Constantine is the ground-floor restaurant of Anndore House, providing the boutique hotel with sharing-style breakfast, brunch, lunch and dinner.

A collaboration between Craig Harding and Alexandra Hutchison of La Palma and Campagnolo along with Mercatto’s Jack and Domenic Scarangella and Steve Christian, the place serves a loosely Mediterranean menu with a focus on Middle Eastern flavours.

That’s not to say that there isn’t a firm Italian foundation here, the wood-burning pizza oven and grill also central at La Palma taking literal centre stage in the open kitchen here.

The 145-seat dining room designed by Studio Munge is set off by the glow of surrounding white vases crowded on shelves, created using traditional Italian glassblowing techniques.

An 18-seat bar surrounds the open kitchen on three sides.

The 50-seat Bar at Constantine remains open serving drinks and small plates after the main restaurant closes.

Chicken liver crostini ($13) exemplifies the restaurant’s traditional bistro backbone with just a hint of Mediterranean flavour. Thick Blackbird sourdough grilled on the plancha topped with a generous scoop of silky chicken liver mousse could be relatively plain if not for bright and acidic pickled shredded carrot.

Grilled halloumi on panella ($11) sees grilled squeaky halloumi triangles atop similarly shaped chickpea fritters served on a swipe of labneh with a bit of pickled chili to liven everything up, flavours planted firmly in the Middle Eastern category.

Pappardelle ($23) is one of the fresh pasta offerings, with large hunks of saucy braised rabbit, bitter and meaty green olives, fennel and white wine, comforting to the core.

Wagyu Picanah ($38) is a Brazilian-style cut of sirloin cap known for its tenderness and flavour, perfect for paying homage to the Argentine grill. Grilled lemon, buttery fire-roasted garlic, a chimichurri of parsley, mint, coriander, and pickled shallots along with a winter tabouleh make for a harmonious fusion of accompaniments.

A chocolate dessert ($12) is an almond meal cake with a lemon ganache, preserved lemon zest, and a chocolate sable, all in a pool of kalamansi syrup that’s somewhat soggy but intense in citrus flavour.

A nougat glacé ($12) pops with brightness, each bite totally unique, topped with crushed rose petal, a cakey pistachio “foam,” blood orange segments, a hot pink blood orange glacé biscuit, and a blood orange gel.

The Tropicalia ($16) is a riff on a Mai Tai, tropical and herbal with cachaça, branca menta, lemon, lime, orgeat and passionfruit.

A Gatto di Strada ($18) is boozier with Rittenhouse rye, Dolin dry vermouth, Cynar and China China.

The cuisine’s wandering feel makes sense when you consider the restaurant’s named for a Roman emperor.

Clearly this is one more stop on the AlterEgo restaurant partnership tour of conquest in Toronto.