Il Fornello- The Danforth
576 Danforth Ave.
Tel. (416) 466-2931
Major intersection: Danforth & Carlaw

Il Fornello- Yonge and St. Clair
1560 Yonge Street
Tel. (416) 920-7347
Major intersection: Yonge & St. Clair

Il Fornello- Bayviw Village
2901 Bayview Ave
Tel. (416) 227-1271
Major intersection: Bayview & Sheppard

Il Fornello- Theatre District
214 King St. West
Tel. (416) 977-2855
Major intersection: King & Simcoe

Il Fornello – Beaches
1968 Queen St. E
Tel. (416) 691-8377
Major Intersection: Queen & Woodbine

Il Fornello- Queen’s Quay Terminal
207 Queen’s Quay West
Tel. (416) 861-1028
Major intersection: Queen’s Quay & York

Il Fornello Bloor West Village
2277 Bloor St. W.
Tel. (416) 761-9222
Major intersection: Bloor & Runnymede

IL FORNELLO *newest location-opening July 2005*
491 Church St

The last time I visited Il Fornello must have been for some sort of celebratory function in junior high school when I was still too young to be treated to a real fancy restaurant. Il Fornello is a chain of faux-fancy restaurants that attempt to mimic the cuisine and ambiance of its contemporaries even though noone is really fooled by these pretensions.

My first visit to Il Fornello since that time was for a brunch party for a good friend. I had heard recent musings that the brunch at this paticular Il Fornello on the Danforth was surprisingly good so my hopes were high. The menu definitely suggested a creative touch to what my pre-conceived notions would have told me was generic, chain food (to view go to : http://www.ilfornello.com/if/menudanforthbrunch.shtml). The array of omelettes was varied and I decided on eggs that came sprinkled with smoked salmon, sour cream and chives with a side dish of mango, spinach salad. The meal was also supposed to include Belgian endives which didn’t come until I pointed out this misstep out to our friendly waitress.

I found my eggs to be dry and compared to my smoked salmon omelette at Eggstasy which came overflowing with sour cream, this one was sorely lacking in that respect. The cookie cutter image of the perfectly cooked omelette didn’t impress me much and reminded me why chain restaurants usually don’t do it for me. Luckily, I was still able to enjoy this average meal due to the great brunch company I dined with.