Modus Ristorante

This is a work lunch place. We came in wearing casual gear and were sat at a small table. Waitress was a little condescending and forgot bread and water. I swear once she saw I was on Unilocal she started being nice. Food was good but way too expensive for what you get.

My girlfriend and I ended up here when Earl’s across the street was too busy. The restaurant was pretty empty on a Friday night. I ordered the squid ink pasta and my girlfriend ordered the scallops. The portions were small and the scallops were extremely salty. It was hard to taste any of the flavours because the salt was so overpowering– my girlfriend wasn’t able to finish her meal. For dessert, we ordered the hazelnut bake and chocolate cake. Both were very good and not overly sweet.
The service was slow and our waitress seemed unattentive. We had to flag her down for water refills and the bill. The food took long to come out– we waited 30 minutes between our appetizer and main course.

I have walked, driven. stumbled by this place so many times and have never really noticed it. After an event at O&B a friend of mine and I were looking for an earlier (6:45) dinner spot nearby and after a little search this place came up. Called to make the reservation and walked over. They were unfortunately having an event on the patio but the inside is not to go unappreciated and I love a restaurant that has comfortable chairs!
We started with a dish I don’t recall how to spell and I struggled pronouncing it but they were almost like lemon ricotta puffs — they were okay. I felt they could have been more flavourful. We split 2 entrees — the pan seared tuna which was done perfectly (even the Brussels sprouts were good) and the salmon penne. I prefer my penne to be cooked a little more but the taste was really nice.
This review falls short in terms of service. Our server was not attentive at all — and the restaurant wasn’t even that full. In fact, a cocktail waitress from the event outdoors even asked if we were okay. Good service goes a very long way, people and has it been on a greater level I would have been more generous with my stars.

Please do not pass on this place. Have the Smoke n’ Bitters cocktail and the grilled calamari.

Beautiful restaurant, OK service, food = F (for FAIL).
We each started off with a cocktail and my boyfriend specifically asked if their bartender was good, the response was yes! Being an ‘old fashioned’ (the drink) lover, he hates it when a bad bartender attempts to make one with all the wrong ingredients. That being said, he very much enjoyed it (old fashioned = PASS).
I on the other hand ordered my favourite Hendricks martini, dry, straight up with a few olives. It tasted like gin and water which is unusual given Hendricks has such a unique flavour for gin (martini = FAIL)
They proceeded to bring out their bread basket which had a sort of tomato tapenade served with it. Their focaccia was delicious and fresh and so was their tapenade (bread basket = PASS)
My boyfriend and I then split a cesar salad which had zero flavour (FAIL).
I ordered the butternut squash agnolotti (hoping they would redeem themselves after the lack-​luster, garlic-​less ceasar) and my boyfriend ordered the spaghetti of the day (which was supposed to be with steak).
I was very disappointed with the portion size of the agnolotti and thought to myself, for 26 dollars, where is my pasta??? It came with maybe 4 – 5 agnolotti on a square plate which was just covered (and I mean drowning) in cream sauce. The menu also described the pasta as being on a bed of spinach and I think there may have been 4 – 5 pieces on my plate (I guess when I read bed of spinach I thought it would be a nice fluffy, coushiony bed). Again, the whole dish was lacking flavour (FAIL).
My boyfriend’s pasta was also a small portion (and he’s not even a big eater so usually doesn’t care). It looked good but I think there may have been 4 – 5 pieces of meat in the whole dish. Maybe they have this thing with 4 – 5 pieces per dish!!!
Overall, I was very disappointed with the food. The prices are on the higher end for pasta and given the small portions and lack of flavour, it would not be a restaurant that I would return to or recommend (unless you want to go and just eat their bread!).
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My firm has used Modus for the last two years for a major event. Both times the restaurant has been very accommodating and the food and service has been first rate.

I met up with someone here for a drink after work since Earls was completely packed. They were having a private event inside but the patio was open and it was a really nice day outside.
Our waitress was really nice and just attentive enough so she wasn’t overbearing but still made sure we had everything we need.
They had a great wine list with several bottles of good wine that are a bit harder to find but since I wanted white and he wanted red we just ordered by the glass.
I had a sapphire martini and then a few glasses of chardonnay that our waitress recommended. The martini was pretty good, I would have liked it a little more dry but I’m someone who just wants her gin shaken with ice until its cold and strained. The chardonnay was delicious — I wish I could remember which one it was because I would definitely get it again.
He had an old fashioned after the waitress assured him that the bartender makes a great one — luckily he agreed it was amazing. We also had a cheese platter to snack on and the variety and quality was pretty good.
I actually ended up liking this more than Earls. It was a very relaxed yet classy atmosphere and the service and drinks were great. I will definitely come back again for drinks or dinner.

I showed up 30 minutes late to a 10pm reservation for a Valentines Day dinner. The staff was courteous, but seemed very stressed. There was a lot of back and forth between the woman attempting to seat us and the wait staff, arguing over which table to place us at. After about 15 minutes we were seated. I’ll give this a little bit of a pass since it was Valentines Day, and it’s a day that is extremely busy for any restaurant.
The food had potential, but was prepared wrong. I ordered the swordfish, which turned out to be THE SALTIEST fish I have ever tasted in my life. It seemed like the chef (s) had forgotten that the fish was already salted, because it tasted like I was literally downing a salt shaker. Presentation wise, it was good. I did mention this to the server, who initially said «all swordfish is a little salty.» I do commend him for trying to replace my dish with something else, free of charge.
My wife had a far better experience with the Wild Mushroom Risotto.
All in all, it wasn’t an awful experience, but left much to be desired for my plate especially.

We visited Modus last Saturday for my husband’s work event. I like the atmosphere and the cozy tables. I also think that the servers in this restaurant are actually professional which is really rare nowadays. I cannot fully comment on the price vs. food value but let’s just say that by checking out the menu prices online and compering it with the food that we got I would not come back on my own account. Even thought I quite enjoyed the salad and the dessert it was not the case for my husband and for neither of our mains. The food was okay and the portions tiny. I understand the whole fine dining concept with small portions but the food better be excellent, and here this was not the case.

Came here for a date. It’s nice in the sense that the way the servers treat you is very nice, which should be a must at fine dining restaurants.
But something felt like it came short. It felt rushed. It almost felt like a big, fancy food court.
It was a busy Saturday night, but things shouldn’t feel rushed. Maybe it was because it’s in a large hall with high ceilings, and everything that’s going on in the room reverberates and you’re always forced to be aware of the surroundings. Or maybe it was because the staff didn’t seem to take their time and spend a significant time at the table as I’m accustomed to at fine-​dining restaurants.
It also felt like they crammed the tables so close together to fit more in.
Other than that, the décor is beautiful. The food looks beautiful. The staff were very accommodating.

³⁄₅! spagetti & meatballs are amazing but overpriced for the type of food. Service is average. Better italian restaurants in the area

Maybe I ordered the wrong thing? my pasta (squid ink pasta with lobster ragu) was so buttery that I couldn’t finish the dish (and I’m a big eater). I give it a 3 star, because the appetizer (octopus salad) was refreshing and our bottle of wine was amazing. Also, the service was great. I just really didn’t like my main course.

Food is great but some items are better than other. The lobster tagliatelle is a must-​order though it is a very heavy dish. Other items are good as well but nothing too special. Their pasta is cooked perfectly as well. We ordered the striploin steak which was a bit tough even though we ordered it to be cooked to medium. Desserts and appetizers are solid dishes but nothing too memorable. Overall a solid restaurant.

Great restaurant — amazing food. Love the open kitchen concept. Went there with a large group and they were very accommodating. I do not believe the prices to high at all relative to any other top restaurant in the downtown core. It is high end dining, and they do a great job of it. My rating was based on service, taste and ambiance… all
were fantastic.

Upscale dining. Excellent service, great wine and good quality food. Highly recommend!

Very good service from the greeting we got when we first got there to the wait staff during g the meal. The place is upscale but the pricing was, thought reasonable. A very large wine list but a rather short specials list, only two and one of those was a strip steak.
The food was served at a very nice pace and all food was done as ordered. The food was excellent and the waitress check with us regularly to make sure are needs where met.
The desserts all seemed to be made in house and the ice cream was great.
Dinner for two, bottle of wine, 2 apps., and dessert — $ 185.00

A group of four of us came to Modus for lunch in late January but I am only getting around to writing this review now. My bad. I think part of the problem with my writers block is that I really wanted to like this restaurant but I walked away not excited to ever go back. Maybe it was because the food was good but not great. Although cost-​wise, it is similar to Jump or Bymark, the food is not as special.
We ordered as starters:
BUFFALO MOZZARELLA POMODORO: Heirloom tomato salad, avocado and buffalo mozzarella — pretty presentation and tasty but I’ve had better.
TONNO TARTARE. Yellow fin tuna tartar with avocado, spicy mayo and crispy shallots — again, the presentation was nice and the portion was generous. It was tasty.
VEAL CARPACCIO: blood orange salsa, arugula cress and mustard vinaigrette. I did not try this dish but my friend seemed to enjoy it.
For our entrees, one of us had the Agnolotti (butternut squash filled, Marsala reduction, braised duck, black truffle pesto). This was an interesting combination of flavours and my dining companion enjoyed it. I tried it and I thought it was interesting but I am not sure I would order it, probably because I am not a fan of duck.
Two of us ordered the black cod (my favourite fish). It may have a been one of the specials because it is not on the website’s menu now. It was a generous portion of fish and it was cooked properly but it was not hot — just lukewarm — which was my biggest complaint and it ruined the meal for me. The other big problem was that the waiter did not come around to check on us for so long that I just decided to eat it as my friends were already well into their entrees. I wasn’t exactly roughing it in the wild so don’t feel sorry for me but I can’t say I loved this dish because, while the flavour was good, it wasn’t hot.
For dessert, the waiter recommended the ricotta fritters and they were, in fact, excellent, as was the cheesecake. The olive oil lemon cake sounded interesting so I had to try it and it was good but I am not sure I would get it again. I preferred the deep-​fried fritters.
The food was presented beautifully, the décor was opulent yet classy, I loved the open kitchen and the service was pretty good but I, as I said at the start of this review, I can’t see myself going back anytime soon or recommending this place, not when there are competing restaurants (at the same or similar price range within walking distance) that offer far more superior cuisine.