The Boulevard Cafe

I was there first time 30+ years ago. After I moved away from Toronto, I’ve been there now and then. It is sad to see a place once thriving going down. The food is still OK, but the service and prices are not. I think greed is pricing them out because the place is almost empty. A breakfast or lunch for two, which in many good places would go for $ 30, in here goes for $ 55. And the portions are so, so small that are more suitable for birds than humans. Coffee and tea prices are not listed, so make sure you ask for the price because you will be shocked at the end if you don’t, that is where they’ll sting you big time. Service staff show the problem in their faces, perhaps because of the bad business or smaller tips due to the outrageously high bills or being on drugs. And the ambiance has anything but Peruvian, rock music and weird paintings. As if this was not enough, they were not accepting credit cards that day and I had to go rush to look for a bank while I was in a hurry. Sorry, but I will not go back again. Maybe owner is planing to retire and wants to live large or wants to take the place down with the retirement.

I’ve been here about 4 – 5 times over the years. Its a small restaurant with a good ambience. Service is friendly. While it is a bit on the pricer side the quality is quite good. I ordered the rainbow trout with garlic rice and was happy with my meal. As a side note: they do not seem to have any beer on top and just have bottles.

Our first time visiting this magical corner with a taste of Peru, from the original Pico sour down to the tasty traditional foods, accompanied with an excellent attention, warm welcoming, delicious food, the atmosphere is unique … It brings you back home where you can close your eyes and reminisce with delicate taste, exquisite, as the cook creates every plate with such love.
The owner herself devotes all attention to all guests that step into her home as she shares wonderful dishes made from scratch with fresh ingredients. If you are near the harbour area … Stop by and experience this lovely corner filled with love … Boulevard Café. We are definitely going back for more!

Great service. Went with a large group w adults no kids. They graciously sat is outside and created a mega table for us. Had a great time.

They don’t follow their advertised hours. I checked their hours, biked all the way over there for lunch and the door was locked, although all the patio tables were set and there were people inside.

Came her for my girlfriend’s birthday. Had Sangrai and the shareable seafood tapas plate with mussels, calamari, cerviche and other snacks. Was very delicious and seemed quite fresh. Service was also quite good. Ambiance was also quite cute.
Only knock against this place is that the Sangria was $$$$$$$.

A lovely, lovely place to have summer dinner with good friends. Unlike many of the reviews that precede mine, we had an attentive server who made an effort to find the coldest sauvignon blanc in the fridge for us, and who explained the subtle differences between a grilled sea bream and a grilled bass. And was spot on, since we ordered both. As mentioned by others, the bread is amazing, hard to keep your fingers out of the basket, with a plate of spicy olive oil along side to dab. My partner began with a sweet potato sopa (soup), full of silky flavour. The grilled calamari appetizer was a tad toothsome, (served whole, not in rings) but generous and yummy. The caesar salad however with completely uninspired – whole leaves of romaine lettuce barely coated in dressing, a shake of cheese, red onion which isn’t necessary, and no anchovies as promised.
Mains were fabulous. The 2 grilled fish dishes were both succulent, somewhat boney (to be expected from those fish types), and completely full of flavour, accompanied by a mango salsa, yucca fries, and a limey arugula salad. First class, if messy to eat. The guys both had a maresco al limon pappardelle dish, (listed as fettuccini) artfully served with mussels and clams circling a huge shrimp atop the spicy, tomato-​based pasta. Never had meals this high end in Peru, that’s for sure.
We passed on dessert and finished the meal with an Americano each, but found the coffee very strong and acrid. A bit of cream and sugar (and an additional pot of hot water) helped, but one shouldn’t have to doctor a good restaurant’s coffee that much. On a minor note, the upstairs lavs were surprisingly hot – easily 20 degrees hotter than the rest of the building. Prices are a shade above average for good dining in TO, eg whole fish were $ 32.
So…food, wine, service, terrace ambiance– 5 stars. Caesar salad, coffee, washroom lost them one star. Would return happily.

I recently dined here for a friend’s birthday lunch and although the service was a bit slow, the food was incredible! The bread is amazing, and the unique sandwiches and other menu items are divine. It also has a great patio and is on a relatively quiet corner that makes you feel like you’re in a small town instead of a big city.
With all the side streets in close proximity, there is plenty of free street parking which is also a huge plus.

I am updating my review based on my last three experiences at Boulevard Café. While the food remains excellent, the service has gone steadily down hill. At best, the service of late has been extremely slow (20 mins to talk drink orders, another 15 to get the drinks, 15 mins after that to take food orders, etc.). At worst, servers have been rude, irritable, evasive, and negligent. They have also annoyingly started to charge for bread, a trend in this city that needs to stop.

I LOVE this place. I’m vegetarian though and the menu here doesn’t really cater to vegetarians. If, however, you talk to the amazing server that is there (I’ve had the same guy twice and he is SO helpful!) and tell them you’re vegetarian, Boulevard Café DOES in fact make a delicious vegetarian meal. What I had was a tamale in banana leaf with corn meal, cheese, and minced vegetables, with a side salad, house made re-​fried beans, and roasted beets. It’s a BIG meal with BIG flavour. One of my faves!

I love the atmosphere at Boulevard. We entered to an assortment of glowing candles. It was warm and cozy (and full of people!) on a cold fall evening.
The service was friendly… but kind of odd. Well, our waiter was a little odd.
My friends ordered the grilled chicken main and the fish main. I got the starter quesadilla. Before ordering I asked the waiter if it was filling enough for a main ‘oh sure it is!’.
No it wasnt’. My $ 15 quesadilla was the size of a sushi hand roll (and rolled in the same fashion instead of the flat-​plan style I’m used to). The flavour was great with crab meat and shrimp filling. I just wish there was more of it…
I filled myself up on their hearty bread. My friend felt sad for me and offered some of her dinner… I felt pitied.
I think…$ 15 was too much for the size of my meal. I wish the waiter had been more honest, I would of just picked a main.
I’m iffy about going back. I feel like I had one of those moments equivalent to buying a $ 10 hot dog because its in the city.

Quite a disappointment! A group of us — 4 couples — were supposed to go to the Lakeview for dinner, however the group decided they wanted something more «upscale» for a Friday night meal. We went to Boulevard Café instead, and were seated quickly with reservations made only minutes before. This is where the enjoyment ended.
The service, as many people have already mentioned, was not good. It seemed the waiter didn’t pay attention to anyone except for our spanish-​speaking friend in the group. Service was slow and not much was explained to us. We nearly missed the daily specials board because it was not pointed out to us.
The food was absolutely not worth the cost. I had the soup of the day which was an overly-​peppered, mushroom soup that arrived cold; a platter of steamed vegetables (I had dental surgery earlier so I had to keep it bland) with a simple garlic dip for a ridiculous $ 15. My fiancée ordered the fish of the day (which strangely was a choice between 5 different fish all made the same way) — she chose the salmon — and at $ 26 for a way-​too-​bony fillet of salmon with a skimpy mango salsa and three yucca frites, again, it was extremely overpriced. That meal with two glasses of wine and a beer cost us $ 105. A bit much for what we got.
When we got the bill we had no idea what our meal was (what’s «open table»?) and it took awhile to get it explained. And on top of it all the waiter added an automatic 15% gratuity after taxes… not correct.
Overall, the meal at Boulevard Café made my fiancée and I wish that we had never left the Lakeview. Turns out «upscale» doesn’t necessarily mean good.

Great food. the Ceviche was delicious, and the mains were great. Our party had lamb, chicken, calamari and steak, all were delcious. the cocktails were also tasty but pricey.
the bad, the service. our server was one of the worst i’ve experienced. it took forever for someone to take drink orders, and when our food orders went in it was an eternity until they came out. overall the service was extremely poor. For good measure when we recieved the bill, a 15% gratuity was added because we had a group (which is ok) she fought with us when we noticed that an item that we ordered and they were out of was still on the bill. she came to the table 3 times to argue that we were wrong. at the end, she was wrong, and adjusted our bill.
I normally wouldn’t make a fuss or even write a review but our server was the shits, and the food was overpriced especially because the service was lousy.

Although this place boasts a beautiful patio perfect for a lazy Sunday brunch I can’t recommend it as a must eat kind’ve place.
The food is decent, the people are nice but the service as slow as molasses and for the prices you pay, it’s just not worth it. Dinner is better than brunch though.
This place has been reviewed enough. You don’t need my gumpy ass to contribute to the misery.

Poor service! After calling a number of other places, this place was the only place that would take a reservation for a party of 12 at 12:30. I was expecting brunch but it was a lunch menu instead. Given that we were a large party I knew that things would take a bit longer than usual. However, after putting our order in, some of our food arrived over an hour later. The other half of our food arrived 30 mins later. By this time, half of us had already finished our meals. The menu was nothing special and their portions were small.
I chose this place because of its cute atmosphere and Spanish theme. I would think twice before trying this place again.

I went to Boulevard Café with a friend for Summerlicious ($ 25 dinner). While I thought the food was stellar, the service left much to be desired, to the point that I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t return.
When we arrived to the restaurant, we had already made a reservation, and we were told to wait, which itself isn’t a bad thing, but we were rudely pushed aside by the waiter during the wait, as if we were preventing more important customers from coming in.
Once we got seated, our waiter told us about his recommendation of wine and asked us if we were in the mood of any. My friend doesn’t drink wine, so I asked for a cocktail menu. He literally threw the menu on the table and left without saying a word… and this was before they knew we were there for Summerlicious! When the waiter came back, we had to ask for the Summerlicious menu, of which he asked if we specified it in our reservation.
For the appetizer, I got the ceviche. While tasty, I barely got anything beyond the seabass. There was barely any calamari or shrimp. Must have been the *licious treatment.
As for the main, I had the fish of the day, which happened to be tilapia with mango salsa, and it was delicious. The fish was cooked to perfection and came with a side of fried yucca.
The time between each course was considerably long and not much attention was given to us. After our entrées were finished, the waiter came back and asked us what we wanted for dessert. We asked about the choices, because the menu didn’t specify what was available. He said there was a strawberry rhubarb pie… and that’s it. So why did he ask then? Rather odd.
The dessert was scrumptious. Again, the meal tasted very good. And it’s a shame, because the poor service just ruined the experience and I would not return to this establishment.

Ah Boulevard Café, te amo.
Perfect sangria, even more perfect sauteed shrimp and savoury corn bread to boot.
I’ve run by this Peruvian Annex favourite many a time to see crowds flock and it’s oh-​so-​evident why.
Oh and to our latin waiter, thank you so much for being easy on the eyes. As if the delicious food wasn’t enough!

Nice Sunday Brunch here!
Took mom and pops for Father’s Day. It was a beautiful day and they have a lovely, well shaded patio.
Brunch was reasonably priced — they have a special Sunday brunch menu with about 15 items — most between $ 10-​$ 12.
The service was absolutely fantastic when we were there. There was only one waiter out on the patio, but he was quick, friendly and attentive, juggling 5 – 6 tables with ease. Kept our waters topped off and was prompt with taking orders, bringing bread, food and the bill.
I tried the eggs florentine (Huevos Florentina) and my parents had Tortilla Rellena (some kind of folded over tortilla with baked beans and greyere cheese). Food was tasty and we were brought a big basket of fresh, thick bread and butter.
I would go back for brunch again. Dinner menu appeared a bit pricier but nothing ridiculous.

Last night was a special occassion. It was my girlfriend’s birthday. As a result, she requested that we visit the Boulevard Café for dinner. I had been there on two prior occassions and did not have anything negative to say about the place, so I accommodated her request. I did take note to check Unilocal before making the reservation (it was Thursday night, so I would suggest making one… I’m not sure how busy they are Sunday-​Wednesday).
I thought it was interesting that a few previous posts had some pretty negative things to say about their dining experience, especially regarding the service. Given those comments, I took special note of the table service last night. I did not note anything out of the ordinary. We were promptly met by a host when we arrived and were seated rather quickly. We only sat for a few minutes before someone came to ask us for drinks. Throughout the evening our water glasses were filled multiple times. Our food arrived rather promptly, despite the restaurant being rather packed. Even when I had a question about the corn bread, the waiter promptly answered my question in a polite manner.
Regarding the food, I did not have any complaints. I ordered the burger and it was delivered as asked (medium/​well). I asked to substitute the fries with sweet potato. The waiter accomodated my request, and did not charge me extra for the sweet potato as often happens in other establishments. The burger also came with a small side salad. The portion was a fair size and left me feeling quite full by the end of the meal.
My girlfriend ordered one of the specials. I think it was a chicken breast marinated in a spicy orange sauce. It came with sides of sweet potatos and sliced beets. I had a taste of the chicken and sauce and again had no complaints.
Also, as an appetizer, we ordered the quesidilla, which came with crab and chicken salad. Personally, I’m not a big fan of chicken salad, so it was not for me, but I wouldn’t give the restaurant bad marks for that.
We took a glance at the dessert menu, however nothing really jumped out at us.
Now, given what I’ve just said, you may be wondering why I’m only giving 4 rather than 5 stars. Here are the reasons why:
— Unstable table: our table was not level on its footing. It was quite annoying as it bounced back and forth as we ate. This is something that the wait staff should have noticed and remedied. We should not have had to ask for that to be fixed.
— Value: At a price point of $ 14.95 for my burger, and $ 18.95 for my girlfriend’s entrée, I’d say that it’s a bit on the expensive side. The value for what you get is not quite there. We would have ordered a glass of sangria, however it cost $ 9/​glass. My favorite drink, a mohito, cost $ 11.
— Noise level: Even though we were sitting on the patio, the noise level was quite high (due to the close proximity of the tables). Thus, this is not a place you would be able to take your grand parents.
— Authenticity: The restaurant bills itself as Peruvian/​Latin American. I would guess that many people may go there expecting to get something truly authentic. I’m afraid that the menu is quite North Americanized. For example, one of the specials on the menu was Arctic Char. I rather doubt that one would be able to find that kind of fish in Peru.
On the whole, I’d say that we had a fairly decent meal and would recommend the Boulevard Café to others.

I have been lusting after this beautiful terrace for some time now.
The food was some sort of generic/​pan-​latin variety which wasn’t exactly what i expected from a place with a French name –but worse still was the service or lack there of. Apparently you have to be a regular to get any acknowledgement — although mostly i just witnessed a lot of obnoxious air kisses and a whole lot of chatting sans serving.
Sadly unimpressed.