Last Friday, as a treat to achieving my weight loss goal (10lbs) we tried a ‘new’ restaurant Bar Centrale in the city recommended by our neighbour Tom — it’s part of the Terroni Restaurant Group (Tom is the one who gave us his father’s wonderful olive oil from Greece). Tom is an architect and his company designs all of the Terroni Restaurants (I believe they have one in LA, California too).
Bar Centrale (pronounced Chent-rah-lay) is in what we would call mid-town, sitting on Young Street. Mid-town is an affluent area with modest homes starting around the million dollars to the absolutely ridiculous. Fortunately (or perhaps by design) Bar Centrale has a green P parking lot within a minute walk to its doors, otherwise it would have been a nightmare to find parking.
We had reservations for 8 and arrived about 10 minutes early and the restaurant was absolutely packed but they had our table ready. It’s a large place and occupies 3 stories in an older renovated building. It’s got a Lower East Side industrial décor with exposed piping in the ceilings. Their walls are decorated with their signature pantry staples, some house made and some imported from Italy. Terroni has always been true to their roots from a food perspective, so much so that they will actually refuse to allow you to order something as an extra if they don’t feel it’s authentic to that dish (my friend Kim’s ex-husband loves anchovies and always likes them on his pizza, any pizza, but when he tried to order anchovies on the side at Terroni on Queen West, they told him he couldn’t have them because it’s not authentic to the particular pizza he ordered!).
Our table is an adorable little table for two directly beside a window on a side street, it’s open and a wonderful breeze floats in (we had an amazing 24°C day). The table is small enough that we can hear each other over the noise of the restaurant. And it’s noisy or shall I say, lively! There are still a lot of families dining, but the kids are held at the tables and not running around the place like wild animals. We are greeted by our waitress within a reasonable amount of time and we order our cocktails; I had a Campari Spritz which is 1.5oz Campari, 1.5oz Prosecco & splash of soda and JT had an Il Sorpasso which is 1.5oz Aperal, 1oz Bourbon, fresh Lemon juice, Honey & Sprakling Lemonade. My cocktail is quite bitter on first taste, but then mellows and I find it tasty but not sweet which makes it easy to sip and not guzzel! JT’s cocktail has a bit too much sweetness for my taste. We order out appetizers but wait to order our mains. I had the grilled calamari which was presented typically and rustically with a mix of greens; perfectly cooked, the calamari was tender and dressed just right, it had an absolutely perfect char which really brought out the smoky flavour. I will go back specifically for this course! JT had a chick pea cake with mixed greens. We had high hopes for the chick pea cake but sadly it was bland and really needed some kind of sauce or aioli.
For our main course we shared the cheese and cured meat platter which was just the right amount of food. The platter itself was a lovely slab of wood sliced from the trunk of an olive(?) tree; Tom mentioned that they were custom made. They served an aged Parmesan and a softer mild cheese that I wasn’t familiar with but was very tasty. The platter also came with a small ramekin of honey which was incredibly tasty when drizzled on the cheese. The cured meats were prosciutto and salami. There was bread and focaccia which I declined.
The dinner was a nice pace, about an hour and a half.
Overall rating of Bar Centrale (in my opinion): Decor 4/5, service 4/5, food 4/5, Value 4/5, Noise: 2/5 (1 being very noisy, and 5 being very quiet).
[…] were out Friday night at a relatively new place and I had the Caprese salad which was drizzled with Extra Virgin Olive Oil without balsamic (this […]
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This one sounds like a winner. I keep thinking this, but we need to plan another getaway to Toronto. 🙂
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I really hope you do, Kristy! Barb and I would certainly arrange to have a coffee or cocktail with you!
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Congrats on losing 10 pounds Eva. That’s a great result. When you go away to your lake house you’ll be able to wander about in a bikini! The restaurant sounds like a great place to go for a celebration xx
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Thanks Charlie, the bikini days are long behind me, but it’s a lovely thought anyway.
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This restaurant is on my list after this write-up. Thanks Eva. Looking forward to seeing you tomorrow night!
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We wanted to give it a try before we suggested it as a meeting place with you and Kevin.
See you tonight!
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Congrats on the weight loss…that’s reason to celebrate! Sounds like a lovely meal~
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It was great Liz, thanks.
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Congratulations on your weight loss. I’ve recently discovered that over the last 6 months 15 pounds have magically appeared on my frame. I have NO idea how that happened, of course. Measures must be taken to rectify this situation!!!
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Thanks Maria, it was a tough three weeks! 15 is still manageable to take off, but you really have to be in that mind set otherwise it’s not going to work and is way too discouraging, been there done that. It just feels great to get back into my ‘skinny’ white jeans just in time for our anniversary weekend in New York City!
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Good for you, Eva, on reaching your weight loss goal! That’s quite an accomplishment and you should be proud. And it sounds like you chose a nice place to celebrate, too. I’ve little patience for parents who let their children run wild in a restaurant. It can ruin a night out.
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Thanks John, now the challenge starts to keep it off. I’m pretty good if I cyst away from carbs!
That’s true, that and a fighting couple can ruin an evening out.
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I guess one of the side-effects of being a great cook is our expectations are raised:) I bet you had ideas to “fix up” that chick pea cake! Awesome to have lost 10 pounds! I have lost about 5 and have 5-8 more to go…
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That is quite true, Barbara. But them again, if you’re going out you should be impressed!
Congrats on your loss, what a satisfying accomplishment, particularly when you look in the mirror!
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Congratulations on meeting your weight loss goal, Eva. Bar Centrale sounds like a nice treat. I am now dragging myself up hills every morning because I don’t want to be a fat lady in France. Two days down, thirty-two to go.
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Thank you for the compliment. Good for you Sharyn, exercising is the best way to do it, it really helps speed up the metabolism!
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Me and baby brother might just have to come here during the Summer =D
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Toronto is an amazing vacation spot! I hope you do visit!
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Congratulations, Eva! I really admire you!
I’m happy I’m not the only one complaining about children running “like wild animals” 😉 Here in Switzerland it’s a nightmare and no one seems to care but me and my close friends (sometimes we laugh we regret the separate space for smokers which no longer exists because we would choose the smoke over screams!). I have never had any experience like this in France although children (even as small as 3 or 4) do go to restaurants… I have greatly enjoyed your honest review.
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Wow, you still have smoking allowed on restaurants? Or did I read that wrong?
Yes, the ill mannered parents who fail to see that the world is not their own personal baby sitters! Infuriating really.
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Congratulations on your weight loss. That was a wonderful celebration.
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Thanks Norma, now the real challenge begins in keeping it off!
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Sounds absolutely lovely!! Glad it sounds like you had a great overall experience, except for the noise level! 🙂
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Thanks Sammie, at least we had a small table so we didn’t have to yell across it.
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This was a fantastic review – I actually could see the atmosphere 🙂
Thanks for sharing!
A great way to celebrate your awesome weightloss – too good!
Cheers
Choc Chip Uru
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Thanks CCU. It was a rather nice dinner!
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