Richmond Station

Where? Richmond Station (Financial District, Toronto, Ontario, Canada) Map Menu

When? Wednesday July 27, 2022

Who? Marc

Food Style? Elevated Canadian

My Catalan friend has been staying with me for the past three weeks and as his time in Canada comes to a close, he’s told me to choose a fancy restaurant and he’ll shout dinner. After pouring over several lists of Toronto’s best restaurants, and cross checking reservations and menus available for tonight, I’ve settled on Richmond Station, right around the corner from Queen Station in the heart of downtown. Most attractive though, is this little blurb on top of their online menu: "We are a Hospitality Included restaurant. The prices you see in this menu include the cost of service. Tipping is discouraged." A growing number of restaurants are beginning to include tips in their prices, and I cannot wait until this dumb practice is completely gone from North American culture and we just pay the staff a proper wage.

Richmond Station is one of those trendy places that’s always got some buzz about it, and today, the restaurant is almost full, even at 8.45pm. We’ve been seated on the long communal table and we’re here for the Chef’s Menu, a six course degustation.

Canapés

Selection of canapés: Salmon tartare; Oysters; Torched scallops; Parmesan foam
I suppose "salmon tartare" is just a fancy way of saying sashimi but there's a nice flavour and savouriness. The oysters were okay, no strong flavour that stood out. These were apparently from New Brunswick, but I couldn't quite catch the variety. The torched scallops had a beautiful, smooth texture and were sweet and tasty, and finally the parmesan foam had a nice tomato base, with a rich, cheese finish on top.

Appetizer #1

Duck liver pâté: sour cherry, chicory, black pepper meringue
Amazing. Fantastically smooth and rich, perfectly paired with that sweet fruit and crispy meringue, great texture, for a well balanced dish. Pâté and fruit, usually as a compôte or chutney, is a very common combination that I've encountered multiple times, and have always enjoyed it.

Appetizer #2

Ontario new potatoes: sea lettuce, trout roe, dashi beurre blanc
Great presentation - lots of colours on the plate. Absolutely fantastic, I’ve never had such luxurious potatoes before. Such an amazing taste, buttery and rich. I would love to lick my plate. Or failing that, at least some bread to soak up that delicious sauce. To be honest, I was kind of skeptical about the dish to start with (come on, it's just potatoes, how good can they be?) but by the end, I was fully on board.

Seafood Mains

Butter-poached pacific halibut: courgette-basil purée, summer squash, fermented jalapeño emulsion
It takes a while to arrive and the waitress is super apologetic so she gets us some bread and olive oil. Eventually, the halibut arrives, and it’s soft and buttery, cooked perfectly. The purée and emulsion are tasty and add to the dish. There's a strong basil flavour, almost like it’s pesto. However, it’s a bit small and I'd be lying if I said I wasn't disappointed, especially because it took so long to come.

Meat Mains

Good Family Farms Berkshire pork: charred sweet corn, hakurel turnips, truffle jus
The waitress says it’s the best dish the chef has ever made so expectations are through the roof. It’s 10.15pm and the restaurant is slowly emptying. The pork arrives and smells amazing. It’s cooked perfectly, juicy but a nice crispy crust for texture. The truffle is subtle but enriches the jus and the corn is sweet with a hint of the bitterness from the char. Well balanced and great complimentary flavours. A little disappointed at the portion size though, again.

Dessert

Chocolate crêpe: blackberry and blueberry compôte, milk chocolate, crème de cassis chantilly
Beautiful vanilla aroma, you can see the seeds in the chantilly creme. The crêpe is chocolatey but not too rich, and the compôte is tart to balance it all out. Fantastic end to the night.

Surprise petite fours

Lemon tart: chantilly blackberry and blueberry; Compressed powdered fruit cubes
I thought it was the end of the night but we're given some petite fours. The lemon tart has a wonderful citrus tang, almost effervescent in its taste. The fruit cubes (the waitress couldn't provide a better description) are sweet and floral, packing an intense berry flavour in a small space. A lovely finish to send us off to the night.

All in all, an extremely enjoyable night with some fantastic food boasting great flavours and great emphasis on local food. A bit small in portion though, and I’ll have to grab some extra dessert at home, but a worthwhile visit especially for those who want to experience some of Toronto’s finest dining. The entire experience took 2.5 hours. As Marc pays, our waitress makes some conversation with us and she asks us where we’re from, and when I say New Zealand, she calls over the bar manager, who reveals she lived there for a few years. Ka pai!

Posted by Jeremy at 10:25pm on Saturday January 28, 2023 :: 0 comments ::