Oliver & Bonacini

Peter Oliver and Michael Bonacini are the culinary masterminds behind a stellar group of restaurants that began with its now-legendary Jump (a favourite among business tycoons in the Financial District) and has since expanded its operations to include Canoe (perched atop the TD Canada Trust Tower, one of two renowned restaurants in the city—the other is 360 Restaurant at the CN Tower—offering a spectacular view of the Toronto skyline), Biff's Bistro (a modern Parisian eatery by the St. Lawrence Market), and Oliver & Bonacini Café Grill (five locations throughout Ontario).

The partners, also responsible for Soma Chocolatemaker in the Distillery Historic District, recently celebrated the addition of two new establishments with the opening of O&B Canteen, a fresh-market café and bakery, in August, followed a few weeks later by the upscale Luma, situated on the upper level of the TIFF Bell Lightbox—the new home of the Toronto International FIlm Festival and a striking architectural beauty that graces the northwest corner of King and John Streets.

Spinach Salad

At brunch recently at Luma, I ordered the spinach salad with shaved fennel and radicchio, alongside a serving of O&B's very own artisan toast with butter. Sprinkled with pine nuts and dressed in a lemon vinaigrette, the spinach salad would have been just as tasty with half the amount of sodium, but was of a good portion size and a light alternative that left ample room for dessert: warm pear galette with vanilla and ginger ice cream—a danish-like puff pastry that was good but nothing extraordinary.

Warm Pear Galette

I did, however, take quite a liking to the loose-leaf mint tea, which remained at just the right temperature in the handsome clay teapot sitting tastefully in the equally handsome dining room furnished with rich wood, leather and stone interiors, and designed with remarkable floor-to-ceiling views of the theatre strip along King Street West.

Although the menu at Luma is somewhat limited in selection, the quality and freshness of the ingredients, coupled with the exquisite presentation of the dishes, make this venue an ideal meeting place for brunch or dinner prior to catching one of a number of independent films at this swanky five-storey entertainment complex in the heart of downtown Toronto.

Luma is located at: 330 King Street West (John Street)