I have been back in Winnipeg, my hometown, for almost two years now... how time flies! Life, both good and bad, has caused time to be stuck in fast forward... but this doesn't mean that I've sacrificed my foodie tendencies... just haven't written much about it! And now, I am publishing my Valentine's post in the early days of summer.... but no matter! Better late than never!
Passero, chef Scott Bagshaw's latest restaurant, is a refreshing interpretation of bold Italian flavours in a shared plates format. Nestled in the heart of The Forks Marketplace, this cozy, tiny space is a welcome high end sit-down addition to a mishmash of international food court options and (sadly) bland faceless franchise restaurants.
We called on Valentine's Day and lucked out on a cancellation for that evening... a sign of good things to come! Our super attentive, knowledgeable and friendly waitress, Amanda, made us feel welcome and pampered - and like part of the family (we of course ended up knowing her cousin... Winnipeg is just like that!).
We started with a beautiful salad - crisp slices of thinly sliced raw beets with a surprise filling of salt roasted beets tossed with smoked cambozola, pistachios, and blood orange...
The spaghetti carbonara was drool inducing once the silky cured egg yolk was mixed with the pasta, guanciale, parmesan and garbanzo cream....
The duck ragout fusilli was less successful - the chevre brought out a nice tang but the sauce was underwhelming.
Our favorite was the charred octopus with a delicious black romesco sauce - I do have a moral dilemma eating octopus (Where are they getting it from? How sustainable is that fishery?) but I put aside those questions and tried to truly enjoy and appreciate each bite...
Desserts were fantastic - a chocolate tart and apple cake - note maldon salt sprinkled on both.
A truly memorable meal - expensive, no doubt, but we had big smiles on our faces as we walked home on the river skateway, under the stars. One funny note - leaving the high end interior of this small restaurant to go to the bathroom in the Commons area reminded me of leaving an exclusive airport lounge to board your flight - back to the rabble of everyday, noisy reality.
Passero transforms to
Corto, a sandwich counter in the daytime. Their combo (sandwich + side + glass of wine or beer for $19) seems like a great deal.
