Story & Photos | Renée S. Suen
The Well, Toronto’s newest multi-use development, is a European-influenced space that blends luxury condos with workspaces, shopping, and multiple dining experiences.
Here, Oliver & Bonacini, one of the city’s best-known hospitality groups, has injected the King West complex with welcoming spaces for patrons of all dining interests—from refined southern French cuisine and a deep menu of tartars, to sophisticated British-inspired fare. This new city gem has unparalleled views and well-crafted cocktails.
Aera
8 Spadina Ave, 38th floor
647-258-5207
aerarestaurant.com
Perched on the 38th floor of The Well, the latest in the O&B hospitality group’s buzzy spaces offers a wraparound penthouse view of Toronto’s expansive skyline that includes the Toronto Islands, downtown cityscape and the city’s western stretch. Besides a cozy lounge that’s parked next to uninterrupted views of Lake Ontario, the bright and airy 5,000-square-foot Solid Design Creative room gives diners plenty of options.
Aera
There are window-flanking tables, central seating from a raised platform, a 16-seat sushi counter, plus a four-person chef’s table that looks onto Aera’s open kitchen. Those seeking the ultimate view might choose to visit the 4,500-square-foot rooftop patio to tipple on classic cocktails or signatures, including the showy Runway that arrives under a plume of maple wood smoke.
At lunch, there’s a chef’s choice of sashimi or nigiri that might feature chu toro, akami, sake, hamachi and madai.
Aera’s crowd-pleasing menu leans into contemporary steakhouse territory with a heavy emphasis on seafood. Start with a selection of sashimi prepared by ex-Yamato and Miku sushi chef Rhett Sacdalan, which might feature line-caught bluefin tuna, including chu toro and akami along with madai or hamachi, and a raw bar with seafood towers, crudos, tartare and ceviche, plus caviar service.
A slice of seared foie gras from Quebec topping a toast with house-made peanut butter, grape jelly and a sunny side up fried quail’s egg cap.
The vegetarian-friendly creamed spinach is rich from roast garlic, plus crème fraiche and au gratin with gruyère cheese.
You’ll find a lunch menu packed with crowd pleasers, including a dry-aged beef burger and wild salmon poke bowl. For dinner, there are heartier mains that range from tuna steak to seared branzino, a truffle mushroom-stuffed chicken breast or even Maritime lobster spaghetti. Pair your grilled US Prime porterhouse or Australian A8/9 wagyu steak with not-to-be-missed vegetable dishes and sides, such as the bombakissed roasted broccoli or creamed spinach.
Whether it’s a US Prime cut (16 oz rib eye shown here), Ontario AAA or Australian A8/9 wagyu steak, they’re all simply served unadulterated au jus.
The carrot cake is a fine specimen topped with cream cheese crémeux and sits on cinnamon dolce with a pleasing pecan crunch.
The musts, however, include the Aera cornbread. Walsh’s family recipe is enhanced with roasted garlic, pimento, aged cheese and scallions. There are desserts like the well-composed carrot cake with gorgeous cream cheese crémeux. Wash it down with a glass, or bottle, from the solid wine list that eschews trendy and niche numbers to feature classics that span both old and new worlds, with a few sakes on hand for good measure.
The Dorset
457 Wellington St. W.
647-288-4304
thedorsetwellington.com
Looking for finessed British fare, including a full English breakfast and hake fish and chips with mushy pea. Then step into the twostorey English country house that is The Dorset.
The Dorset’s colour palette is a nod to the British countryside.
Downstairs, you’ll find the main-floor bar that specializes in whimsical cocktails with a distinctly English theme that feature the tequila, mezcal and rum spiked Skyfall, or the non-alcoholic Bridgerton tea, in addition to a street-level patio where you can imbibe on a deep list of old and new world wines, including a few numbers from England, plus craft beers and ciders.
Instead of prawn cocktail in its classic form, The Dorset’s version serves it with avocado plus a kale, cucumber and batter scraps salad that are tied together with a warm Marie Rose sauce.
Besides an all-day menu with polished takes on pub fare, including pork scratchings, scotch duck egg, Waldorf salad and braised beef shin cottage pie, there’s a daily happy hour for half-off all drinks and snacks.
The Dorset’s Cornish game hen dish features both a confit leg and a generous Kiev roulade with a golden crumbly crust that’s served with charred spring onion butter, blistered cauliflower and a glossy rich madeira jus.
The soused mackerel is a generous appetizer that parks a meaty, rich filet of pickled fish on a bed made from baby cucumber, mackerel tartare with wasabi peas (wasabi is grown in The Dorset), all on a toasted sourdough crumpet.
The upstairs dining room is a touch more formal, featuring a lofty natural-light space that peers into the Dorset’s bright open kitchen. (There’s also a private dining space for up to 40 guests.) This is where district executive chef Ryan Lister and chef de cuisine Rob Ratcliffe serve an upscale menu the features curried sweetbreads and Cornish game hen Kiev, as well as a pan-seared wild halibut filet that’s blanketed with a roasted miso and chicken wing cream sauce.
The strawberry trifle sponge cake sandwiches Bristol Cream Sherry-soaked sponge cake between layers of custard, strawberry-cranberry custard and strawberry jelly.
For those who want to leave things in the chef’s hands, there’s a six-course tasting menu with optional wine pairings that might start with a black treacle soda bread with St. Brigid’s butter that volleys to citrus-cured sea bass, before mains like halibut and treacle glazed duck breast. Cap your meal with a beautifully constructed strawberries and cream sponge cake from pastry chef Alessandra Bustamante.
La Plume
453 Wellington St. W.
647-258-5205
laplumebrasserie.com
It’s the coastal Mediterranean flare of southern France that provides the inspiration at O&B’s La Plume. This two-storey restaurant is influenced by the interiors of a luxe Parisian apartment. The main floor has a wraparound patio and a custom-outfitted central bar.
La Plume
Meanwhile, the visual highlights of the second-floor dining room include a sophisticated open kitchen, covered terrace and a private dining room. Partake in a number from the bar’s refreshing spritz list, the daily happy-hour, half-off drink and oyster special or check out La Plume’s semi-hidden boudoir-inspired speakeasy, Bonne Nuit, located just beyond the restroom doors.
La Plume’s vegetarian tartare features braised portobello and cremini mushrooms, bound together with a little truffle cream
The trout tartare from La Plume tosses diced trout with daikon and cucumber in a coconut-citrus caramel and vanilla dressing. It’s garnished with trout roe and dill.
Here, southern French cooking reigns supreme with the menu’s light and breezy Provençal flavors, which are less common in the city. Notable features include five riffs on the classic French tartare, ranging from traditional beef accented by harissa to venison dressed in smoked mustard or lush scallops kissed with dulse and Cabernet Sauvignon vinegar.
La Plume’s juicy rotisserie Giannone chicken comes with russet potato wedges or pomme puree, smoked mustard aioli and gravy.
The steak frites at La Plume are served with green beans, with a choice of béarnaise sauce or shallot jus. The cuts range from a tenderloin to New York strip loin (shown here), cote de boeuf.
Served with grilled baguette, taro chips, potato chips and housepickled veggies, the tartare—available at lunch, relaxed weekend brunch and dinner—can easily be made a main with a side of frites and glass of wine from the heavily French-leaning list.
A leek vinaigrette and grilled lemon finishes a crispy-skinned branzino.
Enjoy popular picks like the indulgent French onion soup that takes a minimum of 48 hours to make and topped with a blend of Gruyère, Emmental and cheese curds. Shielded by a gloriously crispy skin, the seared whole branzino is dressed with leek vinaigrette, while steak frites come fully dressed and available in cuts ranging from a flavourful flatiron to an M4 wagyu strip loin.
Classic beef tartare is seasoned with harissa plus Dijon mustard, capers, parsley and egg yolk.
Save room for the rotisserie’s Giannone chicken. Served by the quarter, half or whole, it’s brined for eight hours and seasoned with an Espelette-style spice blend and comes with either meaty doublecooked russet potato wedges or creamy pomme puree, smoked mustard aioli and gravy made from leftover chicken bones. Do finish with the fantastic Paris-Brest for two, which sandwiches unctuous praline cream with halves of a choux pastry ring that’s dotted with caramelized hazelnuts.
