The service at Luci’s as smooth as desserts
Luci Restaurant (out of 4) VERY GOOD Address: 664 The Queensway (near Royal York Rd.), 416-519-1355, lucirestaurant.com Chef: Filomena Palozzi Hours: Monday to Saturday, 5 p.m. to 10:30 p.m. Reservations: Yes Wheelchair access: No Price: Dinner for two
Of course.
These are the two words you’ll hear most often at Luci Restaurant in Etobicoke, where service is king.
Want to go off-menu and order ahalf-portion of pasta to start? Of course.
Care for your lamb without chimichurri sauce? Of course.
Want fries with your steak instead of mashed potatoes? Of course. Want fries and mashed potatoes? Of course.
This can-do attitude, combined with a solid Italian kitchen, makes Luci a welcome addition to The Queensway.
It’s no surprise, given that exBistro 990 general manager Fernando Temudo runs the room.
Temudo, so smooth and gracious, is also an owner. He and fellow veteran David Desousa (ex-grappa) teamed up to take over the former Momo’s four months ago, safely decorating the double dining room and naming the restaurant after their wives.
(Luci’s logo has an umlaut over the ‘i’ to represent both women. The name Lucy was taken.)
Temudo, 50, personifies hospitality and transmits it through his staff.
They guide you to a linendraped table for four, even if there are two of you. They pull out your chair and rest your purse on the chair beside you.
They reveal all possible allergens in the food, from the walnuts in the homemade rosemary sourdough to the “bit of dairy” in a tasty chickpea spread.
They over-pour your $5 glass of Portuguese house wine. They remember what dessert you ordered last time you were there.
Chef Filomena Palozzi (ex-oro) shows equal care with her fresh pastas and well-timed mains. A three-course prix fixe menu is $25.
Spinach fettuccine ($15) gets interesting thanks to smoky eggplant chunks, Woolwich goat cheese and fresh mint in a creamy tomato sauce.
Spaghetti ($22) with wine and seafood takes us to the Amalfi coast.
There’s a nice bit of work in the caprese salad ($10), Palozzi roasting winter tomatoes into garlicky intensity.
Wish that I could say the same about the appetizers, like the oily fried calamari ($11), overly rich shrimp in cream sauce ($12) and an elaborate but unimpressive foie gras torchon ($18).
Luci gets back on track with a pork loin ($20) stuffed with brie and sautéed golden apples and partnered with a tender hunk of Sprite-braised pork belly.
If that doesn’t sound appealing — though the subtle sweetness of the soft drink works brilliantly — there’s a masterful roast chicken ($22) that recalls Meg Ryan’s favourite bird at Bistro 990. Like most mains, it comes with buttery mashed potatoes and garlicky rapini that can be more crisp than tender, depending on the day.
My favourite meal is the one that involves Temudo: a whole European sea bass ($29) he debones tableside with the precision of a surgeon, albeit one in billowing white shirt sleeves.
Using a spoon and fork, he first removes the tail and head. He opens the fish like a book to remove the backbone. Then he methodically scrapes out any stray bones, belly gel or discoloured flesh. When done, he flips everything back into place.
“With your permission,” he asks, pouring extra virgin olive oil onto the roasted fish.
The herbaceous oil adds subtle flavour and extra lubrication to the already moist flesh. To the side are green lentils spiced with cumin as well as a tartly dressed salad of arugula with oranges. I don’t partake of the proffered bowl of chopped habanero peppers in oil.
Desserts are as silky as the service.
Pastry chef Jamie Brown (exBistro 990) makes the creamiest ice creams and sorbets ($6) in straight-up flavours such as mint or strawberry.
His molten chocolate cake ($9) oozes out slowly, while his cheesecake ($9) is like biting into a tangy white chocolate truffle. The salted caramel pudding ($9) is exactly as advertised, and we’re grateful for it.
When it’s time to leave, it takes three tries for the server to locate my long black coat among the many such on the rack. Temudo smoothes over any awkwardness.
“Always give them the same quality, or better,” he stage whispers to the server.