlier hour. None of the mains looked too interesting to me; I'd recommend going with a small group and splitting stuff from the apps and bar menus. Problem for me is, that puts it in competition with JKWB, to which I'd give the edge (I haven't been to Kultura yet).

for me, I'll probably be back sometime, likely for a late dinner/snack (kitchen closes around at 11 on weeknights and midnight on weekends). But part of that is that they're right around the corner from me.

I'll post/link some photos later if they turned out (my camera doesn't do well in low light).

[orangewasabi]

< just went. Enter, go down a flight of stairs, and the restaurant is split into 2 halves: dining room on the left and bar on the right. <

is that the old Vines location?

[Endy']

I don't know, but ChefDB says it is.

[Endy']

pictures here.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/endy_/sets/72157594364430193/

sorry that the food especially doesn't resolve well, my camera doesn't deal well with low-light shooting...

[jenc]

pictures here.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/endy_/sets/72157594364430193/

sorry that the food especially doesn't resolve well, my camera doesn't deal well with low-light shooting...

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A little photoshop fixes all...! I'd fix 'em for you now, but I've only allowed myself a few minutes of procrastination with lunch.

Added you to flickr!

[mkjr]

What was the price for the burgers? They look like they were pretty filling. I must say I love the very rich burger at Bymark so a few smaller ones to share might be something I would be very keen on trying.

[Endy']

burgers were $21. The burger at Bymark didn't blow me away, but I still thought it was quite a bit better than these ones. I'd also say Bymark's was rich but not overly so. I didn't have an issue with the price of the Bymark burger ($36-40 maybe?) either.

[SarahB]

A friend and I had a lovely meal at Trevor Kitchen and Bar last Saturday night. I apologize in advance, but I do not have the breadth of food knowledge to post much more than "I really liked it" review, but I wanted to share my impressions regardless.

First, the noise level. We sat at the bar when we arrived and found the sound okay. The service was also good; quick, attentive and professional. My friend ordered a Shirley Temple and it was served without a bat of the eye and without a premium on the bar tab.

When we moved into the dining room, I did notice that the sound system seemed high, but we sat in a corner and once we were settled in, I didn't have any problem with the volume.

Our server was friendly, but not too friendly, and was very responsive.

Course 1

My friend: Beef and greens in apple wood smoked bacon & sambuca dressing

He enjoyed the dish and had no comments of note. I think we were both surprised that the beef was thinly sliced (alla carpaccio, rather than a sliced steak-approach. That's not a complaint at all, just a heads-up.)

Me: Tempura curry shrimp with apple and jicama salad

I was drawn to this because of the salad and was not disappointed in the least. The texture was lovely, crisp and fresh, and the salad was incredibly tart, which I'm a sucker for. (I wondered if perhaps there was some citric acid included to keep the apple and jicama bright white and to enhance the tang.) The shrimp were very tasty; well-battered and not at all chewy.

Course 2

My friend: Half duck two ways with preserved blueberries and stacked potatoes

The duck was rich and well complemented by the blueberries. Several slices were left on the plate at the end of the meal as my friend reached the mur de canard early. I didn't taste the potatoes, but the presentation was very nice (a small tower of thin slices of both white and sweet potatoes).

Me: Venison with Medjool dates and foie gras en crépinetteand served with "hand-rolled, hand-cut" gnocchi (The waiter emphasized the fact that the gnocchi had been made in the kitchen. The quotation marks should not be read as a suggestion that they were in fact not hand-rolled or hand-cut.) The venison was a special on Saturday night. It's not on the menu.

I should say that despite having been a French major and having read about on making pâtés and terrines, I did not know what en crépinette meant and I didn't ask, so when my food arrived I was surprised and excited to recognize the lovely wrapping of caul fat.

First, the gnocchi. I could swear that the waiter said that they were sweet potato gnocchi. I saw no evidence of this either in the colour or the taste. Not a problem, mind you. They were excellent. Good texture. Properly cooked. Consistent shape and size.

And now, the venison. There were two, possibly three, slices on their own, cooked medium rare. (I don't think the waiter asked me how I wanted it cooked.) The flavour was light and not at all gamey. Then there was the crépine-wrapped "unit" of the venison, foie gras and dates. Considering the ingredients, this could easily have been a disaster from the perspective of both texture and richness. The dates could have been grainy; the foie gras could have been pasty or far too strong in flavour. There was no disaster. The four elements came together beautifully. I think the density of the dates was not dissimilar to that of the venison, so the two created something of a foie-gras sandwich. To go back to my opening paragraph, I have to say: I really liked it!

To my knowledge, that was my first experience with caul fat. I'm thinking of getting down on one knee and proposing.

My friend and I were both content at the end of two courses, and also had chocolates from Soma tucked away for later, so we had coffee and skipped dessert.

I wouldn't hesitate to eat there again and I'd recommend it to others. The tables are quite close together, however, so if you're passing state secrets, this ain't the joint to pick.

(A solicitation for those who are good at matching wines. I chose an off-dry riesling to go with my first course and a pinot noir to go with the venison. I enjoyed both, but those were in no way educated picks, just random go-with-my-gut choices. What might have been better selections, in general? Be gentle, please, I'm new to this game.)

[mkjr]

....I enjoyed both, but those were in no way educated picks, just random go-with-my-gut choices. What might have been better selections, in general? Be gentle, please, I'm new to this game.)

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nice review. this is the best way to pick wine. i take points away when people push the whole wine pairing stuff these days. only ever had one perfect match, and that's after years of trying so now i just say screw it and order what I like also. there is nothing like some Krug with a pizza.

[Endy']

thanks for the review, SarahB. I think there's nothing wrong with you having posted simply that you liked it and explaining why -- in fact, I think that's perfect.

what time were you there on Saturday if you don't mind my asking? Curious as to whether the noise was just because I was there late...

[Bueno]

Great review - thank you! And I think your wine choices were incredibly well-made considering you CLAIM to have no wine knowledge.

The off-dry riesling with the curry/apple was a great match. Rieslings typically marry very well with both fruit and spice in a dish, as well as seafood -- so you really couldn't have chosen better in my view. I may have chosen a merlot for the venison because of the dates (fruity, sweet) but anything red would have been appropriate. Truly, great choices on both counts. You done good!

[SarahB]

what time were you there on Saturday if you don't mind my asking?  Curious as to whether the noise was just because I was there late...

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We were there quite early. We had a 7:30 reservation, but arrived at about 6:50 to get out of the nasty weather. We sat at the bar until the table was ready at 7:30 sharp. We were out the door by 9:50.

I think the height of the ceiling has a lot to do with the noise level and if there are larger parties, I can imagine the room getting quite raucous.

Thank you all for your feedback. It's much appreciated.

[SarahB]

More Trevor information. I was there last night and learned that they're going to put the venison dish on the menu. Not sure what's coming off at this point.

Last night I sat at the bar. It was loud. Quite loud. There was a group of about 20 people chatting away behind us and from time to time we really had to almost yell to hear each other.

We shared the sushi pizza, the steak tartare tacos and the macaroni and cheese. I'd have two of the three again. Details follow.

The only sushi pizza I've had before is the one at Nami (rice base, mayonnaise, salmon, scallions and tobiko). The Trevor sushi pizza is different; a thicker base, and the topping is ahi, but as you find it in a spicy tuna roll. It was quite good. It would have been too rich for me on my own, but was fine shared. I'd order it again, happily.

The steak tartare tacos left me lukewarm. The tartare seemed more processed (i.e. mushy) than I like, although the flavour was good. They've chosen to serve them in hard tortillas, and for me, the fat+flour flavour of the shell overwhelmed the tartare. I had expected them to come on small corn tortillas, like a taco al pastor, but now that I think about it, the corn with a cold topping wouldn't be ideal either. Maybe rösti-like pancakes would work? (Also, there were five tacos, which is a pain when you're sharing.)

The macaroni and cheese was great. I could easily have eaten the whole bowl myself.

And that's probably my last visit to Trevor for the immediate future. Next Thursday night I'm off to Batifole, where the tartare de cheval makes me cry large tears of joy.

[Marlene]

Anyone been yet?  I do not see a menu on the web site yet.

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Does Trevor actually have a website? I can't find it.

[Nick Soapdish]

www.trevorkitchenandbar.com

[Marlene]

Thanks. I wonder why I couldn't get that to turn up in a google search.

[estufarian]

Also note that the chef left recently. Haven't heard any recent reviews since then.

[Renka]

Just thought I'd add my two cents on a recent visit to Trevor.

Images can be found here:

Trevor Kitchen and Bar

I only stopped by for a very quick meal. Of the two entrees and the side that I ordered I was pleased with my order, and would gladly return to Trevor to try many of the other delicious sounding menu items (including an appetizer at the very least). In case anyone's interested, my dining companion and I ordered the "Grilled Venison Tenderloin" (the rib chop was not available that night) and the "Savoury Crumble Crusted Lamb Shoulder" which were both nicely prepared. I also agree that the "Chestnut & Root Vegetable Hash" was tasty. The service was courteous and friendly; the kitchen skilled enough to know how to treat good ingredients well. Nothing over the top, just very good sophisticated fare. This would be a fine establishment to host private gatherings, take a date out to, or just for a great place for good friends to dine at.

Endy_, I didn't notice any really loud music pumping and I was there around 7:15pm on a Sat night. Perhaps they've toned town the noise since your past visit or maybe there's a difference in speaker volume between the bar and the dining room?

Edited December 31, 2007 by Renka (log)