ORIGIN

 ORIGIN

LOCATION:

107 King Street East Toronto, ON M5C 1G6
(416) 603-8009

http://origintoronto.com

RATINGS:
Service: 3 / 4
Ambiance: 3 . 5 / 4
Food: 3 / 4
Price: $$$

Origin - with its open kitchen and large back patio has a funky and eclectic vibe, however, the dining lounge is quite dark and can get quite loud. We sat near the open kitchen, which allowed us to see all the interesting dishes being prepared. All the dishes are suggested to be shared, in a tapas style. overall, we found the flavours to be an interesting mix of European and Asian. We decided to pick Origin for my father's birthday, as he has always wanted to try their famous 38 oz steak.

From the raw bar we ordered the JAPANESE STYLE TUNA SALAD. The salad was so nicely presented that we didn't want to dig in at first. They used a spicy ponzu dressing to pickle and marinade the radishes, cucumbers and Asian pear, which garnished the large pieces of tuna sashimi and avocado. All of the flavours worked magically together.

Whenever we go to a restaurant that has beets on the menu my mom has to order it. So we got the BEET AND GOAT CHEESE SALAD. It was served with one large beet, dressed with a sherry dressing and garnished with walnuts, pickled red onion and a yogurt goat cheese mixture. My mom loved it, but to me beet salads are all the same and can be reproduced easily at home.

Then came the famous SPICY SPANISH FRIES: Crispy fresh-sliced fries with chorizo, shredded Spanish Manchego cheese, all toped with a spicy mayo.  The men at the table went crazy for these fries, that I like to think of as the Spanish Poutine.

Next up was the wonderful BANGKOK BEEF SALAD. The beef was served with crunchy peanuts, mint, green mango, fried shallots,  vermicelli noodles all soaked in Nam Jim broth. The beef was tender and cooked to a nice medium-rare just how we like it. The mangos were a little sour, which was a nice contrast to fried shallots and cilantro. It was hard to share I could have  eaten this dish all to myself.

As suggested by our waiter, we ordered the CURRIED SHRIMP AND NAAN BREAD.  The curry was intensely flavoured, with an overwhelming taste of ginger, and the contrast of the cold fresh veggies atop the hot curry, was a little strange for me.

We also ordered the Crispy Calamari with caramelized peanut sauce and pineapple. The long strips of calamari were nicely battered and lightly fried. The peanut sauce was drizzled, but hard to find on our plate, we wish there was a little more.  The pineapple added an interesting flare to the mix, but overall the dish wasn't too exciting compared to the others we ordered.

Finally, the menu item we had all been waiting to see the 32 OZ RIBEYE AND CHIMI CHURRI. Our waiter told us it would be really large about two pounds of meat. My mom was worried it would be way too much. Upon arrival, we realized that the bone contributed to most of the weight; there was not one piece of the meat left at the end of the night. The Ribeye was cooked to a nice medium-rare, it was quite fatty, but all Ribeyes tend to be.

We don't do dessert too often - none of us have a real sweet tooth - but it was my dad's birthday, so we ordered the DULCE DE LECHE. It was a interesting combination of dulce de leche, lemon sponge, raspberry ice, caramel and sea salt. If you like sweet and salty, this is for you. If not stay away.

Would we go back? Yes

STANDOUT DISH OF THE NIGHT:
Spicy Spanish Fries