Feist’s “1234” may have started our love affair with numbers, but it’s a numerical restaurant trend that’s keeping our counting crush burning.
Right now, we’re stuck on Four (not to be confused with Eight and Eleven). The opening-tomorrow offering from Executive Chef Gord Mackie (with Chef de Cuisine Craig Harding) is the health conscious counterpart to last year’s Petit Four Bakery.
The idea is simple: wholesome food that you won’t feel guilty about (but that doesn’t scream DIET). Each lunch and dinner dish on the seasonally changing menu has less than 650 calories, with appetizers as low as 67 calories. (A complete list is available, but not blaring from the menu.)
We snuck in for a pre-opening taste test and fell in love. From the grilled calamari salad ($9.50) with blood orange dressing to the hot + sour chicken soup ($6), our appetizers satisfied without overwhelming. The steamed halibut (professional steamers replace deep fryers in this forward-thinking kitchen) with pearl couscous ($21.50) was surprisingly large, the grilled chicken breast ($16.50) was amazingly moist and the 5oz. bison burger ($11.50) that’s still less than 500 calories was incredibly tempting (we’re saving it for next time).
We had just enough room left for a 200-calorie dessert, so we’ll have to head back after work to dip in to their Small Bites menu and enjoy a few glasses from their comprehensive cocktail and wine list. (Guilt free, considering all the calories we’ve saved.)
Four
187 Bay St. (at Wellington)
Commerce Court South, Concourse Level
416-368-1444
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