ooking to break the monotony when stuck on King and Sherbourne? Toba is just about the only one of its kind in this neighborhood of furniture, condo showrooms, and George Brown. Prepare yourself for a cute "urban" café filled with a trendy, twenty-something crowd.

Opened by Tony Barone – Bellevue Diner, Mildred Pierce, Ellipses (no relation to that Barone clan - he seems to have a knack for being in the right place, creating the right time. With a few cool things yet to come, King and Sherbourne could be a hot little ticket.

Toba offers a comfortable, chic room with subtle attention given to detail and a brilliant grilled veal chop. The room boasts deluxe digs, with a clean urban feel. The atmosphere is so civilized at Toba, it seduced us as soon as we gained entry.

It seems to be the team behind Toba that give it that extra flavour. They strike that impossible balance between individuality and professionalism. They're candid, knowledgeable, and professional; never snooty or servile. They act, to borrow a word from the self-help manuals, empowered. Could good service really be that simple?

Fellow Bellevue Diner cook Deborah Armstrong is at the stoves at lunch, while Barone mans the evening shift. The summer menu is in place, and on all visits it seemed the specials were the route to go here. A lunch Frittata that seemed dull at first thought, turned out to be a velvety surprise. A delicious take on the burger, The Condo Queen, stuffed with asiago cheese and portobello mushrooms, with a Stracciatella soup (chicken, ditalini Romano, parsley, nutmeg and egg), an overpowering saltiness) and a glass of red, was a steal, clocking in at a mere 20 bucks.