Osgoode Hall Restaurant

This is a hidden gem inside Osgood Hall, you have to get through security to get in. Follow the sign and you are at the restaurant inside a beautiful room with stained glass, chandelier, I believe it used to be the old library.
The restaurant only opens for lunch and now have a daily Prix-​Fixe Menu in addition to a la carte items.
My sister in law chose the Cobb Salad which was huge and so fresh.
We chose the Prix-​Fixe Thursday Lunch,
Daily Soup — Clam Chowder with tons of clams
Duck Confit with Sausage Pasta
Coconut Panna Cotta wit Ginger Cake and Mango Salad
The food was so fresh and excellent, tastes great and good serving size.
We also ordered a side of fries as it was so good according to my sister in law.
The servers were excellent, when I ordered hot water with lemon, I was served with the in house preserved lemon peel jelly. Sweet, Tangy and texture liked a gummy. It was so good I can eat a bucketful unfortunately they don’t sell it.
The In House baked Bread was also excellent.
If you are ever in Toronto, head downtown and book a table for lunch.

This place has been on my list for far too long and I’m so glad to have finally tried it!
What a great place for lunch — the room has great ambiance, and tables are sufficiently far apart from each other (unlike some of the newer places that squeeze too many tables into a small space); beautifully decorated with lovely stainglass windows and bookcases; professional attentive service; and a really good deal for a meal — $ 24 prix fixe. The special for lunch was tagliatelle alfredo with bacon and ramps. There was a choice of soup or chef’s appetizer (smoked salmon wrapped asparagus served with pickled beets), and the dessert was a coconut pavolova served with tropical fruit and sorbet. All delicious!
Reservation was easily booked through OpenTable. Will look forward to another chance to visit.

3.5stars…Great environment, quiet, elegent and traditional settings thats very good for business lunch. (especially liked the booksheves filled with legal docs along the walls). Service was okay that matches the 24 dollar set menu price. Food quality was hmmm, maybe I came on the wrong day (wednesday) that I found the starter (soup) and pasta to be food court quality. Dessert was really good tho.

Great spot in a traditional setting with stained glass windows, law books and chandeliers. Had the steak frite and it was superb. The fries were absolutely delicious and the steak was perfectly cooked. One of the best I have had. Great attentive service (but not obtrusive). Reasonable prices as well. As others have said, you do go through a medical detector and then up the elevator of stairs to the modest dining hall. Great lunch out!

The steak here is amazing! So good! The atmosphere of the Hall and the service is wonderful too. I love this place and wish it were open all year round and that it was closer to me. I recommend the steak especially but their other menu items like the pasta were excellent.

Where else in Toronto can you eat in a beautifully designed structure amongst one of the oldest legal establishments in the nation? Osgoode Hall restuarant is located on the second floor (follow the signs and your nose!). This is a popular lunch spot amongst respected legal professionals. They have an extensive drinks menu, with a wide variety of wine and liquor. The daily lunch entrees change periodically, so there is always some excitement to see what is available. The service is top notch and attentive. The food is served quickly and well before you can fully take in the rich heritage and beautiful archtecture of the dining hall. Dishes vary from $ 18 – 14. There are usually pasta, chicken, steak, and vegetarian options. Just a gentle reminder that there is a quick security check on your way into the building! This is definitely one of my favorite lunch places in the downtown core!

Nothing says «I’m a F’n Lawyer» like walking suited-​up past the metal detectors at Old Osgoode Hall, marching up the winding stairs and to the threshold of the Osgoode Hall Restuarant… well, other than actually practicing law, of course.
Truth be told, I love this place. The high ceilings; the stained glass windows; the law books that adorn the shelves (I believe it was once part of the law library). The white tablecloths and refined service and restrained, often muted cooking to service the needs of the white-​shoes that pad these halls.
As a young lawyer, I’d buy lunch here occasionally, because my Bar card granted me easy access (although in truth it’s open to the public), and because I’d be surrounded by the profession I’d work so hard to join.
The place literally crawls with lawyers in $ 1500 gravy-​spotted suits or winged shirts and court-​stripe pants, their barristers’ robes lying, sweaty heaps in blue velvet initialled sacks. Some cluster together before the afternoon’s battles, others treat clients with their own money (an expense account’s a wonderful thing). For a certain species of people-​watching, it can’t be beat.
The food’s not bad either. The Osgoode Hall Restaurant has seen it’s share of prominent chefs, some of whom have gone on to bigger and better. Fair warning, it’s only open for lunch, while courts are in session. If you pop by over the Christmas holiday, or on summer vacation, you’ll likely be disappointed.
Meals aren’t fancy; country-​club food, really, for those who pine for the Empire and have to get back to work within 45 minutes.
The menu is short.
A soup; often a purée of root vegetables, is fine. Today it’s butternut squash with apples. Both register, but you’re in it for the smooth, creamy texture rather than the muted fall flavours. Salad is useless, as are greens in vinaigrette generally. Seriously, I’ll charge you $ 8 for the same thing from my own kitchen, and still make enough to put my own kid through law school. Both are available as options for a prix fix, which has doubled in prix since I graduated…
The Upper Canada Club is a menu standby. Fresh roasted poultry, crispy bacon, the usual bed and a thin spread of mayo on toasted bread. I appreciate the kosher pickle shout-​out, but would swap out the pedestrian potato chips for skinny tanned frites (though not the useless salad, for a $ 5 surcharge).
Menu specials usually include some version of quiche, which is great if you skipped breakfast before your hearing (brunch food goes down more easily), it’s insides always properly custardy, it’s shell buttery and flaky. There’s also a pasta if you’re so inclined, although I’m not. It looks fine, but needs a few shakes of chili to wake it up.
If you really want to feel lawyerly, go for the steak frites, order it rare, and have at it. Nature red in tooth and claw. We are all carnivores here. It’s tender and just slightly gamy; the fries crisp and salty, the meal begging for a glass of red. I stick with water, since I haven’t mastered drinking during the workday.
Coffee is fresh and hot, though less robust than you’d think. Lawyers run on coffee. At least I have, since I was a student. Desserts are cutely portioned, and often come with small scoops of ice cream. Nothing wrong there, but time is waiting, and I’m going to have to bill some serious hours to cover this tab.
Perhaps that’s my one issue with the Osgoode Hall Restaurant these days. It used to be an excellent value. Now, it’s a decent meal in a cool room; an legal version of the old Arcadian Court.
I still do enjoy it.

A rare find in the City of Toronto. A place that actually got it right. Unfortunately it is only open for lunch, two hours a day. Everything from food to service done to perfection. I’m looking forward to experiencing more from this place. Unfortunately it will be closed for the summer. I had the seared salmon on greens with cherry tomatoes and the desert was a rhubarb tart with strawberries and ginger ice cream (not too sweet).

Opened for lunch on the weekdays with a $ 23 three course prix fixe that changes daily and minor changes to the a la carte menu.
Had to clear security (x-​ray machine + metal detector) to enter Osgoode Hall and then there was signage pointing to the restaurant. It was a quick and painless process.
On the day me and my friend, the prix fixe menu was a beef croquette with pear chutney, chicken breast, and an apple cake. The day before it had grilled octopus. It was delicious and the portion sizes were just right! My friend had the steak frites, which seems to be a staple of the menu, is served with lots of fries! We also got two pieces of complimentary bread each.
Service was excellent from the moment we walked into the restaurant to the moment we walked out. There was no waiting to be greeted or calling for your bill and each course came out fast. They treat you like royalty basically. The line of stained glass windows and bookshelves of law books was really something and most of the waiters had a french accent, it felt like we had left Ontario and went to France for lunch.
It was simply an amazing lunch. Although the restaurant never filled to capacity during our hour there (12 to 1), they do recommend a reservation and this can be made through OpenTable.
Will definitely be back in the future to show off this gem to friends.

A nice place to have a bit of a fancy lunch. This place is only open for lunch, and is inside the Ontario Court of Appeal. The building itself is beautiful, and the room where the restaurant is decorated with walls of old law books.
They have a consistent menu and another that changes. Their chef menu (which is one of the menus that change) gets you an appetizer, main and dessert for about $ 23 + tax and tip. They had a bread service, but I find that the bread has usually been sitting for awhile and it’s as soft as I’d like.
Service is always friendly, and very concious of time constraints if you only have an hour or less for lunch.

This is such a fantastic little hidden gem. Only open from 12−2p, the service is stellar and the food is very good. But the atmosphere is what gives it five stars. You have to work your way deep into historic Osgoode Hall, built in 1828, to get to it. Once there, you’ll find yourself surrounded by judges and barristers. It’s the home to The Court of Appeal for Ontario, the Superior Court Of Justice and the Law Society of Upper Canada. And this amazing little restaurant. Not lots of tables, so I’d recommend reservations if you want to make sure you can get in.

This little gem in the heart of Toronto is not your typical dining experience by any means. Perhaps it’s because you have to go through Toronto police security prior to entering the building (it’s nestles within the court of appeals) or because you are dining amongst judges donned in their robes reviewing cases or because you are eating in one of Toronto’s historical landmarks.
The menu is varied and the portions are conservative but filling. I only drank water but their drink menu is longer than their food menu. The food menu has reasonably priced offerings that are made in the partisan-​style. I ordered a ravioli dish that I cannot remember the full name of and was quite impressed. The flavorings were perfect. For dessert, I had a wild blueberry clafouti with lemon ice cream which was more of an ice cream/​sorbet. Very tasty. The two other women I was with were also very happy with their meals and they were extremely accommodating for one who required a very specific diet. All in all, highly recommended for a different dining experience.
After dining, I would also recommend exploring the areas of Osgoode Hall that are open to the public such as the library and the barrister’s lounge.

Great place for a very reasonable price. The service is superb. Not many places where u can get a three course meal for 22 for lunch. Love it and will go back

I’ve come to the Osgoode Hall Restaurant 3 times before. At the beginning, it was a little tricky to find. A few hallways and stairways later. The prices are reasonable, the service is fantastic and the food is also delicious. I usually come after 12 and the chef’s menu has always been sold out. It includes a 3 course fix price meal. The ambiance takes you away from the hustle of Queen Street and into a library inside the law society. I recommend this hidden gem to those want to experience dinning elbow to elbow with lawyers and politicians. Expect to spend around $ 20 — $ 40 per person for lunch.

Lovely dining room and food is excellent. Best value is the prix fixe.
Coffee is served with a piece of candied citrus peel (nice touch!)
They do a good job of completing the lunch in a hour (but factor in a few minutes to get through the security check to get in the building.
Did not need a reservation on my last few visits.

One of the best lunch spots in downtown TO. Inspired menu changes daily. Great old world ambience in a large Victorian great hall with huge chandeliers and stained glass windows. Outstanding wine list!

BOTTOM LINE: One of the city’s best kept secrets, the Osgoode Hall Restaurant offers a heritage room lunch venue with amazing value for the general public.
You pass through the iron gates and luscious garden, and enter through the main doors where you’re abruptly greeted by peace officers operating an x-​ray machine and metal detector. Once you’ve cleared security, you continue along a red hallway and then up the stairs and into an expansive heritage room lined with law texts on one side and draped with chandeliers from above. There’s also massive portraits of William Osgoode and has law companions gazing down on you — it’s all part of the show, and you’re the main attraction.
They recommend reservations but the space hit only about 80% capacity whilst I was dining there. The majority of the customers appeared to be lawyers in their lawyerly garbs (obviously), but there were also good number that were dressed casually. The servers tend to be older, portly gentlemen with mustachios and greying hair, which all adds to the heritage atmosphere.
The highlight of Osgoode Hall is their prix fixe for $ 21 although they also have a modest menu to order from. They post a differing prix fixe on their website on a daily basis, and tend to base their offerings on seasonal and local offerings. They have wine recommendations paired to their main courses.
When I attended, I found their Thai chicken soup to be made with a hearty dose of spices, their trout to be fresh and flavourful with pecans and freshly fried plantain chips, and their apple pie/​tart to be crispy with just the right amount of sweetness. My dining mate ordered their quiche, which was made really well.
I’d definitely come back — you’ll be hard-​pressed to find a better lunch deal in this part of town.

Open to the public for lunch from Noon to 2:00pm; closed in July and August. This is where the lawyers eat when they are working the courthouse next door. Need to make reservations and there’s a security check like at the airport to enter. I usually go for the prix fixe 3 course lunch.