How to spend more on one meal than on 2 pairs of shoes, a blazer, two sweaters and 4 shirts - and enjoy it.

As we continue our culinary escapade I can't help but reflect how "off" Garcon must have been the other night if it was truly supposed to be the top new restaurant in Canada. Last night we dined at Chef Chris MacDonald's Avalon, long hailed as one of Canada's top restaurants. Ironically, our experience comes just on the heels of the announcement that Avalon will be closing on March 18th after an eleven year stint.

The debate I had with my dining companion was whether Avalon was better than Le Club Chasse et Peche (see the entry for Feb 12th) - the conclusion, after much deliberation, was "yes" - but it was very, very close.

There was, perhaps, just a touch more risk-taking in the menu - at least in the appetizers that were offered; and maybe... just maybe, the pairings in the dishes themselves - the fact that I received a complete dish - the partnerships selected by the Chef - and I didn't have to order an "antler" of vegetables. But I'm really stretching things here to find cause.

The service at Chasse et Peche was excellent - our hosts were particularly well attended to by the waitress; but it was nice to be the personal recipient at Avalon. One of the things I think is so important in a server is the ability to put guests at ease. Believe it or not I think it can be a little intimidating to walk into a fine restaurant - and having dined in a Michelin 3-star joint where all evening I felt I was going to be clipped across the head by one of my attendants for having chosen the wrong fork, I know what intimidating can be like. But our waiter at Avalon was terrific - he knew exactly how to put us at ease - gradually building a relationship with us over the course of the evening so we didn't fell like we were poor cousin's at the Queen's table. His timing was perfect and his attention to detail unfaulted.

We had a wonderful table, right beside what I could only describe as a closed-over well, in which rested an assortment of candles - effectively our own private fireplace.

After spending quite some time studying the menu I chose to start the evening with Wood-Grilled Sardines, accompanied by an Olive and Fennel Salad. I think sardines is a risky thing to put on a menu. But these were amazing. Three whole sardines were presented to me, the skin char-grilled so that it was perfectly crisp while leaving the meat flaky and tender. The accompanying Fennel Salad with olives had just a hint of olive taste to it - almost indistinguishable so it didn't overpower the more subtle fennel. The pairing was wonderful. Although not a fish lover, my dining companion, who was tackling a Trilogy of Salumi (yes, the plural of salami), each one resting atop a particular and unique vegetable, was forced to look at me so as not to cast glances at the three skeletons that gradually took shape on my plate.

Because we had such diverging appetizers, I left the wine selection to our waiter who selected a different glass of white wine for each us - mine was a Vincennes white burgundy. I think he picked very well and I was glad that I made the gesture for him to select the wine, acknowledging that this is an area in which I have a lot to learn.

Moving on to my entree I ordered what the menu described as Slighty Smoked Duck Breast with a Black Current Sauce, and Potatoes Anna with Cipollini onions, and Rappini. The duck breast was smoked just enough to take the richness out of the the meat - the almost tannin taste which I think sometimes makes duck taste a little too raw. The black current sauce was wonderfully rich, yet not too sweet as an accompaniment for the duck.

With our meal we enjoyed a 2003 Pinot Noir from Marlborough - again the waiters selection when my first choice turned out to be unavailable - to all those Sideways groupies out there, I apologize - I am a fan of Pinots.

Passing up desert my dining companion and I opted for a cheese plate to accompany the last of our red wine. Avalon offers a fascinating selection of cheeses - as someone who will probably die from the effects of all of the cheeses in which I indulge, I have only ever sampled two of the 10 on offer. We settled for a selection of 4 cheeses - none of which I had tried before:

• a Tete de Moine - this is a Swiss cheese and was shaved using a girolles, giving it almost a mushrooming effect, which apparently releases its aromas and flavors;
• a Cantal - a semi-hard cow's milk cheese from France;
• an Idiazabel - a semi-hard rustic Spanish cheese that is quite mild; and,
• a Cabrales - an amazingly complex blue cheese from spain - I think this is one of the strongest, and most complex blue cheeses I have experienced, made from ewe's milk, goats milk and cows milk.

We topped the evening with two espresso's and were offered some complementary sweets to accompany the coffee - a small lemon drop shortbread, a wafer with Lavender, a semi-sweet chocolate truffle and a soft caramel-type confection.

Now a final note on Avalon; the washrooms. Montreal takes washrooms very seriously and makes them part of the experience. In both of the Montreal restaurants where we dined the washrooms were interesting; obvious care had been taken in selection of the fixtures and the attention to detail - the use of individual terry towlets, as an example, reflected this consideration. Our experience in Avalon could not have been more different. Clearly, if Avalon is any indication, fine restaurants in Toronto consider washrooms an afterthought. Avalon's had little more to distinguish it than the typical men's lavatory in an office building. This is a shame - it's likely that every guest in a restaurant, male or female, will visit the washroom at least once through the course of an evening. And in my opinion you should feel like you're continuing with the entire experience of the evening, not like you've stepped outside for a brief intermission and pit stop. Avalon, and more importantly Chris MacDonald, has something to learn in this department.

As we continue with our culinary escapade I reflect on this experience at Avalon and our earlier adventure at Le Club Chasse et Peche in Montreal and I can't help but think of the story of two brothers - one is hard working, diligent and boring - the other is that drunken womenizer that no one likes to talk about but everyone secretly admits that he knows how to live. That to me is the distinctiveness of Toronto and Montreal. Both Le Club Chasse et Peche and Avalon were fantastic experiences - the food in each was wonderful, the edge maybe going to Avalon, along with the service - although both points are debateable; but the atmosphere of Chase et Peche was less constrained than that of Avalon - a little more relaxed. And you'll notice how I'm choosing to ignore Garcon. And all for the same price.