Great experience at Local Kitchen and Winebar. Caught the tail-end of zucchini flower season, so getting to try their cheese stuffed flowers was a special treat. These were flanked by some freshly pulled mozz and home-grown tomatoes with olive oil and fresh basil. The cheese was super creamy and rich, perfect accompaniment to the fresh heirloom tomatoes. We ordered the steak tartar, which was a nice balance between the French and Italian styles, less additions let the meat really shine through. The gnocchi with 'nduja and porcinis was out of this world, and I'm drooling as I write this review. The mix of sausage, mushrooms and pecorino crema creates an earthy, meaty, spicy creaminess that highlights the light, fluffiness of their handmade gnocchi. Can't be missed. The seared octopus was perfectly executed, with a squid ink polenta and fresh peas. The octopus was tender, and perfectly charred. The squid ink added a complex dimension to the polenta, but the peas were amazing. Strange to say - but the most intensely flavored peas I've ever had. Safe to say that I'll be returning to Local Kitchen and Winebar. read more

What a nice find in the lakeshore west end Great atmosphere , super nice staff and the food was great Not much more to add read more

Local Kitchen and Winebar is based on the philosophy driven by the slow food movement and inspired by the foods of Italy. For those of you not familiar with the SFM, this isn't about chewing your food 100 times before you swallow or making sure you keep to the 10 km. speed limit when going through the drive-thru. This is about hard core, right from the roots to our table reverence for the bounty we live on. Basically put the SFM is"a fundamental respect for our food, where it comes from, and the people who help cultivate it." In other words, don't fuck with the food, use it in its purest form, don't waste it, don't add nitrates to it, don't mess with the earth it's grown in or raised on and least of all don't diss those who show it all the TLC it needs before it hits our tables. LKW opened just this past September and is a matchbox sized spot on Queen St. in Parkdale. It seats a modest 29 bodies and for sure one can say they didn't sink their setup deniros in the decor because this is Parkdale shtick in its purest form. The menu is tiny, very tiny. Ruled by what is available by season and at the market. The wine lists are Ontario based which is ok, if you like Ontario wines. Me, I can take 'em or leave 'em, more so to the latter. While I understand the philosophy of supporting the locals, including the wine makers, I'm broken hearted knowing that I can't have a glass of Barolo or Barbaresco to enhance the lovingly prepared Salumi (this is the Italian equivalent of Charcuterie) board. The bite of a peppery Barbaresco would have been the perfect compliment to those little bowls of Caponata and mouthfuls of Soprosetta. We settle on wines from Daniel Lenko, one chardonnay, the other a white Cabernet Sauvignon. My foodie friend, Lauren Wilson and I order a Salumi board as well as butter & lemon soaked crostini topped with a fresh anchovy. The crostini is sublime and the anchovy has barely any fish taste which catches us off guard. When you expect that big salty whack from an anchovy and you don't feel like you've been smacked in the face by Luca Brasi (who sleeps with the fishes) it's a surprise. The thyme in this dish only serves to enhance the lemon. The salumi board, served atop a piece of petrified wood with butcher paper is put together by Mike Sangregorio, one of the owners. His partner, is Chef Fabio Bondi and he is at the helm of the kitchen. Together these guys produce the bulk of their own salumi for their charcuterie boards and he proudly fawns over the board as he does his GPS of the layout of meat. Of the five meats on the board, strangely enough our least favorite is their own cured Prosciutto. Lauren nails it perfectly when she sniffs the meat and says "I smell ammonia". Something in the taste of the prosciutto is off but the rest of the cured meats are excellent. Black walnuts on the side offer up almost a moss like taste to offset the meat. The menu is minuscule and even more limited this evening than usual, probably due to the holidays and fresh supplies being limited. I opt for Smoked Potato Gnocchi with Tallegio & Rapini. I asked Mike about the smoked potatoes because this dish has an unbelievable flavour. He tells me that they have a coal smoker out in the back of the building and that they smoke the spuds before turning them into the mixture for gnocchi. The gnocchi are large. The tallegio is like melted butter and the slight bitterness of the rapini make for a good combination. This is an odd trilogy but it works. The smoke flavour isn't forced but rather gently infused into the dish and the more you eat it the more it grows on you. My only criticism of this dish is they would be better off to make the gnocchi just a tad smaller. Their size makes them feel heavier than they actually are. Lauren chooses the Parpardelle with Pheasant Ragu and Swiss Chard. I can't seem to see the swiss chard in the dish and since the pasta is verde I'm wondering if they use the chard to make the pasta. The pheasant ragu is delicious, delicately balanced with tomato sauce. The wide ribbons of pasta are perfectly cooked, silky in their consistency, folded on to the plate, embracing the chard and the ragu. I like LKW. I like what they stand for and I like what their food philosophies are based upon. I pitstop at Mike's prep station to talk about Northern Italian cuisine and for a moment I gloat over the fact that I've ventured into the heart of the Slow Food Movement in Bra, Italy. We talk about wild foods and Forbes and then that bastard tells me he is drinking a Barolo as he is prepping food! LKW is also the home of Foodie Meets (for all you twitter fans). The hard core foodies often meet and partake of tastings here. Rumour has it that LKW is the place where the chefs such as Michael Stadtlander, like to dine on their days off. That is a true testament to LKW. Another Parkdale food haven is born. read more

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There is no room in toronto for bad service anymore. with the multitude of new restaurants opening each month, chefs/owners have to be at the top of their game from day one. some would say that my comments are unfair, but thems the breaks kids, do it right, treat your customers as guests (as if we were in your house), and demand the same of your staff. visited local kitchen & wine bar last sunday night for dinner to celebrate drey's departure for the 'peg (again). it was our second visit, first time was two years (almost three) back when they had just opened. meal then was good but not terribly rememberable. Arrived with a group of seven at 6:15pm, although reservations are not taken i called ahead to let them know we were coming. a table was put together for us in the window. drinks were ordered, i stuck to my typical summer drink & ordered a negroni. wine list was perused & a bottle of gewürztraminer was ordered. upon reviewing the menu, i noticed that it seemed to have gotten much shorter than our last visit. which is not surprising seeing that they opened a second restaurant a few doors down, bar salumi (seems like they split their menu between the two restaurants). Started with the steak tartare w crispy pigs cheeks & quail egg. the tartare was perfectly seasoned, hints of basil (i think) & the crispy pig cheeks added a much needed crunchy texture to the dish. it was a hit at the table, everyone sampled it & agreed that it was excellent. mark had the house-cured salumi starter (see picture below) which consisted of a spicy prosciutto & three salumi's. All were good, not as good as the tartare. With tons of share plates making the rounds at the table (including a simple yet delicious ontario asparagus salad), i decided to order a small pasta as a main. fiddlehead season is upon us & with such as short season it was a no-brainer that i selected the rabbit & marscapone stuffed cuscini with lemon, morels & fiddleheads. the cuscini were delicate and fluffy, ragu thick & meaty yet surprisingly light. the lemon added just enough acid. another winning dish. Rounded out our meal with two desserts to share (between all 7 of us), a bourbon maple panna cotta & a small dome-shaped cake with marzipan. the panna cotta was the clear winner, served in a small mason jar it was the perfect consistency, smooth & creamy with a kick of bourbon & sweetness of maple syrup. so delicious. Its lovely when restaurants get things this right. from service to food to atmosphere, local kitchen deserves the praise & accolades they receive. can't wait for my next visit. read more

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Went to this little restaurant on a suggestion from a friend. Local kitchen is a cozy ittle italian place on the west end with a constantly changing specials menu. Upon walking in you'll notice that the whole place will remind you of something between a deli and a meat locker. I think the meat locker curtains were a nice little touch. There are a lot of little things that also add to the experience. Mason jars for beer, water from refrigerated swing-top bottles and meat hanging on the ceiling. I ordered the salami platter right away and followed it up with a N'Duja crostini, the gnocchi and a black pepper linguini with bacon. The salami plate was quite interesting. Really similar to the black hoof if you'd ever been. They cure all their meat in house which is pretty cool. After trying them all I found myself not completely impressed with their selections. The shoulder salami was quite tasty. Perfect consistency, flavour and almost melted in your mouth. However the hunter salami was probably my least favourite. It had the consistency of a stick of lard with pieces of meat in it, gross. The procuitto that they had on there was not made in house and was okay, but not "mind blasting". My friends ordered the two different salads and I had a tiny sample. One of the salads was a leek salad with some olive oil and an egg on it. If you're wondering how this looked, it's exactly how it sounds. 2 leeks with some olive oil (flavoured) and an egg. I was really unimpressed with this. It seemed like something I could have pulled together after an exam in university. The other salad was actually quite nice. It had a bed of candy cane beets, a nice sweet dressing and Parmesan regiano slices ontop; a great paring. The pastas were probably the best things about this place. Both the gnocchi and the linguini were hand made pastas. In my opinion a world of a difference. One thing that I found really delightful was the fact that you could actually taste the potato in the gnocchi. The bacon linguini was pretty good as well, not the best I've ever had but pretty good. The bacon was thinly sliced and actually very light. Went really well with the linguini. One thing that I didn't order but kept seeing people order (we sat at the bar) were Caesars. These did not mess around. Clamato juice, vodka, jalapeño, shaken and then topped with fresh grated horseradish. I'm really surpised I didn't order one but it'd be on te top of my list if I'd return. Definately a place to check out if you can. Get the Caesar and tell me how it is. I overheard a person saying it was "too spicy". Silly rabbit. read more

Local Kitchen & Winebar - Wine Bars Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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We had a wonderful dinner and experience at local kitchen and Wine bar in Roncesvalles this evening. However, we had to return one bottle of wine because it was clearly off. Two people in our group felt it tasted like "vinaigrette" Typically in establishments such as this, there is no issue with this being removed from the bill. However, we were surprised to hear and learn that the wine in question was added to our bill. Not so classy! We would have thought that in the interest of $30 this wouldn't be an issue. If you attend this restaurant, perhaps stick to cocktail selections! If you get a bottle of wine that is "off" - their policy is to ensure you foot the bill.... read more

Truly a hidden Toronto gem! The best pasta i have EVER had by far. Food 5/5: I came here for Summerlicious but have no fear, they have a regular set menu (4 courses for $49). I started off with the warm mozzarella ball which came with a side of greens. I was very surprised at how generous they were, it was almost too much cheesey goodness for one person!! My friend got the beef tartar with truffle which he really enjoyed. For my main I had the Fazzoletti which was stuffed with mascarpone cheese and had sharp parmesan on top with truffle shavings. My friend got the Gnocchi which was delicious! I normally don't like gnocchi because I find it too starchy but this melted in your mouth and was covered in a delicious cream sauce. My pasta was very very good but I did like his better. For dessert I had the Strawberry & Black Pepper Panna Cotta which was creamy and sweet and very interesting with the black pepper. He had the Niagara Berry Gelato which he said was great! Atmosphere 5/5: The decor is very homey and rustic, it has a bit of a cottage feel. It's definitely a date spot as almost all the tables were two seaters and it was lit mostly by candle light. The restaurant is tiny so make sure you make reservations. read more

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I went here with a group of friends for summerlicious which can really be hit or miss. Local kitchen was certainly a hit! Surprisingly one of the better summerliciouses I've had in several years! I had: the muscles which were very tasty and I like how the toast was already on the plate soaking up the sauce. I also tried the steak tartar which was amazingly tasty! The pork which was giant! It came with some spicy tomato sauce on the plate and it was delicious and cooked perfectly! It was so large I had to take some home for the next day and it was just as delicious on day 2. The strawberry and pepper pannacotta, it was not what I expected because the texture was less pannacotta and more super thick yogurt but the taste was so good! It reminded me of going berry picking when I was a kid and then making a smoothie with those berries! That being said if you don't love yogurt texture then it's not for you. The big winner of the evening though was the bread! My friend ordered some and wow!!! I can honestly say it's the most delicious bread I've ever eaten! I don't know if it's consistently like that but it was amazing! They need to sell this bread in loaves because I would honestly drive from the opposite end of the city to get some! The atmosphere was really funky and creative and the service was excellent! I would definitely go back here! read more

Came during Winterlicious, and everything was absolutely delicious. The restaurant is small with a warm ambiance. I enjoyed the mozzarella, gnocchi (as per our servers recommendation), and the Nutella torte. My boyfriend had the beef tartare, beef cheek, and the frittelle di mele (apple fritters). Every dish was flavourful and melt in your mouth delicious. The softest gnocchi I have ever had. The portions were not too small. Would absolutely recommend, and planning on coming back. read more

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I'd like to tell you about this great place I found....BUT I CAN'T because on arrival we were informed by the restaurant owner that he cancelled our CONFIRMED reservation. He did not offer us a reason for cancelling it. After some awkwardness he did a turnabout and assured us a table was just about to turn over and we'd be seating in 10 minutes. "Sit at the bar...what can I get you to drink?" Our group of 4 ordered a drink and waited, and waited, and waited. It was quite obvious no one was planning on vacating their table any time soon. We decided if we were going to eat by 10pm we must move on. We tell the owner and he says he understands but it's not sincere as he delivers us a bill for the 4 drinks we ordered. To the restaurant: Sir, at a minimum, you should have apologized profusely about canceling our confirmed reservation and the drinks we ordered should have been on the house! Really!? you couldn't absorb the cost of 4 beers and said I am so sorry we didn't or couldn't honour your reservation please enjoy the drinks on me and I hope you'll give us another chance. PS. You obviously didn't know or care that the couple with us have been to your venue 4 previous times! Your repeat customer was introducing the restaurant to me and my husband. I suspect that won't happen again. I can't say you ruined our night because your restaurant neighbours at both Parts & Labour and Tennessee took excellent care of us. For those reading this review, I can't say if the food was good or not but I can tell you that these owners know little about being classy. read more

Overrated and overpriced. Left hungry and feeling ripped off. This place has gone downhill since our prior visits- maybe their success has gotten to their head. We used to be regulars, now never going back. The two big no no's: 1. Service: APPALLING. As some other reviewers said, it felt like the staff were inconvenienced by us. Were made to wait 30 mins for our reserved table with ZERO apology. Also very abrupt with us when cleaning the table and retrieving our jackets later. No thank you's, nothing. 2. Food: minuscule portions (tapas sized- for all four diner's meals) with main pricing. Mine (trofie pasta) was $18 for ~four tablespoons of pasta+pesto. Another's was $25 for ~2 tablespoons of shredded boar + a smearing of polenta no bigger than my palm. Expect no more than small shavings of every ingredient listed. What put us off is that our waitress didn't bother mentioning this. I even confirmed with her that they were main dishes. As our food arrived one by one we just started laughing in disbelief. After a $290 "meal" for 4 (1 app, 4 mains, 1 bottle of wine) we went down the road and got burgers. read more

Where to start? The Local Kitchen is currently receiving so much hype, anybody would have a hard time living up to it. And live up to it it didn't, on our visit. But let's start with the positive. Service. Utterly charming and well informed, super friendly without being in your face. If you're reading this, we loved you guys. My wife and I arrived early and decided to celebrate the arrival of the warmer weather with a beer. They've got Mill Street wheat on tap, the perfect selection for the day. The beer arrived in a canning jar. That was the first sign of trouble to come. Now, you might think, what does it matter? It's only a beer, after all. It matters to me because serving a beer that's been made by people who care about making good beer in a canning jar is disrespectful. It matters because the entire time you're drinking it you've got flashbacks to student parties where the host had run out of glasses and we had to make do with mugs and jars. It doesn't put me in the mood for an amazing dining experience. We all hated it, it spoiled an otherwise nice evening. Dinner. Once our friends arrived we were seated - the Local doesn't take reservations, you arrive early and take your chances. I love the way the place looks, comfortable and welcoming, but our table was so close to our neighbors that it was impossible to have anything resembling a private conversation. Before we move on to the food, let's talk meat for a minute. Justin, one of our dinner companions, and I have been curing meats for some years now. We write about, we shoot videos about it, we're not professionals but we're doing good - I am looking forward to channeling old Italien men sometime in the near future. I've got a cold smoker in my backyard where last year we made six pork bellies into pancetta and bacon. We've turned moose into sausage, we can quote entire pages of Michael Ruhlman's book 'Charcuterie' and we're in love with Jane Grigson. We're meat geeks and we're beginning to get reasonably good at it. Naturally we both ordered the Local Kitchen's signature dish, the maple cured, cold smoked, slow cooked pancetta. We also wanted to taste the home cured fresh anchovies - if there's a second love in our lives, it's fermented fish - and a small salumi platter. The girls tried the home made mozzarella, gnocchi and lamb ravioli. The anchovies arrived first. Two tiny fillets on a crustini, with baby arugola underneath. Good, competent, but not in any way better than what any good Italian deli will sell you. The price/portion ratio (high/tiny) was a sign of things to come. The salumi platter arrived next and again was competently executed without being memorable. Both textures and flavours were too similar, the flavorings too subdued to make any real impact. Nowhere near the Black Hoof in ballsiness and impact. Again, tiny slivers of cured meat, at a surprisingly high dime. The home made mozzarella on the other hand was lovely. Creamy, soft and full of flavor. Very nice. The much hyped pancetta, when it arrived, was probably the evening's biggest disappointment and the reason I am giving the Local Kitchen 2 stars only. Let's start with the price/food ratio again. Now, in no way am I a fan of huge plates of food. I will always prefer a tiny morsel of something intensely flavorful to a heap of mediocracy. But I also don't like to walk out of restaurants hungry. The Local Kitchen served us ten paper thin slices of pancetta and charged $25 for it. Allow me to do some math. You and I can order an entire organic pork belly, Berkshire, locally raised by Monnonites, for about $60-70.00. Add curing ingredients, salt, pink salt, sugar, herbs, maple syrup and even if we're being utterly extravagant we should come in at about $100,00, $120.00 top. Curing pancetta is neither hard, nor expensive. All it takes is time for the cure to do it's work, then you take the result and either hot or cold smoke it before cooking it low and slow. No e of the above would have mattered, had the results been stunning. But they weren't. The maple cure drowned out the bacon flavour, making it sickly-sweet. The addition of a fried egg as a side created additional cloyingness. It was a huge disappointment. Ten tiny slivers of mediocracy served at a price I found impossible to justify. The lamb pasta was ok but lacking in flavor - it was hard to tell the meat was actually lamb, the gnocchi were lovely, probably the best dish of the meal. We ended up sitting round the table with a huge feeling of 'this was IT?'. Still hungry, not impressed with the food we had just been eaten and a bill of close to $300.00. In the end we called up Parts & Labour up the road, where they had space at one of their chefs tables. Yes, we went for dinner after just having had dinner. At P&L they fed us spicy elk tartare, fried veal brains that melted on the tongue and salty, savory bone marrow on toast. Happiness, finally. read more

I loved this place. I don't have too much more to add on top of my fellow yelpers so I'll share this one tidbit. If you're going there for a romantic evening for two, call ahead and reserve their chef table. For $50pp you are served an 8 course meal (which I convinced the chef should really be a 10 course meal) all the while learning about the local food and preparation methods of the restaurant. It was a truly unique experience and the food was to die for. I haven't sat out in the rest of the restaurant, and after having this experience I probably never will, the chef table is the way to go. I seriously rolled out of there I was so full, which is near impossible for a person who was 8 months pregnant at the time. read more

SLOW-CAL KITCHEN should be the name of this place!!! Although our appetizers came out in good time and were pretty tasty, our entrees of pasta did not come out even after we have waited an HOUR after ordering. Fed up with waiting so long, we kindly asked our waitress to check on our pastas and they were still not available to be served. In the end, we just asked our waitress to pack up our food to go since we had to head out. Ended up leaving with three boxes of food...never had the chance to eat our entrees in the restaurant... :( CON: not great for bringing children, no seating for kids, no high chairs PROS: Nice gritty-yet-chic decor...like the ambiance read more

1) it was like my itunes was on shuffle. (my itunes is some GOOD SHIT). 2) the décor was right out of my dream fantasy nightmare. (that is a good thing. btw). 3) the gnocchi was like pillows from heaven. for my mouth. 4) the ricotta/marzipan something cake was a memory served by my deceased oma with a smile. 5) i was having dinner with in-laws AND I DIDNT MIND. 6) im still a bit tipsy off an amazing something something chardonnay something. read more

Came here a few days ago to celebrate the end of a seemingly endless school year with a couple of Rotman chums, and now that I've had my first taste of Local Kitchen, I can't wait to come back for more. The space, though a little cramped, is homey and chic (without the hipstery vibe that can permeate some places in Parkdale). I loved the clotheslined vintage tees as decor! Food: Very good. We split the mozzarella and a charcuterie plate as an appetizer, and both were excellent. For our mains, all three of us ordered the rabbit and mascarpone-stuffed cuscini (ravioli-like pasta pillows). I really dug the sauce and morel mushrooms, but thought my rabbit/mascarpone was a little bit on the mealy side. We split the panna cotta and marzipan cake-thing for desseert, and both were freaking delicious. Panna cotta is one of those desserts that's super easy to make at home, but at Local Kitchen they top it with this sweet bourbon (?) sauce that was perfect. The only negative was navigating the wine list. They write all the descriptions themselves, which is nice, but it's a lot of words to read in a very dimly-lit restaurant. It's easier to just go with the suggestions from the servers. Which brings me to... Service: Perfect -- friendly and attentive. I love that they use sustainable and local sources -- two things that I never mind paying more money for. Also, kudos to them for having a website that doesn't force you to download PDFs of the menu (My restaurant website pet peeve!)! Thank you, Local Kitchen! Local Kitchen is great for a meal, but I'd hesitate to bring groups. It's on the small side. So bring a date or a couple of good friends, and cozy up! Pro tip: No reservations, and they don't accept AmEx. read more

Where do I begin?! This was on my restaurant Resolutions list http://nearafar.wordpress.com/2011/12/19/near-the-2012-restaurant-resolutions-list/ and I'm so glad it was! We were in holdover at Bar Salumi for about 15 minutes. I'd hate to say that the service was off there but Local is a different story. Now I'm wondering why I haven't been here before! VIBE Amazing. Intimate. Romantic. The reason you wait is because there are only 30 seats. The soundtrack in the background is fantastic. We were delighted to find out we had the chef's table and though it was jam packed inside (and a bit warm) when our friend came, they got him a stool so he could sit with us. The decor in this place is out of control. Amazing hand crafted chandeliers adorn the place; chalk board menus; and vintage photos of Toronto adorn the back wall of the bar. And the bathroom! One of the coolest bathrooms I have seen in the city. They have a screen playing Sideways which is in a beautiful frame. Plus, a lovely mention from En Route as one of their favourite restaurants in 2010. I can see why! WE ATE Oh, we ate. We started with the bocaccini cheese in red chilli peppers drizzled with olive oil on romaine. A nice little starter for $6. You can get a cheese tasting: one for $7 or three for $16. We chose one and got their focaccia for $3. This is a must! It's toasted, soft and chewy. We were eating the whole bowl in no time! Then it was on to our mains. I loved that our waiter was the owner and we could also see the other owner and chef, Fabio in action. It's so fun to see how focused the chefs are but also multi-taskers. I'm fascinated by it all. I felt a bit rushed when deciding on what to eat but Michael answered our million and one questions. I picked off the daily specials and got the Ragu gnocchi. Not your typical gnocchi, it looks like little circular wheels because in Sicily they roll it out. The ragu was steaming hot and delivered in this little pot (it looked like creuset). AMAZING. Someone had said "pillows of heaven." I would say this was accurate. My dining companion had the Duck. Anatra + cannelini beans + fennel. She seemed to love it. I had a taste and the duck was very moist. Our friend ended up popping by and he had the lamb tartare + crispy pig cheeks mint + quail egg I am not a big tartare fan but I was starting to eat the whole plate. It was delicious! The guys also customized our wine to our meal and gave us something off the list. It was the Nerojbleo and it went down SMOOTH! OBLIGATORY CATCHY REMARK As local as you can get. Definitely one of my new faves. These guys really do put their heart and soul into the food. We were even lucky enough to get a mini tour of the kitchen, where they're cooking a lot of the food on a FOUR BURNER STOVE. Crazy! I even got a story lead out of talking to Fabio. It was quite incredible how helpful people in the city are if you just ask! I'm game to try more of their pastas though I wish there were more meat/pasta combinations like the ragu. read more

For our anniversary, my SO and I decided to treat ourselves to a nice dinner rather than buy each other presents. I heard about the chef's table at Local, and our decision was made. As I understood it from the website and other reviews, we would meet the chef who would then talk to us about what we like and don't like, and create an 8 course meal for us. It sounded amazing! The restaurant itself is small and somewhat rustic. I loved the haphazardly-painted blackboard on the wall. There was seating for probably about 20 people. The chef's table is at the back of the seating area, at a little bar looking onto the chef's work table. The chef who was working there looked no more than 23 years old though, so I knew it wasn't Fabio Bondi. We were brought glasses of water, and after a little while another chef came to speak to us. I believe it was the other owner, Michael Sangregorio. He asked us if we have any particular ingredients that we dislike. We each named an item, and he confirmed that they weren't going to be on the menu. But that was the end of the discussion. I guess that's all that was needed, but not quite what was promised on the website. The service was interesting. I can't say it was bad, but I can't say it was great. I'm not actually even sure who our server was - we seemed to be served by three or four different people. Some of them were friendlier than others. We never knew whether what the chef was creating was for us, or for another table in the restaurant. It was very cool to be able to watch the young chef do his thing, although it felt a little awkward since he was very quiet and never said anything to us. The wine list, as expected, was extensive. It was also well priced, with most glasses in the $11-17 range. I was very happy with the glass I tried, which was at the lower end of the spectrum. The food though...the food was fantastic. I can't even remember what all the courses were! I know that we had house-pulled mozzarella on a bed of arugula, raw fish with apple and pickled cabbage, bison stuffed pasta in a butter sauce, lamb shank, and for dessert little Italian donuts stuffed with nutella. It was all beautifully prepared, and I was especially impressed with the pasta courses and the mozzarella (although this was a VERY large portion, and we were unable to eat it all). The lamb was delicious, I just felt that it should have been cooked a tiny bit longer. The donuts were also fantastic, but after all that food, I would have preferred something lighter than deep fried dough. All in all, the food was fantastic, the service was decent, and the décor is very cool. I would try it again, to order off the regular menu. read more

Went here for an intimate dinner and had the chef's table tasting menu. We had 4 apps to share, 2 pastas, 1 main and a dessert plate. So worth it and everything was enjoyable, including the main entree - skirt steak. The apple pannacotta was the stand-out dessert on the apple dessert plate and arguably, one of the best pannacottas I have ever had in this city. The pastas were the main draw for us and I would have to agree that fresh pasta definitely tastes much more decadent. The accompanying sauces were soooo good and I had to restrain myself from licking the plate. I have tried a fair share of Massimo's italian restaurants and a smattering of other Italian restaurants in the city and I have to say I was ultra pleased with Local's Italian menu and I definitely felt that the meal was worth every dollar. By the way, we picked up that most of the seasonal produce is straight from a family farm in King City - and you can definitely taste the freshness of the local produce. It's still farm-to-fresh dining but not overpriced, stuffy and you don't feel ripped off at the end of the meal (Mark McEwen, I beg you to note this for future consideration). read more

The tragic thing about this review is that I have been to The Local a couple times prior and I've enjoyed it (I'd say they were 3.5 - 4 star experiences). But unfortunately, our experience this last time was marred by the behavior of one of the restaurant staff who rudely demanded a larger gratuity. I must note that it was not the waitress who served us who said anything. It was a random staff member who delivered the bill to our table. We had left $49 on a $300 bill, after which he counted the money and then loudly pointed out that it wasn't sufficient to cover the "standard" 18% tip that the girl had "forgotten" to put on the bill for parties of 6 or more and that we needed to leave more money. Firstly, his math was wrong, as a $49 tip on $300 constitutes slightly over 18% on the pre-tax sum, which I believe was more than sufficient for the merely adequate service we received. Secondly, under no circumstances should a staff member ever demand a bigger tip unless they are certain they no longer want your business. Not only did he demand a bigger tip, he argued with us when we told him we considered his demands rude (and mathematically flawed). It's a shame, because this restaurant offers a menu item I am quite fond of (basically a plate of bacon). But unfortunately, my disgust for the shameless behavior of this particular staff member has outweighed my love of pork (which is not insignificant), and as a sad consequence, I will never be returning to the Local Kitchen again. read more

This is so bad, but my boyfriend and I literally came here right after eating an entire pizza each at Bar Salumi down the street. When faced with an impossible decision, why choose? Employees from Bar Salumi (the sister restaurant to Local Kitchen) kept on coming in and out of the place after we sat down as we tried to hide our faces in shame... Anyway, since we were already pretty full, we had a cocktail and some apps. I think I had a classic Negroni if my memory serves me correctly, and he had the cocktail special of the day: a blend of Collingwood Whiskey with lemon and perhaps lavender? Both drinks were fabulous. The fresh pulled mozzarella ball here is such a treat, and also one of those things that's almost too cute to eat (unintentional rhyming). Service and decor here are wonderful. I would love to come back and try their smoked potato gnocchi - maybe not after I eat a whole pizza first, though. read more

Wow, this place is awesome! Small and intimate like many a Toronto restaurant but not cramped or too loud. Beautifully lit with warm wood decor. The chairs could use an update but its a small complaint for an otherwise lovely experience. My bff and I rolled in for a late dinner about 9ish on a Wednesday so we had no trouble getting a table. My vegetarian friend had recommended this place to me because they not only have vegetarian options but they aren't afterthoughts, they are made with love and thought and intent. But first the wine... Only local or Italian wines are available but they have a great booklet of wine describing each type and region for anyone not sure about either local or Italian wines. Our server let me try a couple as well when picking my second glass which I always appreciate. We had 3 different ones between us and I thought they were all quite nice. A bit on the pricey side $12-15 per glass but bottles seemed better priced if you're up for it. For dinner the menu is traditional Italian style as other reviewers have mentioned. I picked a warm dish to start - cannelini beans with artichoke and parmesean and I know it doesn't sound like much but it was freaking delicious! So much so I'm hoping to make it myself when I'm off to Spain next week as all those ingredients are readily available there. They were happy to tell me how they made it too which I also appreciated. My bff was equally thrilled with her ceasar salad with pancetta - she was glowing about the dressing - I'd be happy to try that next time (sans pancetta of course). For mains, I picked the pasta that was hand rolled trofie in a zucchini creme sauce. My only complaint about the meal was here - the trofie was a touch too al dente for my taste but that zucchini creme sauce was so amazing I ate the whole thing anyway. My bff had the special of the day which was a ravioli stuffed with sweet potato and lamb I think in a red sauce that she loved as well. For dessert we tried two different ones - a fritter dish with three small fritters with a bit of sauce I can't remember exactly and a canoli. Have to be honest here, we didn't love either. The fritters were a bit bland as was the sauce (although cooked perfectly) and the canoli was really hard with a very meh-tasting filling. We should have had the panna cotta. Next time! I like that they use ingredients from their own garden, source locally and seem to really care about what they are serving. This also means they change their menu frequently which should keep returning customers happy over time. We paid by debit if that's useful. A truly winning dinner, I can't wait to go back. read more

Local Kitchen is a good spot on Queen near Roncesvalles. Here are the key points... 1. The food is very good. I had beef tongue for the first time here. It was tender and delicious. The portions were generous. 2. The service was ok, but the server really did not know the menu or wine list well. 3. The menu is very limited. In fact, there were only three main plates on the night I went, and one was beef tongue and another was vegetarian. You could get stuck not finding something that looks appealing. 4. The price falls in line with all the other small restaurants with a similar vibe.... Small, old-looking, and dark. It is not a particular value or a bank breaker. Overall, I would give the place 3 and 1/2 stars. The food was good, but the overall experience did not leave me wanting to hurry back. read more

Another stop on my Toronto wine bar and restaurant tour with Local Kitchen and Winebar. I tried 2 Ontario Wines here and 1 from BC (one of the few BC wines available by the glass that I saw at the places I visited). The food was seriously excellent. I had the Potato gnocchi with taleggio and rapini to start, this dish was rich and satisfying with the gnocchi cooked perfectly - they were soft but had just the right amount of resistance to the bite. For the main, I had the Lake Erie Bass with turnips, spring onion and fern fronds - this was a great example of a dish with a small number of ingredients done well - I wasn't totally sold on the fern fronds, having a odd texture, but otherwise it was great. My brother had the Ziti pasta and a spatchcock special for his main and was very complimentary towards both. The service from the waitress was very friendly and we appreciated the attention that she gave us. Overall, we had a great meal here and I hope to come back in the not too distant future. read more

I am one tough chick to surprise... with a built in 6th sense which allows me to intuitively know just about everything! My poor boyfriend had a tough time this time this valentine's day. Turns out the silly 905er took down the wrong address and we ended up at the wrong end of town in front of the wrong restaurant. I called Local and told them we'd be 30 minutes late and they seemed surprisingly understanding. When we arrived at the venue, we were told that we would not be able to do the chef's table as that took over 2 hours. Since we were still sort of stuffed from lunch, this was sort of a blessing in disguise. Instead of stuffing ourselves with a 5-course dinner, we got to snack of decadent cured meats and cheeses with a nice bottle of wine . read more

Good: The place is cozy and romantic in a rustic way - fantastic if you're lucky enough to get a table. We called ahead for the chef's table and were seated at the bar close to the prep area, so we could see some of the kitchen action. Better: The wine and cocktail list were fun and approachable, although a bit hit-and-miss. The Manhatten was excellent (described as "strong and urbane" by the BF. I don't know what that means either), while the other was not nearly as smooth. The wine list has many local choices, and some nice earthy reds from Italy as well. BEST: The food! Hands down, this is the one of the best value chef's tables in the entire city. They didn't skimp on anything, and the food was rich. We were served incredibly sweet tomatoes in pulled mozzarella, a huge salumi platter with caponata, bison short rib ravioli with chantrelles... and by this point I was full. However, when a plate of chard and ricotta stuffed pasta with hen-of-the-woods mushrooms and crackling pork cheek was placed in front of me, I obviously tucked in the gine and kept on eating. It was incredible! Those mushrooms are sinfully meaty. The main course was perfectly cooked lamb on polenta with tarragon and more hen-of-the-woods mushrooms (yay)! I lapsed into a food coma two bites in. Dessert is just a blur. Truth be told, this is a 4.5 star rating, only because we didn't have any interaction from the chef aside from confirming our dislikes and this differed from the description on the website. Service was efficient but not particularly personable. But these are just minor 0.5 star worthy criticisms; I would definitely eat here again. Dollars: Our bill came to $200 for two chef's tables, a big bottle of bubbly water, two cocktails, several glasses of wine, tax and tip. read more

The service and food were great but the portion sizes are very small. Service was attentive and the waitresses were friendly with good knowledge of the menu. Corkage for $30 is on the high side of things but this is a small place so I understand. read more

Loved this place. Everything about it - the service and the ambiance and the food. Especially the food. After disappointment after disappointment checking out the trendy joints on Roncesvalles, we were delighted to find this place. A touch expensive for regular dining, but worth every penny and then some. (Well, perhaps with the exception of the wine list. Not very extensive and nothing too special there, so the mark-ups are a bit tough to justify.) Perhaps the best carpaccio I've had, amazing fresh pastas, and the quail is a must try. It was served with a nice lamb sausage, but from the first taste I wanted a heaping plate of little birds, and a KFC bucket-full to take home. Not to be missed. read more

Local has a great neighborhood atmosphere and a friendly staff. Fun drinks and a good charcuterie, it's no black hoof but it's pretty good. I found the decor, and sharing a big table with some other diners to be a really nice and social experience. The steak tartar with a quail egg was excellent. My gnocchi was excellent, however my partner's daily porchetta pasta was below average at best. Dessert was cheesy and yummy. I would definitely go back for food and atmosphere! read more

My girlfriend and I went to Local for Valentine's day. I booked the chef's table but unfortunately, we missed the seating (we were a wee bit late). I was disappointed and a little embarrassed that we missed this chef's table, as I have heard many great things and was highly recommended. But alas, all was not lost! We still sat at the bar right in front of were the head chef was preparing our food. This guy was totally engaging; he took the time to chat about the food, his philosophy on how important using local ingredients are, he even talked about times spent in Italy with his family. I love when chefs/servers come out of their shell and take the time to shoot the shit, it totally completes the restaurant experience. We had a crisp bottle of Riesling with Cured Meats, Cheeses and Breads. But dessert was showcase that night. Normally I won't order a dessert, however, the panna cotta with mulled vino was AMAZING and I would highly recommend it to anyone. My only regret is missing that chef's table, I guess it will have to wait for next time. Thanks for a great evening! read more

Loved this restaurant - felt right at home and loved how the owner was able to squeeze us in and be so nice about. The food was delicious - sooo fresh, I loved it. I had the cheese plate, which I would recommend, and the pastas were fantastic. They tasted as if they JUST made them in the back. Great atmosphere - very laid back and felt as if I was just relaxing at a friend's place. Highly recommended. read more

Small portions, ordinary Italian, and pricey for the quality. I think the great reviews are friends. There's no house wine. Servers are unaware of the menu?!**.... read more

I've been to Local Kitchen a number of times since it opened, and it's easily one of my favourite spots to visit in Toronto. It's a small resto in the Queen/ Roncesvalles area with a funky atmosphere, and excellent food. On our last visit, my gf and I shared a cheese plate, a 32 ounce steak & a bottle of red wine, all while listening to a wide range of eclectic music. The service was great, and the meal was delicious! Tips/notes- 1) In the winter, avoid sitting at the front tables by the window as it gets a bit cold (also because it's near the entrance). 2) For the best experience, reserve a spot at the CHEF'S TABLE. A small section (for two people), where you can watch the chef prep the food, ask questions and taste a wide variety of the items on the menu. 3) If you have a large group (i.e. 5-8 ppl), arrive early so they can accommodate you. Keep in mind, the place is very small, and not really designed to accommodate groups! 4) If the place is packed when you arrive, simply leave your name and grab a drink next door at their Bar Salumi. 5) When it gets busy, it can be a bit loud, but, this simply adds to the atmosphere. read more

Enjoyed dinner at Local last Saturday evening with my wife and another couple. Food was good. I had the Bison tartar and my wife had the Passato Di Cavolfiore for starters, both were pleasantly surprising. For mains, I had the tagliatelline which was yummy but quite sparing in portion for a $17 pasta. There are no descriptions of what things are on the menu so unless you speak Italian or have been there before, you're going to need to ask your server what everything is. Speaking of the server, ours was good...attentive and helpful. The only negative came at the end of the meal. It was busy and we felt rushed. We asked for the bill and after we signed off, they came to our table with our coats. We had not asked for them and we were not ready to leave, but now they were standing there with our coats in hand. It was not like we were closing the place...it was only 8:30pm. That said, I'll give them the benefit of the doubt that perhaps they misread a cue and were sincerely thinking they were being helpful and on the ball bringing our coats. read more

Great service, great food, small and cozy restaurant. Follows Italian dining traditions. Order an app, order a pasta and then order a main! The pasta portion alone isn't suppose to fill you up. The restaurant being so compact means the menu has to be concise so if you want choice and big plates - this is not the place for you. Will be back. Our server was attentive, energetic and friendly. No complaints. read more

I can't complain about the food too much, although portions are definitely small. The big problem here is customer service: I dont know where "Mike" (waiter?owner? not sure...) gets off acting as if they were the only place in town serving Italian food! In a city with such an amount of great resto's, I'm not sure how anyone can think it's ok to treat their customers with such a rude/obnoxious attitude. I live up the street, but definitely won't be going here again... read more

My firend lives in this area and recommended we eat here. She is a foodie and has ate at so many different resaurants that I couldnt even go to them all in my lifetime. The restaurant is on the smaller side but it kept it cozy. They had great service and the atmosphere was comfortable with candle light and light music. The server had a good knowledge of the menu and everything she recommended was delicious. Loved the wine that was on special but unfortunately I can't remember the name. I was mostly impressed by the food, we had three courses and enjoyed every bite. Surpised my friend didn't lick her plate clean. Will definately be returning soon. read more

POSITIVES Food was good. Ordered the: kale salad antipasti, a bit too creamy. but fresh ingredients and great cheese. pastinaci primi, great pasta, very fresh, very thin pasta, excellent succulent shrimp. mackeral secondo, fish was good, veg sides were fresh. well seasoned, a tad on the salty side. NEUTRALS - pricing is $20 per primi, $20 for secondi, $15 for antipasti not crazy, but well, the portions were smaller than expected, but OK, I am willing to pay premium for good food and GOOD service - small menu, but I'd rather them be experts at what they do, than jack of all trades. NEGATIVES - service was slow. got the salad within 15 minutes (good), primi about 25 minutes after (acceptable), and the main a WHOPPING 45 MINUTES AFTER. I was there on a Sunday night at 7pm. Not prime time. We had to remind our server we were waiting for our main. He said "sorry the big table beside you slowed us down". I understand it is a small kitchen, but the servers prioritized the table of 6 beside us and got them their dinner first, meanwhile we ordered at least 30 minutes before they did. He apologized, but there was not even an offer for a "complimentary/ apologetic coffee." No token of apology. Then of course, he shot the shit with the table next to us for another 10 minutes before bringing us the bill, after we were already annoyed at having received the main 85 minutes after ordering. I was taught NOT TO TIP for bad service. Lucky for them, my companion paid and still tipped them (albeit modestly.) read more

We had a good dinner experience here. The place was very crowded on a Saturday night but they were able to get us seated shortly after our reservation time. No big deal. The food was very good and interesting. Complaints about serving sizes are justified, however. The prices are not cheap and the serving sizes are relatively small. I would definitely be concerned about coming here if I was starving. This is more appropriate if you want a small amount of nice food. There's nothing wrong with that, but if you come expecting something else you'll be disappointed. Would also like to see a stronger beer list. But this is nit picking, they have nice wines and that's their thing so again, it's not really fair to complain that the wine bar doesn't have good enough beer. So - to enjoy, be prepared to spend, be prepared for "elegantly" sized portions, be prepared to have wine not beer. read more

Everything I've had here have been good. Excellent pasta and the pork chop is amazing. The vibe is nice and the wine selection is good too.