Toro in the South End

Can you believe Dish Gal had never eaten at Toro before? Once Z and I had stopped in for drinks late, late on a Saturday night. But the kitchen had closed, so we were technically still Toro virgins.

I thought Toro would be perfect for Z's birthday celebration, so we headed there "early" (for us) on Friday night, around 7 p.m. We were told (as I expected) there would be a 1 hour wait, so we squished our way into the packed bar. I managed to nab a stool, and we started the celebration off with some sangria. It was pretty potent, and not as refreshing as others-- much heavier on the booze, but who is complaining? I moved on to a glass of cava (champagne from Spain) and Z got my absolute favorite beer from Barcelona, Estrella Damm, which I've never seen in the States! It was emotional.

Finally, about an hour-plus later we were seated. We started with the foie gras with pear and bacon chutney. It was served on a small, crusty baguette slice. It was tiny, but so rich and decadent that one for the two of us was plenty! A tiny little bite packed so much flavor from the slippery and dense foie gras. Wow. Great start. (p.s. not only was my camera battery dying, I also felt since it was a special occasion the constant photography would be annoying-- so forgive me for the lack of photos).

Next up we got the spanish tuna belly with tomato tapenade and celery. This was also served on the slice of baguette. Now this might be my unsophisticated palate speaking, but this tasted like I had taken tuna out of a can and put it on a triscuit. Again, it's probably me, but I wasn't crazy about this at all.

Next came the hot green peppers with sea salt. These weren't very hot (have I gotten too accustomed to spicyness?) but were pretty nice. I'd enjoy them alongside a beverage at a bar. Probably not again as the main focus though.

The next dish to arrive was the skirt steak a la plancha with cabrales butter and red onion marmalade. Does "a la plancha" mean "a la delicious"? Because that's what it was. This tender skirt steak was glorious alone, and when paired with the soft butter and tart marmalade was amazing.

But then...the corn came. and HOLY CORN! was it AMAZING (yes, this requires Kanye West-style ALL CAPITAL LETTERS-- dlisted.com readers know what I'm talking about). This grilled cheese was smothered in aged cheese and alioli, and garnished with lime that I eagerly squeezed on top of it.

I had high expectations going in about this corn, and it not only lived up to those expectations, it blew them out of the water. Bravo, Toro.

p.s. Great job putting floss in the bathrooms-- it was definitely needed! ;)

Mini Review: Tapeo

I was on Newbury St. the other night for a party, and when it was over some friends and I decided to wander across the street and dine at Tapeo. I've been to Tapeo before, almost exactly a year ago, and remember being impressed by its intimate atmosphere and yummy sangria.

So the two ladies I dined with are two friends that I'm sure I'll refer to a lot, as we dine out pretty frequently together (already wrote about each of them already), so let's give them some names. Dining companion #1, from time at Cafeteria where we had to share the fork, let's call her Skylar (her request; refers to Minnie Driver character in Good Will Hunting--she's a true Boston gal). Dining companion #2 used to waitress with me; let's keep with the Boston movie trend and call her Francis (okay this is a stretch-- it's Jack Nicholson's character in The Departed).

So Skylar, Francis, and I got seated right away; however, our table was upstairs in an area I had not seen before. I prefer the downstairs if you have a choice-- the upstairs has a more gimmicky feel to it-- open and lacking in ambiance. (The downstairs is dimly lit, with low ceilings and dark walls and feels overall much more romantic.)

We ordered a pitcher of sangria and five tapas dishes: duckling w/ a berry sauce, pork tenderloin with a blue goat cheese sauce, vegetarian crepe, boneless pheasant with bacon and serrano ham, and baked goat cheese with tomato and basil. Everything was tasty, but here is my verdict...

Bottom line: Tapeo is often compared to Tasca on Comm Ave in Brighton and to Dali in Somerville, and is probably better well-known than both. However, I think it falls short of these two. I think Dali has much better atmosphere, and Tasca has much better prices. Tapeo clearly rests upon its Newbury St. location whereas the other two, more out-of-the-way spots work harder, and more successfully, to get you to return.