Review: meticulous dishes and whimsical decor at Woods in St. Lawrence Market

While many hip new menus highlight offal and bone luges, Woods has designed a comparatively conservative lineup: luxe chicken cordon bleu, dry-aged rib-eye, spaghetti with oversized meatballs and a thick, six-ounce Alberta bison burger on a pillow-soft milk bun. His cooking is assured and exacting, as when he balances the brine of a seared Digby scallop with an earthy parsnip purée and salty cubes of corned beef cheek, or ratchets up the indulgence of foie gras with a sweet Saskatoon berry compote. The decor—banquettes upholstered in forest print, a tree-branch chandelier that could have been airlifted from the Shire—suggests even the straightest-laced chef can’t resist a little whimsy.