The Black Tomato
Back in November I visited The Black Tomato with a group of friends from massage school. I also was using the trip as a chance to write a blog post for foodtv.ca, where I’m an occasional guest blogger. I thought I’d take a moment to write a quick bit about the restaurant here in our food blog as well.
The Black Tomato has long been one of my favourite restaurants in the Market. I love the casual atmosphere and the food is delicious without being pretentious. The restaurant itself features art by local artists on the walls, and has a display with CDs for sale by the door. The CDs for sale are a remnant from the restaurant’s history; It used to be a record store before it was converted into a restaurant. Even better — the in house music is all available for purchase!
And how is the food? Well, I’ve never had a dish here I didn’t like. For appetizers I’ve tried the baked brie, the spanakopita, the naan, and the warm mushroom salad. For mains I’ve tried the smoked salmon, the tomato flatina, the thai noodle bowl (made without scallops, since I am allergic), and the vegetable tortilla twist, which is pictured here. While none of the dishes were stand out, ‘wow’ dishes, they were all delicious and beautifully presented.
As a bonus for those who care about local products, most of their beer is from local (Ottawa and the surrounding regions, including Quebec) microbrewers.
Recommended for lunch, dinner, or even just a drink at the bar. My one warning: They don’t take reservations and are pretty popular, so be prepared for a short wait before being seated!
The Black Tomato, 11 George Street, (613) 789-8123. Dinner for two with drinks, dessert and tip, $100.
I went to the Black Tomaro with a friend two weeks ago. The place was nice, but lacking somewhat in atmospere, compared to the place next door – not a problem. We sat near the window, next to the heat source. My friend ordered the porc loin, which looked delicious, and apparently, was. I ordered the duck. I have eaten duck in different countries here and overseas. I was never aware that duck could be served rare. Had I been informed of this by our waitress, I would definitely have asked that it come fully cooked. I though of doing so when my plate arrived, but my friend was starting to eat and I did not think that it would be a quick in-and-out of the kitchen – not like zapping something fo 30 seconds to heat it up. So I ate it, but since it was rare it was hard work chewing, and it really did not have much of a taste. However, the plate was well arranged, with the three thick slices of duck on a bed of what looked like fried rice and a few sauteed vegetables. Some of them were a little too burnt for my taste, but the rest were crunchy and tasty. The menu talked about gravy, but there was none, unless the soya sauce in the rice – that is what it tasted like – was what they call gravy. I am quite ok with the idea of returning at some point to the Black Tomato, and I plan to order the duck again, but this time….fully cooked.