Chez Laurent - Another week another dining adventure

So this restaurant is in North York (Yonge and Sheppard area), and I must have walked past it hundreds of times without ever going in. Countless friends have asked me if it's any good, but all I could ever say was, well it seems pretty busy, but having not eaten there myself I had no idea if it was any good. So this past Friday I decided enough was enough, and I dragged a few friends out to try this place out. (I also dragged two of them down to The Rolling Pin bakery to buy some pre and post dinner treats).

(Nice little patio with some really pretty flowers)

(Cute little house in the middle of a concrete jungle)

 As you can see the restaurant is in a small old house surrounded by condo buildings, so it almost seems a bit out of place (but in a good way, very eye catching).

 As we were walking up the smell of garlic wafting from the kitchen was heavenly. When we entered we were in a very small hallway and on either side of the hallway were small dining rooms and the kitchen. It very much reminded me of walking into Grandmas house (or Nonnas in this case) the smells and the cozy feeling made me feel welcomed and relaxed. It literally is an old house that has been converted into a restaurant, and it looks as if the original walls are all still there, they just work around the space.

 So there was five of us, and we arrived at around 7pm on a Friday (no reservations). We were greeted by a woman, I'm not sure if she was the owner, or the manager or what, but she seemed to be running the place, and we were almost turned away. When I asked for a table for five I was told no, she had a table for four a table for three, the one dining room was having a party of ten (so obviously no room in there), but there were no tables for five available ( I was a little confused as to whether she was saying the availability of the tables or that all those tables were full), and when one of my friends asked if we could add a chair or put two tables together the answer again was no (the rooms are quite small so I'm sure they have it all laid out to make it as comfortable as possible for the customers). We were about to leave when someone mentioned the patio and that was ok, there was room for us! I've never had an interaction like that before when asking for a table, she did say that normally she would say wait 10 min and something will open up, but I guess that night was really busy (again the confusion with the beginning of the conversation as to whether she was saying the tables available or that she had parties of four and three coming), and she was nice enough about it, but the whole patio option was offered until we were about to leave, and I honestly can't remember if it was us or her that suggested it. Nevertheless we got our table on the patio, and it was a beautiful night (inside was a bit warm) so none of us minded eating outside.

(Wine rack caught my eye)

(One of three small dining rooms, only a few more tables in this one)

(Tiny kitchen, but it's clean and they make it work)

(Shot of the small hallway below, taken from up the stairs where the bathrooms are)

We sat down, menus were brought to us quite quickly by one woman (I shall refer to her as the server) and then the other whom we had met at the door (She shall be known as the waitress, trust me this will help make it a bit less confusing) came to get our drink order. Two of us ordered the house red wine, one ordered a margarita and the other two behaved themselves and ordered an iced tea and a sparkling water.

(Folonari Valpolicella from Italy)

The wine was an alright wine. Not much of an aroma, but that could also be because we were outside and there were a lot of other aromas around. It was light, a bit fruity, slightly dry, but smooth. I probably wouldn't go out and buy a bottle, but I would order it again (I don't want to drink a full bottle, but a glass is just right)

(Lime margarita)

The margarita took a bit of time to come out, but that was because they use fresh squeezed limes (no pre-made mix).

(Nice warm bread)

A big basket of bread was brought out, it was warm, with a really crunchy crust and really soft middle.

While all the drinks and bread were being brought (and in between conversations of course) we were perusing the menu. A good selection with pretty reasonable prices. It was a tough decision but we all managed to pick something. At this point, service was a bit slow, but from what I could tell there was only the server, waitress and chef working, and the restaurant was pretty busy so it was understandable. The odd thing I found was when one of us asked the server (remember her, she was the one who cleaned the table, brought the menus and the drinks) what the soup of the day was she said we had to wait and ask the waitress (first lady we met), I'm not sure if she was new, or she maybe didn't know or that's how the restaurant is set up, it wasn't a problem, just a bit odd. Eventually the waitress came to take our food orders, she told us the specials, and she was quite descriptive and seemed pretty passionate about the food. Below you will see what we ended up picking and what we thought of it.

(Appetizer of French Onion Soup)

Only one of us ordered an appetizer, but was ever so kind as to ask for four other spoons to share with the rest of us (the extra spoons took a bit to get, and had to ask twice, but like I said they were busy so not a big deal). Now being the blogger of the group I got first go (man I love being the blogger!) and I must say it was quite good. Nice and hot, with a delicate flavour, not over-powering, with an excellent helping of cheese. I am no expert of french onion soup (I do know people who are, not just lovers, but I swear actual experts), but to me it was good, and the friend who ordered it very much enjoyed it.

("North America's Best" Lasagna)

Now that is a bold statement to say that you are the best in the country. It was good, I happen to think maybe mine and the one my hubby had in Chicago was perhaps better, but still very good. The friend who ordered it noted that it wasn't loaded with meat, so it wasn't super heavy, but flavourful, lovely fresh pasta and gooey cheese.

(Alforno)

I almost ordered this one, but my gal-pal A. said I could try some of hers. This one very much reminded me of a deconstructed version of the lasagna. Penne pasta with a meat sauce and cheese, very tasty.

(Cheese Ravioli with a Rose Sauce and Porcini Mushrooms) 

Two of my friends ordered this. You had the option of either a tomato or cream sauce or a combo of both (Rose). Both of them opted for the rose and our waitress seemed to think they chose well. This dish I almost think I should have ordered. It doesn't look like much, but it was very filling. The ravioli was fresh and cooked perfectly, and the cheese inside was gooey and a bit salty and fabulous, and as for the sauce and mushrooms they topped it off nicely. Really tasty dish, and really pretty to look at.

(Zurichioise)

This last one was mine. It was fettuccine pasta with chicken, sun-dried tomatoes and a rose sauce. The pasta was fresh and cooked perfectly. A good amount of chicken, that was moist and tender. The sun-dried tomatoes just added that bit of tang and complimented the sauce very nicely. The sauce itself wasn't too heavy, and very flavourful.

(Shot of the dessert menu)

The portions were pretty much perfect. Some just a bit much, but manageable.  Having said that, when the dessert menu came around, as intriguing as it was, none of us went for it (well we also knew we had Rolling Pin goodies waiting for us back at my place).

All in all, this place was pretty good. It's very conveniently located for me, so if the hubby and I wanted to go out somewhere close, but didn't want to do any of the usual chains in the area, I would go back. It's not, however, a restaurant that I have to go back to (like Stack). Other than some slight confusions at the beginning and almost not being able to eat here, I am glad we did, I had an excellent evening, good/hot food, good wine, amazing company (as usual) and really good prices (for all five of us plus three alcoholic drinks the bill came to $126).  I also really liked how it felt like you were stepping into a family members house, it seemed really cozy inside, and being on the patio sorta felt like being in someones backyard. Even the plates that are used reminded me of something you would find at your Grandmas place. Rustic, comfort dining.

The only negatives were the noise from the street (Yonge street can be quite busy on a Friday night) and the slow service, but we were in no rush so I don't think any of us really minded. Keep that in mind, though, if you are planning on going, but are also on planning on going to see a show or a movie, give yourself plenty of time.

Mangiare bene!