where jess ate

If you’re looking for a great mid-week meal, Sidecar has a fantastic $25 three-course prix-fixe offered Sundays to Wednesdays. I dropped by with two friends on a Tuesday evening to find the place packed. Glad I made a reservation!

Located in Little Italy, Sidecar (@Sidecar_Toronto) is quite well-known for their great cocktails… so why not spend the money you’re saving (from the prix-fixe) on some alcohol?

For the prix fixe, you have 3 appetizers to choose from which include two salads and a daily soup, 4 mains which include one vegetarian option and a pre-determined dessert.

Since it was a chilly day, I decided on the Lobster Bisque, the soup of the day, for my first course. While it had a nice lobster flavour to it, it wasn’t my favourite lobster bisque and found it a little too salty for my liking. Dipping the bread in the soup certainly helped to balance it out though.

My friend Vanessa went with the Sidecar Salad – chopped jicama, corn, red onion, cucumber, tomato, radish and feta with a creamy oregano dressing. I had a few bites of this salad and loved it! The ingredients were fresh and the flavours of all the ingredients went together wonderfully.

For my main, I chose the Seared Steelhead Trout – with swiss chard, grainy mustard honey glaze, white wine butter sauce. It would’ve been nice if the skin was still crispy but nevertheless the trout was cooked well – very moist. The accompanying swiss chard provided a slight bitterness which balanced out the sweetness of the sauce. Yes, I’ve had better trout dishes but this was still quite satisfying and you can’t beat the price point of this prix fixe!

Another friend, David, chose the Crispy Oven Roasted Chicken – with a consommé, spaetzle and honey mushrooms. I was a little skeptical about this dish since I’ve had too many bad experiences with oven roasted chicken…I’m sure we’ve all experienced overcooked and dry chicken.

Thankfully this wasn’t the case at Sidecar! I enjoyed the crispiness of the skin (just like the menu had advertised) and the meat had retained a lot of its juices…even the white meat was moist! Although I didn’t try any of the sides, I didn’t hear any complaints and every bit of it was cleaned off the plate.

Vanessa chose the Steak Frites – Wellington Country Farms AAA 8oz petite tender with hand cut fries and roasted garlic aioli. I had a bite of the steak, which came cut in three small pieces. It’s no Jacobs, but it was a tasty piece of meat and again at this price point it’s a pretty darn good deal. The frites that came with it were fantastic – especially when dipped in the aioli. Another solid dish!

Although you get to pick your appetizer and main, there’s only one option for dessert, the Flourless Chocolate Cake – with salted caramel sauce and brandied cherries.

I couldn’t eat more than a few bites of this…not because it tasted bad but because it was so dense and rich. It was like eating a piece of fudge. After an incredibly filling two courses, we all found the flourless chocolate cake to be a little too rich to end things off with.

They also gave us a complimentary dessert, some Fritters which contained apples and cheddar. I actually enjoyed these a lot more than the chocolate cake. I love a good sweet/savoury combination and these fritters really hit the spot. It’s something I’d gladly order again.

Overall, I had a great evening at Sidecar. Where else can you get a great three-course meal for $25? Drop by Sunday to Wednesday to take advantage of their great deal!

At a glance:
• $25 three-course prix fixe offered Sundays to Wednesdays
• Solid food and amazing value!
• Dark and intimate atmosphere; bar seating available
• Well known for their great cocktails
• Located in Little Italy
• Open 7 days a week for dinner starting at 5pm

Ratings (out of 5):
• Food: 4 stars
• Service: 4 stars
• Atmosphere: 4 stars