Toronto - Sing Sing
A new addition to the Financial District circuit serving Beer, Pho and Pizza (and burgers, and tofu salads etc.)
Freehouse Collective is a hospitality group that first opened the restaurant Sing Sing in Vancouver; I had been with friends on the west coast and when I saw the signs for the beer & pho in the financial district I got excited.
What we ordered: bbq pork bao - two pieces, carrot daikon slaw, pickled chiles $12.75 | tuna poke bowl - avocado, cucumber, green onion, sriracha, rice, ginger soy marinade $26.25 | coconut chicken salad - romaine, green bean, kaffir lime, mint, cilantro, peanuts$24.25
We did not order drinks, but the bar menu is extensive; they also have asahi, super dry and since I have been to Japan once I of course pointed to the menu and said, “that’s a great beer.”
Recommend for: IQ can run you $22 for a steelhead & veg salad, so going to Sing Sing felt on par with most of the lunch time offerings of the area. The outside patio is beyond average, the indoors could be fun if it were a little busier; because the multi level space is deceiving, you almost forget where you are and that you have to take your sodium bloat back to the office after. The interiors are great and if this restaurant were anywhere else in the City I would recommend it to friends outside the workplace. Overall, it’s nice to have a new spot in the lunch-with-colleagues rotation and I bet it will be good before hockey games in the winter.
Reservations: Yes, via their website
Complet’s Current
Memorable Meal? I ate at Waterworks food hall the other night and had shrimp tacos from Taco Lupita. Also at the table was Roman-style pizza by Pizzeria Popolo. Fun fact, both Taco Lupita and Pizzeria Popolo are concepts by the developer Woodcliffe who wanted some Mexican and Italian fare to complete the food hall offering.
We also had a preview of Civil Works, the upstairs bar by the team behind Civil Liberties. I used to love that bar and talking to Nick as he stood behind his martini sprout (you have to see it to believe it) brought back a lot of memories from nights at his Bloor W spot with a trumpet playing in the background …
Where am I Eating Next? This is a big eating-out week, notably, I am reluctantly trying Café Renee - will report back - and also have a date at Evangeline, the roof top of the Ace Hotel.
What My Friends Are Talking About: Is it just me or has everyone and their mom been to MADE-RITE in the past week? Do I need to go? Also, the Urban Retail team posted about Milos coming to 330 Bay St (a Dream building) - the construction signage is in the window! The Greek cuisine chain (Montreal, New York, London, etc.) is supposed to arrive in 2024 (as reported in 2023) but who knows with construction fit outs, staffing, etc., etc. I bet they are trying for the Fall/Winter when the Milos clientele is back in the City. I first heard about the Milos-Coming-to-Toronto in 2018, so I’m not holding my breath, but I can tell you I am widely excited for that fish (+ the Milos Special!) and a cold martini (gin, how it should be).
Added to My International Must-See List: Emily in Paris is the talk of everyone this week - personally, I will not engage with a show about a social media manager - as much as I like Lily Collins and love Paris. I decided to look up where they’re eating this season and apparently they get into Caviar Kaspia; I’ve never been to the one in Paris and a baked potato with fresh butter and caviar sounds pretty good right now. A second fun fact for this newsletter, I had a reservation at Jules Verne in 2021 (the restaurant in the Eiffel Tower) and it was cancelled because EiP was going to be filming there.