Al Dente

I wanted to like this place more, I really did. The location is nice (main street Markham) and the restaurant is quite nice. It’s a large rustic-​style room with plenty of tables. The server at our table was also a very polite and professional gentleman who was very patient with our large group of young adults. Unfortunately, the food really does not justify the price tag. Don’t get me wrong, it’s not bad at all. I actually quite like the flavour of all the dishes I tasted The grilled calamari was very, very good and it was the only thing I think that was at the right price point. However, for a $ 30 bowl of pasta, I really want something more. The food tasted like something I can get at a less upscale restaurant for half the price.

On the higher end of dinners, Al Dente is fairly large sized Italian restaurant, in a white building, pretty much directly across from Folco’s Ristorante on Main Street Markham. The restaurant is fairly dark on the inside, the waiters were nice and served us well.
I got the Lasagna for my main and we shared a crème brulee for dessert. The lasagna was pretty good, though I would rank it as slightly average quality in terms of Italian food. The crème brulee was fairly average too. For a place that is looks on the higher class, has a price of a higher class, with excellent service, I was a tad bit disappointed in the food.

My aunt took me there for my birthday. There were seven of us and we were impressed with the décor (table clothes, cloth napkins). However that is where it ended. Although the waitress and the service was good, the food was over priced and tasted pretty awful. She said the mushroom soup was very good and it tasted like mushrooms puréed with water and no flavour. My aunt, uncle and mum ordered three different dishes (veal Parmesan, chicken and tomatoe pasta), all three dishes were drenched in tomatoe sauce and the veal tasted grizzly and actually smelled awful. My husband ordered beef Wellington and another cousin ordered Greek chicken, both came drenched in the same red sauce. I could go on and on. We had one orange juice. The bill came to 227 dollars before taxes. Totally NOT worth it. It was pretty bad. What a way to ruin a birthday. I would not go there.

Where do I start?!? The sauce was very sour and all of their food is just drenched in it. I heard some reviewers mention that the food is frozen then reheated. I really wouldn’t be surprised. I actually had my baby shower thrown for me at the restaurant 5 years ago. The service at the time was great, but I would compare it to Olive Garden or East Side Mario’s and i’m not a fan of either of those places. I decided to give it another try recently and didn’t see any improvement. There are too many Italian restaurants on Main now and they pretty much serve the same sub-​par food. My fav is still in Garden Basket Plaza in the area when I am in the mood for Italian.

Service was very good, food was decent but the atmosphere is old school. They need a revamping, especially with folcos just across the street. I think I would prefer their food for take out not eat in. Also I found them to be on the expensive side

I went for lunch with my parents during a weekday afternoon. Service is excellent and great selection of lunch. We ordered daily special vegetarian pizza which is the best I have ever had so far. The crust is moist and crispy and even the side crust is perfectly done. The pizza is a must try for sure.

This is a decent, slightly higher-​end (though still pretty casual) Italian restaurant. The service is attentive and the atmosphere is good.
In terms of the food, nothing has ever blown me away, but it’s been generally good. I’ve always had some form of pasta, so I’ve played it pretty safe. The wine selection is decent, and there’s a full bar.
I’ve never eaten outside here, but there is a nice little patio facing Main Street.

I was so surprised to see the negative reviews of this place, after having just had such a good experience there!
I went with a bunch of friends from work. Some of the friends has heard that this place KNOWS their wine and ordered a bottle of chianti, which was great (and I’m not a huge wine drinker).
The ladies I was with ordered two caesar salads to share amongst the four of them and the waitress brought them out the salads already split on individual plates, garnished with a garlic bread croûton. I don’t think the salads were anything special, but I find that caesar salads in general aren’t, so peoples’ complaints about them below seem largely unfounded.
I ordered the baked goat cheese appetizer… OMG it was SO good. Goat cheese and grilled veggies on top of a portobello mushroom cap, with some sort of sauce and with salad and shredded carrots and balsamic reduction… to DIE for.
For my main I ordered the Penne Gorgonzola, which was also fabulous! The members of my partied ordered the veal parmesan (but grilled veggies instead of the pasta), the salmon with a lobster brandy cream sauce, a NY striploin and fettucine and everyone loved their food. One woman I was with IS a chef, so I feel like that was saying something.
Now, since I didn’t taste their dishes, I can only expand on my own. The sauce was to DIE for. Creamy, complex and delicious. The pairing of veggies with prosciutto and cheese was excellent. I would order that dish again in a heartbeat!
Since we were having a good time and the food had met our expectations, we went for it and ordered dessert (even though we were all stuffed). We all ordered the white chocolate crème brûlée, except one friend who ordered the tiramisu and were once again not disappointed. Our crème brûlées were crackly on the outside and creamy on the inside. Perfect! The tiramisu was apparently great, served very untraditionally in a large plate, with an indentation like a bowl in the middle.
I was also pleased to find out that they serve caffeine-​free cappuccinos, so we all ordered those as well and it was served with a little almond biscotti and was great!
Altogether my meal came to $ 50 (tip included), which I think is more than I would spend on a normal dinner out, but not crazy. Also note though that I did not pay for the wine and did not order any other drinks. That would obviously have increased the price.
The restaurant atmosphere is nothing special, but I’m disenchanted with the trendy spaces and pretentiously presented food that isn’t half as good, so this wasn’t a concern for me. The restaurant was clean and comfy, but the furniture was a little on the older side (like the dining chairs you would see in your fussy grandmother’s home) and fake paintings on the walls.
The service was excellent. Our waitress saw to our every need, answered all our questions and came over to chat and make sure we were happy and comfortable regularly.
So, was it perfect? Well as I said, the salad was probably just average and the atmosphere also just average, but those did not pose major problems. I would ultimately give this place 4−½, but since I can’t and this leaned more to the good than anything remotely bad, it gets a 5! I would go back in a heartbeat!

I decided to try Al Dente after getting one of those groupon vouchers, and let’s just start by saying I was no impressed.
Even before getting to the restaurant, I was a bit lost finding the place, so I called the restaurant to ask for directions. I was greeted by an abrupt and rude lady. Aside from repeating the address she made no effort to help me navigate my way there. She sounded impatient and just wanted to hang up. Not the best first impression.
And the service on site wasn’t much better. htere were about two servers on the floor, which at the time were sufficient becuase the restaurant was no where near capacity.
The server that was ultimately responsible for our table ended up being the same lady who «helped» me over the phone earlier. She had the same attitude while serving us and taking our orders. Very impatient and snappy.
Several food and drink items that we wanted to order were out of stock, and instead of making suggestions for something to order in place of it, she just stood there with her eyebrows raised expecting you to have already come up with an alternate order.
When I went to ask her about the difference between two different veal dishes, she said «the sauce» with no additional commentary. I thought to myself «No kidding eh? I couldve read that off the menu.» Definitely not the service I expected from a classy restaurant that it portrays to be.
Literally 5 mins after ordering, our food arrived. Three entrees and a basket of bread, all at the same time. Leads me to think everything is pre-​prepared and was microwaved.
«Grilled Veal» ($ 24.95)-Grilled veal scallopini with roasted red peppers and mushrooms, with a red wine balsamic sauce:
–minimal attempt of plate presentation
–veal was cooked quite well, but the sauce it was swimming in ruined it
–felt like I was drinking worchester sauce!
Papardelle” ($ 23.95) –Wide shaped fettuccine with shrimps, scallops, baby spinach in a lobster brandy cream sauce:
–the noodles were cooked perfectly al dente (no pun intended…)
–sauce had a good creamy consistency, but seafood wasn’t the greatest quality
«Bruchetta» ($ 5.95)-Garlic bread topped with fresh tomatoes, pesto, olive oil, and baked with mozzarella cheese:
–Somewhere in the middle of our dinner we decided to add an order of bruchetta because literally every single other table that was there did so
–There is nothing too fancy about this dish, and quite frankly it tastes like bruchetta I would make at home, but it was simple and delicious.
Unfortunate to say, don’t think I would ever come back here again. Even with those 50% off coupons. Sub-​par food, and terrible terrible service.

I haven’t had much to say in a while, and while I’ve had bad food recently this one takes the cake!
My husband and I chanced on this place due to a flat tire.
The outside and inside décor is cozy and inviting. Well that’s it for the positives.
We both ordered the Cesar salad to start (7.25) it was a plate of lettuce with one piece of baguette croûton, mixed in what tasted like mayonnaise and a little bit of garlic. Honestly, the store bought kits tasted better!
Our waiter was preoccupied or something because he didn’t bother to offer up today’s specials. Also when I ordered sparkling water, he brought me a bottle of flat water. (5.50 btw!!)
For our entrees, I had the lasagna and my husband had the orange roughy.
The fish was a little on the salty side but a full entrée.
The lasagna was well, what can I say?! It consisted of 3 lasagna noodles a little meat sauce and a heap of mozzarella cheese on the top. This rather flat looking pasta heap swam in the middle of a large pool of marinara sauce that was rather salty.
I’m not a big eater by most standards, even when eating for two and I had to eat another piece of bread to feel mildly satisfied!
Needless to say we didn’t stay for dessert, I mean why prolong the agony.
We definitely will not be going back!

I have been to Al Dente Italian Restaurant for dinner more than a few times over the years. Al Dente is a good solid neighbourhood restaurant serving Authentic Italian food.
Decided to come for dinner on a weekday evening, the place practically empty aside for 2 other tables. Though there was only 1 waitress, the services was really attentive.
Caesar Salad ($ 7.25)
— just the right amount of dressing to coat the Romaine lettuce
— Homemade dressing has a great tangy garlic taste
Linguine Marinara ($ 22.95) 2.5 star
— Fresh linguine cooked Al Dente with a good bite and chew
— Mussels, Shrimps and Squid were quite tasty and plentiful
— I found the tomato white wine sauce a little salty for my taste but my boyfriend enjoyed that
Veal Osso buco ($ 24.95) 3.5 star
— Veal Shank was cooked perfectly, tender and soft … more like a brisket
— the meat and wine sauce was rich with great flavours finished off with a dash of olive oil, a little on the saucy side but was delightful
— Risotto was cooked well with this creamy gooey texture, a comforting homey feel!
At the end of the meal, the Chef came out of the kitchen and asked how I enjoyed my Veal Ossobuco and I gave him the thumb up!
Please note there are always 50% off 2^nd entrees, Groupon Deals and Entertainment Book deals for Al Dente. so keep your eyes if you want to come for dinner! Tonight I used one of the Group Buy coupons!