Y est allé·e le 20 juillet 2024
- Global 3
- Plats 4
- Service 3
- Atmosphère 4
Decent tasting menu experience. Dishes had some Mediterranean ingredients but was not recognizably Mediterranean in flavours or concept. Like wild leeks with n'duja oil. However, most dishes were tasty. Expect loose inspiration from the Mediterranean and Ontario. My favourite was the shrimp profiterole, a little explosion of shrimp goodness. There were a few misses, like beets with multiple competing ingredients.
We went on a packed Saturday evening. Perhaps they are still working on their rhythm but the pacing was very slow. It took almost 3.5 hours to serve 12 courses, and the portions were small. Other fine dining restaurants finish a sitting in 1.5 to 3 hours. On the positive side, I appreciate that Azura offers a condensed tasting menu for those who want a lighter and more economical meal. Some of my companions did the full menu and others did the condensed. Surprisingly, nearly all the dishes were different for both menus. There was no clear favourite. However, I recommend telling the waitstaff whether to synchronize the condensed menu with the full one, or else some diners would have to wait even longer between courses (which happened to my group).
In an age of inflation, I'm happy that Azura has managed to keep costs reasonable for a tasting menu. Good food doesn't need to have lobster, caviar, truffles, and other premium ingredients. With more refining of some of the dishes, this can be an excellent restaurant.