Maialino Enoteca Italiana

It pains me to write this review, but as an honest Yelper, I call 'em as I see 'em. I've been here twice within the past month and had 2 very different experiences.

2nd visit:
Came back on a Friday night, party of 5, with a reservation. I was excited to take my DC's here after my pretty good 1st visit. I was late, and 2 of my DC's arrived early. Apparently, they were asked to move tables, so they were given 2 glasses of white wine on the house. Nice. We were seated at the back, along the wall with the black, white and pink graffiti. I had a great view of the open kitchen (more on that later...).

We were disappointed that they were sold out of the suckling pig. However, I don't see that as a bad thing. It means that they get their meat very fresh and order in small quantities, and our server (the same server I had on the 1st visit, an older and very Italian gentleman with cool round glasses!) was quite apologetic.

Between us, we ordered:
- Salumi board with mortadella, wild boar salame, and ragusano cheese.
- Octopus carpaccio
- Seared tuna encrusted with sesame seeds
- Ricotta ravioli with fresh tomato sauce and toasted almonds
- Pasta special - spaghetti with half a lobster in tomato sauce
- Whole red snapper
- Tiramisu
- Chocolate souffle
- Rasberry gelato

The dinner started off great. Our server was very jovial and attentive with water, etc. The place was packed and the atmosphere was fun and lively. Appetizers came quickly, and I especially enjoyed the mortadella. The octopus was also excellent.

Then things went bad. There was a super-long lag (almost an hour?) before our mains came out. Open kitchens are great, but it also allowed us to witness some drama between the staff. I don't know what happened. At first, it just looked like the kitchen staff were stressed out and overwhelmed, as the whole restaurant was full and they were obviously busy. On several occasions, I saw the chef, Roberto, help himself to wine at the bar and he kept drinking through the night. Suddenly, there was yelling (very brief, but loud enough to cause some awkwardness amongst diners) and the chef stormed out to the back of the restaurant, quickly followed by another guy (the manager? he didn't seem like one of the servers). I watched the rest of the kitchen staff look stressed as the chef was gone for a good 15 mins. or so.

The pasta dishes finally came out. I had the ravioli and quite enjoyed the mix of flavours and textures. Had a bite of the tuna, which was delicious. However, they really dropped the ball on the whole red snapper. I saw the fish get brought out of the oven and placed on a plate in parchment paper. I don't know why, but our poor server was left to debone the fish himself (standing at the bar, no less). The fish came out plopped haphazardly on the plate with a few random vegetables. Seriously, the 'plating' was not presentable at all for a reastaurant of this quality. He brought it to our table and clearly improvising, started drizzling olive oil (the same one we used for our bread) over it. [Later, one of my DC's mentioned that it was supposed to come with a sauce, which was missing. She had seen the fish dish at another table and those diners sent it back to the kitchen, which may have precipitated the drama... ]. But my DC's were too polite to complain or make a scene. We were here to celebrate and just wanted to make the most of the evening. The fish was bland and my polite DC's just asked for salt and pepper to give it some flavour. Maybe they wanted to send it back but were worried that we would have to wait another hour if we ordered something else, since the chef at that point was still gone.

The chef and that other guy returned and things were back in order in the kitchen eventually. By the time we ordered desserts and espressos, they were back in the zone. The tiramisu was spot on -- letting the simple freshness of the ingredients speak for itself. I tried the rasberry gelato which is made in-house. It was bursting with flavour. So, at least we ended on a high note. However, I found the kitchen staff's behaviour unprofessional and I only gave the server a huge tip because I felt bad for him having to deal with everything and the bad fish was not his fault. In hectic circumstances, he tried to smile and keep it together admirably. But charging full price ($60) for that fish was really unacceptable. Sending out an incomplete dish and hoping patrons don't notice is just wrong. While the kitchen drama was actually somewhat entertaining, it makes me not want to return, even though I had such a good 1st visit. Maialino Enoteca... when they're ON, they are great, but when they are OFF, watch out.

I was invited to a press dinner here and had more of the menu. Again, opinions are always my own and always honest.
From my first visit, the Fettucine Cinggiale, with wild boar ragu and truffle is still 5 star in my mind. Service, of course, was attentive and felt like home, as always. This time we ate:

(Favourites are starred).

To start:
olive and meat plate; cheese board with jam. If I had to choose, I would get the cheese board.

***Parmigiana in Vetro - a layered parmigiano mousse with roasted eggplant puree and guegino tomato sauce and olive oil. It comes with a crostini and is served in a mason jar. This was one of my favourite dishes. I liked the layers of flavours and texture. Plus, that parmiagiano was FRESH.

I had the arancini again. This time there was a fancier presentation that came with it. Fig and buffala mozzarella were accouterments and nice but honestly, I don't think it's worth $8. $6, yes, but not $8.

Ravioli alla Norma
Eggplant-filled house-made ravioli, cherry pachino tomato sauce with aged baked Italian ricotta. This was good but not GREAT and not as filling as the fettuccine would be. I think this one hit the mark for a lot of us but it was still fresh. You're getting more bang for your buck with the fettucine by far.

***Costole di Manzo al Nero D'Avolo
Slow-roasted short ribs, Nero D'Avolo wine sauce, with roasted shallots and potatoes.
This was DELICIOUS and definitely the winner of our meal that night. The rib was falling off the bone and had a maple syrup taste to it. You could tell a lot of care went into this dish and it showed. Bravo! Bravo! It's a bit pricey at $26 but definitely worth the splurge if you can afford it.

Flan di Cioccolato 7
Warm 70% chocolate cake served with salted caramel mousse and peperoncino
I liked this dessert and I'm a sucker for chocolate, especially because it's all melted in the middle. Mmmmmmm.

***BUT The Cannoli is what I couldn't stop coming back to. Do not leave a tray of cannoli out on the table or I will eat all of them! I had three. Chef Roberto whips sweet ricotta cheese flown in from Sicily. The shell is crunchy and I like the sweetness factor. I don't know anyone else in Toronto who is doing the cannoli thing. Forget gifts for Christmas. Santa needs to bring me some cannoli! And the word "cannoli" is really fun to say five times fast.

DRINK: My favourite drink of the night was the 2010 Moscato d'Asti DOCG. I don't think you can get this at the LCBO. Anyways, it tastes like sparkling champagne and I could have easily drank the whole bottle (I think I almost did!).

OBLIGATORY CATCHY REMARK
Maialino means "little pig," which is appropriate for what you'll do here. Buon' Appetito!

Went to Maialino for dinner last night with 2 of my girlfriends. I made a reservation for 6:30pm - but being as it was a Tuesday evening, it wasn't that busy there and I probably could have just walked in without a reservation and been seated. A few other tables around us filled up during the time we were seated (mostly couples).

The server was friendly and knowledgeable about wine and recommended a great choice for us.

We were brought some aged proscuitto and bread sticks (complimentary) as well as some fresh bread and more bread sticks.

We had the rice cones as well as the asparagus and mozzarella starter. Both were quite good.

2 of us ordered the short ribs for our mains and my other friend ordered a special seafood dish (I can't remember exactly what it was called) but everyone enjoyed the food. For dessert, 2 of us declined and one of my friends ordered the cannoli.
We could see the sous chef (or might have just been another kitchen staff member) prepared the cannoli - there were 2. When they saw it was for our table for 3 ladies, the chef made sure to add a third one (even though 2 of us hadn't ordered the dessert) and he brought them to our table himself. It was a nice touch.

We were there for almost 3 hours and it was nice we didn't feel rushed to leave (although there was no wait for tables - so not sure if we may have been encouraged to leave had it been busier).

Overall, a pretty good dining experience.

I was a little miffed when our waiter informed us they were out of the suckling pig (one of my restaurant pet peeves), and our waiter was a little awkward when trying to explain their cheese boards to me and my friend (I still have no clue what cheeses we ate), but other then those two hiccups the night went well.

I was impressed with their wine selection. They have at least 10 different reds you can buy by the glass. Not always the case for such a small restaurant. Both our meals were delicious. I ordered the slow roasted short ribs. They were extremely tender and the wine reduction was yummy. My friend ordered the cod. Once again the meat was cooked just right. The mash potato pairing, although odd, worked quite well.

I though it was very classy when the waiter brought us a free order of their cannoli stuffed with sweet ricotta cheese (their specialty and a must have) to make up for not having the suckling pig available. A nice touch.

I'd definitely go back...After all, I have some unfinished business with a certain suckling pig.

From the glass of Proseco offered as a welcome to the Limoncello as a farewell, this meal was wonderful.

We ordered primarily from the appetizer menu, finishing up the main part of our meal with a shared bowl of pasta in a wild boar ragu. Included in our varied dishes were octopus (served thinly sliced and marvellously cold), a delicately flavoured arancini, charcuterie cured in-house, a three layered pot of goodness containing parmesan, eggplant and tomato sauce. Lastly, a sous vide porchetta, tender in texture but deep in flavour. All excellent.

The service was very friendly with Roberto, the chef, approaching us from the small but efficient open kitchen, after each dish to ask our opinion. Our server, Claire, is as upbeat a personality as ever was.

All in all, one of the most enjoyable meals we've had in some time.

Very few restaurants offer an experience as warm and wonderful as that of Maialino.

Naturally, to receive a 5-star rating, the food was exceptional. I highly recommend the Carpaccio di Polpo - thinly sliced octopus on a bed of frisee salad with celery and black olives that is perfectly flavoured. We also had the Insalata Siciliana, which could have been a typical salad found in so many Italian restos in the city, if not for the excellent combination of fennel and citrus fruits that was, again, perfectly flavoured. Following appetizers, my husband had the wild boar ragu pasta (which he enjoyed so much the last time, he ordered again) and being a soup aficionado, I opted for the Zuppa di Lenticchie, from their daily specials. I can honestly say, it was the best lentil soup I have had (note that I have lentil soup from a variety of fave places once a week!).

Beyond the food, what made Maialino particularly good was the service of not one, but two servers who ensured our plates were cleared promptly and glasses were never empty. We sat at the very welcoming bar where we could watch the dynamics of the fabulously efficient kitchen and chatted with Chef Roberto, who shared with us his rich culinary background and recommendations based on traditional Sicilian dishes. He is clearly very passionate about the ingredients he sources and made it a point to ask our opinion of each of the dishes we enjoyed; so much so that he had an arancini prepared just for us to try. (Another highly recommended dish).

Though it was already a late (work) night, my husband and I couldn't help staying. The staff began coming over to personally introduce themselves and we drank limoncello as if we were in a huge family home.

One of the best restaurant experiences we have had.

The dining experience here was a pleasant surprise. Seated at the bar, I was able to watch the open kitchen and see the chef in action. I am unfamiliar with a lot of Italian wines, but the friendly proprietor was able to proved a recommendation that was wonderful. My date and I couldn't make up our mind as to what to try, so we again relied upon a recommendation from the waitress. The meal was more of a journey through southern Italy. Every course was a new and exciting adventure. If you take one piece of advice, save room for desert.

I can't wait to return!

Went here tonight with 2 friends on a spur of the moment decision. It was a bit late, 9:00pm, but we were treated fantastically. Being vegetarians, the two of us were a little intimidated by the meat centric menu. In the end, we have no problems. The staff were great, the food was fantastic and the cannoli are some of the best I have ever had.

They change their menu somewhat frequently, so have a look online before you you go but it was a fantastic evening with great Sicilian food.

Another Enoteca in Toronto?

Located in the deep queen west pocket, Maialino Enoteca is great for pig lovers, but they do have a range of other dishes as well. You can have a family style pig roast, which apparently runs out, so if you really want that, book an earlier dinner. The space is long with some nice wall art of italian/sicilian type phrases, but the communal section up front is by far the nicest.

We ordered the oysters, which our waiter said they were really fresh, but I wasn't impressed. For appetizers, we tried the selection of cheeses and salami, which I would highly recommend getting. The salami and prosciutto were delicious.

My main of ravioli was great, and the riccotta and sliverred almonds worked well together. But, my tiramisu just had too much cocoa powder on it, which I find ruins the whole dish. With so many great restaurants in Toronto, Maialino Enoteca will probably not make my list of places I'm dying to go back to this year.

The best authentic Italian restaurant in the city. The food and the service was amazing. Being a little more west means there will no problems with the parking. I loved it so much I went back two nights in the row.