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Restaurants

Torito

  • Currently 2.76/5

Rating: 2.8/5 (51 votes)

Posted by Tim / Reviewed on January 3, 2006 / review policy

ToritoA few days ago I had dinner at Torito, a new Spanish tapas restaurant on Augusta in Kensington Market. I had a hunger to go there for a while. I think it was something to do with the big yellow sign that I was staring at through the windows of Rice Bar when I was having lunch there a couple weeks back.

It all started with the name. I was confused. Was it Toritu or Torito? I couldn't really tell as the O looks like a U as it takes the shape of a ring through the bull's nose. Confusion breeds curiosity which in turn breeds the need to consume copius amounts of fish and red wine. So off to the tapas joint I went to see what they were grilling up.

With tapas it pays (figuratively) to order as much as possible in order to get a sampling of a wide range of dishes. Since there were five of us, I managed to get a pretty good taste. The results?

Torito FoodGreat! I loved this place. Best of the bunch was the grilled kingfish with Basquaise sauce; fish ceviche with corn and yam; orange, radishes, toasted pepitas, red oak lettuce salad with sherry vinaigrette; the spanish tortilla; and the apple-banana (plantain) gratin for dessert.

Torito Restaurant
Photos by Tanja

Discussion

20 Comments

Rob / January 3, 2006 at 10:01 pm
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Do they now have their Liquor licence?
tim / January 3, 2006 at 10:12 pm
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Yeah. They have a bunch of wines by the class, cava and three red's by the bottle ranging between $30 and $50 I think. Not sure about their beer selection.
nelly / January 7, 2006 at 11:02 am
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I agree with Tim. The food is fresh, the staff/owners knowledgeable and friendly. It's like eating in a Spanish home. Excellent. Nelly
Grace / January 28, 2006 at 02:59 am
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I've been to Torito twice and both times were awesome! I love the bread with fresh cheese and fiesta. What i like in particular about that dish are the sundried olives - yummy! I also am a huge fan of the beef tongue and cheek - so delicious! Torito is by far my fave restaurant. The chef is very friendly and my friend Damon and I like talking to him when we go there. Torito is by far my fave restaurant anywhere!
heather / February 28, 2006 at 02:36 pm
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Our meal at Torito was outstanding. The salads - arugula and the green bean/mushroom were delicious. My favourite dish was the flatiron steak. The owners were very nice and gracious. The decor was stylish and modern. Can't wait to go back.
FS / August 2, 2008 at 06:16 pm
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I ate here last night and it was the worst tapas I've eaten in my life. The patas bravas consisted of bland, boiled potatoes, overcooked chorizo and uninspiring salsa. The lamb loaf looked and tasted like cat food.
peter / May 5, 2009 at 03:45 pm
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prices would be great. thanks
Jeremy / December 29, 2009 at 11:26 pm
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Last night, my wife and I, visiting Toronto, followed up on your recommendation (by "Frank") for the supposedly best tapas in the city. To say that we were disappointed hardly suffices to describe our experience. Without question, this was the worst tapas we have tried anywhere (between Barcelona, Amsterdam, New York and at least half a dozen locations in Toronto and Montreal). We are of course familiar with places that open strong and gradually suffer the effects of declining quality over the years, but judging by the photo of the Andalusian spinach and chickpeas stew that highlights your review, it seems that this appalling dish has been on the menu in similar form since the place opened. I'm sorry, but $8 for half a can of warmed chickpeas with a few leaves of spinach, while, arguably, a bargain relative to some of the other (passable, but hardly memorable) items we tried (pequillo peppers, grilled kingfish, beets and black lentils), doesn't cut it. Have these guys even read a basic recipe? When we started ordering, we were tossing between glasses of wine or ordering an extra dish; the one upshot of the evening is that we opted for the former and held off on dessert for the Future Bakery. It's beyond the two of us why so many readers on yelp and chowhound are singing the praises of this place. Were we just treated to an evening when the chef swapped roles with the dishwasher? Interestingly, the waitress didn't once bother to ask us how we were enjoying the meal... perhaps she knew. Not meaning to sound presumptuous... taste is, after all, a personal affair, but #1 in the tapas category? No lo creo!
tim replying to a comment from FS / January 20, 2010 at 09:05 pm
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crazy to think of people eating cat food to review in here, ufff
nk / April 1, 2010 at 11:51 am
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Agree with Jeremy.

And the place is a RIP-OFF. Their menu says that tapas is about sharing... hard to do, when there are only a few skewers, potatoes, a single bowl of soup, or thinly sliced pieces of bread etc., when you have a five people at the table. A single litre pitcher of sangria cost $35.

Walked away hungry and paid over $30 per person for 'nibbles' and 'tastes' and one drink.
Mike / April 27, 2010 at 03:55 pm
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Awful. I went there last year and was disappointed. In fact, I was so disappointed that afterwards I wanted to find another restaurant to satisfy my hunger.

Wanting to give it a second shot (and after reading this review), I recently went back there. This was the straw that broke the camel's back. Never again. I was still hungry. We ordered 4 dishes, plus 2 sangrias. That was $70+ dollars already. Do I keep ordering food because I'm still hungry? Or do I call it quits because the bill is running high?

We (2 of us) ordered:
- The patatas: Could have made that at home.
- The shrimp: Could have made that at home.
- The sardines: Its served as 2 whole fish which you have to pick apart manually.
- The beef flank: A little salty, nothing special. With this money, would have preferred to go to Canyon Creek.

This is what I would expect at a Tapas restaurant:
1. Small dishes, but the lack of quantity is outdone by the rich flavors.
2. Prices might be a little high, but that's OK as long as #1 is true.
3. Satisfaction at the end of the meal. Trust me, I can eat lots of food in one sitting. But with Tapas, the quality is so high that I am actually encouraged to slow down and savor every bite.

Suffice to say, when I got home from Torito, I had a bowl of cereal to satisfy my hunger.

PROS:
- Nice servers
- Sangria: If you want a light-n-fun sangria, this works







BBsota / June 18, 2010 at 10:59 am
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Terrible food. Clearly the reviewer has never eaten real Spanish tapas. The chorizo was not Spanish chorizo! And in Spain you do not walk out of any restaurant hungry. The portions here were stingy at best. Torito is a joke. Boo!
Jon Best / July 12, 2010 at 03:56 pm
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I went there this week. The reviews I read were good but were from years past. In fact, the service was not very good, it was overpriced, and generally a poor experience. I wouldn't return.
Peter G / August 2, 2010 at 04:40 pm
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I've eaten at Torito since Veronica opened, and I'm baffled by the negative comments about portions and prices. Jeremy seems to have reserved a particular amount of vitriol for the review. I just returned from Spain and ate in three cities, and I don't see much of a difference. Most tapas in Catalonia is served cold, and the portions are very small. I don't see any difference between the small plates I ate overseas and the food at Torito. At least they're trying to bring a measure of authenticity to Toronto dining! Just because something doesn't come in a basket or with two pounds of McCain fries people scream they've been ripped off? It also seems to me that many readers will mistake this restaurant for the shitty new tapas place down the road at the corner where the veg shop was forced out. Bref, I ate food that was MUCH worse in many of the divey Chiringuito along the beaches in Spain.
Carol / August 17, 2010 at 08:50 pm
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I have eaten at Torito more times than I can count. I have brought clients there, had large parties with friends and have had quaint dinners with my family. Torito is a phenomenal restaurant that is liked by those who have a palate for beautiful, well-executed food.
It is one of the only kitchens in Toronto where the chef knows exactly where his ingredients come from, is extremely knowledgeable, works very hard with his community and takes pride in everything that he does.
The food is delicious, perfectly cooked and definitely not over-priced. Perhaps it is because the restaurant is in Kensington market that people are looking for low prices, but great ingredients and the staff's time is definitely worth the money I have spent there.
If you are looking for American fast food sizes and tastes, of course, you will be disappointed.


pz / February 1, 2011 at 03:27 pm
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pahahaha!! nice review Carol, aka the owner of Torito's... nice try though!

honestly, this not a tapas bar. as the Torito website says, TAPAS are: Any of various small, savory Spanish dishes, often served as a snack or with other tapas as a meal.

if you get tapas in Spain, you get a number of small dishes, depending on the # of people you're with... prices range from 2 to 5 euro, on avg, from my experiences.

FIO Torito
Dan / April 21, 2011 at 10:29 pm
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Phone number is wrong; it's now (416) 961-7373
Agustín / December 11, 2011 at 01:01 am
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Well I wen there today, I am going to rate 1 to 7 1 bad 7 excellent. Ceviche 6, tortilla 5, tapas 6. Ambient 7 temperature 5. waiter 7. price 5. Over all experience 6.
T / December 23, 2011 at 10:52 pm
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I love this place, it has a quaint atmosphere and the food is excellent! I have been here a few times and will definitely return. The ceviche and patatas bravas with chorizo are a couple of my faves!
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