Introducing: The Good Son, a new restaurant on Queen West from a former Top Chef Canada contender
Name: The Good Son
Neighbourhood: Queen West
Contact Info: 1096 Queen St. W., 416-551-0589, thegoodsontoronto.com, @thegoodson_TO
Owner and Chef: Vittorio Colacitti, fourth-place finisher on the latest season of Top Chef Canada
The Food: Inspired by Lorenzo Loseto, executive chef at George Restaurant and an early mentor of Colacitti’s, the Top Chef Canada alum refers to his style of cooking as “Toronto” cuisine. By that, he means food that borrows from different cultural cuisines, but isn’t just fusion for fusion’s sake. The menu certainly reflects an eclectic mix of cultural influences, including French (steak tartare), Japanese (hamachi crudo), Jamaican (jerk shrimp) and Italian (wood-fired pizzas). There’s also a 32-ounce steak topped with a whole lobster.
The Drinks: Cocktails are a big focus here, but there’s also a good variety of wine (mainly European and Canadian bottles) and beer. The drinks list will expand in a month or two when Colacitti opens Wayward, a New Orleans–style speakeasy that will be housed in the space above the restaurant.
The Place: Colacitti wanted the place feel warm and inviting, and it does. It looks a bit like an old-fashioned drawing room—one that belongs to a very neat but compulsive hoarder. The walls are plastered with old photos, mirrors, antique clocks (12 on one wall) and porcelain plates (we counted 56). There’s an open kitchen at the back, and a big communal table lined with mismatched wooden chairs.
