Bliss Restaurant & Bar
5875 Airport Road
Mississauga, ON
905-678-5433 or email bliss.torontoairport@hilton.com

With its faded blue shell, passersby may not know that the Airport Hilton has recently completed phase one of its transformation into a contemporary and innovative space. Although these new changes may appeal to business and leisure travelers, food enthusiasts would be more interested in the new in-house restaurant and lounge. Designed by Cecconi Simone Inc., the open design of Bliss Restaurant & Bar incorporates the warmth of muted earth tones. The addition of personal TVs imbedded into the banquettes and sheer linen dividers help provide a sense of privacy to those who want to escape from their busy surroundings.

To match the new space, Chef William Huang was recruited as Bliss’ Executive Chef to create an equally attractive menu. “The Hilton is a major brand that people know, so we wanted to match the food to the calibre of the new rooms,” explains Huang about the focus behind the new menu. Describing the cuisine as a cosmopolitan take on “East meets West,” Huang notes that the menu is influenced by his Calcutta roots, his Hakka (Chinese) heritage and what he learned cooking with his grandmother at an early age, as well as his 20-years of training in Canadian kitchens under John Cirillo, Andre Walker, Neal Noble and Jason Rosso. Huang, ex- of Sen5es and Tundra Restaurant, exercises the diploma he earned in 2005 as a Certified Chef de Cuisine (the highest level obtainable for chefs in Canada) and spends most of his time directing and training his 25-member team.

In hopes of attracting customers who may be seeking for something a little more refined, Bliss offers diners a taste of downtown Toronto, without leaving the comforts of the 905. Serving breakfast, lunch and dinner, Bliss Restaurant offers selections that appeal to a wide range of palates. Patrons may choose to order a Bliss signature dish such as mini oven-baked crab cakes drizzled with a mild mustard crème fraiche or a Hilton Eat Right^™ dish like the grilled lemon pepper crusted salmon.

At lunch, a delicious tribute to Huang’s Indian upbringing is the chicken satay roll which fills a fresh roti with marinated chicken, garden salad, red lentils and curry peanut sauce. Those seeking comfort foods, can rely on the Reuben sandwich with its accompanying salad or fries, where freshly grilled dark rye bread hugs a harmonious balance of Montreal smoked meat, sauerkraut and swiss cheese.

Huang has also created a number of noteworthy dishes that might just tempt diners to venture out to the Airport Hilton. In the Belgian endive & pear salad nuggets of Benedictine blue cheese add a musty depth to the mild leaves, while carefully placed grilled asparagus spears impart grassy charred flavours which are tamed by a sweet and tart passion fruit balsamic vinaigrette. The salad may be followed by an order of fork-tender hoisin glazed black cod whose silky smooth flesh is kissed by a lemon miso butter sauce. Otherwise diners may rely on the rack of lamb. Cooked to rare perfection, its chops are crusted with pistachios, and sit on a jewel-like ratatouille bed. For those seeking the familiar, classics like the slow roasted Angus prime rib with natural pan jus is a worthy suitor to “Bliss”-ful garlic mashed potatoes with blue cheese. I, for one, would gladly return for the venison loin served rare on a hearty, nutty, and oh-so-Canadian bed of bacon, braised savoy cabbage, cranberry and barley pilaf. The accompanying red currant reduction is easily mopped up with every tender piece of the game meat.

Advertised as a fusion restaurant, Bliss features only a few dishes with South East Asian spins, mixing both Indian and Chinese home style flavours into classic preparations. According to Huang the Singapore noodles - thick egg noodles that are tossed in a light curry-soy sauce with chicken, shrimp and slices of Chinese sausage - would be the best representative of the exotic blend. The chef is also careful to note that the striped bass is a luxe tribute to the Asian practice of serving a whole fish for prosperity. Bliss’ version, however, features a whole deboned (and headless) fish in a citrus butter sauce. The addition of salty capers, briny sliced kalamata olives and toothsome oven dried tomatoes impart rich flavours that are mellowed out by sweet roasted garlic. Grassy fresh steamed asparagus and more of those meaty Chinese sausage slices act as flavour and textural contrasts to the subtle fish perched above.

If there’s still room, finish a meal off by ordering the tiramisu, blueberry cheesecake or even a Canadian cheese sampler. The mention of Bliss’ tropical fruit spring roll may tempt some, however their crisp outer shell are quickly softened by their fresh berry interior almost eliminating the need to dip the once crisp rolls into its accompanying maple yogurt dip. Lunchtime diners have the option of ordering the mini indulgences - shooter glasses filled with desserts that vary on a daily basis including a lacklustre mango mousse, or a well received chocolate version with a biscotti crumble base. If the table wishes to share a sweets plate created by the chef, the aptly named dessert sampler for two may be the way to go.

Not in a hurry to go home? Order a signature cocktail or a single malt whisky from Bliss’ bar since there is the option of heading upstairs to one of the newly renovated suites if hit by postprandial hypotension (aka. food coma) or intoxication.

Renée Suen is a graduate student at the University of Toronto, specializing in cardiovascular sciences. She has an insatiable appetite and can often be found capturing images of those meals with her camera. The experience at Bliss Restaurant & Bar can be seen on her Flickr site.