Canoe

Fifty-Four Floors Above Wellington

3.5 of 5

The elevator does the first course. Fifty-four floors up the TD Bank Tower, Canoe looks out over the lake, the islands and a city that keeps adding cranes, and for thirty years it has argued that Canadian cooking deserves a view like this. It opened in 1995, which counts as ancient in restaurant years, and it still sets tables for bankers at noon and for anniversaries at night.

Oliver and Bonacini runs it, and the kitchen, led of late by Roderick Tomiczek, cooks from the whole country, with ingredients from farmers and suppliers coast to coast and dishes that nod to the land, its history and its cultures. Michelin, which lists it in the guide, has written up wild Pacific halibut with Savoy cabbage and champagne cream, a lamb saddle with braised shoulder, and a tarte au sucre that would win over a Québécois grandmother. Lunch is short and brisk for people with meetings. Dinner opens up, and there is a chef's tasting menu if you have the evening.

Know the rules before you go. Canoe is open weekdays only and closed to the public on Saturdays and Sundays, so this is not your weekend splurge. Book dinner, ask for a window, and arrive just before sunset. Is there something a little corporate about eating in a bank tower? Sure. I spent enough years in towers like this one to know. The difference is that here, for once, the view is not the only thing worth the ride up.

Order this: Wild Pacific halibut with Savoy cabbage and champagne cream, Lamb saddle with braised shoulder, Tarte au sucre, The chef's tasting menu if you have the evening
The damage: $$$$
Go: A weekday dinner near sunset; closed weekends
Find it: 66 Wellington St W, 54th Floor, TD Bank Tower, Toronto, ON M5K 1H6