we recently dined at chef and owner claudio aprile's origin north, of the origin empire. we were happily surprised to see chef aprile himself there, on a friday night, overseeing the new season-inspired items added to their menu.
the decor is trendy and open, the space much larger than their two downtown locations. patrons were well-dressed: mixtures of friends meeting after work and romantic dinners, with some business diners scattered among them.
we have dined at origin north a few times and the service was quite poor. this week, however, our waiter was friendly and happy to go above and beyond to answer any questions we had, explaining the style of ordering (tapas/family style), and affirming our ordering choices were good ones!
without further ado...
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| we started our with some beverages (Carlsberg and a glass of Chianti) |
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| origin's famous beet salad: goat cheese, pickled red onion, sherry dressing, yogurt, walnuts this salad is not to be missed. it is remarkably fresh and always leaves you wanting more. |
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| from the mozzarella bar: bufala with pear, rosemary oil, pine nuts and honey such a fresh and tasty appetizer. the way these flavours come together is beautiful. |
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| origin beef burger: smoked mayonnaise, avocado, arugula. cooked to a perfect medium, this was one tasty piece of meat, and a menu item they are well-known for. |
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| origin's fries: don't miss out on these. perfectly cut and evenly-salted. convince yourself that they go well with anything. you won't be disappointed. |
the dessert menu looked incredible but we were beyond full....maybe next time.
we will definitely be back to origin soon. i'm already craving that beet salad!
