Chi-Ko-Roo

Great spot on Church Street for those looking to have brunch with friends. Been here a few times for weekend brunch and the service is great and so is the food. During summer months, the store front opens up allowing for people viewing. Complimentary bread and olive oil is a nice touch for those waiting for their dishes to arrive and prices are great, so your budget won’t take a hit from high costs associated with some eateries on the same street.

Are you looking for great food at a reasonable price in a pleasant atmosphere? Chi-​Ko-​Roo!
I’ve been here a few times and you can always count on good service. Complementary bread and dips start every meal. From the burgers & fries to sandwiches to a traditional chicken dinner — you won’t be disappointed.

It was an impeccable experience and everything was simply perfect. We got there with a groupon but they said with a new management, they no longer accept it. We were disappointed but decided to eat there anyway. How glad I am for staying!
I got the French toast with mixed berries, and my friend got chi ko roo sunrise. My french toast came in such an usual shape of square cubes; they were crispy on the edges but so fluffy and soft inside. I sliced it open in the middle, poured in some maple syrup, and that is just DIVINE.
What makes it even better? My dish was only $ 10 and my friend’s for $ 9, and did I mention the portion was huge? Coffee was $ 2 with unlimited refills.
I am going back again for the most lovely french toast!

I am not a big fan of this place but my friends seem to always want to eat here. So a friend and I attended this establishment for dinner on Good Friday.
SERVICE & ATMOSPHERE
We were seated at about 6pm and there were four other diners in the restaurant… in other words — it was dead. Of course we were ignored for about 10 mins until my friend asked a server for attention. The server turned out to be very nice. The bartender was very loud. She was having a full-​on debate/​conversation with another server. We could hear everything and we were seated at least 30 – 40 feet from the bar.
FOOD & DRINKS
We ordered the Tiger Shrimp appetizer — very good.
I ordered the Mediterranean Filet Mignon Steak Salad ($ 13) with avocado ($ 1.50) but alas they were out of avocado. My dining companion ordered fish & chips. My salad came with three tiny fast fried pieces of steak — filet mignon NOT… more like fast fry steak from Metro down the street. The salad was drenched in dressing (I was not asked if I wanted it on the side). It was a mushy soggy mess! Don’t even get me started with the fried onions on top of my salad — they tasted like they had been fried 10 days ago — yuck!
My friend’s fish was surprisingly tasty.
My friend ordered a Caesar and the celery stick was turning brown (not fresh). We quickly learned from the loud bartender that the bar had ran out of celery. They were also out of the hummus complementary dip.
CHECKOUT
As my friend and I were paying by debit, we asked the server, who in turn asked the loud mouth bartender, to split the bill ⁵⁰⁄₅₀ for purposes of paying with our debit cards. After about 5 mins of finagling with the cash register by both the server and the bartender… Mission UNaccomplished. I ended up putting the whole bill on my debit card.
VERDICT…FAIL and won’t be coming here again anytime soon.
Are there no decent places to eat in the village?

What a pleasant surprise! After hearing mediocre reviews about this place, I was skeptical going here tonight. But this place certainly delivered.
Ambience: Pretty neat! Much nicer in the inside than I’d expect seeing it from the outside. It looks almost like it could double up as a chic nightclub.
Service: Excellent! Attentive, but no overbearing. And our male waiter actually seemed like he enjoyed his job — great smiley attitude.
Food: HUGE portions! My Mediteranean Chicken Vegetable Salad ($ 12) was giant and super tasty. I couldn’t even finish it. My friend said his feta burger was good too, and it came with mash potatoes (or fries) and a side salad. Also for $ 12, the value was amazing! And they start you off with bread and 3 delicious dips. So unexpected!
Overall: Excellent! I think I might be including this resto in my usual rotations of great restaurants that deliver amazing value.

I went here with an online coupon. The food was great, the portions massive. Both my partner and I took home leftovers. The menu is quite extensive. The service was also really friendly.

Chi-​Ko-​Roo is just totally average for me.
Décor is nice, service was EXCELLENT, good portions with appropriate pricing.
Don’t get me wrong, the food was tasty. I had a «mediterranean grilled vegetable salad» ($ 12) which came with chicken. My dining companions all had omlettes ($ 10-​$ 12) that were served with a few small hashbrowns, toast and fruit-​kabob.
The menu just really fails to excite me. Everything on it was just so… uninspired. It reminded me of a Jack Astors or similar type chain restaurant. Burgers, wraps, salads, a few pasta dishes and stir-​frys thrown in for good measure. Brunch items were omlettes, bacon & eggs or french toast.
This is a good place to bring picky eaters!

It was just ok for me, at best. The menu is large but it comes across as very chain-​restaurant-​like. My friend had a burger and fries and I had a chicken sandwich with avocado and sweet potato fries. You get a salad first — I had caesar and my friend had garden. The caesar salad was the highlight of my meal! It was fresh and crisp and nicely garlicy. My friend seemed to like the garden salad ok but it looked pretty basic to me — mostly lettuce.
My friend enjoyed his burger and I have to say it did look like a good burger. My sandwich came out cold, which is not a good start to a toasted sandwich. It might have been pretty good if it were hot, although it still would have been a little bland. The sweet potato fries were good, but that’s not something you can’t get at most pubs.
It’s true — the portion sizes are huge. But I do not make my meal decisions based solely on caloric intake.

YUM YUM YUM!
Since Vivian V and I went a while ago, we have been back many times — and each time I am just as impressed.
Portion size is HUGE, there is a basket of bread and dips with ever purchase, even if it’s just drinks and most of the mains come with a starter salad. All wonderful things that lead to excellent customer service.
The apps are yummy, and there is MORE then enough to share. Their Veggie quesadillas are to die for! I would suggest getting all of them and sharing. The sliders are yummy — something about the mushrooms and feta that just is amazing in relation to the tiny buns.
The bathrooms are not all that great — as they are co-​ed, but you have your own personal stall.
Check it out if you’re in the hood. It’s a great addition to the village — and I hate to say it — but it’s much much better then Il Fornello.

so, i hear it’s been awhile since i’ve written a review and i’m quite content to be making my big comeback with this restaurant. especially as a first to review! whhhaat!
i read a review on this place before heading over and as much as they had good things to say, they had a few complaints. every one i will say is total bull! complaints on the lighting being too bright, i highly disagree, i enjoyed seeing the person i was talking to across the table without having to squint at her during our conversation.
another of his comments was the fact that the food took too long to come out. i’m figuring it was because he was there during one of the first weeks because our food could not have come out quick enough! i think we spent a total of 40 minutes in there in comparison to the 30 minutes it took the previous reviewer to get their food.
everything was so prompt, our waiter was right on time with all our food and asked at the perfect times if everything was okay. waiters, it’s a big no-​no to ask if everything’s okay right after i stuff food into my mouth. it’s not like i’m that classy of a gal, but talking with food in my mouth is not how i’d like to be seen.
plus, this waiter? total babe. so if you’re into eye candy, go check out robert!
should i mention the food? i might have been too distracted by just how attractive our waiter was, but the food was really quite delicious. the bread basket they start you off is more unique than regular restaurants. you are given three different dips instead of the regular balsamic vinegar garnish. one is a garlic dip and let’s be honest, i am too picky of an eater to really try more than the standard bread with butter, but Lindsey S. found it to be a real hit.
We both ordered pastas/​stir fry which came with a salad before hand– bonus! within minutes, our salads were in front of us and even better, he actually remembered no parmesan on mine. not long after our salad dishes were taken away, our entrees were brought out. I couldn’t believe how quick they were, especially with the pre warning from the review i had read before leaving. There was a huge party and the restaurant was quite full for early on a Friday night and everyone was right on the mark.
I’ll probably head back in two weeks for my big birthday dinner with friends. there is so much variety, from pan asian to burgers and fries. plus, they have breakfast/​brunch that’s served to 3 (every day i think!) so i’ll definitely be headed there to review the breakfast, fo sho!
definitely a huge recommendation from the village!

Lots of tasty food, but atmosphere is very red. Reasonable prices and lots of choice. Good service. Only time will tell as it is nothing out of the ordinary.
Interesting uni-​sex washrooms. The stainless steel trough guys is not a communal urinal, but a place to wash your hands. So beware…

Chic-​Ko-​Roo has replaced my beloved Il Fornello on Church Street. That was my place for Martini Monday’s so I was more than peeved when it closed its doors. Now its been replaced by Chic-​Ko-​Roo, the same owners of ‘Green Eggplant’. This restaurant is supposed to be new hope for the dying gaybourhood and if this is the streets last hope then just put it out of its misery now.
My dining experience wasn’t terrible but it wasn’t good either. ‘Meh’ summarizes this restaurant. I ordered the schnitzel, which is just deep fried chicken. The portions are really big so you get a lot of bang for your buck. Your meal comes with a complimentary garden salad and they shouldn’t have even bothered. It was basic and boring lettuce, carrots and dressing. The whole meal was alright but nothing really stood out.
I think my biggest peeve is that they’ve completely ruined the funky modern décor by using horrible paint colours that I can only assume were premixed paints bought on clearance at Home Depot.
I don’t think Chic-​Ko-​Roo will have much longevity on the street, which is sad because other business owners and investors will assume that the failure of this restaurant is an indicator of the entire street not being successful.