Mis Trucos

The BFF and I popped by Mis Trucos in the sweet days of Summer to have a late evening meal. Instantly I loved the space, in a bright converted home tucked just back from Davie street — the interior felt very European and minimal, but was inviting. We opted for the 5 course tasting menu and were not disappointed. From the lush, earthy tones of a truffle risotto to a wonderful «tomato served three ways» salad presentation we were thrilled. The fish and meat courses were also delicious. The portions were small, but by the time we had eaten our dessert we definitely felt full, and at 35 dollars per person it felt like a good value.
The service was a little sporadic, yes, but friendly. I will definitely be back next Summer (it just seems like a Summer spot!) to hopefully add another star.

Not a big menu**
As a matter if fact, it was so limited, we almost left.
But decided to try something…
Ordered the sangria which was decent, but lacked fruit.
(it only had an orange peel in it)
I tried to find a combination plate that I would like, and couldn’t so I let my bf order.
We got the 6 little bites, which of the 6 I could only eat 2.
We also got the charcuterie adventure. It was ok — it had ham, bread, crackers, a tiny bit of pickles, and cheese (that’s the only thing i could eat) there was also pâté, some jelly, and whatever else there was I did not partake in.
For the price (which was over 60 $) we left hungry and unsatisfied.
We sat outside on the patio as it was a nice evening. The waitress was pleasant, but everything (except the prices) felt very cheap. Menu
’s were print outs on cheap paper, and the bill was put in a glass.
When we left, the server didn’t seem to friendly (even after a decent tip)
I won’t be back — I would rather go to Salt tasting room or La Bodega any day!
** so after i wrote this, I check the other reviews and notice that other people mentioned food that was not on the menu we were given.
So I check the website and what do you know? The menu was nothing like the slim pickings we were offered! Not sure if this was due to the fact we came in the evening (around 9) if this was the case– then I think the server should of told us that the menu was limited, the full menu was not available. Further disappointment! The menu on the website looked way WAY better!

I was a bit hesitant to come back here after Crystal H’s last elite event because the reviews started going downhill. But I’m glad they were proved wrong. I came with a good friend who also went to the Elite event and we had the Living Social coupon for the 6 course set menu. They were very accommodating toward my fish allergy, which made me glad.
Everything on the six course tasting menu that I had (and that my friend had – she had more fish items in hers) was amazing! My favorite was the elk carpaccio. I never ate carpaccio before so I was a bit skeptical, but it was amazing! It came with some sauces, greens, and almonds around it. I’m not sure what all of that was now (it was explained to me at the table), but I just remember it was an mind-​blowing explosion of flavours and textures in my mouth.
Other highlights that were also delish: shaved fennel salad with parmigiano and almonds, truffle chicken breast with quinoa, warm farro salad with all sorts of yumminess in it, gazpacho, chocolate mousse w/​caramel sauce and honey comb on top. My friend’s menu consisted also of salmon tartare and a steelhead trout dish instead of the fennel salad and farro salad.
On top of all that, the service was pretty good. The only hiccup was one of our servers (we had a few) didn’t know what he brought out for me (the farro salad…) and he didn’t go back to ask and let me know. So I asked what it was on my way out. The other two servers were really nice and informative.
I would totally come back here for more tapas.

I have been to Mis Truscos maybe 4 or 5 times and typically it was pretty good worthy of 3 to 4 stars but always lacking a bit of polish. Food has been the highlight which is why I went back 4 or 5 times — not specifically because of the friendly efficient service or stylish décor. The cocktails and the Sangria were also not bad.
However, a Saturday a few weeks ago was literally one of the worst dining experiences I have had in many years. 3.5 hours for dinner (we arrived BEFORE the rush at 7:45pm and left at 11:15pm) to have a 6 course ‘small plate’ menu and two drinks. It was over 1.5 hours with only two cocktails before I asked them when the food would be arriving (We ordered the 6 course menu within 15 mins of arriving). The first course (+/​-​2 oz shot glass full of cold Gazpacho) arrived about 20 minutes later. By then we had only had 2 drinks, NO BREAD and virtually no attention for 2 hours. The second course arrived shortly after the Gazpacho. This was only after ‘emphatically’ telling them we were unhappy and this was totally unacceptable at about the 1.5 hour mark.
Recapping — finally after 2 hours, forgetting the second cocktail and having to remind her (and also tell her which cocktail we ordered), telling them «where is the food?» and two small courses arriving and having to ask for bread … there was yet another pause. After getting the waitress over yet again, they said our 3^rd course went to the wrong table. She blamed the kitchen. Was that the kitchen’s fault? They only brought bread out after we ‘asked for it’ after the 2-​hour mark. I guess that was because they were baking the bread and churning the butter? They should have told us that. It would have at least entertained us and made us laugh.
Overall it was a complete service disaster. And to make matters worse the fix: Give us a hand written $ 30 credit to our ‘NEXT’ meal on a $ 160 bill and charge us for the second drink she said was «on her» after she forgot it the first time. I had to remind her that she said the second drink was «on her» and have the bill changed. She kept going on and on about this never happens at the same time she continued to make matters worse by not fixing the problems as they went along.
The service was non-​existent, delusional, didn’t fix the problem, didn’t even bring bread out to a table that had been sitting for 2 hours without food or even a «sorry we are behind and it will be right out» explanation. And after all that, a $ 30 credit to our next meal and a corrected free drink that she gave us because she forgot our second drink order? Sorry none of that was the kitchen’s fault. She did bring out a glass of sherry too without asking us if we wanted it. However, we had already almost finished our dessert by then. Timing yet again was a bit late.
Total mess, lack of supervision and not even worthy of a drive-​by let alone using up a $ 30 credit for the next $ 160 meal. I suspect after looking around we weren’t the only ones suffering that night. The only good news (if there was any) was the food that actually did arrive was quite good but it was way too late for a save in more ways than one. Maybe next time I will just eat in the kitchen and avoid the service interruption.

Like many, I had a coupon for the 6 course dinner…
The food itself, for the most part, was extremely tasty and very good quality. It was unfortunate that the portions, even for a «taster», were teeny tiny. The 60 degree egg thing was very good, as was the steak. The scallop was tender and sweet.
The service… well…terrible. Slow. Awkward. Tummy rumblingly frustrating. It was a hockey play-​off night so only 3 tables were occupied but we waited, and waited, got something, then waited and waited… Almost 2 hours from start to finish for 6 morsels of food.
Good food can be had in many places in this city. Good food and good service is also easy to find (thanks Unilocal!). Good food and cruddy service deserves to whither on the vine.

We walk up davie often, and somehow never noticed this place before! We popped in for the first time the other night about an hour before the kitchen closed.
Décor was as simple as it gets; ikea-​modern, bare, and colorless. This is a house transformed into a restaurant, which lends to a comfortable vibe.
I had no idea what to expect, but all the food was good; and all flavors and textures were put together in a sensible way. we tried a little of everything, and my favorite was the Foie Gras Mousse.
Overall I would rank Mis Trucos as a good casual date location. We hung around for an extra hour because the feel and music were both jiving with us, and convo just kept flowing!

Who works here? Who owns this place?
We decided to find a good tapas bar for some sangria and some plates. We searched a little bit and found Mis Trucos. I was pretty excited. We walked on down to Davie St. and looked for the place. Little did we know, we were missing the restaurant’s sign! We felt pretty stupid for missing something so obvious. We went up the stairs and waited around for a good 3 – 4 minutes before someone came out of the kitchen and greeted us. Hey, it was pretty slow, so no big deal. But, I kid you not, we didn’t receive one smile from anyone. The service staff was very non chalant about everything and kind of acted like they didn’t care. So, I took a look around the place and no one else was smiling either! What a bummer.
We got around to ordering the pitcher of Sangria and ordered the family style crispy bread wrapped prawn, polenta fries, seared scallop with tomato fondue and crispy pancetta and a couple of other small plates. The food quality was over the top good. The portions were tapas size… I don’t ever recommend hungry people coming here and ordering what we did. But, that wasn’t what were there for so everything was great.
The place is a bit pricey… I’m glad we came here but I don’t really feel like paying for sub par service in an awfully odd room just for good tapas. The owner should conduct some training on how to make people feel like they should enjoy spending money here.

As promised gave Ms Trucos the second chance. And quite promptly it was huge swing and a miss — STRIKE TWO!
Yes the food was good in fact pretty good — Thumbs up for the crispy shrimp, pollenta fries, flat bread and the potatoes.
However, the service was beyond horrible. Here I do not blame the lone waiteress/​bar tender/​hostess/​cashier but the smart management who in their infinite wisdom decides to schedule one person. KUDOS
I took her 20 minutes to take our drink order and then things just got progressively worse… we waited 30 minutes to get our bill. The tables around us (yes its a one of those cute small intimate restaurants) were also bitching and moaning about the service.
Again in a town and neighborhood that offers so many decent options not sure why I will feel the urge to return.

I booked reservations for Mis Trucos because I had a coupon that was about to expire, my intention was to go for Sangria and dessert after a dinner at home.
I learned very shortly after arriving that Mis Trucos doesn’t actually sell dessert and they were out of white wine! So I made the best of it and ordered red wine Sangria, Palenta fries and another option (which I was too full to eat and will sit in my fridge until lunch tommorow) The Palenta fries and white cheese sauce was really great but very pricey, for $ 6 a pop you only get a total of 6 Palenta fries!
I was very pleased to learn the red wine Sangria would not dissapoint! It was a fabulous blend of red wine, fruit juice and bubbles (mmm bubbles!)…could have used more fruit but it was so good I will forgive that!
The environment was very basic but modern, the service wasn’t the best but customer service these days just isn’t what it used to be! It took about 5 minutes before anyone offered us a drink, we had already decided everything we were having because they took so long! This would be ok if there was more that 8 people in their but this waitress was only waiting on 4 other people and she wasn’t helping them while we waited. The waitresses are friendly but very quiet which is a little unwelcoming.
I would go back for Sangria but otherwise I could take it or leave it!

Just what the doctor ordered.
After a busy weekend the bf and I decided to kick back at this lovely little house-​to-​resto renno. Cozy, low-​lit, with tasteful use of whites. I totally unwound… and let out my inner grade 8 self by writing Ty a note on the chalkboard in the bathroom. Awesome.
The food was great. We shared the tapas (the prawns and the polenta fries were favourites) and loved everything except for the Ragu bowl… I wish their website was working because I’m sure I’m bastardizing the names of these dishes. The atmosphere is so perfect, that along with the food, I’d say it’s perhaps my favourite date place: unpretentious, cozy enough to feel casual, while modern enough to be special.
Mmm. So relaxing and wonderful. Like a spa for your mouth! Haha… oh…
Oh and another highlight? Best music ever!

Overall, loved the food here. Yay for tapas = trying more dishes. I thought the seared scallops, bread-​wrapped prawns, tortilla, and cod were amazing. The spinach & chickpeas were disappointing, though. I was expecting it to taste like the espinacas con garbanzos from Spain, but the seasoning reminded me more of beans you’d eat with BBQ.
Service was good at first, but as the place got full, I think the waitresses (who also were managing the bar) were overwhelmed. It took a really, really long time for us to flag someone down to give us our check.

OK, I don’t know — I’m still wavering between a 3&4 star.
Some things they do very well — the prawns literally wrapped in crispy bread are delicious and very reasonably priced at $ 2.50 each.
The lobster truffle risotto — one of the best risotto’s in the city, but the portion is sooooooo small. I’d still go back for it though.
The sangria is awesome — loved the slice of peach in the white sangria.
What didn’t work for me:
The other tapas — scallop ceviche with basil and orange, it was meh
Chorizo omelette — also nothing special
Foie gras mousse with sweet onion confit and a cornichon — not bad, but it tasted like chicken liver.
The roast pork was really fatty. It barely had any edible parts. The gnocchi were not bad, served with peaches.

Dropped in last night for dinner. Very unique setup; quaint little inside dining room with only a few tables, very nice patio outback, unfortunaltey none of the heaters were working, we chose to bare the cold regardless.
Started with the arugala and farro salads, the arugala salad was nice, simple, but far too much balsamic. The farro salad was small but hearty, it had candied lemons that were a surprising flavor explosion. Then tried a few of the tapas, the crispy bread wrapped prawns were awesome, the foie gras crostinis were very tasty, the scallop ceviche was texturally amazing, but had very litle flavor and the octopus sous vide salad was a nice start.
For mains, tried the sous vide salmon with mushrooms — hands down the best piece of cooked fish I have had in my entire life. Done with a delicious mix of fresh mushrooms, awesome dish! Also tried the lobster rissotto, how can you say no? It was so rich and creamy, with quite a few pieces of velvety lobster meat. Both mains were spectacular and well worth the money, I think $ 13 and $ 17 respectively. I really wanted to try the suckling pig, but I suppose that will have to wait.
I think this is a great little hidden gem on davie, I have been walking by it for years and am glad I finally tried it. Check out the patio sometime, you will not be dissapointed!

You come here to sit outside. I have seen the inside, and since it seems like it used to be a house before turning into a restaurant, I haven’t had any great desire to eat ‘in’.
The patio however, is the perfect place to drink their sangria pitchers. It’s an all wood deck with two levels, sun umbrellas and a nice ‘I feel like I could be on vacation anywhere’ vibe.
The food and drinks aren’t cheep, but a couple tapas with some drinks is an awesome way to start the evening.

I showed up at Mis Trucos for a late dinner recently, and it was so warm inside I was sweating just standing there waiting for them to set up a table on the patio. The patio area is really small, but it wasn’t that crowded so we a comfortable seat. Be warned, we got a few mosquito bites while sitting out there!
As much as I wanted to try their sangria, I was more hungry than thirsty, so started off with the scallop cerviche. The scallops were sliced really thin so it’s hard to taste their sweet flavour, but the dish overall was very well put together.
Next up we had the salmon with wild mushrooms. The salmon was perfectly cooked and so moist. The cream sauce was devine! When no one was looking, I may have just drank from the bowl since I didn’t have a spoon to finish it off!
The flank steak was a fantastic dish, it was tender and mixed with the right amount of balsamic vinegar & cherries to produce a great blend of tartness! It was so good, and the portion size for this plate was a great deal!
We ended things off with the panna cotta. Perhaps I haven’t had panna cotta enough, but I was surprised when this one was quite runny (almost more of a pudding). It mixed well with a layer of sweetened pear cubes and praline (hazelnuts? I don’t remember). My favourite dish of the night!
Overall the place is fantastic. I’m glad I gave it a try, though if they bring in some fans I’d love to sit inside instead next time.
One thing to note is that their menu changes often. I was looking forward to trying the lamb ravioli listed on their website, but it was nowhere to be found on the menu. The suckling pig that everyone mentioned was not on my menu either.

Food: 4 stars
Service: 2 stars
After hearing so many good things about Mis Trucos on Unilocal,we just had to check out this place for ourselves.
We were seated on the cute patio, that I was surprised to discover existed on the rear of the building, and started things off with a pitcher of the sangria we had heard so much about. When our server poured a large portion of our sangria onto the floor in a vain attempt to fill our glasses, I started to have uneasy feelings about what to expect the rest of the meal.
Dinner continued uneventfully until we were asked to move tables halfway through are meal so they could put together a table of four. We were relocated to an awkward table on the lower level where the waitress had to squeeze in between us to take the other table’s order, and I had to get up in order to let the guests beside us out from their seats. We put up with this inconvenience as we were looking forward to our desert that was promised to us for free by the server who asked us to change table. That never happened, turns out they charged us for desert after all.
The food however was pretty amazing. We sampled a good portion of the menu and were quite pleased with almost everything we ate. They only minor disappointment was the Charcuterie plate which didn’t have much of a selection of items. The White truffle & lobster risotto was unbelievable, and the Qualicum scallops were just as exquisite. Portion sizes were a bit on the smaller side, but I guess that is too be expected from tapas, and we ordered more then enough to fill our stomachs.
Our less-​then-​great service continued as we finished up our meal. The waitress seemed to be more concerned with flipping the table and getting us out of the place, then with actually taking our order as we were contemplating ordering a couple of more things. However after the somewhat dismissive attitude we were receiving we decided to shuffle off and head for a more receiving atmosphere.
Overall the food was fantastic but the service really made for a lack-​luster experience. We’ll give Mis Trucos another try, and hopefully then the service will be on par with the food.

Seriously really loving this place. Been here too many times within the last month.
What better place to have my birthday dinner than here?
I made reservations, and we were able to get a seat on the patio. I like their patio because it’s secluded from the rest of Davie Street, and it has that backyard patio feel that I enjoy.
Started off with a pitcher of sangria. Their sangria is quite delicious here, and they don’t mix it with too much ice like other places do.
Because we had a larger group, we were able to sample a lot of items on their menu.
Highlights include:
Albacore tuna «cannelloni» with morroccan couscous: this was a cannelloni made with albacore tuna, with a tomato couscous filling. Interesting flavour.
Cocac (catalan flatbread) with tomato and goat cheese. Simple ingredients, but yummy.
White truffle + lobster risotto, herbed crème fraîche. Really enjoyed this dish. Flavour was great, cooked to the perfect consistency. Small tiny pieces of lobster though.
Tuna tartare with quail eggs, on a toasted brioche slice. Delicious delicious! I could keep eating these, just like the gulf prawns wrapped with the toast.
Scallop Ceviche: pieces of fresh scallop… simple, and fresh.
Spit roast suckling pig with stuffing and polenta fries. Everyone enjoyed this dish. The pig was tender and flavourful, and I really liked their polenta fries! They should make the fries a regular menu item.
Gnocchi. Fresh homemade… tasty.
Perfect warm summer weather, patio, sangria, delicious share food and good friends at Mis Trucos=good times!

The sandwich board outside promised «best sangria in the city» and they weren’t lying. It was pretty delicious! No cola used in theirs.
Tuna tartare with quail egg was delicious. Probably the best dish I tried. One of the specials was a melon and seafood salad with prosciutto. Mild flavour but pertty good. Then, suckling pig stuffed with pork shoulder and some bacon bits on top. It was a pork on pork on pork fest. The suckling pig was kind of dry but the stuffing and real bacon bits on top were delicious. They get naturally raised pork from a local source that they butcher themselves.
The Pannacotta dessert with hazelnut praline was a nice way to end it all.
Overall, very good. –1 star for the dried out suckling pig. Also, I suggest eating outside, it’s way nicer than inside. When it got chilly we took a seat on the beat up leather couches at the $ 10 Ikea coffee table to see a swarm of 5 flies buzzing above the people across from us. Great spot for a warm summer evening on the patio.
Overall very delicious. If you come here you must get the sangria and the tuna tartare with quail egg.

* Solid reasonably priced tapas bar *
I love small neighbourhood places like this. The kind that you can easily miss if you don’t climb the stairs that look like a private staircase, and walk through the door that hides this little restaurant from the outside.
From the outside you wouldn’t know that the staircase and very plain looking door hide the work of a chef that has worked at spots like Chez Bruce in London and Brontë in Montréal.
Some of the highlights of the meal included:
— Wild gulf prawns wrapped in crispy bread. This was a very playful version of breaded shrimp (quite literally). They wrapped nice sized prawns in a paper thin slice of bread and then quickly deep fried it. It is served in a little cup with a nice strong alioli. Everything came together nicely on this one.
— Pine-​nut, raisin, spinach, and Parmesan dip. This is served baked with a side of crostini to spread the dip on. The raisins added a very interesting sweetness note to the classic flavours. A very satisfying twist.
— A green salad that had some nice twists like pickled raspberries and crispy shaved parsnip.
— A braised short-​rib housemade gnocchi. The gnocchi were quite a bit larger than I am used to, and this dish had a slightly heavy hand with the vinegar. But the generous serving of meat was perfectly tender, and it overall was a very good dish.
— A warm chocolate cake served with espresso ice cream. A classic, yet very well executed.
Dinner for 2 with drinks was very reasonable — around $ 60.
Overall a lovely reasonably priced little neighbourhood spot with high quality execution and a nice vibe.

My friend and I went to Mis Trucos last night for dinner, and I can say it was one of the most wonderful dining experiences I have had in a while. The service was impeccable — attentive, knowledgeable and friendly, and the food! The food was divine.
We started off with one of the daily specials (a snapper carpaccio), and shared a selection of equally delightful dishes. all of which were well thought-​out and beautifully presented in an effortless fashion.
The restaurant itself looks like it used to be an old house. The main indoor dining area is cozy, relaxed and warm. Since the weather was so great, we sat outside on the patio.
Highly recommend this new West End gem.