where jess ate

Brought to us by the same owners as Terra in Thornhill, Sarpa in Richmond Hill and Rusty’s in Blue Mountain, Francobollo Posto Italiano has been serving up Italian food in North Toronto since they opened in December 2014.

Located on Avenue Road between Lawrence and Wilson, the restaurant features modern décor with shades of whites and greys. It’s a beautiful space that has an intimate yet casual feel to it. It’s very versatile – great for a date, family dinner or girls night out.

The restaurants are part of the Substance Food Group which is led by President and Partner Ian Chase, Executive Chef and Proprietor Stephen Perrin and Maitre d’ and Partner Michael De Tommaso. They’ve created quite the menu at Francobollo consisting of an extensive selection of salads, antipasto, pastas, meat and seafood dishes. Here’s a look at some of their offerings:

Insalata di Romaine – roasted garlic, grilled sweet corn, shaved grana padano, smoked bacon, lemon ($13)

Beef Meatballs – tomato ragout, polenta, pecorino romano ($12)

Casarecce Alla Vodka – smoked bacon, tomato-vodka-crema ($17)

Gamberoni e Capesante alla Brace – grilled jumbo black tiger prawns & day boat scallops, lemon & sea salt ($37)

Tiramisu

Nutella Cheesecake

My personal highlights were the beef meatballs, casarecce alla vodka and tiramisu. While the beef meatballs were an appetizer, it was a meal in itself. It consisted of these plump meatballs which sat on top of a bed of soft polenta. The tender meatballs were packed full of flavour and I’d order this again in a heartbeat. The casarecce alla vodka was another hit. The pasta was cooked to a perfect al dente and I loved the creamy tomato vodka sauce. It was quite the portion and my leftovers the next day tasted just as good.

Francobollo offers a selection of tempting desserts and the two that we tried were both delicious. But it was the tiramisu that stole our hearts. It was rich, creamy and had just the right hint of espresso flavour. Perfect with an Americano!

Francobollo is open 7 days a week for dinner. Come by and check them out!

*This was a complimentary meal. The opinions in the post, as always, are my own.*