May 24, 2012
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Still quite the stunner

Zucca adds zip in the kitchen

Kelly Jones

ZUCCA’S FALL MENU, put into effect last week, features some interesting new creations using the best of autumn’s bounty, but regulars need not fret: a few of the old favourites are on there, too.

The room is ever warm and inviting. A mix of frameless canvases are hung on terra cotta–hued walls and exposed brick.

Candles flicker at brown tables with black chairs and at leafy fabric banquettes.

The attitude is casual but professional, as it should be for a trattoria. But prices are more in line with a higher-end Italian restaurant — perhaps a reflection of the well-sourced ingredients (Qualicum Bay scallops, organic Berkshire sausage, Cumbrae Farms meats) and the calibre of chefs in the kitchen.

It’s clear from our meals at Zucca that well-known chefowner Andrew Milne-Allen and new sous-chef Domenic Amaral (ex–Susur, ex–Madeline’s) are hitting it off as kitchen partners.

Zucca’s regional Italian cuisine menu of fall favourites, broken as always into starters, house-made pastas and proteins, is rounded out by a list of daily dishes.

“CHEQUE PLEASE”
ZUCCA
2150 Yonge St.
416-488-5774
Dinner for two excluding tax,
tip and alcohol:
$90

 

Summer’s proscuitto appetizer has been updated. Rather than halved fresh figs, firm, peeled persimmon pieces top overlapping slices of fresh Niagara proscuitto and shavings of parm-reg ($12). A beautiful balance of sweet and salty.

In insalata di misticanza ($11), a mix of market lettuces play hideand- seek with crisp slices of radishes, fresh herbs and sweet purple onion.

Naturally raised duck ($30) also still features on the menu. Alleluia. This season, the moist breast, sliced thinly and roasted to rare, poises prettily in citrus jus. A warm slaw of Savoy cabbage almost steals the show.

There’s much to like in a shallow bowl of strozzapreti autunnale ($20). The long list of ingredients in this dish — handrolled semolina noodles, earthy chanterelle mushrooms, thyme, ricotta, radicchio and Niagara pancetta — means that every bite tastes just a little different than the last. Each one is pleasing.

Simplicity reigns in classic ciriole al pomodoro piccante ($16). Long, square-shaped noodles tangle up with crushed tomato and fresh basil, and a pod of peperoncino forewarns of the pleasing piquancy of the sauce.

The crunch of crushed walnuts in a bread crumb crust on naturally raised pork scallopini ($27) adds texture, and its mild bitterness balances the sweetness of the moist, pink-inplaces meat. (The cut is huge, and while I’m not a fan of the leftover, the remaining portion is worth it.)

Horseradish infuses mashed potatoes, and pecorino cheese partners with roasted fennel to round out the plate.

Biancomangiare brings a tall puck of freestanding almond cream pudding ($9) sitting prim and proper in the centre of a pool of soft, boozy blueberries. It’s much lighter and airier on the tongue and tummy than it reads.

Seasoned, sincere staff cater their pace of service to customers. Servers appear content — even happy — in their environment, an attitude that goes far in enhancing the experiences of diners.

This article appears in the November 2009 issue of Post City Magazines

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