At Chantecler, the charmingly creative Parkdale eatery, chef-owner Jonathan Poon puts his unique spin on Asian cuisine. Swing music bops overhead while diners share eats from the tightly curated menu. The city's favourite green (yes, kale) is tossed with king oyster ’shrooms, nori and neat batons of apple; scallops sit in a pool of soy sauce, jazzed up with ginger and kumquat. And it would be silly not to indulge in the lettuce meal, whereby one crafts their own pockets of lettuce, stuffed with steamed rice, braised beef and house kimchi.        

But, it's not all about the food; the cocktails deserve some love too. With the Tai One On ($13), co-owner Jacob Wharton-Shukster pulls from the flavour pool of Thai cuisine while riffing on the classic Mai Tai. Havana Club’s Anejo Blanco tequila is paired with the label’s Reserva, then shaken with fresh lime juice and their homemade peanut — as opposed to almond — orgeat. “I thought it would be fun to do a different take,” says Wharton-Shukster. The cocktail is finished with a flaming lime caramelized with overproof rum.

Squeeze and drink up — after the fire has subsided, that is.

Chantecler, 1320 Queen St. W., 416-628-3586

Karolyne Ellacott is a features editor at Post City Magazines. She pedals around town in heels, eating sandwiches and drinking cocktails. She writes about that, and about other stuff too. She is also on Twitter.