It’s a bit ironic that this review starts with Kendra as she is probably allergic to at least half the featured dishes, but then again it couldn’t be more fitting. I can always come home to Toro and let the exquisite delicacies soothe me, and after a hard day, Kendra is always there too. Kendra’s company is much cheaper than Toro so I maintain that the best things in life are free, but once in a while, Toro’s worth paying for too…
Now for the food! I’ve tried several new dishes at Toro, and they seemed update-worthy. Though with my well-established faves, it’s hard to branch out. I do try to dip into a new dish once in a while, but it’s hard to say no to bone marrow…
The Ostras en Escabeche are smoky little marinated oysters, squished like sardines in the cute little aluminum can they came in. I love the canned smoked oysters at the grocery store, but these are obviously much better. Less drowned in oil, less preservatives (hopefully), and plump and tasty on toast. I once said that I don’t like fish in liquid because that’s where they came from, but these little oysters sitting in the can they came from are too cute to be true!
Nothing tastes quite like a fresh, raw, unadulterated sea urchin with the top cut off, but if I can’t have that (which is only available in China), I’ll take the sandwich version. Outrageously orange urchin sumptuously smeared across two slices of toasted bread makes for a warm, gooey, so-rich-you-can-barely-handle-it meal. The tendency to be slimy is a texture tempered by lightly bitter grainy balls of mustard seed. There is truly no equivalent to the Uni Bocadilla, so if you’re an adventurous eater and shelled invertebrates don’t make you squirm, take a taste. Not to overhype, but it’s kinda awesome. Like really awesome…Like you need to try it….Like now…
A high-end version of meat-and-potatoes-married-beef-stew, the fatty-fine Costilla a la Cazadora sits atop a smear of mashed potatoes accompanied by a few sweet carrots. The short rib on the current menu has changed, probably because this one was not as exceptional as some of the other offerings, but the meat is irreproachably prepared so whatever it is now, your should probably give it a chance.
I regret that I don’t remember the name of the Mussels, but that tells you just how memorable it was. That’s probably why it’s not currently on the menu. The sauce was delicious, the flavors were chummy with chorizo, and it really hits the spot for the mussels-starved. Otherwise, there are other dishes that command your more urgent attention.
Red is one of my favorite colors to wear. It’s also one of my favorite colors to eat. It is the color of a healthy, fresh Atun Crudo. I would have wanted a little more sea salt on this otherwise standard-stellar snack, but the cucumbers also made for a noteworthy tasty topper.
I expected a mouthful of muscular-hard heart when I bit into the Corazon, but good food doesn’t make you work for it. This heart is shaved paper-thin on toast so you can masterfully masticate each smoky, crunch bite. The romesco added a nice rich element of its own. Exquisite, like all things at Toro.
When I move out next year, onto a new chapter of hell called intern year, I’m pretty sure it won’t be at BMC. I’ll miss Toro almost as much as I’ll miss Kendra – good food is hard but not impossible to replace, but there are no approximations for good friends. Besides, if Kendra learns to cook, I won’t even need restaurants…though I think I’ll still need Toro.
Nearly one year and over 60 restaurants later, Toro holds its place as my favorite restaurant in all of Boston. The Maiz Asado is firmly anchored in my heart and the duck drummettes aren’t walking away anytime soon. The salty squares of Tortilla Espanola are my rock, and I’m losing the Jamon Serrano to the chopping block, NOT The Gallows. So order what you want, eat what you like, but take my advice with a grain of sea salt on a Pimiento del Padron. Get in line for Toro, I’ll meet you there.
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