Review: Pine Point Grill - Sublime Dining

By Don Taylor


When we want a really great meal, we go to the Pine Point Grille in Scarborough. I think it is the best restaurant I've ever been to that doesn't have tablecloths. The food is elevated, I'd even say gourmet, and the service is impeccable.

We had two reasons for going to the Pine Point Grille. First, my wife's birthday was last March. She wanted to go there for her birthday, but they hadn't opened for the season yet. Our going kept getting put off and I needed to make good on my promise to her.  Second, we had an out of town guest that we wanted to take to dinner. The Pine Point Grille seemed to be the perfect place to do both.

We arrived early -- opening time, which is at 5 PM. and ordered drinks. We took our time with the menu. I'm a native of Minnesota, where "Tater Tot hot dish" is a staple. I was amazed reading about how the Pine Point Grill was elevating the humble Tater Tot ® to gourmet status with truffle ketchup, black garlic aioli, and Romano. It sounded so delicious -- I had to have it. I also ordered a Pine Point Burger with bacon and sautéed onions and French fries. My wife and our guest ordered the ribeye with black garlic mashed, succotash, and a demi-glaze.

Tater Tots at the Pine Point Grill
Photo by Don Taylor
In a few minutes, the Tater Tots arrived. They looked beautiful and tasted fantastic - perfect crunch on the outside and creamy potato inside. The truffle ketchup was excellent, not at all overpowering. The black garlic aioli was sublime. I learned from our wait person that the chef made the black garlic over the course of several weeks. Well, his or her efforts produce an amazing result. The gentle sweetness and rich flavor of the aioli is just what an elevated Tater Tot needs.  Wow.

My burger and my companion's ribeye's arrived. The burger was cooked exactly as I desired. It was flavorful and juicy without making a greasy mess.  The bacon was perfectly crisp. It was definitely the best burger I've had in quite a while. The accompanying French fries were excellent as well. Nice crispy outside and creamy inside.

Ribeye with black garlic mashed potatoes and
Succotash. Photo by Don Taylor
My wife's ribeye was cooked perfectly -- medium rare exactly as she asked. A great job with a great cut of meat. The use of the black garlic in the mashed potatoes made the potatoes unique and incredibly delicious. Finally, the succotash was apparently made from fresh ingredients and complemented the meal perfectly.

I'm looking forward to our next visit to the Pine Point Grill. I'm not a big fan of Brussels sprouts, but the order I saw go by to another table looked really delicious.

Rating: 4.6

  • Ambiance: 4 (Clean and open, good for conversations.)
  • Food: 5 (Everything was amazingly delicious.)
  • Service: 5 (Staff was friendly and extremely attentive.)
  • Price: 4 (Dinner about $25, not including drinks. )
  • Value: 5 (I don’t know of many places better.)

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