6Pastis

Pastis is like a cashmere bathrobe — silky smooth and classic, it never changes. Whether the ebullient host Georges Gurnon is present or not, the service is suave (as the Rosedale crowd would obviously require in their fave neighbourhood bistro) and the food can be relied on. Not the best food in town but perhaps the best French bistro food, from the sweet French butter on crispy baguette to the silken crème brûlée at the end. What other bistro picks the nerves from Quebec duck livers and poaches them long and slow into the most smooth terrine? No lobster in town beats the butter-roasted critter at Pastis, served with super creamy lemony beurre blanc and frites. They do kick-ass cassoulet, more delicate than most, and the fish soup is perfect Provencal purée. The icing on the cake is that nobody goes uncherished in the delicious lemon yellow room.