Winterlicious review: Canoe

Canoe

66 Wellington St. W

What a perfectly wonderful and romantic way to cap off my Winterlicious extravaganza! Like everyone says, Canoe is absolutely amazing. And given the restaurant would usually set you back much more than the $45 Winterlicious menu, there was no pretentiousness at all ---the servers were uber friendly, offering us a seat near the window with an extraordinary view from the 54th floor of the TD building. It made for a perfect combined early Valentine's Day and belated anniversary!

Winterlicious review:Lucien

Lucien

36 Wellington St. E

As you may be able to tell from this photo, the restaurant was none too busy on a Tuesday night, but by the way we were treated, you'd never be able to tell. It felt like it was one of those classic Winterlicious experiences, where restos that are usually raved about put out sub par food and staff makes you feel like they're just rushing you through. And given the quality of some other $35 menus I dined on, this Lucien food simply wasn't worth it.

Winterlicious review: Luma

Luma 

350 King St. W

A swanky home to celebs during Tiff, the Oliver &Bonacini resto in the Bell Lightbox is as close to a red carpet experience we lowly Winterlicious diners could find -- and for $35 the price is definitely right.

Winterlicious review: Trevor Kitchen and Bar

Trevor Kitchen and Bar 

38 Wellington St. E.

First: Do not get confused and walk into Swish by Han, which is upstairs to the right. That is a different restaurant, and they do not have your reservations.  Second, definitely go to Trevor. The friendly server told us chef Trevor spent months coming up with his Winterlicious menu because he thinks it's a way to get people to taste a wide selection of their food, so they'll come back. That just makes sense. The food is excellent and so is the service. Definitely worth the $35 price tag.

Winterlicious review: C5 Restaurant

 

If not for the celebrity chef, get to C5 ---the acclaimed restaurant in the Royal Ontario Museum -- for the view, the culture, the ambiance. Although it didn't have the most enticing offerings on its Winterlicious menu (mostly comfort/ upscale cafeteria offerings), the food -- a good value for $25 --was well executed, portion sizes were decent and the service was friendly and attentive.

Walking through a Winterlicious wonderland...

Hooray! It's Winterlicious, the time of year to try out some of  Toronto's best restaurants at a fraction of their usual prices. Prix fixe menus run either $25, $35 or $45 per dinner, and $15, $20 or $25 for lunch. That gets you at least three choices for three courses. Designed to draw in diners during the SARS crisis of 2003, Winterlicious, and younger sister Summerlicious, have become Toronto foodie staples that help boost restaurant sales during down times in this lacklustre economy.