Rare Bird

Ortolan is a traditional French dish that has been prohibited in France. The bird is force-fed until it is plumped, drowned in Armagnac, roasted and devoured whole. The diner eats the bird with a linen draped over his head to fully inhale the aromas and also to "hide from God".

This sinful, and ethically dubious, dish is not available at the eponymous restaurant newly opened at Bloor and Margueretta. But there is a bottle of Armagnac on site. A venture of Damon Clements (Delux) and Daniel Usher (Pizzeria Libretto), the waitress explains that the name is a nod to their traditional training and thus, the sort of dishes that are served here. Although this area has slowly gentrified with a few galleries, vintage-style shops, and some restaurants include the Holy Oak cafe, the Bloordale Pantry, Starving Artist (waffles), and the recently moved Calico (vegan), Ortolan is the first upscale restaurant to open in the area. More typical is the Happy Cup Bar Chinese and Indian spot ("Spicy your dinner!"). It must scratch a local itch because the place was full on this Wednesday night.

Next door to The House of Lancaster, Ortolan (Tues-Sat 5-10 p.m.) takes over from Kathy's Kitchen, a bare-bones Hungarian diner that I ate at last year. The inside has been dramatically changed although it's still a tiny spot. Four diners can sit at the elevated counter by the window, 7 small tables occupy the cozy space, and a couple of more seats are available at the small bar. A large chalkboard by the entrance shows the menu and wine list (all prices include tax), a smaller one behind the bar lists the aperitifs and beer, and next to the kitchen is a 3rd chalkboard with the desserts and after-dinner coffee.

For the appetizers, my friend and I order the rillettes ($8) and the white beans with pickled beets ($8). The rillettes is generously sized charcuterie made with pork shoulder that comes with some tiny pickles, a mustard-seed spread, and what looks to be bits of tangy chopped eggs. The whole thing tastes great on house bread, even the conspicuous white pork fat. The beans and beets are also tasty although as a personal preference, I would like the beans to be just a hair softer. The beets must be fresh because this is the first time I understand why some people think beets taste like dirt. Yum, root-y goodness.

As for the mains, we settle on a branzino (Mediterranean sea bass), leeks, and lemon butter dish ($17) and a roasted chicken leg a l'estragon, which is fancy French for tarragon ($16). The plating is smaller proportioned compared to the rillettes, especially the fish. This explains why the waitress recommended that we order a side salad. Instead of the fingerling potatoes, we got the house salad ($8) of fennel and radichio. Hmm, maybe we should have gone with the taters because the salad is just bitter roughage. However, the fish is wonderfully cooked with some fine leeks. The chicken is moist and tender yet the skin retains a delicious crispness. The cooked celery that comes with the chicken is not so great, still stringy and fibrous like all celery. The 3rd refill of bread helps fill out otherwise good but small mains (those potatoes are probably a good idea).

For dessert, our choices are a chocolate mousse, a panna cotta, and a poached pear tartlette ($8). We settled on the tartlette which turns out to be average. The pears could have been more flavourful and the cream and crust are merely competent.

Service is prompt and friendly. They even rush over to fold your napkin when you go to the bathroom. There is one caveat. According to my friend who was facing the bar and kitchen, they were grimacing and making eyes at us, probably because we were lingering too long after the meal. My back was to the waitstaff, and I tend to be oblivious to these things, so I can't comment.

But if true, then that was quite rude. I wasn't aware that there was a need for tables because there were some free ones around us. There were some patrons sitting at the bar but they looked to be enjoying themselves with drinks. Could they have been waiting so that our tables could be rearranged into a larger dining space? Possibly. But in which case, a gracious word explaining the situation would have sufficed for me.

Rounding out the meal with Mill St. pilsner ($7), a glass of Zweigelt from Niagara ($8) and a cappuccino ($3), the night came to $93 with tip.