Unlike my travel posts where I share a whole list of the places I ate at successfully and not, when I write about Toronto (my home city) I get to share more detailed restaurant reviews.
On Saturday, I ate lunch at Luma, with my mother and my friend Karrie. It was almost exactly a year ago that I last ate there. When deciding where to go I remembered the excellent service from that long ago. When a restaurant chooses to safely cater to those with food allergies, they make lifelong customers. Since my brother, mom, and nephew have allergies, it's very important to us. It also affects where I dine with friends, relatives, for business meetings, etc.
I have found that all of the O&B restaurants are top notch at dealing with allergies, so they are part of my regular rotation when I'm feeling up to dining out. I remember my first time eating at Canoe when I was 16; it was one of the best meals I can remember. We went on to eat there many more times over the years.
I was the first to arrive for our reservation and I was immediately welcomed by a friendly host who walked me into the beautifully designed Luma dining room. The decor is very simple, serene, and calming with beige tones everywhere. We were eating at an odd time of day, 1 pm, and I was delighted at how quiet it was. The theatre crowd was petering out around the time our first course was delivered.
Both the host and the server were very diligent about bringing up the allergies right away, as I had communicated with them earlier in the week. I always recommend you give advance notice when possible so that the kitchen is not taken by surprise. I'm allergic to peanuts, nuts, dairy, soy, and legumes (all anaphylactic) which can be difficult to work around on a whim.
To start, I had a salad of arugula, thinly sliced nectarine, beets (I love beets), cherry tomatoes, and baby lettuces, with a Dijon and lemon vinaigrette. It was light, fresh, and delicious.
For my main dish, I had a seared fillet of salmon that was perfectly cooked. It was served with smashed potatoes, charred zucchini and summer squash, asparagus, and pickled onions. It looked so beautiful I nearly didn't want to disturb it. But after snapping a few pictures I dug right in. It was such a plentiful portion that I couldn't even finish it all! And about an hour later I regretted not cramming in those last few bites.
For dessert I had strawberries and bananas. It was very simple but that's totally fine by me. I would rather not have to smile through pretending to eat a slice of cake that's apparently allergy friendly at a restaurant. It's just too nerve-wracking (remember how I chose not to have a wedding cake?). I was given the option of sorbet but I chose the fruit and I very much enjoyed it. Karrie and my mom had the shortcake (nut-free) and said it was incredible. Karrie is a serious cake connoisseur, so I take that recommendation seriously.
The best part about eating a comfortable and safe meal is that it allows you to unwind and enjoy the company, the conversation, and experience. Visit Luma's website here.
