Yanina Oyarzo

RASA BAR IN TORONTO, ONTARIO

Located in Toronto, Ontario the heart of celebrities like Drake, The Weeknd, and many more. Rasa Bar is one of the hottest spots in town, created by non other than The Food Dudes. If you haven’t heard of their successful full-service catering company, tried their food trucks, or had a chance to indulge in some of their creations at events than now you have a chance!

Rasa Bar is a restaurant/bar tapas style dining with original pairings of foods, filled with a rustic cool vibe. 

Upon arrival, you notice the open kitchen to your left and the rustic but very organic and friendly ambiance and decor. I went to Rasa while in Toronto two/three weeks ago and it actually landed on my birthday. My husband who goes there a lot with a co-worker mentioned to me to let him order everything (being my husband is extremely picky, but he now loved Octopus thanks to Rasa… I decided to give it a shot.)

I did order a drink, I had a grapefruit tequila drink which was okay, and I overheard they were testing out a new section of cocktail drinks which I wish I would have tried because mine was a little too bitter due to the grapefruit but other than that it was yummy 🙂

If I could do anything different I wish I would have tried a bit more plates, I hear the Fish Board is to die for! Even though I don’t know where I would of fit it. There’s always next time 😉

Below is each plate from my night there, their ingredients and pairings along with my review.

First plate to the table: DUMPLINGS
chicken confit, shrimp, bok choy, mushrooms, smoked chicken broth

Chicken Dumplings - RASA

REVIEW: Whoever knows me, knows I love anything asian so when Lex picked this, I was happy. The broth with the dumplings combination is delicious. They recommend you move around and open the dumpling so the broth can REALLY get in there (which I did) and it was SUPERB! Great way to start the dinner. You can order three or for an extra charge order a fourth one to even it out, but I felt with the amount of food coming, we were good with three.

Second up: DRUMMETS
hot sauce, black garlic, frozen buttermilk, pickled things

IMG_7836

REVIEW: Now I love my some SPICYYYY food! So when the chicken drummets came, I was ecstatic. It’s not overly spicy where you can’t handle it, but JUST enough. I could be wrong but I tasted sweet potato or yams in the sauce or maybe even carrots which made the sauce unique and great!

Third Plate: OCTOPUS
glazed pork belly, parsnip purée, apple + kale salad, crispy lentils

Octopus - RASA

REVIEW: Okay… Now I have to say if I could have had 10 of these plates, I would! A little of the Apple + Kale salad, a small piece of the glazed pork belly, some parsnip purée and crispy lentils and a piece of Octopus MUST go all in your mouth in one bite for you to experience the intense, amazing, explosion that happens in your brain when you realize how ALL these crazy pairings all make an AMAZING conjunction when mixed together. The slight bitterness of the apple and kale salad, with the sweetness of the glazed pork belly, the parsnip and lentils softness and crunch texture, mixed with the chewy and savory octopus is OMG mouth-watering!!!! It’s pure genius. If you don’t order this, you’re missing out.

Fourth Plate: WAGYU RIBS
whipped semolina, pickled chili, fennel salad, peperonata jam

Wagyu Ribs - RASA

REVIEW: This is my husbands favorite plate along with the Octopus. For me I loved the fennel salad again with a bit of wagyu rib, whipped semolina, pickled chili, and peperonata jam. The combination of all those are superb to say the least! The only thing I would say about this plate is that you do have to be one of those people who don’t mind eaten meat fat since it is a rib. I, am not one so my husband finished this one while I stole the rest of his octopus. 😉

Dessert: CEREAL (RASA Style)
cornflake ice cream, chocolate, banana, puffed grains, coconut milk

Cereal - RASA(pre-coconut milk)

REVIEW: It was light, delicious, and AGAIN their pairings of choices are just SO AMAZING. Such a simple plate but executed amazingly. I ate it ALL. I was in love…Mind you, I am not a sweets person…But I feel like my palate couldn’t say no after everything I had before, was just out of this world!

Suprise Bday Dessert: STICKY BUN
almond praline, cream cheese anglaise, candied bacon

Sticky Bun - RASA

REVIEW: Of course, my hubby had a little surprise for me so they brought me this after the CEREAL and we ate it! It was so delicious! I had never had anything sweet with bacon (probably one of the few people since it’s the craze!) and I was scared…But I LOVED IT! This is definitely a plate for the sweet lovers because the sticky bun, the cream cheese, and bacon are very sweet but somehow not overpowering. It’s also big enough to share with your partner 🙂

Make sure to stop by RASA if you’re in Toronto, or the next time you choose Toronto as a travel destination! Maybe on my next visit, I’ll take you guys more behind the scenes and even be able to prep one of the plates 😉

Till then, I hope you enjoy this post!

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