steak frites bday dindinz

[witloof]

hi everyone !

every time i go for a birthday dinner , i end up wanting steak frites . i am trying to narrow this down between the restaurants i can think of , but im interested in any other suggestions as well . there are a few variables that make this a tricky decision :

1 i really want beurre de paris with my steak
2 i am allergic to nuts so frites cooked in peanut oil are out
3 we are not going big this year so the entrees need to be under $30

also this is short notice , as my bday is on the 3rd

so far i was thinking of tati , nota bene and side car .

tati i have had mixed experiences with , but they do have the required butter . the quality of the cut of meat has been inconsistent and they once mixed me up with another party who were a no-show and warned me of a terribly hostile message they thought that they accidentally left on my answering machine (there was no evil message after all but it was a strange experience to be interrupted halfway through our dinner by this warning).

nota bene used to have a great steak frites but it seems to be off of the menu and no longer served with the required magical herby pat of grease . also the steaks all now seem to be priced $40 and up . thinking of maybe calling ahead and asking about the herb butter and splurging (yes , for me this is splurging)

and then there is sidecar , which ive never tried even though i have heard good things , simply because i am not so into the atmosphere .

le select is out on account of the peanut oil they use , and jules is ok but the cut is too tough for me .

ok so all this to say ...

if anyone knows of any places that have peanut free fries and a good cut of steak with beurre de paris or beurre de cafe de paris or whatever its called , for under $30 , downtown , please let me know !

thanks a lot !
:)

[witloof]

hey thanks for everyones suggestions , i decided to try tati again because i just LOVE that gigantic tree on the patio !

:)

[witloof]

thanks guys !

jlunar - yeah actually a friend of mine works at beer bistro and the fries are at least partially cooked in peanut oil (at some point in the process) , so bb isnt a possibility , but thanks a lot for the thought !

wonton - coquine is an option although it is a bit of a distance , thanks for that suggestion .

cat123 - la palette is in a preferable hood but i have to think about the butter factor ... lol . thanks !

:)

[dmartins123]

i recently had the steak frites at sidecar and it was pretty good....$18 too! you indicated that you dont like the vibe there...what do you mean?

[witloof]

i guess something about the decor just looks unappealing to me ... every time i pass by on college i look in thinking of the good reviews and get turned of by the aesthetics . just checked online tho and the patio actually looks pretty nice ... but cant do red wine so the butter on the steak is out ... thinking of trying tati again just for the amazing patio .

i kno im being really specific , but what better day than your birthday to be ridiculously picky ? ;)

[pinstripeprincess]

the frites at side car are fabulous.... if you like jkwb frites they're pretty darn spot on to those. my issue was with the steak, it just wasn't flavourful enough for me. i know it's likely the baseball cut they use but if i want a steak frites i want my steak to taste like some seriously good cow.

but the main reason i'm posting, if the butter is really the only thing holding you back... well why don't you ask for a plain butter while making the reservation (or beforehand to see if they'll do it)? not exactly time consuming and if that's all it took for you to celebrate your birthday there, i'm sure they'd be delighted to do it. btw, that back patio is really lovely.

[TorontoJo]

On the other hand, I was duly impressed that they managed to do a black and blue steak at Sidecar. Not bad for an $18 steak frites.

[pinstripeprincess]

good cooking skill and very good value, but for me it fits the casual weekly dinner pick very well and less so the birthday celebration. i probably eat steak frites out at restaurants less than once a year, so i like meaty meat when i do. but with such a value meal, you could spend the rest of the budget on tasty tasty cocktails... now that is also a good way to celebrate a birthday!

[witloof]

tnx psp ! i will definitely have to try sidecar eventually (hopefully while its still patio season) , but im not interested in plain butter , so i will have to go with whatever they are serving with their steak when i try it (within my extensive allergy restrictions)

ps " seriously good cow " hillarious ! :)

[Cat123]

OK - this will sound strange but I know that Starfish serves a steak frites with butter - not sure about the price or the fry situation.

[Cat123]

How about La Palette? You'd have to call about their fries but their steak frites is topped with a smoked dried tomato & roasted garlic butter - close enough?

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La Palette
492 Queen St W, Toronto, ON M5V, CA

[jlunar]

How about Beer Bistro? Their fries are done in beef/duck fat (I would call to check though!) and they do have an herbed (their online menu says tarragon) pat of butter they put on their steak, but I've only seen it going by so I can't comment on taste/cut/etc. It'll set you back about $25.

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http://www.foodpr0n.com/ -- food. is. love.

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Beer Bistro
18 King St. E, Toronto, ON M5C 1C4, CA

[wontonfm]

One option worth investigating is Le Select Bistro. I have no clue whether or not it's peanut free but give them a call...

WON
http://whatsonmyplate.net

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Le Select
432 Wellington St W, Toronto, ON M5V1E3, CA

[witloof]

yeah like i said above , le select is out on account of the peanut oil they use for their frites ... i know you might have missed this on account of my long winded post ! thanks a lot anyway !

:)

[wontonfm]

totally missed it!

if you're willing to stray a bit out of downtown for the Yonge/Eg area I'd suggest Coquine.

WON
http://whatsonmyplate.net

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Coquine
2075 Yonge St, Toronto, ON M4S2A4, CA