Pauline and I went to our second Winterlicious dinner last night with Nelson and Kitty at Arriba. Rather than choosing by reputation like we did on Saturday, Arriba was chosen due to its proximity to the CNE as Pauline and Kitty were at the National Bridal Show. The neat thing about Arriba was that it’s in a hotel, and the hotel is in the Skydome Rogers Centre. So we were able to see out onto the field while we ate (although nothing was on – not even the turf).

The second reason was because Arriba had a $25 dinner. I chose the Black Bean and Chorizo Sausage with Coriander Cream to start. It was pretty salty and the sausage bits didn’t add to the soup (aside from the flavor). Pauline picked the better choice with Fried Calamari, Roasted Tomatoes, Olives, Saffron Mayo, Capers. My main dish was the Honey Cumin Slow Roasted Pork Loin, Sweet Potato Mash, and Sour Cherry Jus. It wasn’t that great either as the pork was dry. Pauline had the Harissa Rubbed Breast of Chicken, White Bean Ragout, Wilted Greens and Natural Pan Jus which I preferred to my pork. For dessert, Pauline ordered the Homemade Bread Pudding, Caramel Bourbon Sauce which I thought wasn’t bad and I had the Biscotti and Ice Cream which came with a choice of Vanilla & Cinnimon or Mango ice cream which I chose the latter.

I’m on the fence as to whether it was worth it or not. $25 is not expensive for a three-course meal, but the food wasn’t actually that great. I liked the decor of the place though, it had vibrant colours and interesting non-Ikea-style furniture. Also the fact that it was in the Rogers Centre was neat, although I don’t think my idea of cool is shared by other Winterlicious go-ers as the place was pretty much empty. I feel kind of dumb for calling ahead and making a reservation. Plus we ended up being an hour early anyways.

Posted by Kevin in Blogs Tags: food, winterlicious