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Ortolan
Category: Restaurants French French [Edit]
1211 Bloor St WToronto, ON M6H 1N4
Neighbourhoods: Brockton Village, Bloordale Village, Wallace Emerson
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- No
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Take Away:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Ambience:
- Trendy
- Has TV:
- No
11 reviews for Ortolan
11 reviews in English
-
Review from Liora I.
Toronto, ON
4/10/2012 1 Check-in Here
Ortolan is a little gem. The decor is understated and charming. The chalkboard menu is simple and easy to scan. I thought the service was really great, our server seemed really enthused when describing the menu.
I hear the menu changes quite frequently but try the gnocchi which is a staple and really is as good as everyone says it is. -
Review from Debbie M.
Toronto, ON
3/16/2012
We are always trying new places in our hood and it was Ortolan's turn - it has a nice atmosphere, the server was really friendly. Empty for a Friday night - at 7 p.m. it was just my husband and I and another couple.
I ordered the Gnocchi with black trumpet mushrooms and the radicchio salad - my hubby the pickerel. I think we were both surprised at the portion sizes. His fish, for $18 was about 1 in. wide and maybe 3 in. long. There are no side dishes, you have to order those separately ($7 for cauliflower) - even when it says parsnips, they are in the sauce, not on the plate. It would be nice to have something on the side.
My gnocchi was good - a bit too salty and, if I'm being completely honest there was something gritty in the sauce that screeched like sand in my teeth. (Just thinking about it gives me chills).
While I love new places in our area, and are so excited to have fresh businesses in Bloordale - I don't think we'll be visiting again soon. There are other hipster places in the area that have a homey feel and delish (cheaper) dishes. But we gave it a shot! -
Review from Leslie W.
1/15/2012 1 Check-in Here
BOTTOM LINE: Great spot, a fresh menu and premium prices, for the 'hood.
A really liked Ortolan and would easily recommend it, but there's certainly room for improvement. Where it matters the most - the food; it was supreme. I suspect the menu rotates since it's written on the chalk board. My dinner mate and me really thought their beef cheeks (tender, flavourful and not too salty) and their panna cotta were the highlights. We also tried this appy (forget the name) that was akin to brie and apple slices wrapped in a crepe, gnocchi and their side of cooked greens (though, they made this mistakenly instead of our order of a side salad), which we both really enjoyed as well.
While you can sit down at tables, if it's just the 2 of you, I'd recommend sitting at the corner of the bar. Not only do you have a HUGE amount of real estate for all your dishes, we thought the bartender was very friendly and helpful with recommendations. Their wine selection was adequate (sparklings, whites, reds), though their beer selection was rather pitiful (3 bottled beers).
A few things would potentially bump this venue up to 4-stars. They don't take credit cards (I know small businesses and restos feel gauged by credit card companies, but I file this under the "cost of doing business"). And while I really enjoyed their food, for the price, I feel that Zocalo offers much more - it's a short walk down the street and they accept credit cards! -
Review from Doris L.
Toronto, ON
1/12/2012 3 photos
Ate at the bar with my friend. Great service. The server/bartender tried his best but he was not great at describing the dishes when we tried to order.
Assiette de chacuterie please?
What?
The plate of chacuterie. Oh. Uhm. Yes it comes with ...
I can just order that to start please.
That was my conversation with the nice bartender. The pairings could be better. I've had a good one at hoof cocktail bar. I know, coming from black hoof you expect cocktail should be of some quality. The bread that came with it.. i wish it was toasted or fresh, it was a cross between stale and toasted crostini. The terrine was yummy though.
Maybe it's been the hype, but I honestly have had much better gnocchi ... the pasta itself and the sauce that goes with it. My friend had the beef cheeks, it was rather yummy.
Both the pannacotta and the chocolate hazelnut dessert were refreshingly light. -
Review from Daniel B.
9/26/2011
Do you remember those experiments in high school involving hydrophillic and hydrophobic substances?
That's kind of what this place is.
It's a drop of fine-filtered water in the Exxon Valdez oil spill that is Bloorcourt.
A beautiful room. Elegant in it's simplicity.
An open kitchen. A chalkboard menu. A small dining area.
It's one of the few places where you truly know that everything is good, because there are only a few menu items...and you can watch other patrons enjoying essentially all of the options as you wait for your chosen delicacy to arrive.
Everything is perfectly prepared.
Everything is delicious.
I had what was over-simplified as "Pork Chop & Peaches". It was superb.
The whole experience almost makes you forget that this place is right next door to the champagne room at a relatively nasty strip club. You secretly hope that they don't share a ventilation system with the kitchen.
You imagine that every noise that you quietly overhear through the wall comes merely from the pleasant moving of tables and not from some hooker getting her head smashed open with a bottle.
As long as you don't face the window it becomes easy to become lost in the ambiance of outstanding cuisine.
Well worth seeking out. -
Review from Ada T.
Toronto, ON
10/1/2011
Lovely restaurant. came here on a friday night and they weren't too busy. I wonder if they're always not that busy?
their menu changes daily which is nice. it's written on the chalk board on the wall. they do not accept reservations and do not take visa. they do take debit though.
we ordered a pulled pork belly appetizer. really tasty!! esp if you have it on it's own. if you put it with the mustard and bread, the juice starts to blend in more with the other items and doesn't make it as distinctive.
also had a gnocchi and a skirt steak. gnocchi was quite nice, excellent sauce, right softness. steak had really nice seasoning on it and was cooked medium rare.
service was decent. you can tell the waiter isn't the warmest person ever but it was good enough and attentive enough.
give this place a try!Listed in: Bloordale / Bloorcourt
-
Review from Little C.
Toronto, ON
5/25/2011
Ortolan. How I wanted to like you.
If only your portions weren't so small and your prices so unreasonable.
If only your pricey entrees came with some sides. I'm not asking for potatoes drizzled in truffle sauce. I would have been satisfied with a couple of carrot spears with my beef.
You want to be a hipster when you grow up. Don't we all? But you don't have to be the bitchiest on the block, or include an obscure locavore ingredient on your menu to be legitimate.
Just start serving up honest, good, food. The rest will fall into place.
But thumbs up for taking up position behind the House of Lancaster. The ladies in that establishment are friendlier than the servers at Ortolan, though. But then again, I didn't try to stuff a $20 in my server's g-string. -
Review from Mumuuu S.
Toronto, ON
1/8/2012
Life's too good...not to spend part of it eating at a tiny restaurant named after a tiny bird.
The prices have gone up a bit since we first discovered the toothsome, and illegal bird.
(N.B. said bird def. not actually sold at this restaurant...it's just a foodie in-joke, like when Bourdain had Ziggy's character on Treme talk about the Ortolan without infodumping the audience about what he was talking about--+1 by the way for that, Tony, too bad about the rest of your writing on that show---I mean, seriously, Broulard?)
After that digression it seems proper to be as economical as possible for the remainder of the review.
1) These guys are laying down some serious gnocchi. And yes, they take the easy road by creaming it up with gorgo cheese, but they also take the harder(ish) road by throwing in some wilted radicchio for bittnerness and crunch. Done.
2) Everytime you go, you eat something you ain't ate before. Last time, it was a kohlrabi salad, and a tartiflette (which was like a stinkcheesepotato fondue aaaamazing)
That's enough for four stars, right? Plus service seems to have embettered itself. -
Review from James R.
Toronto, ON
1/6/2012
This is how eating is supposed to be. Highly competent cooking that is ever changing, growing with the seasons.
A small room that is cosy, and romantic (in a Toronto sort of way).
The food, though, is really the star here. Salads, elegant and interesting. Gnocchi, perfect in form. Proteins, savory and delicious.
Take a date, or your family, or your friends. You won't be disappointed. -
Review from Natasha A.
Toronto, ON
4/18/2011 1 Check-in Here
Spectacular. We went to Ortolan two days after it opened and they have their ish together. The service was friendly and the staff very professional. They made great recommendations which is always wonderful because it shows the staff actually takes the time to know what the chefs have created. The two chefs were able to come up with a small but focused and tasty menu to appeal to every pallet. Bottom line they made regular clients of us. Only thing to keep in mind is that side dishes are extra but we shared one and it was just right.( keep in mind neither my husband or I eat like canaries) main dishes range from $10-$20 with side dishes and desserts under$10. Excellent value, great ambiance, must try, gotta love!
-
Review from Dorian M.
Toronto, ON
7/23/2011
Great food and service. Prices are very reasonable for quality and superior execution. Very friendly and cozy vibe. Bloorcourt is finally getting some good eats!
