Buca Osteria & Enoteca — Restaurant in Toronto

For a birthday, we came here to celebrate and the restaurant did not disappoint. I can understand why it has been on many list and continues to be. Buca's service is top or near the top in Toronto... fluid, attentive, and warm. Food service is orchestrated wonderfully... the timing is incredible and precise. The food itself is as delicious as it is beautiful. And on top of that, a thoughtful gift from the chef ended the night on a high note.

The restaurant is a wonderful juxtaposition of modern and heritage. The building clearly has some old roots but its been updated to clean lines, exposed brick work, and artistic distress. There are two rooms ... one looks to be cozy and held in the wine cellar. It's gorgeous though... lots of glass enclosures highlighting their large wine library (the wine listing is quite extensive). The other is huge vaulted ceiling, exposed open kitchen, instagram worthy filtered sunlight, and in the evening, a romantic atmosphere. The atmosphere can change immediately though... earlier in the evening, it was easy to have a wonderful conversation. As the night went on, a huge group arrived and clearly was looking to enjoy the night. It was near impossible to hear across the table and we were about 5 tables away from them. As for the tables, i do appreciate how i could walk between them without needing to turn side ways.

The service staff here is impeccable.. in addition to the actual servers, we probably interacted with 4 other servers and runners making sure our glass was never left empty, dishes cleared immediately, new cutlery and plates are given, and delivery of food just freshly prepared. Most of the time, this can feel over the top but there was a genuine warmth from them. Comparing this to my other top restaurant, Grey Gardens, I would say Buca is a bit more refined and subtle compared to the more energetic and fun service. Both worthy of being called top service though!

We started with the scallops crudo, salami trio (cured goose, calabrese pork sausage, and proscuittini), eggplant parmigiana (parmigiana di melazane), trofie pasta (spring selection), duck breast (petto d'anatra), and finishing with the tiramisu.

Scallops Crudo - Incredibly gorgeous plating and the flavour matched it. Thinly sliced scallops with a interesting smoked spring greens and ramps and a subtle heat coming from the n'duja in the sauce. It could have easily overwhelmed the scallops but it just played that line very well.

Salami Trio - we selected the goose, spicy pork, and a cured pork ... from those 3, I like the calabrese the most. Full on flavour and with each chew, it just added to it. What stole the show was the pickled asparagus that came with it... wow, I wish I got more of that! Just a right punch of sour, tart, and a minute sweetness.

Parmigiana di Melazune .. aka eggplant - A tower of burrata, creamy ricotta, and super crisped eggplant is presented on top of a balanced tomato sauce. This is not your momma's eggplant. It takes what is good from the regular Italian dish and just turn it up a notch with really good ingredients and execution. I love the creaminess of the ricotta, burrata, and eggplant to contrast with the fried crispy shell on the vegetable.

Trofie Pasta ... hand made al dente pasta with spanish octopus, n'duja, fava beans, grape tomato, and bone marrow. Oh wow... this was very very good. It has that perfect chew and nooks and crannies to take in all the wonderful sauce. It's a lucious tomato based one with a good kick of spice to keep your taste buds wanting more. The grape tomato is a lovely burst of sweetness and the octopus was cooked wonderfully... tender!

Petto D'anatra ... duck - Ok another winner. It was cooked to medium well with a super crackly skin and the fat beautifully rendered out. Well executed and the rhubarb was the perfect sweet tart compliment.

Tiramisu ... gorgeous presentation and I love how the chocolate, espresso, and creamy marscapone played off each other. One of the best...

A couple of colleagues and I went to Buca Portland for lunch and it was the one of the most pleasant dining experiences I've had in years. The chefs' creativity, the establishment's ambiance, and the servers' knowledge and impeccable presentation skills and care are the three main highlights of Buca's offerings.

Chefs' creativity: This restaurant managed to take bruschetta, a basic and commonly available appetizer, and make it one of the most exquisitely unique dishes that has graced my palate - soft cheese on fresh bread topped with basil, other seasoned herbs (possibly fennel), and rhubarb! I would've never thought of scattering slivers of rhubarb on bruschetta, and I reckon this ingredient would sound misplaced to the average individual, but Buca's chefs are clearly not average. The rhubarb complemented the bruschetta surprisingly well, overwhelming my taste buds with immensely savoury deliciousness and unprecedented flavour combination.

Buca's ambiance was another strength. We dined on the patio to the side of the building and although there isn't much space for Buca to work with, they've really outdone themselves and designed a great environment in which patrons can sit comfortably and feel at ease. The plants overlooking the wooden tables add a nice natural touch to the space, while the serene European music takes you to another realm while feasting on the chef's beautifully tantalizing creations. I felt like I was literally in Italy while eating here.

The restaurant's servers are honestly the best I've ever observed. Amrita was our server; she was incredibly poised and professional, kind and well-mannered, knowledgeable about the menu, yet human. I had dismantled my serviette before leaving to go to the washroom and when I came back it was replaced and folded onto the side of my table again, neat and pristine. Needless to say I was shook. Amrita also exemplified commitment to cleanliness by consistently wiping down our mats with a cloth after clearing our plates proceeding each meal, which is something I've never seen before. In addition, I was flabbergasted by her swift replacement of our cutlery after each meal, another amazing service quality I was blessed to receive. Amrita also mentioned details - which extended beyond the menu - of certain dessert options while making recommendations to me. She communicated that a particular luxurious oil drizzled over a sweet tart item was infused with vanilla bean, and that the strawberry sorbetti item's base was infused with basil and topped with an 8-year old balsamic liquid. She knows how to read beyond the menu - A skill not a lot of waiters/waitresses possess. She also plated my dessert so that it was Instagram-worthy, a new age modern ability that is highly valued by the millennial consumer. Above all, Amrita's calm and dignified demeanour made me feel taken care of. She engaged with us through humourous banter and a genuine human connection. Servers in general often come across robotic, with fake smiles and kindness, but Amrita was all real and really cool :)

Thanks for the...

So much hype about this place; I was quite excited for it, and it left me feeling like a tourist who just clearly over-payed for an all-around underwhelming experience.

Where to start? Well, the service we had was poor. No other way to put it. We had to wait over 20 minutes to even get our drink order in because the server was obsessed with up-selling us on the tasting menu. After finally relenting to go with the tasting menu, despite the fact that half of us did not want to go that route, two of us still got excluded from it and received full entrees. No big deal, except for the fact that we all agreed to evenly split the bill that night so it really messed things up.

Human error happens, though I feel in this instance the service just did a poor job of actually listening to the patrons, and it would have all been forgiven had the food and the rest of the experience been pure class, but it was anything but.

The burrata starter was devoid of flavour. I honestly had better burrata from the Tre-Stelle I sometimes buy at the supermarket. The charcuterie, although possessing a very nice bison salami, was tiny and not worth the cost. The rest of it was, again, nothing outside of the realm of what you could purchase in a supermarket. It was a poor start.

The mains did not fare much better. Both the branzino and duck pasta were mediocre. Nothing about the flavour popped out in any way, and although I wouldn't say either dish was totally bland, it did not make me feel that it was something I myself could not make at home. To add to that, the branzino, at $42, came with no sides whatsoever. Again, the best word to describe the meal is 'underwhelming.'

Desserts were hit and miss, with the tiramisu certainly not being anything like an actual Italian tiramisu. It was more like an odd coffee flavoured pudding. There was a tort that was quite nice, and the bonus star is given because one of the hostesses, who knew someone in our party, did hook-up a couple of freebies. It was very nice of her, and much appreciated, though it could not save the disappointment of the evening. At nearly $1400 for 8 of us (with only two bottles of wine ordered) we all left dissatisfied.

A few members of the party who had been to Bucca before had said that this was not a typical experience, but as a first-timer, it basically ensured I would not be coming back any time soon...