Reds Midtown Tavern

This place is large and has a classy feel.
Great for a glass of wine or cocktail.
Terrible if you are a vegetarian. No vegetarian main option. A few appetizers are vegetarian (maybe two or three). I do not recommend this place for dinner if there is a vegetarian in your group.

Passed by this place many times. Decided tonight was the night. The place is very nicely set up — open concept very large TV screens and great décor. Music was good also, not too loud just enough to not hear the people next to you. Good beer selection (ok that’s important to me!). I started with the Crab Chowder — it was delicious! Followed that up with that butter chicken bowl– it was good — had some kick. Overall nice place and good food and beer/​drink selection in a nice setting

I used to quite like Reds despite it’s corporate connections but I’ve noticed from my most recent visit that their new menu appears to have scaled back portions yet maintaining the same prices as before. The ahi tuna beet salad that I’ve ordered at the Adelaide location twice before was an amazing dish — plentiful helpings of beets (both raw and roasted), crisp greens and a nice portion of seared sesame crusted tuna with this supreb dressing. Now it’s a sad little salad they’ve tried to pass off as an entrée when it was barely filling enough for a main meal… Thank goodness I was going to another party after that cause I was starving! The salad used have so many beets (which were deliciously prepared) but this time I could barely find 4 pieces on my plate… wtf beets aren’t even that expensive!!! I’m pretty sure the departure of their previous corporate chef Michael Hunter has something to do with the now mediocre, clearly scaled back portions to maximize profit food.
Sorry guys I can’t recommend Reds anymore even for that beet salad. Come here strictly for drinks and maybe apps — the atmosphere is nice but the food is so-​so unfortunately.

I was very disappointed with the food here. I ordered the chicken and it was extremely dry and the carrot cake desert was nothing to brag about either.
I think it’s a bit over priced for what it is.

The problem with bar/​restaurant hybrids downtown has always been the scale of extremes. Its either comfortably on one side of the scale, in the cheap student /​sports bar /​terrible food /​so loud you have to yell or its on the completely opposite side, the uncomfortably full of Bay St. suits /​expensive amazing food /​good luck getting service if you’re there for dinner side. Reds Midtown Tavern sits perfectly in the middle of this scale and it glorious.
Made a reservation for an annual get together of old friends, never having gone before I was depending completely on a friends’ recommendation and he was not wrong (he never is), the place is fantastic. We sat in the area to the left of the bar (which I think is the lounge but I may be wrong) with the nice comfortable leather high-​back chairs, had food and drinks for about five hours and it is now my new favourite place. The location is good, close to subway and the downtown in general. The staff is super friendly and more than happy to recommend dishes which where right on point. Reds Midtown is comfortable without being a pub yet has food as good if not better than some of the higher end Bay St. restaurants, its like a Unicorn and you should definitely take a ride.
The only downside is that I could see how it could be noisy on busier days. We went on a Tuesday night and it was pretty noisy at 7:00pm but started to get quieter around 9pm. Other than that the ambiance is very warm and welcoming, it is a neutral meeting point for 9 – 5’ers, suits and creatives alike.

Really great atmosphere, good service, mediocre food. I was here with some co-​workers for lunch today, and the cool rustic décor (check out the chandelier made out of wine bottles and glasses!) and friendly hostess/​servers gave me high hopes that the food would be just as great. Sadly, that was not the case.
The five of us shared the steamed edamame and tavern butcher board. Both appetizers were good, but nothing too memorable. I ordered the Oscar Sirloin for my entrée because it sounded amazing (steak topped with lobster, crab & shrimp, sauteed in tabasco butter, hollandaise sauce and chives), but it was pretty underwhelming. I had asked for it medium rare, and it was more on the medium well side, and a little too charred for my liking. The seafood that came with it wasn’t very fresh and tasted inconsistent (some bites were really salty and fishy, others weren’t). The side of mash potatoes were decent and tasted pretty good with the hollandaise. The tabasco butter gave everything a bit of a spicy kick.
Definitely won’t be rushing back for their food, but it seems like a fun place to catch up with friends over drinks and apps!

Cute place for drinks and apps. We stopped in here for the lobster guacamole, mussels and some wine. They have a large bar and played really good music.
Fun little place. Good pricing.

Calm environment but long wait for our food, by the time my food got to the table I found a small strand of hair in my chicken so the kitchen had to obviously remake it for me (which didn’t end up taking that long).
One thing that stood out to me was that the restaurant hired a magician and his tricks kept my friends and I busy and our attention away from how long the dinner wait time was.

Living in the area, I would consistently walk by this place on a daily basis, and would always admire their patio: p So, for my birthday, I decided to dine here. Ps– i give it a 4.5!
Got a nice, cushioned patio seat, with a huge umbrella to protect from any rain/​sun, and a barrier of flowers and plants to provide some privacy from people walking by on the street.
Decided to opt out of getting an app, solely because I wanted to enjoy my main, and I knew I’d be getting dessert on the house, which obviously I wanted to save room for
First we got our drinks, I ordered a maple bacon bourbon; a lot stronger than I anticipated! Cost $ 12. For mains, I ordered the pork tenderloin with gnocchi, and my boyfriend chose a peppercorn steak with a side of mashed potatoes. We also split a tiny side of fries. We waited a reasonable amount of time for our food to come, nothing below or above average.
The quantity of food for me was perfect. Just enough so I could finish it all and not be left overly full! I should warn tou though, I do not have the worlds biggest appetite, so if you think of yourself as being a big eater, consider ordering an app on top of your meal.
In terms of taste, I really didn’t have anything to complain about! The pork was cooked perfectly: nice and tender, not dried out AT ALL! The gnocchi were a little al dente, but I don’t mind my pasta being on the harder side. The pasta could’ve used a liiitttllee more sauce, but no biggy.
The flourless cake went above my expectations! It came with cashews, a banana and chocolate mousse, and they even wrote «happy birthday «in chocolate sauce on the plate they served it to me on! It was enough for us to share after the meals we just consumed!
Through getting the dessert for free, ended up spending about $ 60 for both of us before tip. Not too shaby considering we went out with the intention of having a classier/​pricier meal.
If you’re looking for a place to go out to celebrate a bit more of a special occasion, I would recommend giving Red’s a shot. The ambiance of the place is quite nice (makes you feel like a fancy person for dining there haha), and their menu offers quite a variety of choices, so you can’t really go wrong! :)

I came here with a group of 8 women. All of us loved our meals. What impressed me even more was the service. Although our food took longer than the server would have liked, she was great with keeping us informed that the kitchen was slammed. We could see that it was, so she wasn’t exaggerating in the least. On top of that, I didn’t particularly enjoy my mojito. I found it a little too citrusy and the server apologized, offered to get me something and removed the drink from my bill! How’s that for service! Highly recommend checking out for dinner. Especially if you’re a steak and wine lover.

Five stars for this place might be a bit excessive, but here are my excuses…
I came during Summerlicious at lunch with a large group (please let all those words sink in for a moment) and…
1. Not only did the food not seem like a scant, bland version of some better menu, it was delicious and generous. The quinoa salad was superb, but better than that was the fried chicken, which unlike all fried chicken in Toronto, was not too salty, greasy, and overdone. Everyone at my table thoroughly enjoyed their lunch, which is damn hard to do with a big group.
2. The service was excellent. Sure, a big restaurant that has large tables should know how to serve groups, maybe. Here, they actually do. The climactic moment of all group service– bringing and splitting the bill– went off without a hitch. The servers acted as if it were perfectly normal and easy to split a cheque. Imagine that!
Hats off to Reds for a great lunch.

I always come by this place on my fist night visiting Toronto.
Their lamb shrank is very delicious and it is well paired with the housemate mash grits
I also high recommend the carrot cake … It is so so so delicious :-)

It was OK, I should really give it another chance. I got the sweet potato flatbread because of all the great reviews on Unilocal,but it was just okay, not super fabulous or anything. I also had the Lobster Guacamole which was okay as well. Usually the apps are better than the mains, but these apps were just regular, nothing mind blowing. I felt like this was just like every other chain bar/​restaurant. We were a large group and we were seated at this weird table that had a cut out in the center, I guess it’s so the staff can serve each person without squeezing by, but it made it more uncomfortable for us because we couldn’t yell across the tables and the gap to talk, so we would get up and walk around and cluster around the table, thus cramping the space of the poor people that were sitting at a table close to us. I’m sure they got hit many times by both the staff and our party.

Giant goblets of gin and tonic. $ 8 on Friday nights. This was a recipe for success!
I organized a social event for a large group and we sat at a table in the shape of a U. I hate going out for dinner and sitting in a long line. This unique set-​up allowed for conversation across and between everyone. I liked it.
The servers, Fab and Jonathan, were excellent. Extremely attentive, friendly, and entertaining! I couldn’t have asked for more. Thanks guys!
The food was quite good and everyone was able to find something they liked. We tried a couple of starters too, the potato flatbread and the lobster guacamole with chips. Both were yummy. I had the seared ahi tuna Niçoise salad. I thought the dressing to be a bit heavy but the fish was perfection. I wished the portion were a tad larger though.
Upon making the reservation, I did ask for separate bills. This wasn’t a problem. They even split the appetizer amongst ten people! Impressive.
With a large party, the auto-​grat was 18%. Very fair given the lovely and lively evening we had! Thank you for making my night!

Argh. This is sort of a bummer because I previously came to Reds for an event, really liked it (and its affiliates next door), and had put it on the office party shortlist. In the meantime, I brought someone for birthday drinks/snacks…which as you know inexplicably and inevitably causes whatever place you choose to let you down in an epic manner, causing embarrassment to all.
My friend’s medium-​rare steak ($ 20) came completely overcooked (literally 100% of the outside was charred). We patiently waited for probably 20 minutes for someone to come our direction. Several servers floated by but never made eye contact or approached us before leaving again. Then they just disappeared. I finally managed to get our server’s attention as she was about to walk away again. The replacement was done properly but it mystifies me why they served the burnt one in the first place.
Oysters ($ 18) were tasty of course, but it beats me how 6 (3 of them tiny) constitute a «shareable».
Over 2 hours, no one refilled our water. We waited for a long while (notice a pattern?) with empty glasses, then I eventually walked to the bar, grabbed a pitcher, and did it myself. Allllll night. There was no one to flag down. Ever.
I would have ordered some drinks (I’d asked for water to start while we were perusing the menu), but… there was no one to flag down.
The DJ was fine and this is not supposed to be a quiet venue, but the music was deafening, which made it difficult for my friend and I to converse while trying to pass the time between filling our own water glasses.
It was pretty dead after the happy hour crowd left, yet service was nonexistent. By the time someone checked in with us after 9, it was time to leave, so we just got the bill.
I owe my friend a make-​up birthday outing. Any recommendations?

We came here for Winterlicious lunch and it was a huge let down, as you would expect from a chain resto. First of all, we were automatically seated in the bar area, not even giving the option of eating in the dining area. We had reservations and it was dead. The service was very good. The water was never empty and we had several servers attend to us.
The food was very basic and bland. I had beet salad, spicy shrimp & rice, and rocky road dessert. Beet salad was good and interesting, but the shrimp was something you could make at home, and the rocky road dessert was not good at all.
The Good:
1. Service. As I mentioned, I have no complaints about service and how fast our food came out of the kitchen.
2. Décor. Quite nice décor for a chain resto, I enjoyed all the Edison bulbs.
The Bad:
1. Food. Very bland and not worth the price of admission.
2. Selection. Was not a fan of the menu selection at this place.
Recommendation: skip this place, you’re not missing much!

Walked in when looking for a drink special on a VERY cold Wednesday night. The bartender was so friendly and took pity on a Florida girl experiencing –2 temperatures. I didn’t get anything to eat, but loved the $ 5 (Canadian money) beer.
The real treat here is the «make your own gin and tonic». OMG. I chose my gin, a nice light tonic and was able to put my own accoutrements in (juniper berries, orange peels, etc). TOTALLY worth the $ 11.
The bathrooms were impeccably clean and very pretty (strange for a bar). The décor in general, was great. Loved the friendly atmosphere!

Came here for lunch during Winterlicious on a quiet Saturday afternoon.
The good:
We we’re impressed by the décor. There were Edison bulbs, and brick walls which gave the restaurant a nice vibe. The service was also a highlight of our visit. Staff were friendly and attentive during our entire meal. There is a gigantic and beautiful bar area for those looking for a few drinks as well.
The not as good:
The food was okay but nothing to rave about. Not sure if it was because of Winterlicious but the food felt very basic.
Overall, Reds will offer a comfortable and relaxing venue to go on a date and have a few drinks.

Interesting menu. It’s a little bit of everything in an almost exotic far away land kind of way. Indian inspired, Thai inspired, seafood inspired dishes. I’ll be honest it’s not my foodie palette first choice but I’m happy I tried them out anyway.
I really enjoyed my experience there overall. I interacted with 5 staff throughout my lunch and they were all very lovely to speak and engage with; from the hostess, to server, to serving staff to the manager.
I had the seafood chowder which was delicious, the smoky bacon added a nice touch to the seafood. I had their Cheeseburger which I added the smoked bacon, combined with their horseradish secret sauce it was an unbelievably amazingly juicy delicious burger. I couldn’t finish my salad that came with it. Plus a soda. $ 29 + $ 4 for tip.
I consider their prices slightly above average but considering the quality of food and quantity and overall experience it was worth it. The atmosphere is elegant. The exposed brick, leather back chairs and wooden chairs combined with the industrial lighting and drapes was perfectly balanced. The music was not too loud. Bathrooms are upstairs.
So I was checking out all three restaurants; Red’s, Scaddabush and Duke’s (all owned by the same company) to decide on my vote for a Christmas lunch with my colleagues. I had a not so good experience at Scaddabush (see that review) the hostess at Red’s asked me to come back to let her know my decision after trying all three. I want to include my experience to let you know how awesome Red’s is…
I popped in to let her know and she was disappointed by my story (about Scaddabush) and let me know the general manager was there. I spoke with the general manager and relayed my story. She quickly apologized and offered me lunch since I didn’t get one. I kindly thanked her for that but stated I had to get back to the office as the service next door was also slow. I asked that she relay to all the staff at Red’s that what they are doing there is great and to keep up the great work. They will be my number 1 choice. Christmas lunch or no Christmas lunch.

I’ve been here a couple of times for drinks and appetizers in the bar area. The location is large, yet feels intimate. The décor has a very rustic feeling.
I’ve tried the burgers which were very juicy. The potato bread was good, but a bit too much balsamic for me. The edamame was good, but it’s pretty hard to screw that up. And the Yucatan crevice was excellent. The lobster guacamole was only okay, not work the price in my opinion.
Good atmosphere. Good wine selection. Friendly and attentive service. Would come back.