where jess ate

With an impressive 8,000sq ft space spanning two stories and beautiful contemporary Canadian dishes, The Forth is bringing something new and exciting to the Danforth.

Located just west of Pape, The Forth (@TheForthTO) is located on the second and third floors of the building. Upon entering the restaurant, the hostess will guide you to an elevator which will take you to either the second floor dining room or the third floor bar/lounge area.

It’s a gorgeous space with Herringbone flooring, wainscoting and high ceilings with the third floor overlooking the dining room.

With 8,000sq ft of space, the space is enormous and would be a perfect venue for private events. But if you’re dropping by for an intimate dinner, you’ll appreciate the fact that the tables are very well-spaced. It’s so refreshing to eat at a restaurant where you’re not elbow-to-elbow with your neighbors!

To match the beautiful décor, Executive Chef Chris Kalisperas (previously of Brassaii and Centro) is creating equally beautiful dishes which taste as great as they look.

The menu is divided into snacks, appetizers, mains (which include a whole roasted chicken and whole roasted Ontario rack of lamb which are each meant to feed two people) and desserts. As an upscale restaurant, higher price points are expected with most appetizers between $15 and $20 and mains ranging from $20 for the vegetarian agnolotti to the $36 Ontario strip loin.

I attended a media preview at The Forth and had the opportunity to sample some of their delicious cocktails as well as the majority of the food menu. Here’s a look:

Kentucky’s Finest Cocktail – Four Roses Bourbon, Montenegro apricot & mole bitters ($10)

Jamaican Me Crazy – Mount Gay rum, Amaro Lucano, Lilet Rouge, Jamaican #2 bitters ($10)

The Botanist – Botanist gin, kiwi, lime & lavender bitters ($10)

Adult’s Beverage – Remy Martin, cassis, Darjeeling, strawberry tea, lemon juice & egg white ($12)

Strawberry Fields Forever – Grey Goose, strawberries & balsamic black pepper ($12)

House-made Bread

Asparagus – white asparagus, lemon & pistachio ($9)

Octopus – popcorn, lime & cilantro ($12)

Burrata – sourdough, grapes, pinenuts, lemon & basil ($14)

Salad – New Farm greens, house ricotta, hazelnut brittle, celery & rhubarb ($12)

Steak Tartare – hand cut beef tenderloin, potato crisps, devilled egg, capers & parmigiano ($16)

Quail – grilled quail, cauliflower, apple, quail egg sabayon & endive ($16)

Trout – cured steelhead, radish, fennel, citrus, ginger, cilantro, chili & roe ($17)

Oysters – six market fresh oysters, preserved lemon, jalapeno & cucumber ($18)

Foie Gras Torchon – salted granola, marshmallow & strawberry ($19)

Agnolotti – stracciatella, pistachio, rapini & parmigiano ($20)

Scallop – artichoke, potato, spinach, lardo, ramps & almond ($27)

Duck – roasted dry aged breast, coriander, carrot, mustard greens, quinoa & Saskatoon berries ($28)

Halibut – spring vegetables, potato, squid & lemon ($33)

Beef – 60 day aged Ontario strip loin, shallot, potato, braised shin, asparagus, soubise & chanterelles ($36)

Strawberries – vanilla, ginger & lemon balm

Chocolate & Hazelnut – Saskatoon berry, chili & creme fraiche

Maple & Almond – brown butter, passionfruit & buttermilk

Highlights for me included the Octopus, Asparagus, Burrata and Duck. The octopus was one of the first dishes to arrive and it was a great way to kick off the meal. The bite-sized pieces of octopus were wonderfully tender and I loved the playfulness of the dish with the popcorn.

While the asparagus might sound like a simple dish, the simplicity of it really allowed the incredible flavours of the asparagus to shine through. With a bit of lemon and bits of pistachio for texture, this was a really delicious vegetable dish.

I’m a huge sucker for burrata, so it’s no surprise that this was another one of my favourite dishes of the evening. The Forth’s burrata was so creamy and the pairing of it with the grapes, pinenuts and hint of lemon complemented it very well.

Duck is one of my go-to’s whenever I see it on a menu so I’ve had my fair share of dry and unmemorable duck breast dishes. So it really says something when I say that I was really impressed with the duck breast at The Forth. It was cooked perfectly – still a little pink in the centre and all of its juice still intact. The meat was tender, moist and seasoned well. The Saskatoon berries which accompanied it added just the right amount of sweetness and made for one stand-out dish.

Didn’t I say the plates were beautiful? With a gorgeous space and equally beautiful dishes, make The Forth your next date night spot!

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