Celebratory Dinner & Drinks at Trattoria Nervosa

Last Friday I went out with some female colleagues to celebrate the recent marriage of one of our friends. We went out to Trattoria Nervosa in Yorkville for a lovely, classic Italian dinner.

Yorkville is one of the swankiest neighbourhoods in Toronto and has a very European feel. It is littered with Italian restaurants but Trattoria Nervosa is easily one of my favourites in the area because of the good food and great atmosphere. So maybe it wasn’t the most appropriate place to start asking our new bride sex-themed ‘Would You Rather’ questions, but hey you gotta do what you gotta do! Since she didn’t have a Bachelorette party, we had to add an element of fun and embarrassment to our evening. ‘Would You Rather’ questions are hilarious and always lead to a good deal of discussion and laughter. It’s funny how certain questions need a lot of hemming and hawing, while others require no second thought at all. Thankfully, this time we were seated on the crowded main floor of the restaurant which is always buzzing so hopefully our vibrant guest of honour shouting “paid for sex” wasn’t too noticed.

A night out at Trattoria Nervosa

A night out at Trattoria Nervosa

I’ve been to Trattoria Nervosa a couple of times before and they are always good at serving me a safe and delicious gluten free meal. They offer gluten free pasta as a substitute and their sauces, like most classic Italian places, are naturally gluten free. As a side note, I always think it so funny that many people assume that Italian restaurants would be one of the worst places for people who have a gluten intolerance, but it is quite the contrary. Since the sauces are naturally gluten free, all that is needed is a separate pot of water to boil your corn/rice/quinoa noodles. Plus most salads, risottos and entrees are naturally gluten free too. They truly are one of the best places for a person with a gluten intolerance (ok, maybe I am slightly biased because of my love of all things Italian). I couldn’t help think of Italy as our waitress perfectly listed off the menu and specials in Italiano. This time I ordered the Bolognese, which was a delicious, hearty combination of veal and beef ragout served with parmigiano. Of course one cannot eat pasta without a glass of vino!

For a bit of sweetness at the end of the evening, everyone ordered dessert. I ate the Crème Brûlée. It was infused with pistachios and had crumbled pistachios at the bottom of it, adding a really nice flavour.

It was a fun evening in honour of a very lovely person. Wishing her and her new husband all the happiness in the world.

Crème Brûlée infused with pistachios

Crème Brûlée infused with pistachios