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FAB FOOD NATION

1 | 2 | 3 | Restaurant Listings | NOV

Seafood, Eat It

The best dishes containing bottom-feeders, bivalves and other gorgeously prepared seafood include the signature platter of mussels, jumbo shrimp, calamari and scallops tossed with fettuccini at Cioppinos (St. John’s); Blue Iguana Grill’s (Edmonton) guava-glazed barbecue prawns; the seared citrus tuna at Brassaii Bistro Lounge (Toronto); and the fresh cod, halibut, salmon, scallops and prawns at Chippy’s (Toronto) – all wrapped in a gossamer batter, fried to a crunch.

Most Flattering Lighting

The subterranean amber glow at Bymark (Toronto) makes everyone look handsome. The potent caipirinhas help too.

Shout-outs to Canada

Stellar indigenous, artisanal and organic ingredients speak for themselves. But give props to the local city scene oil paintings decking the walls at Beckta Dining & Wine (Ottawa); the laid-back approach of having a restaurant on wheels at SOBO (Tofino); a multicultural land that allows for coconut-scented soy milk pudding topped with good old maple syrup at Hapa Izakaya (Vancouver); and the framed Canadiens #2 "Harvey" jersey (Doug Harvey was the owner’s dad) at The Pilot House (Charlottetown).

Worst Restaurant Name

This year’s most unfortunate moniker goes to Passionate Pizza and Sensuous Sushi (Regina). Sounds bad. Tastes good.

Best Mascots

Cluny (Montreal) has an adorable black pug pictured on its walls and custom water bottles, while Les Chèvres (Montreal) has its eponymous vegetarian goat photographed and framed over the cheese table. But The Urban Pear (Ottawa) goes that extra mile by incorporating its fruity namesake into almost every dish.

Is That a Banana in Your Pants?

Or are you just happy to take a break from chocolate and lemon desserts? Bymark (Toronto) dishes out chocolate torte with roasted banana ice cream and crisp banana tuille; The Urban Pear (Ottawa) does warm banana bread pudding drizzled with caramel sauce; and Elixir (Vancouver) presents crème brûlée flavoured with banana-pistachio. But Beckta Dining & Wine (Ottawa) is top banana, with its crazy tasting platter called Steve’s Gone Bananas: moist chocolate-banana bread pudding, banana gelato, a brûléed banana, banana bread, banana compote and a big banana chip. Better than finding money.

Best Song and Dance Routines

Memorable touches included the saba (mackerel) at Hapa Izakaya (Vancouver): marinated, neatly sliced, then torched tableside with a plumber-regulation propane burner. Another nice touch was the waiter-piped rosettes of soft butter at Savannah (Montreal). But most comical was the pitch that accompanied the amuse-bouche nectarine wedges at Le Bistro Béni (Calgary): "We’re having a stone fruit special at [the adjoining] Wrayton’s Fresh Market," offers our waiter. "Flown in from California today; we’ve taken out the middle man."

Weird but Good

Why not challenge yourself a little? A brunch of champions at Savannah (Montreal) might come with an appetizer of French toast with seared foie gras, bacon, maple syrup and mango sauce. Appetizer crepes at Tutti Matti (Toronto) are made from chickpeas and fuelled by honey, radicchio and cheese. Provence Bistro’s (Winnipeg) interpretation of crème brûlée uses the milk from sweet corn in its sugar-torched custard. A wedge of cheesecake at Harbour House Restaurant (Charlottetown) goes the savoury route with roasted garlic and a pistachio crust. And crisp beignets at Elixir (Vancouver) contain meaty whole frogs’ legs.

Weird but Not So Good

Pulverized bison tartare that has apparently been left to oxidize to a greenish-grey tinge at Blue Iguana Grill (Edmonton), further marred by chunks of raw garlic and a not-so-healthy dollop of PCP-burn chipotle sauce.

1 | 2 | 3 | Restaurant Listings | NOV