We had not been here in 8 years so thought it was time for a redo... Spoon & Fork Etobicoke is still to be found at 1233 The Queensway near Kipling in Toronto’s west end, and it appears the same on the outside, however the open modern and not-too-dark interior is now much different, with no more upper level. Ginger is not dyed pink. Being Spoon & Fork, of course they do not use disposable cutlery or chopsticks, and a spoon and fork are included as well as reusables. Fountain pop is $3, and it is not AYCD either which is unfortunate; the first waitress said that it was but then when I went to order a refill I was told it wasn't. There were a smattering of customers. Soy sauce at table was fantastic with a rich gravy-like savoury flavour. Ordering is now through iPad menu which is a change from last time when it used to be paper. As was before, there is sashimi on the lunch menu which is very rare these days, and very welcome!
Miso soup was excellent, savoury and not diluted, with a very good flavour. Hot and sour soup was excellent and among the better I've had at AYCE. However I waited until the end of the meal to have the wonton soup as had skipped it, and it seem there was something wrong with it. It had a strange almost fecal odour, and the flavour wasn't much better from the broth as it wasn't savoury. Mishy indicated this was because it was made with some sort of vegetable stock instead of chicken stock.
Gyoza were excellent, not too oily, very savoury and well-seasoned. Mishy described the spring roll sauce as perfect and I tend to agree it was excellent. Steak teriyaki was a nice cut of beef and well cooked, but Mishy correctly described it had an odd, off sort of flavour which was actually that it was in contact with something else that had been burned. We both loved the sauce and the seasoning of the chicken satay although it had been cooked to chewiness. Beef satay was more tender and quite enjoyable. Agedashi tofu was very good and I enjoyed the sauce. Shrimp tempura was quite good, light flaky, and the sauce was quite good as well. Shrimp shiu mai was very shrimpy-flavoured but was still good. Chive and shrimp dumplings were both also very good. Red chili chicken was wonderful with basil and chunks of pineapple.
Philadelphia roll was excellent with big chunks of cream cheese and everything fresh. The salmon nigiri had a slight fishy odour, but it was very subtle, otherwise fresh. Mishy said the torched salmon wasn't as good as others she’d had, but I liked it and I'm not really as used to it as she is. Salmon, crab (surimi), oil fish, and shrimp, aka ebi, sashimi were all excellent and fresh as they're served on a bed of ice.
For dessert, the are soft serve chocolate and vanilla ice creams were delicious, especially the vanilla, and I loved them. The shot-glass puddings, chocolate, vanilla strawberry and mango were all excellent. Sesame ball was quite good. Weekend lunch is $33.99. This is just about standard pricing counting the offsets of sashimi on the menu and the $3 no-refill fountain pop. With the shortcomings, we still had a quite enjoyable lunch.Rating: 8 - 8.5 / 10 + 0 value adjustment (standard pricing) = 8 - 8.5 / 10
Original review follows:
Spoon & Fork can be found at 1233 The Queensway in Etobicoke, Toronto's western borough, just east of Kipling Ave. It's quite a large and imposing place from the outside compared to most other AYCEs, and has a wonderful two level interior that I thoroughly enjoyed and added to the meal; ambiance is not too loud and the music was quiet. Reservations are recommended as it filled up quickly after we arrived. Spoon & Fork uses non-disposable chopsticks (and of course a spoon and fork are present on the diner's elongated plate,) soy sauce is excellent, fresh and with wine hints, sashimi is included on the lunch menu. Ordering is "old school" directly from the waiter by telling them the items and quantity.
We started with the usual green salad. The dressing had a flavour that Mishy described as "smoky" but I described as "burnt"; I didn't like it at at all whereas Mishy did, and this is rare enough to probably be unique until now. Happily, everything afterwards was much better! Hot and sour soup was properly hot and very savoury… delicious enough that I would call it perfect. Miso soup was also excellent and savoury. Wonton soup was nigh-perfect as well as certainly among the best I have ever had.
On to the entrées, the vegetable tempura was slightly oily but still very good with excellent sauce. Philadelphia roll was very fresh with a perfect ratio of salmon, avocado and cheese and also among the best I have had of this. Salmon sashimi is thick and Mishy doesn't like it like that, saying it is not as buttery as it could be, but I enjoy it this way and thought it was perfectly fresh. Pineapple fried rice was smoky, gorgeous and amazing. Gyoza dumplings had a strange cilantro-like planty flavour but were still enjoyable.
Pepper beef had a wonderful sauce, savoury and perfect. Mishy unfortunately didn't like the chicken pad thai and I tend to agree as it was too sweet, had no noodles and an excess of bean sprouts. However this was more than made up for by the chicken and beef teriyakis, both of which were yet again among the best we have ever had; the dipping sauce is absolutely unique and superb… it tasted as if it was made with dijon mustard and brandy or other spirit. Whatever it was we both ordered seconds and I let none of the sauce go to waste! The beef was so savoury in large, tender portions it was like a steak dinner all on its own. Garlic beef was similarly hyper-savoury and delicious, and satay beef excellent with its delicious peanut sauce. Green chicken curry was a perfect blend of flavour and heat and likewise among the best I have had of such a dish.
The only desserts available are soft-serve vanilla and chocolate ice cream, but they were good enough that I was happy with them, especially considering how enjoyable the rest of the meal was. Lunch is $20 per person, which is pretty much standard with the newer, higher-end AYCEs, and with one or two exceptions everything was excellent and several best-of-breed. Service was very fast and the waiters very attentive to potential orders; even though we had a small table it was never too small as completed dishes were quickly removed. I would be quite happy to return to Spoon and Fork anytime!Rating: 8.5-9/10
