It's a blistering hot day. Really sunny, but really humid and muggy too. The weather is absolutely disgusting. What better way to forget about the crap that Mother Nature is dishing out than to enjoy a nice light meal in a climate-controlled restaurant.

Alright, so perhaps that wasn't the smoothest opening, but that's pretty much how lunch started at Sintra. We were running a little bit late and the traffic sorta got in the way, but eventually we got there and had a pretty good experience. Let me just say that the food itself was quite good. Unfortunately, no part of it actually tasted like authentic Portugese food. Basically, not a very memorable meal.

The lunch menu ($10 prix fixe) consisted of the following:

Choice of:

Salada Mista

• Garden Salad of Mesclun Mix, Tomato, Cucumber, Red Onion and Grapeseed Oil Vinaigrette

Sopa do Merchado

• Market Soup prepared Daily

Choice of:

Filete de Linguado

• Crusted Filet of Sole with Roasted Mini Potatoes and Vegetables, topped with a Red Pepper Aioli

Bitoque

• Grilled 6 oz Striploin Steak topped with Piri Piri Sauce, Served with Frites & Seasonal Vegetables

Choice of:

Pudim Flan

• A baked Caramelized Custard with Caramel Sauce

Natas do Céu

• A Martini Glass layered with a sweet Cream and Egg foam and Biscuit Crumbs topped with a rich Egg Custard and Toasted Almond Flakes

As it happened, both my lunch companion and I opted to each get something different, so we were able to have a taste for each selection. Being that I am writing this almost a week and half later, I must admit that I don't quite remember much about the aromas or the tastes. The salad, I remember, was light and fresh, but they really skimped on the Grapessed Oil Vinaigrette. Truth be told, the steak I ordered tasted quite good, however, it did not taste at all different from a grilled steak that I could've gotten anywhere else. This mysterious Piri Piri sauce that I was quite eager to try was either too subtle for my tastebuds or it never made an apperance. On the up side, I found the frites to be crispy and tastey and the vegetables to be tender and sweet. And this says a lot since I generally do not like frites.

Most importantly was the sweet stuff. I drank a carbonated, Brazillain passion fruit juice (the waitress told me what it was called, but I forgot) with my meal and I ordered the Natas do Céu for dessert. Let me tell you, these two things were heaven. The juice wasn't too sweet and had the deep rich flavour of passion fruit. I could do without the carbonation, but regardless of that, the drink was very good. Aided beautifully in pallet cleaning. The dessert, though seemingly sinful, was actually very light. Sweet cream, egg foam, and rich egg custard all point in the direction of south midsection. Reading the description of Natas do Céu alone made me gain 5 lbs. However, one mouthful of this made my tastebuds believe (if not my stomach) that it was light enough to make me float away. Who'd have thought that something so high in protein and fat could be so light. Another thing to note was that this dessert helped me rediscover the wonders of toasted almonds. It tasted so good, that I was itching to get home and make some toasted almond muffins (but I didn't because it was just way too hot to justify turning on the oven in my house).

Service was quite good. The staff were attentive and cheerful and they didn't hover over you either. I did not pay too much attention to decor, but from what I remember, although it looked nice, it also didn't really look special or stand out in any way. Then again, to be fair, I didn't check it out thoroughly like I usually do. An added bonus to this place was that they gave both me and my lunch companion each a $20 gift certificate to come back and try their regular menu. I thought that was very cool. But it is important to note the fine print which says "one coupon per table and for bills over $80". I'm not sure if I'll be returning anytime soon, but the fact that they did this was a very nice gesture.

All in all, I must say that though the meal was good, and definitely a bargin, I felt that it failed me in the authenticity department. I didn't feel like I was in Portugal enjoying a nice lunch. I just felt like I was in a fancy restaurant in Toronto.

Final rating is:

Service
Ambiance
Food

Their website is: http://www.toronto.com/sintra/