i am a firm believer in word of mouth. if you don’t get a good start, a good following, it may be hard to stick it out and make it in a big ocean with many many tiny fish. this isn’t the case for this restaurant – nor is it my first time out to the nose. thank you Mikey – for sharing what i feel is… (was, after this) your secret spot.
at the corner of queen east and leslie, near the shores of toronto there is a building that stands with a human shaped nose directly above the front door. its presence feels somewhat mysterious on the street corner…in a stand alone kind of way.
it’s almost hard for me to write this and to truly explain to you the utter joy i feel when i eat the food at this establishment.
keeping in mind that others feel the exact same way, so some nights can feel crazy and jam packed and you may not get the most attention starved service that you may want to come to find. i’ve interacted with many members of the staff, all extremely friendly and knowledgable of their menu and ingredients. there is a love in the foods look and taste. you know its all been expertly crafted before being presented on your plate. i personally appreciate being left alone to dine – to come and eat food, be relaxed by the pleasant drone of conversation around me.
tonight wasn’t any night. Josh and i had arrived home from a more than unpleasant “adventure**” and i was determined to put us on the up swing again. to get us back to reality and the pleasantries that come with home. FOOD!
so naturally, i went to my new found comfort, the nose, or gio rana’s really really nice restaurant.
tonight wasn’t about the wine. i had water.
tonight was about the food. the way the menu is laid out, you really want to order one of something from each section. each plate is small but substantial and in my opinion can always be shared between 2 – so get MORE! get lots of them! and SHARE! i choose the dailies chopped salad and mohawk had mozzarella and tomato with basil pesto, balsamic and olive oil to start. i apologize for the lack of food pictures – there was going to be no waiting to eat at tonights dinner table.
i’m not joking – i teared up about 3 bites in. it was just…perfect. what real, good food should taste like. it is actually ridiculous just how yummy everything is inside this building. i then followed with potato gnocchi in a white wine veal… it was some saucy name. i really can’t remember and the only menu i could find online is out of date. it was creamy and oniony and fluffy… IT WAS MIND BLOWING!
Josh had my classic go-to. the involtini. shredded pork wrapped with rib eye, goat cheese and jus. $15.95. worth every single penny. believe me. it’s one of those dishes you find yourself craving weeks after. a cappuccino and a tiramisu – which was a complete joke that we even ordered, considering how full our tiny post-adventure tummys were. we took the tiramisu to go.
i left feeling overly elated. it’s no surprise that i shall be back – again, and again, and again.
you should go.
gio rana’s really really nice restaurant.
1220 queen st east. the corner of queen st east and leslie.
*** Josh and i deemed what was to be our vacation, as our “adventure” after ending up in the hospital the first night to our destination and recovering the rest of our trip. no fun let me tell you.
© Becky Siddall and littlesiddallstudios May 22nd, 2012.
