One of my favourite restaurants in the city has just opened another location on the East end and no one is more excited than me!!! For years, Gusto 101 on King West has been a staple of Toronto dining known for their consistent delicious food and amazing service (along with sister restaurant Cafe Nervosa in Yorkville). I always tell people to order their mushroom pasta and kale salad – you can never go wrong with those 2 items. Luckily enough at Gusto 501, these 2 staple items are on the menu along with many new items that aren’t available at their other locations.
Gusto 501 is divided into 5 stories with a glass ceiling covering the top. The restaurant itself is divided into 2 sections – Trattoria and Attico. Trattoria features their wood-fired grill and pizza oven dishes while their Attico is a spuntini bar for small sharing plates and fancy cocktails. Trattoria takes both reservations and walk-ins while the Attico is by reservation only. Reservations for either section can be made online at Gusto 501’s website.
Similar to Gusto 101, a house special wine available for $1/ounce. This is probably one of the best deals you can find in Toronto. If you fancy something more, they also have $3/ounce selections and wine by the bottle.
CAVOLO NERO INSALATE ($16.00)
- Lacinato kale, currant, pine nut, pecorino, parmigiano, lemon vinaigrette
- As mentioned above, the kale salad here is one of Gusto’s many staples and this is probably the only place where I will actually eat a kale salad.
MARGHERITA PIZZE ($15.00)
- Pomodoro, fiore di latte, pecorino, basil
- Thick chewy crust with a thin base and heaps of cheese. Whenever we try a new Italian restaurant, we always order their margherita pizza and this one is as good as Gusto’s other locations!
RISOTTO VERDE PRINCIPALE ($20.00)
- Hen of the woods mushroom, garlic, chlorophyll
- I love a good risotto and this one is a bit more earthy than I expected but still a solid plate. The risotto leaves a very mild hint of minty after taste due to the chlorophyll.
LASAGNA PASTE ($22.00)
- Lamb ragu, ricotta, mint
- When I saw this photo floating around on Instagram, I knew I had to order this. This cheesy & hearty lasagna is best described as Italian nachos with a crispy layer around the outside giving this dish a nice textural contrast.
- So different to anything we’ve tried before – highly recommend!
I love this place and can foresee myself tempted to try the sharing plates at Attico. I’ve attached their food menu here and their wine by ounce menu here if you’re interested.
That’s it from me! Hope you enjoyed my Favourite Restaurant Alert: Gusto 501. Feel free to also follow along on my Instagram page where I update daily with what I’m up to.
Written by Grace Yeung
Edited by Eden Yeung
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