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REVIEW
Fat Cat spruces up Eglinton Ave. with green things
Globe and Mail Review
By Joanne Kates
Saturday, June 8, 2002
Fat Cat's regular menu is relatively entertaining. We could eat sesame-crusted sea scallops over and over again, thanks to their crunchy exterior, melting middles and zingy green curry sauce, not to mention the crispy radish sprout counterpoint. The remainder of the menu is no less entertaining, thanks to the likes of foie gras with drunken cherries, beef with spinach-and-cheese strudel, pecan-crusted lamb rack with wild mushroom sauce, et al.
But Fat Cat's chef, Matthew Sutherland, is a man driven by the seasons, and for that he owns the key to my heart. Hurrah for the chef who does back flips to use the scintillating greenery of spring.
One evening last week, chef Sutherland offered hot smoked wild B.C. salmon formed into a delicate cake with red and yellow peppers and small chunks of fennel (blanched to gentle it), all tied up in a paper thin cucumber ribbon. The difference between wild and farmed salmon (the latter being the vast majority of salmon sold in Canada) is the difference between Gelato Fresco and supermarket ice cream. Environmental factors and PCB overloads aside, farmed salmon seems hardly worth eating after one has tasted the sweet succulence of the wild thing.
Main course specials depend on seasonal greens: Veal tenderloin, perfectly tender, is studded with toasted hazelnuts and sits on a bed of tender fiddleheads, with fava beans (so sweet they're sugary) and a sauce made from wild leeks, the delicate cousin to cultivated leeks. This is heaven on a plate. Chef also offered two tall ruby hunks of barely seared tuna with three different kinds of asparagus: the regular green stuff, white asparagus from France, and wild green asparagus, also from France -- impossibly tiny pale green spears with delicate flavour. Is there a more passionate homage to spring?
For dessert, chef Sutherland stays in dazzle mode. Banana cobbler, the most pedestrian possible idea, turns Elysian in his clever hands: It's warm, crunchy on top, and suffused with cream. The guy who can make a decadent cobbler also gracefully gilds the lily by putting his warm dark chocolate cake in a sugar pastry tart crust, very short and buttery. His lemon tart packs a smooth citric punch.
REVIEW
Toronto Life Review
A gourmet’s paradise, where a few good cheese dictionaries and a board of the unpasteurized lovelies beckon at the marble bar. Diners could remain anonymous in a dim corner of the narrow bistro (made comfortable with mellow grooves, modern lines, smooth stones for fondling on each linened table), but devotees ask for Table 13, next to the kitchen. Flanked by a golden Elvis bust and a giant mortar and pestle, chef Mathew Sutherland holds forth from the pass-through as he puts together his brand of cold-weather comfort: smoky, creamy and rich enough for the fattest fat cat. Sesame-crusted scallops are a perennial favourite, but most of Sutherland’s menu changes with the seasons. House-smoked salmon can make a few appearances: with warmed crostini and a yogurt-dill rémoulade; diced in a not quite steaming potato-leek soup gilded with crème fraîche and a little truffle oil. Those opting for the tasting menu ($75 for seven courses) delight in house-smoked mackerel resting on a toonie-size cod cake, a bacon–Pommery mustard cream sauce lapping at its base. Frisée and a hint of Pernod freshen the flavours. Variations on lamb (changing nightly) might include a refined take on haggis. Smoky bacon and macadamia nuts adorn quinoa tossed with thin strips of savoy cabbage and shiitake mushrooms; this accompaniment does double duty as a base for a hefty venison chop and a special of sweetbreads (not quite tender enough). Kimberly Humby (formerly of YYZ and The Fifth) finds the right wines; the intelligent list is arranged by style (aromatic, lively, robust). Bread pudding is at once crisp and custardy; truffles from J.S. Bonbons sate the chocophile.
REVIEW
Martiniboys Review
Food trends rarely follow what's good; they're about what's new and hot. That's why, when headed toward a year-old bistro at Avenue Road and Eglinton, the prospect of another cookie-cutter meal lingers afloat.
But worry not; Chef Mathew Sutherland established his reputation in the late nineties by churning out continental cuisine at The Town Grill in Cabbagetown. His fresh ingredient trademark and signature dishes are nicely in place, even if we have to trek past Forest Hills to get to it.
Fat Cat has a narrow frontage, but the logo above the doorway is eye-catching enough that it will stick out amongst the local wedding dress stores. The interior is small and long, but never completely overcrowded. A long granite bar owns the place, while stained hardwood floors and unobtrusive tables and chairs adds warmth to the room.
Fat Cat seems to have a loyal following already in place, as many familiar faces grace the tables throughout the week. A good mix, and the room is at its best - both in performance and vibe - when half full.
Now for the signature dishes, thus being the sautéed foie gras, provimi veal tenderloin with sweetbreads, and the prime striploin with green peppercorn sauce. If you haven't tried these dishes, there's no need to look at a menu on your first visit to Fat Cat.
The sautéed foie gras is a minimalist triumph, served delicately on a toasted crostini with Cloudberry compote. The Prime Striploin with mustard and green peppercorn sauce is a perfect cut, on every visit, with its thyme-scented mushroom & potato croquette, with braised kale makes a big plate. is well-executed and a classic choice for beef. Provimi veal tenderloin and sweetbreads are a rare treat, with the shallot and Madeira sauce, accompanied with a Brussels sprouts and onion salad to bring it all together.
You'll find plenty of depth in the small menu beyond the intellectual-property laws, though. Short and to the point, appetizers include the public domain goat chévre and caramelized onion tart; and roasted quail, superbly plated with du puy lentils. Breast of Duck, which is pan roasted and served with wild Burberry sauce; B.C. Salmon with saffron pérnod cream sauce; and the rack of lamb, tamarind glazed, and served with a warm chick pea salad. |
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