Earlier this week I had dinner with T-Bone at aKin, a Michelin-starred restaurant we’d both been meaning to try. It had been a year since our last dinner, which was similarly extravagant.

We ordered cocktails, and were told about the menu. It’s ten courses, and rotates every few months. When we went it was the Lunar New Year menu, described thus on their website:

This Lunar New Year menu at aKin is shaped by Chinese cultural traditions, where food is chosen not only for flavour, but for the meaning it carries. Each course is guided by ingredients traditionally associated with intention, prosperity, balance, and reunion, creating a thoughtful progression through the meal. The menu reflects Lunar New Year as a season rather than a single day of celebration. Familiar ingredients and ideas are presented in new forms, honouring tradition while allowing it to evolve through aKin’s perspective. Course titles reflect the values they represent, offering a dining experience that is both considered and expressive.

Our server, who was peak enthusiastic, also let us know there were two optional courses: a Wagyu dish, and a dan tat. I’m sorry, said we, a what? A dan tat: a Hong Kong-style egg tart. We explained that since my name is Dan and her name is Tat, we kind of had to order that. I honestly can’t remember when in the menu those things came; the night was a blur of food, Champagne, and emotions. Anyway, here’s the menu according to the card they gave us when we left:

• AUSPICIOUS VEGETABLES
  • intelligence: scallion, potato, mascarpone
  • endurance: leek, onion, black truffle
  • diligence: celery, celtuce, preserved plum
  • optimism: heirloom carrot, taro, curry
  • prosperity: fat choy, watercress, coconut
• WEALTH: new brunswick oyster, jellyfish, kaviari kristal caviar
• TREASURE: buddha jumps over the wall, abalone, sea cucumber
• ABUNDANCE: madai, mala spices, sauerkraut
• LONGEVITY: nova scotia lobster, tajarin, stracciatella
• JOY: zabuton, yellow chicken, sambal, purple bok choy
• FULFILLMENT: foie gras, périgord black truffle, wagyu, glutinous rice
• HARMONY: kumquat, winter melon, ron goddess lea, chinese almond
• RADIANCE: black sesame, peanut, mochi, rice wine
• GOOD “FOUR” TUNES
  • niangao: canelé, brown sugar, chantilly
  • yuanbao: pâte de fruits, mandarin, gold
  • tanghulu: macaron, hawtharn, sesame
  • red bean: bon bon, valrhona opalys, adzuki
• DRINKS
  • bottle of Appalonis Champagne
  • glasses of red wine: Carinena for T-Bone, Barbera for me (there were also glasses of red wine with the beef, but for the life of me I can’t remember what it was)
  • dessert-ish: tea for T-Bone, 1983 Grenache Blanc for me

Was it good? Yes. Was it great? Not really. A couple of courses were excellent, but almost as many were left half-eaten on the plate. And considering the cost, suffice it to say this one would be near the bottom of my value-for-money scale. Still, an adventure, and a reason to see an old & dear friend who, it should be said, was soldiering through something quite awful and yet somehow her effervescent self.

A few hugs later we were playing Uber roulette, wondering why nothing at all was coming (I blamed the Leafs, as is my wont) until I snuck in for the win. Getting up at 6 the next morning to drive to the office wasn’t easy, but it was worth it.