unassuming tiny place, easy to miss if walking by, but don’t! Simple menu and extremely fresh. All 4 of us had something different and agreed outstanding food.
Niki K.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Toronto, Canada
This place is easy to miss but the food is amazing. They serve delicious Italian food with super fresh ingredients. Maybe the best pasta I’ve had in Toronto.
Sarah H.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Toronto, Canada
Business closed even though inside business hours! I attempted to go to this restaurant twice to use a Groupon. Both times the business was closed, even though their website and the phone automated machine confirmed that it was supposed to be open. Horrible experience considering the walk to this restaurant is 30 minutes both ways in the freezing cold!
Jess H.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Toronto, Canada
Had an awkward experience at the start as the front door was locked when we came at 5:45pm on a Monday evening. Then the cook spotted us and started to slowly approach the door to open it for us after a good 10minutes of us standing outside and exchanging looks. The server apparently did not come in until after 6pm, so we waited with the cook until he arrived. When the waiter finally arrived, we were supposedly given the wrong menu. Larry, the waiter, was nice but seemed unprepared when he had to rush to serve us and change into his uniform in the middle of dinner. Restaurant said it was open 11:30−9pm, I couldn’t imagine what would happen if we came at 5. Bread was offered with a chickpea, parsley, and tomato dip, which was surprisingly refreshing(and i don’t usually like hummus!). We ordered the caesar salad and the lentil soup which were both mediocre, but our expectations were not high at this point. For entrees, we ordered the spicy sausage rapine spaghettini and the fettuccine alfredo with shrimp. The spicy sausage pasta was delicious but the fettuccine was quite bland/oily and lacked a shrimp or ten. All in all, with the groupon it was worth the meal, but would not pay more for the quality of our experience as the restaurant needs to be more organized.
Ray C.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Toronto, Canada
Like others, we used a $ 20 groupon for two that includes two salad/soup and two pasta dishes. The restaurant was empty on a Thursday night. The service was decent. Both of us had Cesar salad as the starter, for entrée we had the shrimp Alfredo fettuccine and spicy sausage spaghetti. Salad was ok, the Alfredo fettuccine was too oily and heavy for me. The spaghetti was very appealing and tasty! For the price, the outcome was decent. If I want a quick Italian meal next time, I would go again for sure(if the Groupon is still active).
Bernie C.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Mississauga, Canada
I came here with some out of town coworkers last night. I ordered the spaghetti carbonara. It was average. There wasn’t much bacon, taste was a bit bland and the pasta itself wasn’t thend greatest. It reminded me a bit of pasta I get at chains such as Jack Astors or Kelsey’s. I’m not sure if it was made in house, but it didn’t taste or feel like it though. The dish was around $ 15 I believe and if it were my money and not the company’s, I might have been more annoyed. There are a few saving graces though: –Service is nice –We had some sausage and calimari as the apps and both of these were delicious. Verdict: I’m not super impressed by this place and they need to step up their game as there are plenty of fine Italian restaurants in the Yorkville area.
Anita T.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Toronto, Canada
Came here for lunch with a friend and a groupon. The place is a cute little restaurant near construction(what isn’t near construction in Toronto). I wasn’t expecting too much from this place considering it was from a groupon. I was blown away. Caprese Salad. was my starter salad. It was tasty with lots of flavor from the cheese and dressing. For the main, I forgot the menu item, but it was a calamari pasta. It was creamy and it was a good portion just for lunch. The server was also really nice and attentive. The ambiance could of been better, it is a bit empty in the restaurant. I still think this place deserves a 5⁄5 for their effort though. I would definitely come back for lunch if I’m around the area!
Gary M.
Rating des Ortes: 3 Toronto, Canada
Got a Groupon and try this restaurant. Food is pretty. Service is very good. Just the atmosphere isn’t what I expected. Maybe not enough people here. Overall it was good.
Ralph T.
Rating des Ortes: 1 Toronto, Canada
This was my first and last visit to this restaurant. We went here after a friend raved about this place. I’ve been to many Italian restaurants so my expectations are high. What I found here was basic Italian food done poorly. I ordered the veal parmigiana and found it to be unnecessarily greasy. I would have liked it better had it not been swimming in oil. From the time we stepped foot in the restaurant to the time we left the waiter talked to us non stop. I can basically write a book about his life story. However he didn’t even seem to know the menu. We were the only ones in the restaurant which is indicative of the demand for what it has to offer. I was paying someone else would walk in just do we would be left alone by the waiter. I don’t mean to bash this restaurant by any means. Just wanted to share MY experience. My friends actually liked this place but again I’ve been to many Italian restaurants.
Elyse S.
Rating des Ortes: 5 Yorkville, Toronto, Canada
My boyfriend and I went here last night, staying at the Marriott Bloor-we were looking for a nearby Italian restaurant, not over priced. This place was great! The waiter was warm funny and entertaining from the moment we stepped inside! His name is Larry. The food was delicious too!
Shari L.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Kingston, Canada
So underwhelmed. So. Upon finding this little hideaway I’d been pretty excited; it had the trappings of a hidden gem, and the waiter was plenty jolly. The appetizer salads were pretty decent, but upon trying the pastas, my friend and I deflated with that sad, slow fffffffshhhhhh of helium balloons with the air let out. The fettucine alfredo we each observed to be like mac n cheese with overcooked(to the point where the pasta is mushy and clumps together) fettucine, and the so-called carbonara was, in my friend’s words, a sort-of-Italian take on cheap dry, chow mien with no noticeable cheese or cream and sad bits of egg. Even the bacon in it wasn’t very good(and that, my friends, is very. sad). The pastas are priced at $ 15 – 16, but I don’t know if I even would pitch $ 4 for a plate of that quality. It was on par with mediocre buffet food. My only caveat is that I’ve been here once, so maybe the food is just completely inconsistent(I cannot imagine how it has positive ratings otherwise). I’ll give a couple sad stars(like my sad food) for the service and the OK apps though. Disappointed. Will not be back.
Isaac P.
Rating des Ortes: 2 Toronto, Canada
Not a fan. Went for a team lunch and was less than impressed. Would not spend my own money at this place. It was shocking that this place had such a good rating. This is what I wasn’t a fan of: — the glasses and dishes were not well cleaned — the 18 $ salmon came with a small, 6oz piece that didn’t have much flavoring and a pitiful amount of balsamic«salad”/2 pieces of broccoli… Way over priced. — the food took over an hour so we were all starving(16 people but still… Really slow) — it isn’t that nice inside, the poster in the bathroom warning about contracting STDs reminded me of my university cafeteria… Apparently the chicken was really tender, but it was also crazy small for 18 $… Overall, this place has a good chef but the small portions at unreasonable prices is a deal breaker for me.
Steve H.
Rating des Ortes: 4 East York, Canada
Our group of six had a great experience. We booked to go before going to the theatre. All of our meals were excellent, and served in short order. Larry our waiter was great, very entertaining. It is a small place but was full by 7pm.
D K.
Rating des Ortes: 2 York, Canada
Went here with a Groupon(2 course dinner for 2 for $ 20). The waiter/matre’d is very friendly, but, unfortunatley, the food is, at best, so-so. The menu is dull: saladas for first course and past for second. My past was way over-cooked — a definite no-no in an Italian restaurant. My wife’s pasta with eggplant parmigiana was just not very good(a strange combination also). Even chain Italian places will do a better job. Too bad.
Krishna S.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Seattle, WA
I came here for a late lunch on a weekend and the place is pretty nice. The place was pretty small but done up quite nice. I ordered the carbonara which was really good. I haven’t eaten at a ton of pasta places in Toronto yet but I am definitely a fan of this place. I don’t know the name of the waiter I got but based on the other reviews it is probably the same person. The guy is really chatty and incredibly nice. He did a great job of having a long conversation with one of the other people eating at the restaurant and was also good about looping me into it.
Bob A.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Rochester, NY
It’s always nice to find a restaurant gem based on others’ online reviews. Staying at the Marriot Bloor-Yorkville, we wanted something within a short walk and had Italian on our minds. Soon to be dwarfed by a high-rise accross the street, if you didn’t have the address you might walk by. A small, but cozy dining room was staffed by Larry who was both courteous and social. Mona was in the kitchen, producing perfect pasta dishes, with steak and chicken also on the menu. There are very reasonable bottles of wine available, so why buy just a glass? We both opted for the Caesar salad which was fresh with a light, not overpowering dressing. Save room for desert, as there are some nice specials; we shared banana ice cream over chocolate cake. We’ll definately go back on our next Toronto visit.
Sissi Y.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Toronto, Canada
I love their lamb! It tastes so good. But I don’t like the fact that they serve minute mate orange juice… at least serve tropicana… I think they have specials now on Thursdays and Fridays(buy one get one free, i think…) So try to go there on a friday:)
Natalie G.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Toronto, Canada
Went to this place with an offeron coupon and had a great time! Friendly service by a very chatty waiter named Larry. He was super nice and I enjoyed his friendly conversation. He was helpful in regards to the menu and wine options. We ordered the salmon and chicken supreme and both were great, my salmon was amazing. We were too full for dessert but i would’ve had one otherwise. Overall a nice little restaurant with good food and great service!
Isabel R.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Toronto, Canada
The food at this place has always been great. Been there several times, and the food is always delicious… prepared by the tiny kitchen you can see from your table. Always really interesting soups and sides, and the mains are delicious as well. I’m not sure if it recently changed owners or management, but they’ve made some big changes sometime in the last few months that make me like this place even more. Larry no longer works there, and while he was a nice guy, he was too talkative for my ideal dining service. I avoided going to this place because it was difficult to talk to my friends/family because Larry kept interjecting. They also expanded their menu slightly, adding several pasta dishes, and fixed up the interior. It used to be kind of dark and gloomy, but they’ve really brightened the place up. It still has a small intimate feel, but no longer feels like a cave.
Ramanan S.
Rating des Ortes: 4 Toronto, Canada
I’ve been to Focaccia several times now.(It’s the sister restaurant to Bloom, another favourite place of mine.) The place is tucked away on Hayden St, in what looks to be an old house. The dining room is fairly small and cozy.(There is a larger dining area up stairs for private functions.) The service is great. The host is always(as far as I can tell) Larry, an(incredibly) friendly waiter. If you don’t like having conversations with the wait staff at places you go, then this might be a place to avoid. The food is Latin American and sort of Italian in style. I’ve always been impressed with what i’ve had. The menu changes with some frequency. Prices are pretty reasonable for a place of this caliber. They also serve brunch, which is pretty fucking awesome. The place is probably worth going to if only to try brunch there.(Picadillo empanada Chilean style FTW!)