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.

As for the dinner menu, we can keep it short: All martiniboys that visited Toba throughout the week declared to return for the steak frites. That and the hefty veal chop. The steak is a generous 10oz cut NY striploin dolloped with a tart béarnaise horseradish sauce. The kitchen undercooks slightly, but the cut, juiciness, and temperature was well-executed. Matched with the mild tartness of the sauce make crossing the Yonge Street barrier worth the ride.

Other dinner choices include that tender, and generously sized Veal Chop with stewed peppers. Red meat seems to be the strengths here, as the roasted salmon arrived overdone, and suffered the loss of that distinctive salmon flavour. And the Grilled Chicken on a tomato ratatouille, although no fault of the kitchen, is just chicken.

Brunch lovers are doubly blessed at Toba (the name is either an acronym of Tony’s name, or “beautiful” in Hebrew, you decide). The protein-packed power brunch includes the Hangover Helper (scrambled eggs spiked with black pepper, Pancetta), poached eggs, and, the real kick is a French toast stuffed with, yes, Nuttella (remember that matter?) with a hefty dollop of clotted cream.