Toronto: Fressen

I finally did what I came to Toronto for a couple of days ago and that evening a friend and I went to Fressen (478 Queen Street West,) a fine dining kind of vegan restaurant. It was rated one of the hippest vegetarian eateries in North America by VegNews and I can see why, it was very hip, and looked like a great place to go on a date.

We parked in the back, and I loved the little mural on the back of the restaurant (probably because it features a cat,) in addition to the other graffiti and wall art in the alleyway. When we walked in the restaurant was mostly empty, but we lucked out because shortly after we sat down it filled up.

It’s too easy to get overwhelmed with options at entirely vegan restaurants, the limitations imposed when there are things I just will not eat on other menus make it so much easier to choose something. This menu was no different. There are three sections, appetizers, tapas, and entries, so we just ordered something from each category.

The assorted olive plate was delicious, though I don’t think I’ve met an olive plate I didn’t like. One of the green ones tasted as though it were soaked in vermooth, but that could have just been me. There were pimento stuffed ones, and my favourite as usual were the kalamata’s.

Plum and vodka cold soup. I forgot to ask what kind of plum it was, but it made me think of the miraposa ones I had in San Francisco for some reason. Tart and savory with a slight hint of vodka to it.

Plantain Croquettes, were deep fried dumplings made of plantain and rice flour with a side of salad and a mango, jalapeño and coriander salsa. They were really great, I definitely preferred them without the salsa though.

As entrees we got the Battered Tofu and the Grilled Seitan Kabobs. The Tofu was Beer-Battered and DELICIOUS. It came with a side of potatoes, some lightly sauteed vegetables (broccoli my favourite!) and smattering of diced mango