After sunset, with candlelight casting interesting shadows in a monochromatic room, and the deep bass of a house dance track playing, Leslieville's TOMI-KRO certainly feels more like a lounge than a resto. Add to the mix arty-looking servers table hopping, and it feels like a night out even though we're here to eat.
Prohibition
696 Queen Street East
416-406-2669
Lunch for two with all taxes, tip, and a bottle of imported beer: $89
Prohibition, born "Booze Emporium", was renamed when its liquor license came under threat as the title was deemed inappropriate. There were several articles published that relayed this incident, but nary a review. More digging lead to long discussion threads on Chowhound that had widely varying opinions. I was curious about its gastropub and oyster bar promises, but it was the recent addition of a lunch and weekend brunch menu that prompted a visit.
The menu tried to be cute, naming categories like: "ruffage" (salads) and "hand-held" (burgers/sandwiches). Late night offerings like: calamari, wings, nachos, "flat pies" (pizza) with various toppings. Meat 'n bread items were the same as lunch. There'd been mention of a Kobe burger in the Chowhound posts, but the only one listed was made with bison. Brunch items started from $8.95 with the usual eggy suspects. It was a minimalist menu, but all sounded tempting, like the apple wood smoked cheddar grilled cheese or the fried goat cheese salad with candied nuts.
We started with the Caesar salad ($6.95 on the menu) which turned out to be disappointing. Homemade croutons and fresh grated parm couldn't make up for brown wilted leaves or a bland mayonnaise-like dressing. Not to mention, I didn't notice until too late that we'd been charged $7.95 for it.
The open-faced steak sandwich ($14.95) was a completely different story; one definitely worth retelling. Arriving on a platter about 2 feet long, it was flanked on either side by two lightly dressed salads: one dominated by spicy celery stalks, the other, a fennel slaw. It was also accompanied by a mound of of thin, fresh-cut fries, soft with a bit of crunch. Then there was the sandwich. Six ounces of lean and tender strip loin crowned with melted Brie, caramelized onion and mushrooms, sat atop thickly cut, buttered, flaxseed-flecked multi-grain bread.
If a gastropub equates a huge laid back space, with interesting aspects like a grand piano and Speakers Corner-esque video booth, that serves better than average, hefty-portioned casual fare at a slightly higher price point, then this fits the bill. Without any nearby pub peers, there's no prohibition to its potential.
