Terroni, Toronto

1095 Yonge St, Toronto, ON

If in doubt, Terroni!

Name an Italian restaurant with not only an incredible 'regular' menu, but also a diverse and equally authentic vegan and gluten free one?

That's a dream x3. That's Terroni.

It's hard to come by authentic Italian food, made from Italy-imported ingredients, and quality service in the city. That's why I appreciate Terroni, its menu and the trendy, modern-European restaurant experience it brings forth.

Terroni serves up Italian dishes with a modern twist. It's a casual yet high quality restaurant experience filled to the brim with authenticity — so much so that like in Italy, the pizza is served uncut and straight out of the oven-type HOT.

Pictured (left to right): Tonnarelli alla Norcina pasta, Santo Stefano Pizza

It would be reductive to blandly describe Terroni as ‘safe’ and ‘predictable.’ I won’t do such a thing. Instead, I’ll liken it to (the restaurant version of) that staple black dress in your wardrobe — it's versatile and works for every occasion. Terroni never disappoints, it never fails to spoil my cravings.

Terroni has three locations in Toronto (Price, Queen and Adelaide) and one in West Hollywood, LA. Since the opening of its first location in Toronto’s Queen West, Terroni has expanded, opening up sister and brother establishments throughout the city. In collaboration with Cumbrae’s meats, Stock T.C is Midtown Toronto’s newest luxury grocer, resto-bar and hot food table, La Bettola Di Terroni serves authentic southern dishes made with less than four ingredients, Bar Centrale is Terroni's exclusive wine bar located on the ground floor of the Price location, Spaccio is an open kitchen, caffe and storefront and Sud Forno is a bakery and cafe inspired by Terroni's dessert menu with two locations in Toronto.

It's hard to put into words the experience that happens in your mouth upon biting into that fresh buffalo milk mozzarella together with a few marinated cherry tomatoes or that oh-so-fresh dandelion Garginelli Gepetto pasta oozing with fresh fontina cheese. I won’t try to describe it. I’ll leave that to you ;) But hopefully picturing this gives you the push you need to try it yourself!

Family functions, spontaneous family dinners, date nights, girls nights out, corporate events; you name it, Terroni has a beautiful rooftop terrace, private indoor event space or cute little tucked away nook for whatever dining vibe you're going for. And let me just say, the multi-level Price St location is cozy, spacious and has a beautifully decorated rooftop patio with a bar. (I love this location!)

Events at Terroni are top notch. Management is friendly, attentive to detail and accommodating with everything — from helping you create the perfect event menu to setting up tables and decor. Terroni stops at nothing to make sure the whole experience for you and your guests is a memorable one.

Waitstaff are friendly and very knowledgeable about the food, ingredients and flavour combinations. In fact, the majority of servers I’ve had at Terroni's Price location were open about their Italian background (and most times with accents and backstories to prove it).

Pictured (left to right): Fungi Assoluti, Calamari, Cavatelli Al Sugo d’Agnello, Garganelli Geppetto, Tonnarelli alla Norcina, Santo Stefano

Terroni’s menu accommodates everyone. Unlike most other Italian restaurants, Terroni's menu is inclusive to vegans, pescatarians, vegetarians, picky-eaters and to those who are gluten free. Check out their newly launched and highly anticipated vegan and gluten free menus on their website.

Just the fact that Terroni has adapted their authentic Italian creations into ones that everyone and their dietary preferences and intolerances can enjoy and benefit from is heart-warming, and makes them incredibly competitive in the modern Italian restaurant industry outside of Italy and especially in Toronto.

The food. Oh the food...

Though I’ve tried most menu items, here are some of my favourites:

Appetizers:

Funghi Assoluti ($17)

Baked oyster mushrooms, parmigiano, bread crumbs, arugula extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic

More like Funghi ABSOLUTELY! A salad that doesn't taste like salad. It's appetizing, flavourful and filling. The warm oyster mushrooms coated in breadcrumbs and drizzled with balsamic make this salad unique to Terroni. It's a popular, highly-instagrammable Terroni staple that truly elevates the salad game.

Frittura di Calamari ($21)

Deep fried lightly floured calamari (served with a lemon wedge to compliment the flavours of seafood)

Not much description needed here. Terroni's calamari is tender and melt-in-your-mouth fresh. Drizzle on some lemon to highlight the straight-from-the-Sicilian-sea experience.

Pastas:

Garganelli Geppetto ($21)

Dandelion greens, homemade spicy Italian sausage, fontina, parmigiano, extra-virgin olive oil

This is Terroni's best pasta dish without a doubt. Everything pairs so complementary with one another. The fontina cheese is like the glue holding down this dish, tying everything together so nicely. You must try this pasta. Period!

Cavatelli Al Sugo d’Agnello ($23)

Braised lamb, dandelion greens, pecorino

When you braise protein of any kind, you get flavour amped up a few notches. This pasta is loaded with insane rich flavour, right down to the 'sugo' or sauce that absorbs the rich lamb flavours from hours of cooking.

Tonnarelli alla Norcina ($27)

Italian black truffle shavings, homemade spicy sausage, pecorino, garlic

Truffle queens, wya? This one's for you. Not too overpowering in the truffle department and a perfectly proportioned sauce-sausage ratio. The pecorino (tuscan sheep milk cheese) adds a light-mild cheese flavour.

Pizza

Santo Stefano ($22)

Tomato, mozzarella di bufala, fresh arugula, prosciutto di parma

This pizza is served cold and uncut. There is nothing like fresh prosciutto and some creamy mozzarella di bufala on a bed of arugula and homemade pizza dough. This is a lighter pizza option that is a delicious choice for a shareable starter.

And since I just can’t be satisfied in this blog post without mentioning some other non-pictured favs of mine, look out for these other phenomenal dishes at Terroni:

Pizza

Ciccio - folded pizza with prosciutto di parma, arugula, fresh tomatoes, fior di latte

Bona - mozzarella, mortadella, montasio stravecchio, pistachios, honey

Salad

Nizzarda - arugula, Italian tuna, potatoes, eggs, red onion, tomatoes …

Caprese di Bufala — Buffalo milk mozzarella, marinated cherry tomatoes

Pasta

Spaghetti in Canna a Mare - fresh clams, mussels, calamari, scallops, tiger shrimp, light tomato sauce

Gnocchi alla Simi - tomato sauce, fresh ricotta, basil, parmigiano

Tagliatelle alla Bolognese - traditional bolognese ragù, parmigiano

Dessert

Torta Calda al Cioccolato - warm flourless chocolate cake with white chocolate ganache

Cornetto E Gelato - toasted croissant with nocciola gelato, nutella, whipped cream

Bomba Calda - deep-fried bun filled with crema, nutella or homemade jam on the side (weekends only)

This spot is a classic. A staple that everyone NEEDS in their life. So if you haven’t let it bless your life yet, get on that, sis!

Whether you're from Toronto or from out of town, if you haven't been to Terroni, you need to go!

Make a reservation here

I said it before and I’ll say it again: If in doubt, Terroni! Trust me.

Let me know your verdict when you try this hidden gem for yourself!

Until my next dose of YUM,

xx Sab