Good Eats: La Dolce Vita at Mercatto

Finalmente!

My sister and I ate dinner in the city last Tuesday to celebrate days off and working downtown. We ate at Mercatto (330 Bay St), a local chain of restaurants that serves a mean pasta dish according to my foodie friends. Below are photos of our delicious appetizer and my main course and dessert:

Grilled Calamari

We started our meal with a serving of Grilled Calamari (cous cous, sultanas, pine nuts, capers, tomato sugo). It had a touch of saltiness from the capers and, at the same time, a hint of sweetness from the tomato sugo. Needless to say, I sense a repeat order of the calamari in the future. :)

Pappardelle

I ordered Pappardelle pasta (braised duck ragu with shaved padano; above) while my sister ordered the Funghi risotto (porcini, honey and king mushrooms, truffle oil) for the main course. Both dishes were on the light side with respect to serving size and to the padano (I really love my cheese). However, the quality of the dishes definitely rank high in my book.

Contrasts

Last but not the least, my sister and I ordered dessert: I ordered gelato and a cappuccino while my sister ordered Torta al Cioccolato and a latte. In retrospect, I realize that simultaneously drinking/eating hot and cold dessert may have been a terrible idea... though who could say no to coffee when it looks like the cup pictured above? <3 The gelato itself was great albeit on the sweet side as was the Torta. The coffee, as you can see, was divine.

My sister's and my first impression of Mercatto was nothing short of amazing: the service was impeccable and the food was beyond delicious. I encourage anyone in the area to give them a go. They are fantastic!