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RELISH

2152 Danforth Ave., Toronto. 416-425-4664. Dinner for two with wine, tax and tip, $70.

Ask me how I feel about that bright green relish that you put on burgers. It comes in a jar, and is kind of sweet, kind of tart, in a sickly way. Gag. Goes good with that neon yellow ballpark mustard beloved of people not yet ready for Dijon. Which makes me wonder why anyone who knows anything about food would name their restaurant Relish. The fact that Relish is at Danforth and Woodbine (not exactly a hotbed of fun food) and that it serves tapas (another one) made me not exactly excited to go there.

Call it negative journalistic bias. Call it fear of tapas. Either way, after walking into the long and narrow restaurant and smelling the patchouli perfume, I grew even moreworried. Is this gonna be one of those counterculture places with high principles and low standards?

But one good thing caught my eye. In front of the door, where in the normal course of events an Arctic breeze would be blowing in, they've hung a thick curtain to contain the cold. How clever, for restaurateurs who apparently can't afford to build a vestibule, to figure out a cheap way to make patrons comfy.

It's a simple room. The bar stretches the length of the restaurant and is a perfect place to dine alone. The ochre ceiling with recessed squares marching its length is another indication that these folks are possessed of a delicious aesthetic. The place is crowded and warm - precisely what one wants in a neighbourhood bistro.

The menu is cause for concern. If I had a buck for every bistro I've visited where they've got a highfalutin menu and no kitchen skills to back it up, I'd be partying with Paris Hilton instead of writing. Relish, however, is not one of those. First clue is the spicy corn and chorizo chowder: It has depth, good seasoning and sweetness from the corn and is assertively spicy. The second clue is fresh artichoke quarters atop delicate olive paste, served with grilled (and peeled) red peppers.

The kitchen's commitment to excellence speaks again in the perfect texture of wild mushroom risotto with a grand backstory of truffle oil. And again in the classic smoked salmon and new potato salad, with its light, house-made mayo. Lobster pot stickers are delicate and nicely browned; and they do indeed contain fresh lobster. Not a lot of it, but the real thing.

When you're doing the Danny, no matter how far east of Broadview, it seems impossible not to offer at least a nod to Greek cuisine. Relish's spanakopita are ungreasy, delicate and zinged with taleggio cheese to wake up the spinach filling. Serving them with fresh tomato relish adds to their charm. Other cultures' pastry turnovers are equally well done: Lamb empanadas are delicate and crisp, although we're not wowed by their caraway scent.

Aficionados of ribs need to be here. These tender meaty babies are neither dry nor wet, but on the way station betwixt the two. Their barely there sauce is sweet and hot, oh heaven. Gnocchi are little potato-pasta pillows, although we can't find the promised gorgonzola in their pleasant tomato sauce. Calamari are perfectly grilled, but the promised roast garlic is MIA, as is the basil taste in the aioli.

Only four items on the menu disappoint terribly. The tortillas stuffed with shredded chicken and guacamole fall way short of the kitchen's reach: The chicken is shredded and seasoned like pulled pork (one of our not-so-secret sinful loves), but the tortillas are mostly those multicoloured chip things that taste like cardboard until you've had way too much beer. Either that or they're thick and soggy. Guacamole is present in spirit only - not enough of it and hard to find under the nasty tortillas. Grilled sirloin for $8 sounds like pie-in the-sky. And it is. No steak should be cut this thin, which makes tough texture inevitable. The cassoulet (a.k.a. white bean, duck and chorizo casserole) suffers from undercooked beans and way underpowered seasoning.

And the banana toffee cream pie is appalling: almond cookie crust so tough that a fork is not up to penetrating it, and banana cream filling that is neither sweet nor creamy.

But white chocolate raspberry tart is the very opposite - thick creamy white filling of the sort that makes white chocolate almost as dangerous as it dark cousins. And the flourless chocolate polenta cake is dark and moist, and over-the-top chocolatey.

My ire about the plethora of tapas restaurants has not abated, but it's hard to stay mad at Relish. This little spot is so obviously a labour of love created by artisans with both good taste and cooking skills, that all one can reasonably do is celebrate a great neighbourhood restaurant, for these are the lifeblood of the city.