Jamie's Italian
Location: Yorkdale Shopping Center (3401 Dufferin St.)
Access: TTC Subway, Bus, Free Parking available
Price: $25 per person
Blogsters` Rating: 4/5
Came here with my boyfriend on a late Friday night to celebrate my birthday. Surprisingly, this place is not packed and we got seated right away. I love the venue, it has a rustic English / Italian feel with a modern twist. The front area has extremely high ceilings with big windows. If you're lucky enough to be seated in the front area, you'll be able to watch the sunset.
Cured meats are hang along the bar area, which gives a raw feeling to the whole decor and setting.
The service was great. Our server was very friendly and always smiling. She actually recommended all the dishes that we ordered that night - two pastas, a pizza, and a drink.
Squid & Mussel Spaghetti
| flash-fried squid & mussels with white wine, parsley & lemon |
This was awesome! Pasta was cooked to perfection - Al Dente! A very aromatic dish yet no fishy smell from the seafood at all. However, if you don't like garlic, you might want to look into some other dishes. This was perfect for me; from the presentation to the aroma to the taste, everything was spot on! They were very generous with the portion as well, I wasn't able to finish the pasta.
Spicy Sausage Cassarecce
| pork & fennel ragù with chilli, rapini, herby breadcrumbs & parmigiano reggiano |
You can tell the chef did put a thought into the presentation of the cassarecce. It was presented with lots of different kind of colours and texture from the vegetables. However, it was a little bit too spicy for me. Also, the pasta was overcooked and the texture was too soft. This dish was not as exciting as the seafood pasta, but it still have it's own place.
The Carne
| crushed tomatoes, finocchiona, smoky pancetta & spicy salami with fior di latte & oregano |
The pizza was a disappointment. Both my boyfriend and I loved it on our first bite, but as soon as we realized that they were using nann bread (or something similar to that texture and taste) as the pizza dough, everything about that pizza just went downhill. The nann bread ruined the authenticity of the pizza. It also got harder as it got colder. It was actually good that the pizza base was thin, so that it was easier for us to bite into it after it got hardened. Yet I have to admit, the salami on the pizza was amazing, very flavourful.
Ginger Mohito
| mint, lime, sugar & ginger beer |
My very first sip of the Ginger Mohito was "WOW!" The ginger gives a very strong kick, and because of that your palette is asking for more and more. I love this drink. You can taste all the ingredients that the bartender has put it. The mint, lime, and ginger, they all compliment each other very well.
I enjoyed my visit at Jamie's Italian very much. I was skeptical about this restaurant at first because their reviews are not that great. I guess people have a higher expectation from this restaurant because it is operated by one of the world's most famous chef - Jamie Oliver. Anyhow, I couldn't mind coming back and enjoy another visit.
No comments:
Post a Comment