Name: BlueBlood Steakhouse
Contact: 1 Austin Terrace, 416-353-4647, bluebloodsteakhouse.com, @blueblood_steakhouse Neighbourhood: Casa Loma
Owners: Nick and Pat Di Donato of Liberty Entertainment Group (Rosewater, Cibo Wine Bar, Spice Route)
Chef: Chef de cuisine Meagan Andrews (Batch, Weslodge), grilleur Eddie Chung (Bent, The Keg Steakhouse) and corporate executive chef Michael Ewing
The food
A menu of steak house classics, with a section dedicated to fine beef cuts from around the world including a list of Wagyu from Mishima Reserve (U.S.A.), MB9+ (Australia) and A5 (Japan). A Wagyu filet tasting ($250) includes all three. Also: seafood towers, tableside caesar salad, and fiery desserts like a baked Alaska and flambéed crêpes.
A side of sautéed hand-foraged woodland mushrooms. $16.
The iceberg wedge is topped with gorgonzola, dehydrated cherry tomatoes from BlueBlood’s garden, house-made dressing and a crispy prosciutto chip. $18.
Chilled jumbo prawns come with a house-made lemon-gin cocktail sauce. $8/pc.
Beet-cured salmon crudo dressed with lemon crème fraiche and served with crispy salmon skin. $26.
Seared Marieville foie gras with figs, icewine gelée and grilled house-made brioche. $28.
Advertisement
The 40-ounce, 35-day dry-aged porterhouse (Alberta) is presented whole before being sliced ($200). It comes with a trio of salts (smoked, black lava, Himalayan). Sauces (cabernet béarnaise, chimichurri, cognac peppercorn, forest mushroom or red wine jus) are available for an additional $5 each.
Here it is sliced.
Seafood towers for two and four are assembled at the seafood bar, and include king crab, lobster, jumbo prawns, oysters and salmon crudo. $85 and $160.
Chef de grille Eddie Chung with chef de cuisine Meagan Andrews.
The drinks
Sommelier Natalie Pope is behind the $1.5-million wine cellar stocked with a ton of reds, while Oliver Stern (Bar Begonia, Toronto Temperance Society) is responsible for the cocktails, which include a menu of old fashioneds that use Rémy Martin as the base. The $500 King Louis is made with Rémy Martin Louis XIII Grande Champagne cognac and Balvenie 30-year-old scotch whisky.
Advertisement
Stern, making the Short, Dark and Handsome.
Short, Dark and Handsome: Ron Zacapa 23-Year rum, amaro, Campari, bitters. $20.
Stern again, unveiling the Once Upon A Time cocktail, a take on the old fashioned.
Once Upon A Time: Bulleit bourbon, Crown Royal Northern Harvest rye, calvados, brown butter, salted caramel. $20.
The space
Liberty’s creative director and VP, Nadia Di Donato, was responsible for the $3-million renovation that has taken over the Oak, Smoking and Billiard Rooms on the west side of the castle’s main floor. The restaurant’s 130 seats are divided among the different rooms. Coming next summer: room for 80 more guests in Casa Loma’s gardens.
Advertisement
In addition to a new garden lining the entranceway, there’s a pair of pink marble lions. Made in the 1920s, the lions were imported from Italy.
Here’s a closer look.
Open sesame.
Salvador Dalí‘s bronze “Surrealist Angel” sculpture (on consignment) stands in the hallway between the foyer and the dining rooms.
The main dining room features commissioned works by Mr. Brainwash (Queen Elizabeth II, Prince) and custom-crafted booth seating.
Advertisement
Fun fact: Prince was actually a vegetarian.
Monogrammed linen buttonhole napkins can be attached to shirts in order to protect them from steak and sauce splatter.
Private art in the parlour includes signed pieces by Andy Warhol, featuring the only two Canadians in his collection, and a Liberty nickel emblazoned with 1913 (nods to both the Liberty Group and the year the castle was built).
The parlour, continued.
The bar features shelving decorated with bottles of spirits and heirloom pieces found in the castle’s museum that were part of Sir Henry Pellatt’s private collection.
Advertisement
The back bar is stocked with high-end booze, like Rémy Martin Louis XIII Grande Champagne cognac, a limited-edition Clase Azul Ultra-Extra Anejo tequila and Macallan M.
Rows of red maple trees shield diners from a view of the parking lot.
Quite the entrance.
NEVER MISS A TORONTO LIFE STORY
Sign up for Table Talk, our free newsletter with essential food and drink stories.
