If there is one address that represents the Toronto restaurant industry’s gradual progression away from fine dining it is 2472 Yonge St. The low-slung building north of Eglinton that was the home to Centro for a quarter-century will soon become the fourth location of Cibo Wine Bar.
The owners of the Liberty Entertainment Group are going to replicate the model that has worked well at their existing locations — one on King West and two in Miami — including a menu with a classic and casual Italian bent and a two-storey wine room. Borrowing a trick from Cibo South Beach, staff on hydraulic lifts (“wine angels”) will retrieve customers’ selections from the Italian-dominated bottle list.
They are also aiming to have a rooftop patio expansion completed later this year.
As we reported in 2013, when Centro closed, the midtown institution was known as a training ground for some of Toronto’s top kitchen, including Chris McDonald, David Lee, Michael Bonacini and Marc Thuet. Armando Mano, Centro’s owner, converted the space into Vita Sociale, his take on the casual Italian concept.
The plan is to have the uptown Cibo open by the end of June 2015.