Talking a walk on the Via Allegro

“How about lunch at Via Allegro?” I asked my daughter Jennifer a bit more than a year ago.  Jen had been wildly studying for a qualifying exam the week of her birthday and away the following weekend, making now the first available time for a belated birthday luncheon.

“Oh, yes, please.” Via Allegro in Toronto is one of our favourite restaurants, albeit one we can’t afford to patronize too often. Its over-the-top, sunny Italian garden/courtyard décor could make a terminally depressed person feel like singing. And its food? Mamma mia, its food is to-die-for. The rabbit pappardelle, infused with truffle oil? Mmmmmm……….I could eat a little of it every day.

I first discovered Via Allegro in 2000. Driving back from a day of business in Niagara, I decided I was too tired to cook. I’ll check out that greasy spoon in the plaza across from Sherway Gardens, grab a burger and read my book.  Well, when I pushed open the door of Via Allegro, what a shock I got! Dressed in jeans and a leather jacket, I took in the starched white tablecloths, the mile-high wine list, the fabulous food being delivered to elegant diners, and changed my mind. The hostess quickly changed it back. “We’ll be happy to serve you in the dining room,” she said, “but if you insist on the bar, that’s wonderful, too.” I sneaked into the bar, ordered a glass of wine and tried to decide what would substitute for a burger. Veal chop? Oh, yeah! I cracked open my book and took my first sip of a very delicious Chardonnay. The bar attendant approached. “You don’t have enough light to read there,” she protested. “Let me get you a lamp.” Oh my God, I’ve died and alighted in Restaurant Heaven.

But more than anything, Via Allegro conjures up two words for us: foie gras. So we ordered  the foie gras  torchon to share as our starter. We would each have our own order, but I’m not supposed to eat it. High cholesterol and foie gras may not be the best pairing ever! I ordered a gorgeous sauterne to go with the gorgeous liver, the thinnest possible nut-fruit toast, and the most scrumptious accompaniments that make up Via Allegro’s Quebec foie gras plate.

“Good choice,” said the waiter, and disappeared to put in our order.

We were joined a few moments later by another gentleman, a long, slim bottle in his hand. “You ordered sauterne,” he said, “and that’s a classic pairing with foie gras, but I think I have something better.”

My children and I are food hedonists; we are all up for “something better”! Our ears perked up.

“Donald Ziraldo’s new icewine,” proclaimed our new friend, as if he were announcing the re-birth of Christ.

Donald, one of the brains behind Inniskillin Wines and now the owner of Ziraldo Estate Winery, is an old friend from my Niagara days, but I obviously hadn’t had much contact recently if I didn’t know that he had a new icewine. I’d seen him earlier in the spring when we both happened to drop by to visit my former partner, Ruedi Hafen of Niagara Helicopters. Donald hadn’t mentioned a new icewine.

“Just released,” he added, explaining why Donald hadn’t mentioned it.

He poured us a wee taste each. Exquisite sweetness, hints of apricot. We sipped and ordered two glasses. Icewine is normally too sweet for me (I’m more a cognac kind of girl) but this combined beautifully with the rich fattiness of the foie gras—a match like Bonnie and Clyde! Gold, pure gold.

In fact, the icewine we enjoyed is a re-release of Ziraldo’s 2007 Riesling Icewine. My daughter and I agreed that sitting in Via Allegro with each other on a rainy day, nibbling foie gras and sipping my old friend’s “new” icewine was about as good as it gets. And then she snapped a photo with her Blackberry and sent it to her chef brother in Halifax with the note: “Wish you were here.” Or did that message have a question mark at the end?

On Mother’s Day this year, my daughter invited me back to Via Allegro. I happily complied. Visions of rabbit pappardelle danced in my head.

The same warm greeting…..the same sunny courtyard…….new chef……..what would Via Allegro be like without long-time Executive Chef Lino Collevecchio? Well, in a word it’s torchon-less. There’s still foie gras on the menu, but it’s seared. Is the Ziraldo icewine stil available? Alas, that’s all gone, too, so we opt to share a carpaccio plate.

The arrival of a basket of breads and a dish of hummus/olive tapenade reminds

Jennifer that she’s miffed that she’s been recently diagnosed with a wheat allergy. She sneaks a little bite anyway and I graciously allow her the lion’s share of the dip.

At our request, sommelier Wendy Votto arrives to consult with us on our wine choices. We explain what we plan to order, and after tasting a couple of  suspects, we settle on a California pinot noir that proves to be quite a hit.

The carpaccio is amazing, as usual, with dribbles of wonderful olive oil, shavings of aged parmesan reggiano, and dressed arugula. If we ate nothing else, Via Allegro would be worth the visit. Their carpaccio is my measure for all others.

Jennifer orders the salmon, I decide on something other than my old rabbit standby: Tuscan ribs with a pasta/cheese/pork osso bucco casserole. The dry ribs are lovely, tasty and meaty, but the accompanying casserole evokes “Oh, my God” responses first from me, and after a purloined forkful, my daughter. I eat as much as I can and decide I can’t bear the thought of leaving it there. It must come home with me.

Jen’s not elated about her choice. “The salmon smells off, Mom,” she says. “You sniff.” I’m a Newfie and if I know anything, it’s fish. The salmon is definitely fishy-smelling and a taste test shows it’s fishy-tasting as well. Not exactly Via Allegro standards. She eats the side dishes, and snitches off my plate. When our waiter, who hasn’t been exactly fawning, comes to remove the plates and Jen’s almost untouched salmon, we tell him our concerns abut the salmon—just so the kitchen knows. His attitude is, “Oh……REALLY?” Not much concern there.

We order the mixed gelato/sorbet plate. The decision prompts another: what to drink with it. Sommelier Wendy ushers us up to the bar where we sip on five choices from grappa to ice wine and decide on the medium sweetness, which happens to be a golden sauterne. That’s when I notice the gentleman who recommended the icewine on our earlier visit. When our waiter delivers the ices, I point out this man and ask, “Who is he?”

“That’s our manager,” he replies. We don’t get his correct title.

“My friend told me that the next time I’m here, I should introduce myself and say hi,” I say.

“And who’s your friend?”

I tell him. Seconds later, our gentleman is at the table. We chat about our mutual acquaintance for a few seconds, then he asks if everything is all right. Jen is about to say sure, when I think, what the hell, and tell him about her salmon. We assure him we tell him only so the chef knows there may be a problem. He is most disturbed. Has she had enough to eat, should he bring her something else? No, she nibbled on my food. Then should he bring me something else? We assure him we’re just fine. He says he will talk to other people who ordered the salmon.

The ices and the sauterne move us into cat-stretching-in-a-patch-of-sunshine mode. We are feeling very well-fed indeed, despite missing one protein!

When the bill comes, Jennifer’s offending fishie is not on it and the waiter, who has treated us deferentially till now, concentrating more on the tip-heavy tables of four and six perhaps, is most apologetic for not having immediately remedied the situation. We leave happy. As Jennifer pointed out, even good restaurants may occasionally have a “fail”, but the measure of a better restaurant is how they deal with it. Because of our gentleman friend’s handling of our problem, Via Allegro will remain one of the gems in our dining repertoire. We have learned a lesson: If there’s a problem, report it right away. The waiter has learned a lesson: If a guest reports a problem, deal with it right away. Bravo, Via Allegro!

Till next time, enjoy your night out.
Ev


Copyright 2011 by Ev McTaggart

Via Allegro

1750 The Queensway West (across from Sherway Gardens)

Toronto, ON 

416 622-6677

http://www.viaallegroristorante.com/