No. 18: Canoe

66 WELLINGTON STREET WEST, 54TH FLOOR TD BANK TOWER, TORONTO, ONTARIO

NAMING A SWANKY restaurant on the 54th floor of a gleaming, modern, downtown office tower for a mode of transport that predates the elevator by at least a few millennia seems at first a little baffling.

But the juxtaposition of old and new is exactly what this place is about. For over its 20-year, star-chef-studded run, the kitchen at Canoe has been consistently preoccupied with Canadiana—and just as often, local pre-Canadiana. Whenever its historical gaze settles on something it likes, it yanks it hard into the present. For example, bannock becomes venison tartare with crispy bacon, puffed bannock, pink peppercorn, wild mustard and foraged pickles. Cured Arctic char is served with wild salmon roe and sea asparagus relish—and a decidedly non-First Nations accompaniment of puffed sushi rice and lotus flower vinegar.

As John Horne is now executive chef of both Canoe and Auberge du Pommier, the day to day here now falls to chef de cuisine Ron McKinlay. As always, the Canoe ethos continues to be expressed with archetypically Canadian, top-quality ingredients like Newfoundland cod, B.C. skate and octopus, Monforte Dairy cheese and Okanagan hazelnuts. The dining room is modern and sleek and incorporates just enough soft-wood finishes to fit the culinary messaging. Day and night, the views of the lower city and Lake Ontario are the best in town. The cellar is deep, varied and rich with Canadian choices. Service is exceptional.

HOURS

Lunch
Monday to Friday
11:45 AM until 2:30 PM

Dinner
Monday to Friday
5:00 PM until 10:30 PM

Available Saturday & Sunday for private events