Bluffer's Restaurant: Gorgeous lake view

Little known to most Torontonians is an urban getaway called Bluffer's Park, located on the waterfront at the bottom of Brimley Road, one kilometre south of Kingston Road. If you stroll through the park you'll see the usual picnickers and BBQers, but with a twist. Because of the enormous mix of cultures here, it's not just hot dogs and steaks, but everything else too. It's a great place to catch a whiff of homemade tandoori chicken, and perhaps Chinese-style souvlaki too.

In the park is also a marina, which happens to house a restaurant with one of the best lake views in town.



Bluffer's Restaurant, along with its downstairs pub Dogfish, is right at the docks, with a patio that that overlooks the marina. Parking is nearby and costs $6, but the restaurant will validate parking so you can get your money back. Parking is good for the entire day, so you can go for a little stroll along the park and the beach after your meal.



Since it's so unknown to Torontonians, when Bluffer's Restaurant opens at 11:00 am there is often nobody on the patio, making for a nice relaxing brunch or lunch. The food isn't haute cuisine by any stretch of the imagination, but it's at least as good and often better than a standard Fisherman's Wharf type tourist family restaurant, without the crowds.

We went there early on a nice clear Sunday to take in the view and sample the menu. The $11.95 crab cakes were very flavourful without being greasy, although the accompanying dipping sauce could use some work. Also $11.95, the calamari appetizer was huge and a meal in itself, with pieces lightly seasoned and cooked to tender perfection, laid over a bed of fresh greens. The $20.95 linguini del mari lunch main dish was again super-sized, with perfectly cooked calamari, mussels, and giant scallops. Its tomato-based sauce was too light on the herbs and spices but was passable, and was not oily at all unlike so many family restaurants. The pasta was cooked appropriately, with just the touch of firmness most prefer. Unfortunately, the chocolate mouse cake I had was quite pedestrian, and tasted like a piece from the $7.99 birthday cake special at the local big box grocery store. The decaf coffee was very good however.

An added bonus of eating on the patio were the begging birdies. The big seagulls stayed away, but once in a while cute little sparrows landed by our feet and sang for little scraps of bread.



Inside, the decor seemed dated, with 1980s style. Similarly, the bathrooms reminded me of any other non-descript family restaurant. Otherwise, much of it is basically a big hall encased in ceiling height windows, and not surprisingly this restaurant is a popular wedding banquet spot.

Overall the food was better than I was expecting, although for the quality it was still too pricey by Toronto standards. However, for many, the view will more than make up for it, as it is one of the most beautiful in the city.