Keriwa reverts to à-la-carte service

In October, Aaron Joseph Bear Robe announced that Keriwa Cafe, his critically lauded Parkdale restaurant, would be moving to a tasting menu–only format, in part so that he could spend more time with his growing family. After a few weeks of operating in that mode, however, the restaurant has gone back to à-la-carte service. At Keriwa 3.0, the dishes and the atmosphere are now more casual than they used to be, although the flavours are more or less the same: for example, he’s added a bison burger to the menu (albeit one that’s served on red fife bannock with Saskatoon berry chutney and garlic scape aïoli). Bear Robe says a lot of people expressed interest in the tasting menu, but the interest wasn’t necessarily reflected in the bookings. The change also took place shortly before Keriwa 1.0 was named one of Canada’s best new restaurants by EnRoute magazine, and Bear Robe tells us some diners were flummoxed by the disconnect between what they expected and what was actually offered. As for the promise of spending more time with his children, he admits, “That hasn’t actually happened yet.”