Japanese/Italian Fusion at Shiso Tree Cafe

This cute little restaurant is located in J-Town, which is a plaza that houses a Japanese grocery store and many other Japanese/fusion restaurants.  We've actually tried most of the restaurants in this plaza and I dare say we've enjoyed eating at all of them!  Particularly, Shiso Tree serves up a number of Japanese/Italian fusion pasta dishes, which sounds odd but actually tastes really good!  This is definitely one of our favourite uptown dinner spots (read: we come here often).

At our most recent visit, we brought some friends and ended up trying some new dishes!   Unnecessary snacking before dinner ruined our appetites so we decided to get something for the table to share, and split a pasta and salad between each couple.  (To be clear, each order of pasta does come with a small salad.)

Smoked Salmon Hors D'Oeuvres ($8)
Smoked salmon, Japanese mayo, ikura (salmon roe), caviar & dill on toasted garlic bread

French Retreat: Chez Laurent

Amidst the relentless urbanization of North York, one humble abode stands defiant. Located on Yonge St, just north of Sheppard Ave., Chez Laurent has survived the test of time and remains a lasting vestige of the region's suburban past. Inside the modest, two-story home, one can enjoy a delightful selection of French and Italian dishes.

Tiff and I took our "French-Italian fat trip" to Chez Laurent on an abnormally chilly Summer evening. We had placed our reservation by phone earlier that day. We were glad we did because when we arrived, the restaurant was buzzing with activity. Upon arrival, we were warmly greeted by a woman who appeared to be the owner of the establishment. Inside the restaurant, we were given a table near a window in one of the three dining rooms. Unfortunately, we didn't snap any photos of the interior this time.