The Octagon Restaurant

The atmosphere is really regal and the service is unlike anything I’ve seen at any restaurant! Top notch! I liked the private searing area we had. The food was good, but I’ve had better steaks at less stately restaurants.

Great ambiance, complimentary valet and coat check. The Octagon is the definition of a true steakhouse! We ordered the ribeye and salmon, both were cooked to perfection. Wasn’t a fan of the medallion fries or baked potato– both were very bland. The Greek salad was tiny, and just enough to share. My next visit, I would skip the sides and just order mains. Overall great food, decent prices for a steakhouse and wonderful service.

I have been here twice. The second time was with my daughters who are always well behaved. My thought is that The Octagon does not like you bringing your children to dinner. The service that night was deplorable. Because of that, I have not and never will return. Too bad that Eddy’s closed, had to retire at some point, that place was so superior in so many ways. There are still other and better steakhouses in the GTA that deserve your patronage over The Octagon.

Very pricey place, but shows for it– incredible service and great food. Always come here with the family for big occasions. The bread is to die for.
Recommendations:
Apps:
escargot, shrimp, caesar salad (portions are for at least two and they make it right in front of your table– try not to add/​subtract anything because you’ll be surprised at how good it is the way they make it)
Mains:
filet mignon and salmon
Dessert:
molten lava cake

Being the huge foodie I’m, I have been a faithful user of Unilocal for years now. I thought maybe in the new year instead of only using Unilocal it’s also time for me to give back.
For those who might not want to read my long review I will summarize it. I got food poisoning from not very tasty and smelly steak. Customer service was sub-​par.
Now let me get into my real thoughts and experience of the restaurant. It sadden me that my first review was about a such a horrible experience at Octagon. Me and 5 other friends decided to have a triple date there to celebrate the new year. We had a private room, the atmosphere was very antique like. All the server are older well dressed gentlemen reminds me of Barbarian Steak House downtown. But their service wasn’t close to the same. Most of the time they were very confused on who ordered what. So they will bring plates of food just stand there and stare their paper and confirm orders. When I asked for gravy for my mash potato the server looked at me with the condescended look and said «you mean au jus?»
the Two couples ordered the fillet mignon and the rib steak to share. I order rare for my fillet mignon, but it was more like a medium rare when it came. The colour of the meat was very dark. I understand that meat are usually aged in steak house and colour isn’t always bright red, but this was very dark I could barely tell if it’s medium rare or medium. The colour made me feel very suspicious therefore I decided to smell it. I thought it smelled kind of funky so I asked my boyfriend to smell it also. He said its fine I’m over reacting so I decided to let it go and let him have most of it while I had half of his rib steak. The rib steak (bone in) is usually my favourite cut of steak because I like the rich flavour the bone brings out and the meat around the bone. But both of the rib steak we order wasn’t very flavourful and was very very very burned.
A few hours has gone by my stomach started to feel funny. At the same time one of the other couple who ordered the same thing as us msged me and ask how am I feeling. Don’t want to get into details but the four of us spend a big part of our night in the bathroom.
I will not recommend this steak house not only because I possible got food poisoning from it but also because the food wasn’t that great. 6 of us spend $ 600 at this restaurant in exchange we had a terrible food experience with sub-​par service.
For Octagon, if you are reading this, please work on your quality control on your meat. Maybe consider retraining your staff also. It’s a shame that you were suppose to be the only decent steak house around me but I will never visit again.

Vey nice service and food. Complementary valet parking was great. Most of all, steak and chicken were excellent more than expected. Would definitely come back.

I visited this restaurant for the first time and was impressed by the service and quality of the food. The ambiance was very nice and the food was amazing. I like the fact that this restaurant offers a variety of foods for different eaters. Such as having more smaller portion steaks at a reasonable price for those who don’t eat a lot. I had the caesar salad and new york strip steak when I was there and was quite amazed at how flavorful the steak was in comparison to other restaurants, and the fact that the caesar salad is made right at the table. Would definitely visit this restaurant again!

This is the second time I am not having a good experience in the octagon !
First of all the food is not that good at all it does not match the high end quality that the restaurant is delivering. I ordered sea bass and the little tiny piece of fish came with a side of tasteless boiled cauliflower pieces and beans, it absolutely had no taste what so ever, that was it on my plate, I left very hungry and not satisfied for the price I payed for that dish. And the service I find judges you on how much food you order they are nicer if you order more expensive dishes.
Me and my friend came to have wine and an appetizer last time and we got told that for the next time we are not allowed to just order an appetizer. never mind that we shared expensive wine with that and out bill came to more than a 100 $. I will not comeback to the restaurant again!

Come here for the steaks. Don’t order anything else. It’s more like 3.5 stars (4.5 stars for the steaks, 2 stars for everything else)
We ordered the escargots and bacon wrapped scallops for appertizers. Escargots were average. Bacon wrapped scallops was very underwhelming for the price (around $ 22-​$ 24) .
We ordered the 24oz bone in rib eye and the octagon cut prime rib. Both were excellent melt in your mouth.
The 2 sides (fries and mash potatoes) that come with the steaks were a big disappointment. Probably the worst fries and mash I have had in a long time.
We ordered a coconut cream pie to share. Don’t order please.
Overall, just order steaks here and you won’t be disappointed.

I wouldn’t agree with the $$$ it’s definitely a $$$$ but that’s beside the point. The restaurant has a lot of history and has been on the same lot for over 40 years. So it probably was there when Thornhill was more of a town outside Toronto then it is now. But I digress.
The meal was excellent the steaks where cooked to perfection and what I am more amazed by you can order anything off the menu and not be disappointed. My wife and i had a 24oz rib steak on the bone which is generally difficult to cook properly since it is very thick and bone usually presents a problem for most people but not here.
The reason I am not giving it 5 stars is that the building may be old but it shouldn’t be this stuffy even at full capacity.

4.5 — I really wish Unilocal implemented a half-​star system.
I was driving home from work today as usual and I noticed its big red sign. I always take that route and I have no idea why I haven’t noticed it before lol. It looked like a fancy mansion so I got curious and decided to check it out.
The restaurant is beautiful. It sort of has a nice cozy home-​ish feel, as well as a church-​y feel. Fancy old school style. Also there is a doorman and complimentary valet parking! :)
The garlic bread served is heavenly. I asked for a second basket because it was SO amazing. I tried not to fill my tummy with the bread before our main but couldn’t stop myself!!! :(
I know this is a steakhouse but we (two people) got a seafood platter for two and two glasses of wine. The platter says market price on the menu which turned out to be $ 185. And it was so worth it! Such huge shrimp, scallops, crab legs, and lobster!!! Super chunky! Drool! The garlic butter to dip your food in was just perfect! I couldn’t believe how big the portion was. We weren’t sure whether to get an appetizer or not, and the server said the portion of the platter is big and won’t disappoint, and it sure did not! We couldn’t finish it so we asked for the leftover to be packed to go. The platter also came with some veggies (asparagus, zucchini, and cauliflower) as well as two sides of choice. We got rice and mashed potatoes. Fries and baked potatoes were other available side options. The sides were okay — didn’t stand out as much as the seafood. As we were super full, we had to skip on dessert.
The service was great too — attentive, friendly, and knowledgable of the wine and food.
The bill came to almost $ 300 with tax and tip, which I think is a bit higher than the average prices here, but what can I do? I love seafood! A LOT of seafood!
I definitely recommend this restaurant, especially for a special occasion. I think it is a safe spot for a fancy dinner. I know I will be back — I had a very pleasant time!

Excellent food and service. NO TV; No WIFI; and thank God.
One negative in my books. No dress code enforced. Unkept people in old dirty jeans does not enhance the experience.
Been there a dozen times and will go back.

Old school and fancy dining at its best. The meat here is top notch quality. I didn’t know what to expect and I was blown away by the wait staff (totally professionalism) and the food!
I ordered the prime rib ($ 20, lunch) and it melted in my mouth good! Too bad they raised their prices, or I’d be back!

Went: Sun Nov 1^st, 6:00 p.m. (⁷⁴⁄₁₀₀)
The décor is quite attractive, having a church-​like feel to it. The wood work and stained glass was exquisite. When I opened the door to go down the hall to use the restroom, I was very impressed at the beautiful wooden hallway. It was unique and felt very upscale. That was a wow moment. The design of the hall extended to the washrooms, and it was either the nicest washroom I’ve been to at a restaurant or very close. That’s the good news.
If you are looking for exquisite and attentive customer service … keep on looking because you will not find it here! Our waiter was not friendly, did not smile and did not attempt to create a memorable occasion for us. From what I could tell, that was how other waiters treated other patrons. It must be some mandate from above, but they should rethink it, because I think it will turn a lot of people off. In some Asian restaurants, the waitresses are cold and functional and that is the vibe I got here. For the prices we were paying, I think some TLC should be part of the service, and was disapprovingly absent.
They seated us in a way where we are right angles from one another which I did not really like.
We had the escargot, six in total. I dipped the escargot thoroughly in sauce that came with it and did not taste much, the flavour being missing. The last piece I ate I tasted more of the flavour I expected. My date thought the garlic bread was well done, and it was but no one is blown away by garlic bread. They gave us complimentary pickled peas, olives and dill pickles. The pickles tasted like they came out of a can. The olives were nice and the pickled peas were different but not really for us I think.
We ordered a 24 oz bone-​in rib-​eye. The outside was blackened and seared. The meat near the end was more medium than the medium rare we requested. The steak itself was pretty good, though I remember going «hmmm» at our two previous steakhouses, Ruth’s Chris and Elements at Niagara Falls, and I did not do that here. My date found some so the pieces a little tough. I dipped each piece in the pool of meat juices; otherwise it would be bland. I find I didn’t have to do this at other steak places. It wasn’t the exceptional steak I was hoping to find. With the steak came garlic mashed potatoes and three large mushrooms. These were both very good.
The impressive décor could not make up for lack of customer service and high price vs. quality of the food. I would not recommend it to others and I definitely would not come back.

I grew up in the area. The first time I went to The Octagon restaurant, I was probably 5 – 6 years old. My parents went every 2 weeks for many years (until I was in my late teens). I used to LOVE The Octagon, I always recommended it to anyone who was looking for delicious ribs, steak etc. I was there 2 weeks ago for lunch. Probably my first time in 5 years. I feel like there is so much more hype to the name now then there should be for the food.
Service — walked in a bit of attitude no how are you doing this evening. We were seated in a very dark part of the restaurant (you would need a flashlight to read the menu). I’ve had much better service. They like to cater to larger groups & the business lunch clientele first. We had to flag down our waiter to ask for everything — water, wine, coffee, more garlic bread, our bill etc. Surprised at the service considering the fact that there were many familiar faces — most of them have worked there for almost 20 years.
Food — dated plating — nothing visually appealing about it.
Steak neptune — no seasoning on the steak. Hollandaise was bland and clumpy and clearly placed under a broiler because the top of my food was brown not the colour of the hollandaise.
French onion soup — same bowls from 20 years ago — very little onions, cheese or bread — too much pepper in the broth
Chicken neptune — zero seasoning on the chicken — hollandaise was the same clumpy cold sauce as the steak neptune. No flavour — only highlight of this dish was the amount of crab meat
Shrimp cocktail — overpriced — yes they are large BUT 5 – 6 years ago they were much bigger for around the same price.
Caesar salad — way TOO much cheese — they don’t make them like they used to. Yes it’s nice that they make it at the table, but that doesn’t make it taste better — big disappointment for me overall.
Garlic bread — burnt on one side — but it was still put in a basket and brought to our table.
This place is certainly not up to par with some of the other great steakhouses (Barberian’s, Hy’s, Morton’s etc.) They need an update out of the 80’s for décor and with the amount of lights all over the place a bit brighter especially at lunch would help.
Not sure if i would go back or recommend to any family/​friends anymore.

Very comfy Victorian style atmosphere. Service was excellent. Every server dressed like a businessperson and they were friendly. I ordered a French onion soup, it was a little bit too salty, my hubby ordered clam chowder, it tasted creamy (good). The New York steak and peppercorn steak we order were not bad. Just the gravy sauce was a little bit too salty. The fries as a side dish was amazing and it was beyond our expectation.

This restaurant is over the top amazing! The service and quality of the food are impeccable. Great place to celebrate a special occasion with family and friends. Order the ribeye steak medium along with the Caesar salad… you will love it! If you have room for dessert I highly recommend the coconut cream pie.
They are also noteworthy for their attractive interiors and sophisticated ambiance.

Excellent steaks cooked just right and the Caesar salad made at your table best in thornhill. Must have the shrimp cocktail just awesome and the ambiance is amazing love the ties and old fashioned style !

My go to place… Wonderful wine selection, great service and amazing food. Love the Caesar salad and mashed potatoes. The pecan pie is definitely the show stopper! Go try… Pie not?

I dined here January 10^th for a birthday and it was divine. We ordered the table side ceaser salad, steak Neptune & espresso/​Irish coffee.
Where do I start? The actual restaurant is in the shape of an octagon (hence the name) and has a very romantic ambiance to it. Chandeliers, statues, stained glass, lanterns on the table, dark & cherry stained wood — it was beautiful. You have no option but to use the complimentary valet and coat check. I admit, it was a nice touch, although I’m sure if you don’t want you coat checked you can refuse.
When you’re seated, water, fresh garlic bread and an appy tray is placed in front of you, on the house. Pickles, olives and pickled peppers — yum. The garlic bread is served warm with fresh pieces of minced garlic spread all over. The ceaser salad (as I’m sure you’ve read) is unlike any other. It’s made in a large wooden bowl right beside you by your server. The ceaser dressing had just enough garlic and flavour, it wasn’t overpowering at all — if you’ve been reading any of my reviews, you know I’m all for the spicy ceaser dressing. The steak… how do I even capture it’s beauty in words? The steak Neptune is a 8oz filet mignon topped with crab, asparagus and hollandaise sauce with your choice of side. It’s served with three mushrooms as well. I asked for the sauce on the side and was amazed at how much REAL crab is actually placed on the steak. It must have been 5 – 6 legs, honestly. Along with the three crunchy asparagus spears, it was heavenly. Finally, the dessert. The espresso was good, nothing to rant and rave about but the Irish coffee is where it’s at! Flames, fresh whipped cream, toasty coffee… mmm, mmm, good!
In total, our bill came to $ 215, tip and tax included. The ceaser was $ 15/​person, steak $ 50/​each (we both got the Neptune), dessert was $ 15 total I believe and wine/​beer was about $ 20-​$ 25.
Jim & Tom helped us out that evening and made the experience great. When we asked for butter and more water, they came like ‘that’ *snaps finger*. It felt like they just waited for you request; they were at your beckoning call.
If you’re on the fence about going, please just do it. It will be worth it and you will regret nothing. After reading some of the reviews, I was worried I’d feel rushed. That certainly was not the case.
My one and only gripe is the lack of female servers here. The only female I saw employed on a Saturday night was the lady at coat check.