Review - Toronto Star
Saturday, February 14, 2004

Suggestive menus stimulate all appetites The cocktail names are far more tasteful at the new Laide Lounge (138 Adelaide St. E. at Jarvis St., 416-850-2726), a sex-themed bar/restaurant. Actually, the lounge as a whole is tasteful and non-threatening despite its naughty intentions. Plaster nude reliefs line the entranceway. Inside, there’s a stripper’s pole for the more athletically inclined/inebriated patrons to use; one trick gets you a free drink. And if you thought your grandparents didn’t have any fun, check out the vintage porn screened on the wall. (They did that in the `30s?) The food is sexy enough. Braised short ribs are stuffed into ravioli and lacquered with intense jus ($12). Chèvre is crumbled atop a mellow onion galette ($8). The menu was designed by talented chef Sam Gassira, now between gigs at Focaccia and the new Bloom opening in Bloor West Village. He’s training an apprentice to take over. But it’s the drinks that fuel the fun. Sure, there’s a French Kiss (sweet and dry vermouth with a lemon twist) and a Brazen Hussy (vodka, Cointreau, apricot brandy and lime) but that’s about as racy as it gets. In this, Laide is like the storied Stork Club, which back in the `40s invented the popular Between The Sheets, a cocktail of brandy, Cointreau, Benedictine and lemon juice. I try Laide’s Wild Weekend ($9), a layered libation of fruity liquors and juices that tastes like a Jolly Rancher candy, in a good way. Instead of mints, the check comes with coloured condoms. If Toronto bars have cottoned on to the sex sells message, restaurants aren’t far behind.