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Food & Drink

Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter’s game restaurant in Little Portugal

By Renée Suen
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Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

Name: Antler Contact: 1454 Dundas St. W., 647-345-8300, antlerkitchenbar.com, @AntlerKitchen
Neighbourhood: Little Portugal Previously: This End Up Owners: Michael Hunter (Scarpetta, Reds Wine Tavern) and Jody Shapiro Chef: Michael Hunter

The food

Contemporary Canadian cuisine focused on flavours from northern Ontario, including farm-raised game and ingredients that Hunter foraged (morels, wild leeks, black walnuts). The menu is made up of familiar dishes, each with a twist: there’s a Jamaican patty (filled with curry-spiced venison), gyoza (stuffed with wild boar) and a burger (made with deer, bison and wild boar).

Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

The venison patty made with a paté brisée shell comes with a spicy dipping sauce. $8.

Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

Wild boar gyoza are steamed and then pan fried. $8.

Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

Charcoal-grilled duck heart yakitori with a sweet soy glaze. $6 for two.

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Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

Chestnut gnocchi in brown butter with parsnip purée, roasted squash, brussels sprout leaves, almond brittle, sage and shaved parmesan. $19.

Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

Spice-ash crusted rack of deer, served with parsnip purée and swiss chard. $38.

Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

A warm chocolate brownie with toasted meringue and cedar dust, topped with chocolate mousse and candied, foraged black walnuts. $10.

The drinks

Craft beer (most of which are from Calgary’s Big Rock Brewery), local and international wine by the glass or bottle, and “foraged cocktails” made by Steven Gambee (Reds Wine Tavern) that feature seasonal ingredients.

Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

The Kordonis: gin, house-made beet purée, basil simple syrup and foraged sumac. $14.

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Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

Foraged-cedar gin sour: cedar-infused gin, simple syrup, lemon, bitters. $14.

The space

The room is filled with nods to the great outdoors—like wall-mounted ferns, a deer skull (of the first buck Hunter shot) hanging above the open kitchen and framed photographs of his Caledonia foraging grounds.

Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

This End Up’s vintage beer signs were replaced with ferns.

Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)
Introducing: Antler, Michael Hunter's game restaurant in Little Portugal
(Image: Renée Suen)

Chef and co-owner Michael Hunter (front) and co-owner Jody Shapiro (back).

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Correction
November 11, 2015

Previously, this post listed an incorrect phone number for the restaurant. It has since been changed. We apologize for the error.

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