During the annual Winterlicious festival, which runs from Jan. 29 to Feb. 11, upscale Toronto restaurants offer a prix fixe menu at a cheaper price than their usual fare. With some restaurants offering decadent lunches at $15 a person, it’s not as cheap as Tim Horton’s, but still an affordable change of routine—especially to dine in the same places that host celebrities during TIFF and Fashion Week. Even better, all these options are within a five-minute walk from U of T, so you can leisurely enjoy your quiche campagnarde and still make it to your afternoon lecture on time.
The Host
14 Prince Arthur Ave.
Wood-panelled, candlelit, and linen-draped Indian restaurant The Host is inconspicuously nestled near Avenue Road in a way altogether different from Toronto’s excess of hole-in-the-wall naan places. Though the clientele is sometimes corporate—the restaurant is down the street from Vera Wang, and around the corner from The Hyatt—owners Jay and Sanjeev Sethi have perfected the art of high-class Indian cuisine and run three other locations of the restaurant in the GTA. The Host has earned a slew of Best Of’s from a variety of Toronto publications, including a recent accolade from the Toronto Star as having the best butter chicken in the city.—Emily Kellogg
93 Harbord
93 Harbord specializes in Moroccan cuisine, a cooking style known for its artful balance of aromatic flavours and spices. Their $15 three-course tasting menu presents a thoughtful array of signature dishes, including two tagines—slowly braised stews cooked in a cone-shaped ceramic pot. This might not be the restaurant for spice-phobes, but it is a great choice for anyone looking to give their tastebuds a real kick. The menu’s sumac-spiced chicken and vegetarian tagine of spiced chickpeas appear to be especially promising entree options for the budding flavour fanatic.—Kelli Korducki
Ciao Wine Bar
133 Yorkville Ave.
Relatively new to Yorkville, Ciao Wine Bar is brick-laden and glass-walled with an impressive collection of vintage wines on display. Ciao is the latest effort from the Liberty Entertainment Group, the people behind Tattoo Rock Parlor and Velvet Underground. Their Yorkville location is split between a bistro and lounge downstairs, and a dining room upstairs. While the bottom level might be good for catching perfectly coiffed business types getting drunk off expensive liquor, the dining room offers a buzzworthy variety of stone-oven pizzas by chef Roberto Punz, laden with surprising ingredients such as smoked salmon and Gorganzola cheese.—EK
Midi Bistro
168 McCaul St.
Midi Bistro sits steps away from the AGO on McCaul. With a distinctive red-panelled facade and an intimate 28-seat bistro feel, owner Pascal Vernhes and chef Alain Tat create an intimate (and wine-laden) French atmosphere. The bistro offers an auspicious two-lb plate of Moules-Frites (steamed mussels), rotating chef’s specials, fish of the day, and desserts. While the bistro prides itself on authenticity of experience—yes, it does serve escargots sautéed in a creamy forest mushroom and basil sauce—its location in Baldwin Village keeps the cozy resto from being too pretentious.—EK
5th Elementt
1033 Bay St.
Planning a lunch date with a group of friends whose food preferences completely clash? If you can get over the dopey spelling of this restaurant’s name, 5th Elementt might just be the solution to your culinary conundrum. The two courses of their $15 prix fixe Winterlicious menu boast one vegetarian option, one seafood option, and one spicy, chicken-based option, which means there’s something for everyone to enjoy. What really catches my eye, though, is the orange mango cheesecake with elderberry syrup on their well-chosen dessert list.—KK
Boulevard Cafe
161 Harbord St.
I’d always been under the impression that Peruvian cuisine offers very little for vegetarians, but upon viewing the Boulevard Cafe’s Winterlicious lunch menu, I clearly stand corrected. Each of the first course options are entirely herbivore friendly, and the main course features a veggie selection as well. Nevertheless, I recommend that diners at this Harbord Street institution take advantage of the restaurant’s choros al vapor—a bowl of mussels steamed in wine, garlic, saffron and cilantro—because, truthfully, seafood is what Peruvians—and the Boulevard—do best.—KK
