Symposium Café Restaurant & Lounge – Brantford

breakfast and brunch on weekends are the best.

Food was horrible. I ordered a steak that reminded me more of ground beef, the veggies we’re either over cooked or under cooked, my boyfriend couldn’t eat his meal either but do not remember what he ordered. However, the staff were very friendly and accommodating.

Just moved to Brantford from the East Coast and was looking for a nice place to take a couple who helped me moved, including one semi-​picky eater (pescetarian).
Used Unilocal & Urbanspoon to read through some reviews, and come up with five menus from Brantford and Cambridge for her to look at, and based on menu alone she selected Symposium in Brantford.
I was extremely skeptical upon arriving, which usually makes for a bad dining experience if I go in with a negative mindset. It had all the warning signs I’ve seen before of a place trying to be upscale, where the food doesn’t quite live up to the price. Daily discount specials, somewhat confused décor/​ambiance, maybe 4 tables of customers in a fairly large restaurant (although it was late Sunday). The waitress was also not very knowledgeable about the menu, food or drink wise, although was extremely pleasant and helpful otherwise. They were also out of the first entrée I asked for, and a few varieties of the wine on their list (no Shiraz at all) we inquired about. They do have quite an extensive wine and drink list though so a few missing from day to day is excusable.
All that being said… we all thought the food was great! We started with a bruschetta which was very tasty and well prepared. Then for entrees, I had the cracked pepper glazed chicken. It came with two whole flattened chicken breasts, which I know can easily be dried out by improper cooking, but were still extremely moist, and the sauce was delicious. It came with a side of vegetables which were cooked and seasoned perfectly (same for the other two entrees), and a rice pilaf, which was the only let down on the plate (looked and tasted like chicken broth rice from a box).
Our pescetarian had the broiled haddock fillets, which they had trouble keeping in one piece while preparing (they brought the other two entrees to the table first and apologized that there first attempt had fallen apart and were firing another, but the second piece they ended up bringing was also in pieces) but tasted amazing, both the dijon/​parm breading, and the fish itself. The sides were roasted potatoes, which were cooked very well, but lacked seasoning, and the vegetables.
Our 3^rd diner had a mid-​rare new york steak, again with roasted potatoes and vegetables, which he said was cooked very well (slightly more towards the rare side though), but the quality of the cut of meat was a little lacking.
Then there was dessert. Oh my god the dessert. It happened to be 2 for 1 slice of cake night, and there was at least 8 different ones to choose from. I had a fudge brownie cheesecake, and the other two were a Bailey’s mousse cheesecake, and gigantic slice of carrot cake (I also got a slice of the carrot cake to take home since with the 2 for 1 deal we got a free fourth slice). They were all amazing.
Aside from the food, the atmosphere is fairly nice although the décor is a little confused. It’s trying to be upscale, but there is one TV behind the bar which is quite visible from the dining room, and about halfway through our meal someone who I assume works there (or perhaps the owner), grabbed the remote, and turned on the hockey game (which I wasn’t opposed to, but doesn’t really seem to fit with the theme of the restaurant), but with no sound at least. The dining area is pretty clean, but a lot of the fixtures and décor higher up the walls and on the ceiling were very dusty. The cutlery and dishes were a little cheap as well. Lastly the staff were very friendly and helpful without being overbearing. I can easily these few negatives for the quality of the food though. I had no issues at all with the bill which came to around $ 130 for the three of us including tip, although the only drinks were one beer, one glass of wine, one tea, and one coffee so be prepared if you like to keep the alcohol flowing.
All in all I had a difficult time deciding between 4 or 5 stars, but with the minor issues, and comparing it to other restaurants I would consider 5 stars, I had settle on 4. I would still highly recommend it however, and will definitely visit again.

Was there for Father’s day breakfast. We were happy to see that there was not a line up, and we’re told that an inside table would be 3 – 7 minutes. Not bad considering the day we were there. While we were waiting someone wandered out to the waiting area and complained that it took 30 minutes to get their food. Some of the other people coming out seemed disgruntled as well. While we waited various tables of four came in and were seated. We had five and it was apparent that they were geared for parties of four, and did not have much flexibility for parties larger than that. Another party came in with a reservation for the dining room that they could not fulfill. We waited about 25 minutes and then after considering all the other issues apparent, we left without every being seated. Not a good experience. Not sure if this was an off day or if the underestimated the Father’s day crowd, but it put us off for sure.

In the past week, I’ve been here three times. The first time, I sat at the bar and ordered Catfish. The second time, I sat in a booth and ordered the Pesto salmon. Today, I had the 3-​Egg Breakfast. The food and service are excellent. They have cute, intelligent bartenders, which is something to be said for Brantford. Brantford needs more cute bartenders and waitresses. The décor is very European, with Renaissance paintings on all the walls. There is a seating area on the far side of the bar with sofas, chairs, and coffee tables. All of the booths and chairs are padded. The dining area has a dessert case. There are daily food & drink specials. Thursday is «date night» where two can dine for $ 40.
I will definitely be back.