579219 Thu Dec 11 06:47:17 -0800 2008 105 23 Ontario (including Toronto) 0 4238235 Hello Chowhounders! Obviously we're all here because we love food. I enjoy nothing more than going to a restaurant, and getting much more than I expected. Beit service, food, or atmosphere. At the same time, I hate it, when you spend a significant amount of money, and get poor service, food, or otherwise. Especially coming out thinking "I could've gotten better food for 1/5 the price at Jack Astors". Which is why I suppose we're all here...to avoid the big box restaurants. So..your most disappointing places (places we should avoid), and most surprising places (those gems)? Thu Dec 11 06:47:17 -0800 2008 244658 stonedtoronto 1 4238321 One of my most disappointing experiences was at Southern Accent. It was our four-year anniversary and we went during Summerlicious. They sat us in a boring room upstairs with a party of 25 people, including screaming babies. We asked to move because it was terrible. The food was mediocre at best, the service rushed, and the portions small. I also hated having to climb two flights of stairs to go to the bathroom. One of my most surprising experiences was at Harbord House. It used to be Rower's, so it appears as though it's a pub. However, all the food is delicious and creative and homemade. I love the Club sandwich with the cranberry mayo. The service is friendly and informative (who knew the beans were made with bacon? good think they told my vegetarian mother). I've gone back numerous times and it's always great. Thu Dec 11 07:09:58 -0800 2008 4238235 155466 canadianbeaver 2 4238660 I also want to add that Elephant Thai Cafe at Queen West was horrific. I had the sushi and it was the worst sushi I have ever had...tasted like absolutely nothing. Sad because I hate Thai food and my bf was excited that he could eat Thai and I could have sushi. But nay. Thu Dec 11 08:50:27 -0800 2008 4238321 155466 canadianbeaver 3 4854152 I've never had good sushi at a Thai restaurant. Mon Jul 13 11:32:55 -0700 2009 4238660 1091147 almond3xtract 4 4855268 Yes, I have learned this rule since! Mon Jul 13 16:52:29 -0700 2009 4854152 155466 canadianbeaver 1 4238424 hmm.. I walked in to Joe Bidali's once, by accident... that was traumatic. I was at JKWB a few weeks ago, and the washroom hadn't been cleaned in weeks, and the food was so-so. They served Tropicana Orange juice instead of the freshy squeezed; I also had a very disappointing meal at Ultra, where they went back on their word on certain agreements that were made previously involving a large party. I haven't been back since. Thu Dec 11 07:50:04 -0800 2008 4238235 243599 justpete 1 4238606 Most recently: Segovia near Yonge and Wellesley. Just poor all around and very expensive. Thu Dec 11 08:37:27 -0800 2008 4238235 161682 currycue 1 4238710 Great thread idea, stonedtoronto. There are quite a few, but I will stick to three from this year alone to keep my thoughts a bit more relevant. First off, we have Langdon Hall. Never have I traveled so far and paid so much for such a mediocre meal. It was not a terrible meal, it is just that once you factor in the price and the 2 hr drive to Cambridge... I basically came out thinking - "That's it?! That's what I've been reading such great things about? That's what I just made a day trip out of Toronto to try?". I think it was a birthday celebration dinner, and for that price, I would have preferred (in retrospect) to fly the birthday person to London for great food for the amount we spent. Anyway, let's just say we were all quite a bit disappointed. Review: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/561430 Secondly, JKWB. Maybe I take it a bit more personally because it was MY birthday dinner this time. I was very impressed on my earlier visits - they were able to prepare some of the best fish dishes I had had in Toronto. I dragged my risk adverse dining companions there to celebrate my special day. In the end, we were all disappointed. Sure the portions are small, they are tapas-style after all, but I don't mind if the food is good. But it wasn't. So therefore I was very disappointed. Review: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/558934 Next up, we have Sen5es. Once again, mediocre food at high prices. It wasn't bad, but it didn't come close to deserving the attention it received, nor was it worth the prices. I guess I came in with high expectations, and left with a jaded opinion of the Toronto high-end dining scene. A quick commentary here: http://chowhound.chow.com/topics/569335 And finally, Truffles. An institution in my eyes. Even though it holds a sentimental place in my heart (first date many, MANY years ago with my SO), I went back recently in November and was SHOCKED at how mediocre it was. I have not had a chance yet to write up a review, but you can be sure one is coming. I could not believe what had happened to one of my great standby restaurants. I used to love Truffles. Maybe it's the new Chef Laurie Bandur that took over, maybe it was a busy evening next door in the ballroom - I have no idea, but it was just not very good. A restaurant of such a reputation of high standard should not have a bad day, nor allow the team to serve such a meal. The service was also a touch uncomfortable and rushed near the end of our meal. I am not sure where the waiter was planning to go, but it was not a pleasant end to our meal to say the least. Needless to say, I doubt we will be returning to Truffles. Has anyone else tried Laurie's new food (we had a good meal earlier this year with Lora Kirk)? Maybe it was just an off-day for her. I don't think I'll risk another visit anytime soon to find out. Cheers! Thu Dec 11 09:06:34 -0800 2008 4238235 201877 BokChoi 2 4239934 I will second your vote for Truffles. My wife and I went there for our anniversary a few years ago. No problems with the food, it was fine, and we'd researched the menu/prices ahead of time so we knew what to expect. However, the service was horrible. We had the bad luck of having a table close to the big round table with 10 suits obviously on an expense account. And even worse luck that their server was also our server. So you can imagine how we were snubbed in favor of these bigshots. Water glasses sat empty for 5 minutes at a time, wine glasses weren't refilled promptly, when we finished the appetizer course the used plates weren't removed until just as the main courses arrived, then same happened when we finished the mains; not until dessert arrived did those plates disappear. And as BokChoi said, after all that, they seemed to rush us at the end, like they wanted rid of us faster so they could give more attention to the big tippers next door. Absolutely no excuse for that. If that big table needed the undivided attention of their server we should have been assigned another server. I've had better service at Jack Astor's, even when there was a large table of rowdy drunks or a birthday party nearby! Surely a 4 star place like Truffles should beat a corporate "sports bar" chain in service quality. They didn't. Say what you like about the food, but I've never experienced poor service at a Jack Astor's or a Canyon Creek. Since that night I refuse to dine at any of the restaurants in that hotel because of how we were treated that evening on what was supposed to be a special occasion for us. They ruined it. And the next time you're asking yourself why anybody would eat at a chain, read this post again and you have your answer. Thu Dec 11 15:02:15 -0800 2008 4238710 30620 TexSquared 3 4242250 I was there about a month ago with some friends; they all loved the food, but I thought it was mediocre. I was sick at the time, so it was probably just me (I say this because the second last meal I had at Truffles was also boring, and I wasn't sick at the time). We didn't have any of the service issues you guys did. Fri Dec 12 12:09:10 -0800 2008 4239934 202405 tjr 3 4243512 No excuses for that type of treatment. The restaurant is small. They should be able to handle it. I'm sorry to hear that they ruined your special occasion. tjr, glad you had a more pleasant experience in terms of service. Agreed that the food is a bore (the last couple of visits at least). But that is Truffles I guess - classic and traditional. I just wish they did it well, then I would have no complaints. My dining companions enjoy that type of food. They didn't enjoy the bad food that came out of the kitchen though. My poor dining companion swears to never speak of the meal at Truffles ever again. It was a milestone birthday, so I see where he is coming from. Poor guy. It's a sensitive topic now and it's quite a hush-hush topic now. Fri Dec 12 22:47:37 -0800 2008 4239934 201877 BokChoi 4 4244833 I love classic, traditional food in general, but by boring I mean it was a poor representation of these classic, traditional dishes. I've been frequently enough over the past however many years that I can tell the kitchen has slipped enormously; to add service issues is, well, astounding. I wouldn't be surprised that service issues exist because the quality in the kitchen has dipped as well. Too bad, I had enjoyed many meals there in the past... Sat Dec 13 18:02:06 -0800 2008 4243512 202405 tjr 5 4245150 My first meal there was back in the heyday when Crawford was there. I had a great meal. Amazing. I could not believe it was the same restaurant. The service back then was amazing and polished. Exceptional. Last visit? One waiter was very competent, so I don't want to dismiss all their efforts. I was just left with a bad taste in my mouth nearer to the end of the meal. The food, well.. that was just dreadful. Charles, you may be right. I had hoped that they would not have let someone take the reigns when they were not yet prepared to do so. It seems like such a risky thing to do with such an established restaurant. I know I will be taking my money elsewhere from now on. It's so sad to have to scratch some favourite restaurants off my list. Sat Dec 13 21:36:17 -0800 2008 4244833 201877 BokChoi 4 4244940 Of all the fine dining restaurants in town, Truffles can be the most inconsistant. The reason being, it is the 'stepping stone' for chef seeking for greener pasture in the Fourseasons empire. Specifically, New York, LA and Chicago. The best time to eat there is when the executive chef is well entrenched in his or her position. Eg., Patrick Lin or Lynn Crawford prior to their jumping ship. Worst time is when a new chef takes up the helm and still trying to consolidate his/her position. Like now. Sat Dec 13 19:14:48 -0800 2008 4243512 10810 Charles Yu 1 4239120 I know no one on this board believes me but lunch at Langdon Hall was hugely disappointing and not just because of the drive (I only had half the drive BokChoi did). I'm still not sure if our dinner the night before at Scaramouche clouded our judgement of LH or not. Thu Dec 11 11:00:39 -0800 2008 4238235 182357 jillybean38 1 4239143 The most disappointing meal I've ever had was at Cowbell. We made a reservation but didn't even get to order our drinks until 30 minutes after seating. The 40-something couple IN LINE had drinks in their hands before we did. Another couple, seated 20 minutes after us, were served drinks and their meals after us. We, a party of four 20-somethings, were consistently ignored for other tables and the food was mediocre at best, but we would have been more forgiving if the service was more respectful. We would have have stayed for dessert if the service was a little friendlier. It seemed like a case of ageism. Sad because we tip well but none of us will ever go back. Thu Dec 11 11:10:36 -0800 2008 4238235 181090 foxymoron 2 5104485 My wife and I decided to go out for a special evening one night. We stopped at Cowbell soon after it opened, on a weekday night and decided we'd see if we could get a table. The wailress that met us at the door could not have been more condscending. "You have to make a reservation if you want o eat here!" I said to my wife, "we'll see if you need a reservation in a month or two." Surprisingy, we have not gone back to see if we still need a reservation. Thu Oct 15 01:26:53 -0700 2009 4239143 100294 Conductorchris 1 4239150 Without a doubt, Cowbell. From high expectations to an overpriced insultingly small entree and a slow, inept, yet still condescending server, I will never, ever go back there. It's a shame because while the food itself was fairly enjoyable, nothing else was. So many better dining experiences to be had! Thu Dec 11 11:13:50 -0800 2008 4238235 121887 nicopop 2 4239371 Trevors on Wellington. I was there last year with a group of 6 people. We all had the tasting menu at $200 a pop. What a disappointment. Over priced, bad food. We all left hungry. I tried to post this on a couple of other sites, but they would not allow it. My husband was there the other night with a group and again the same disappointment. I will never return, but I would certainly never recommend Trevors. Thu Dec 11 12:17:34 -0800 2008 4239150 240206 theresah 2 4289154 i agree that cowbell was hyped up a bit for what it actually was. it wasn't that great at all. i ordered the duck and it was kinda bland, even though it seemed to be cooked to perfection. their appetizer menu with the sausage sampler or whatevs looked like a total joke. a group of us were being taken out for an appreciation dinner and we were asked to make suggestions of where to go and i had heard about cowbell in some reviews and suggested that... i felt embarrassed because it didn't live up to its online reputation. i haven't been back and i don't think i ever will. i, too, agree that the server was a tad pretentious. Fri Jan 02 01:17:38 -0800 2009 4239150 198517 pinkskittles 2 4290600 i liked cowbell alright the first time i went, but then the second time my husband and i went, we took his sister and brother-in-law. there was nothing horrible about it, but the prices just seemed exorbitant. the food is okay, it's not stellar. i am happy to shell out big bucks for memorable meals. my meal was as forgettable as they come. Fri Jan 02 14:34:40 -0800 2009 4239150 250245 Sarah Cat 1 4239567 My most disappointing dining experience was at Kaiseki Sakura. It was the $80 omakase with very mediocre food and presentation. I have tried kaiseki meal in Japan, HK and US before and never left hungary like this, some even with a lower price. We were not even half full at the end. We have to go to the "Crepe it Up" nearby to filled up our stomach with another $7 bucks, the crepe there is good. Thu Dec 11 13:11:31 -0800 2008 4238235 62525 skylineR33 2 4239810 Oh drat, I have a reservation for there this Saturday. I guess I'd better keep that Crepe it Up place in mind. Thu Dec 11 14:23:41 -0800 2008 4239567 136066 graydyn 2 4242241 Definitely agree on this one. Hashimoto is better in every way. Sakura was disappointing in both the flavour of the dishes we were served, and the presentation wasn't that great either (as mentioned). The service was fine, but it seems more like pseudo-kaiseki for Torontonians who don't understand Japanese cuisine. Hashimoto, while expensive, is a much better value. Flavours are excellent, well-prepared, well-presented, and the experience is second to none in the GTA. Fri Dec 12 12:07:30 -0800 2008 4239567 202405 tjr 1 4239688 Jamie Kennedy's poutine. I had heard such great reviews. I got it from the Gilead Cafe. For $9, a portion size that could fit in the palm of my hand, barely any cheese and a dried out piece of lamb kofta. Flavours were ok, but I felt ripped off. $9 isn't a lot of money, but for the amount of hype the thing gets, count me out. Thu Dec 11 13:44:41 -0800 2008 4238235 157056 grandgourmand 1 4239746 After the Gourmet Wine and Food Show walked the strip of big box tourist traps on Front and settled on Joe Bidali's. What a mistake! The 'Wild mushroom" bruschetta topping were limp, salty, overcooked button mushrooms and the "Fresh Roma Tomatoes" were obviously not; neither did they look or taste like tomatoes. To add insult to injury - this was a spur of the moment dinner-date with my wife and we don't usually get the opportunity to eat dinners out together. JB needs to rethink matching their ingredients to what is on the menu... Thu Dec 11 14:00:18 -0800 2008 4238235 247707 Captain Maplesyrup 2 4893352 I also tried this place under similar circumstances, and yeah, it blows. I kicked myself for not opting for East Side Mario's across the street. The most enjoyable part of the meal was blasting them on the supplied review card.. Mon Jul 27 06:33:03 -0700 2009 4239746 234959 Marumari 3 4950803 If you get stuck near the MTCC again, you're better off walking just that little extra bit to Big Daddy's Crab Shack at King & Simcoe. It isn't great, but it ain't bad either. Certainly you've both proved you can do a lot worse. Funky little bar area in the place too for relaxing post-dinner. http://www.bigdaddys.ca/ Sun Aug 16 11:46:26 -0700 2009 4893352 12072 Googs 1 4239870 Olivia's at 53 was my most recent one. Granted we were with a dinner party of 16, a stress for any kitchen, but the food was just poorly executed and grossly overpriced. And the housemade organic wine, they only had one available, a completely insipid merlot. Too bad, because the atmosphere is terrific in there. Thu Dec 11 14:44:18 -0800 2008 4238235 29140 childofthestorm 2 4290610 Olivia's used to be a go-to restaurant for us. It's so charming and romantic, and the food used to be so delicious and well-executed! the last time we went was horrible. half the menu wasn't available, i wasn't given the salad i ordered, the server never asked us if we wanted more wine, and plus we had to stand in that awkward from hallway for what felt like hours before we were greeted, let alone seated. i keep wanting to give it another try, but i'm not going to until i hear something good about this place. it's very sad. definitely my most disappointing dining experience ever. Fri Jan 02 14:38:22 -0800 2009 4239870 250245 Sarah Cat 1 4239905 The Foxley. Honestly, after all the RAVE reviews on this board, went with friends, and really thought the food was terrible. All the dishes were extremely overspiced and lacking any nuance (particularly the ceviche) to the point where all we could taste was cumin, coriander and/or cilantro. The frog legs were IMHO an abomination-some sort of sweet sticky gloopy sauce that masked the delicate sweetness of the meat. The service was fine, no issues there. To be fair, I think that style of cuisine is really NOT to my palate. But I did leave with that WTF? feeling uppermost in my mind (as did my friends)... Thu Dec 11 14:56:03 -0800 2008 4238235 50683 Splendid Wine Snob 2 4239984 Tundra Took my family there and had terrible service. The staff were disinterested and I felt as if I needed to stand up and wave to get service. I usually do reviews when I try a new place for me, this time I didn't. Everything was poor from the salad (wilted) to the mains which arrived at a temperature below optimal serving temp. Out of deference to a colleague, I will try Tundra again and give them another shot. Thu Dec 11 15:15:42 -0800 2008 4239905 72183 Poorboy 2 4269609 Foxley - ditto. What's all the fuss about? I also found Nota Bene rated a fair bit less than the hype wouold suggest, Tue Dec 23 13:39:31 -0800 2008 4239905 85083 sochow 2 4280146 have to agree with Foxley. after much anticipation, only the ceviche and duck met expectations. everything else, including ribs, was marginal at best. too much hype. did like the fact that there a couple of bars nearby to kill time at while waiting for a table. Mon Dec 29 10:46:22 -0800 2008 4239905 222311 dickiegreenleaf 3 5104488 I went to Foxley with a friend last year and I can be critical of a restaurant if it rubs me the wrong way, but we had a great time. The dishes may not be for everyone but we both loved everything that we ordered and had good service. Thu Oct 15 01:34:04 -0700 2009 4280146 100294 Conductorchris 1 4239954 Cachet. It's in Newmarket, right beside Fairy Lake. It should be a beautiful thing. My wife's birthday. A beautiful summer night. Lake side patio table. Nice looking restaurant. First off, I really don't think it's necessary for dinner to take 2 hours. Especially when all we had were 1 appetizer, 2 mains and 1 desert. It's not like they even made decent food. My seafood fettucine was not very good. The desert was lacking in depth. They weren't even trying to up-sell the booze. I ended up with 2 beers Mrs. Sippi had one drink and some water. It was just terrible. I'm sure some of you have chimed in on my Hero Burger thread. Nuff said there. A very pleasant surprise was Cedar Grill in Newmarket. Outstanding Lebanese food. DT Thu Dec 11 15:06:19 -0800 2008 4238235 11291 Davwud 1 4239986 Crush. I blame myself though. I wasn't a part of CH until after our bad experience there. We were celebrating my friend getting married. I organized the whole thing. There were 10 of us in a semi-private room. When we arrived, Jamison Kerr was so pretentious and snobby. I asked him a question and he barely acknowledged my presence. The service was HORRIBLE and slow. The food was just OK. We had to wait 50 minutes for our bill and even then I had to chase down our server. I will NEVER go back there. Thu Dec 11 15:16:10 -0800 2008 4238235 211422 geoprincess 2 4240488 That's a shame to hear about Crush. It's one of our faves in the city. It sounds like they really dropped the ball on your party. We really enjoy the food and have always had service ranging from really good to over the top holy cow good. Thu Dec 11 18:36:57 -0800 2008 4239986 99681 abigllama 1 4267086 1. Langdon Hall 2. Colborne Lane (delicious cod, but not nearly worth the cost.) 3. George (which was okay but dramatically over priced) Mon Dec 22 14:54:15 -0800 2008 4238235 93263 Yum2MyTum 1 4268187 My all-time disappointing restaurant is Ikki Sushi on Kingston Road east of the Danforth intersection. Until it arrived we hadn't had a good Japanese restaurant in that part of Scarborough - and we still don't. The food isn't just mediocre - it's awful. (The hamburger joint that previously occupied the building was much better!) There are lots of much better Japanese restaurants and sushi bars not far from there, down on Queen East . Our favourite is Yumei Sushi. http://www.torontoplus.ca/bars_restaurants/yumei_sushi/1024227 Tue Dec 23 03:43:45 -0800 2008 4238235 71460 Bob Catt 2 4268236 In Toronto? Thai noodles at the Queen Mother. Mucilaginous mass of goo. Can't believe it was served with a straight face. Tue Dec 23 04:45:12 -0800 2008 4268187 21982 koknia 1 4269535 1. Perigee: Party of 8 had the tasting menu. It's not that the food was bad, it's just that nothing was memorable, and the wine pairings were mailed in, at best. A waste of time and money, even if we had a good time. That was about 4 years ago...maybe it's improved. 2. Hero Burger: Shouldn't their burgers taste good? Again, it's not that they're terrible, per se, but they're just not very enjoyable. 3. Chippy's: Their fish and chips were perfectly decent--it's just that my expectations were very, very high. I have had good experiences at Southern Accent and Foxley--it's a shame to hear others haven't been so lucky. I could never be disappointed by Joe Badali's as I would never expect anything other than deeply mediocre, over-priced food there. Tue Dec 23 13:07:43 -0800 2008 4238235 250864 Adrock75 2 4289875 I find that Chippy's over fry their fries and they almost have a burnt taste you should go to a chip wagon in brantford ontario their fries are to die for Fri Jan 02 10:08:25 -0800 2009 4269535 42561 kas 3 4293372 I agree. I don't get the Chippy's hype. Their fish is decent, but the chips are a constant disappointment. It shouldn't be called Chippy's...maybe Fishy's instead. Sat Jan 03 16:39:13 -0800 2009 4289875 181090 foxymoron 3 4294710 Hey, I think I know which chip wagon you're talking about in Brantford! First Brantford exit from 403 -- with the Wendy's/Tim's visible from the road (actually the Cainsville exit). Then, south down on Hwy. 2 turn right and on the south side (not the one on the north side!)? When my grandmother lived in Brantford we used stop every time we visited -- that was back before the 403 went through too (so you couldn't miss it and forget to stop!). Sun Jan 04 10:09:59 -0800 2009 4289875 24055 Atahualpa 1 4269594 Sopra, hands down. Went there for our anniversary last year; we had heard good things about it and liked the idea of a [non-cheesy] band playing too. The food was way overpriced for what it was [Mistura kitchen notwithstanding], and the service was beyond atrocious. It was just us and a table of 6 or 7 who were there for some sort of meeting/party [and seemed to be regulars or just generally people the resto deemed 'big shots'], and they were accidentally tripping wait staff, dropping glasses, etc.... for whatever reason, our waiter slavishly attended to this table and completely ignored us [e.g. our drinks took 35 minutes to arrive, we never got bread, one of our mains was wrong, he never asked if we wanted dessert/coffee and we had to flag him down to get some]. Halfway through dinner he became confrontationally rude; he openly sneered at our wine choice, and when he brought us the bill he walked by like he was on fire, threw it down on the table so it knocked over a glass, and kept walking without looking at us once. I should add that we are beyond polite customers, and weren't demanding or overbearing; in fact, I never even called the restaurant to complain later, which in retrospect I should have. He wasn't overrun, what with there being only two tables and two waiters that night. What really made me upset was that management was there that night, having shot after shot at the bar and obviously not really doing their job and monitoring the room. I was just so soured that our anniversary was basically ruined that I just decided to tell all my friends never to go there [and I guess posted this on Chowhound]! Tue Dec 23 13:32:06 -0800 2008 4238235 109450 Smorgasbord 1 4270595 I've had plenty of bad food over the years, but usually at places where I expected it or ought to have known better. But the disappointment prize has to go to Banfi on Lonsdale. When people heard we were moving to the area, everyone recommended it, and I have no clue why. Birthday date night for my husband, the room was cramped, crowded and very loud. The service was actually quite good, especially considering how busy they were, but the pastas were dreadful. The only thing memorable about them was that his was squishily over-cooked, yet mine was rock-hard underdone. What a waste of paying a baby-sitter. Tue Dec 23 23:23:01 -0800 2008 4238235 53727 Ginsugirl 2 4270764 I totally agree with you. I've been going there since it first opened in 1988. The last couple of times I had the pastas which were absolutely horrible. You could serve pasta out of a can ( they probably should) & they'll still be packed. Wed Dec 24 04:39:57 -0800 2008 4270595 248096 otidra 3 4273890 Lee Garden Restaurant on Spadina- average chinese food but the worst service and attitude from the wait staff. I been there 5 time before (never my choice) and I will never go there again. They seem to only give proper service to their regular clients and ignore us. This last straw was a during a going away party. I went to pay the bill and one of my coworkers offered the staff a piece of cake. They took and ate half of my Dufflet cake. I can never understand the line up there since there is plenty of alternatives in the area that is just as clean and offer better food and service without the attitude. I found a gem that specializes in sushi at Mochizuki (Bay & Elm). We ordered the Omakase (chef choice). I will write a review about my experience in the New Year. Fri Dec 26 08:06:36 -0800 2008 4270764 251400 mik888 1 4276234 Csekowski's on Queen West - totally ridiculous service & food. We want to love it as we live in the hood...but can't. We're always disappointed by high end popular restaurants - maybe too much hype - but North 44 (tough lobster), Avalon (when it was open - always taking our drinks before they were finished, seated the two of us at a huge table for 8 when the place was empty - odd) & Canoe (there for a wedding - bartender was so nasty we were scared to ask for a drink) to name three. I agree too with the Foxley comments! Sat Dec 27 13:22:50 -0800 2008 4238235 17146 thebutcher 2 4279019 C5 For my friend's birthday, he got to pick, and the ROM's restaurant had opened a few months earlier so he wanted to try it. Ouch. Careless service, condescending explanations of menu choices, but what was most disappointing was the stunning mediocrity of the food - any diner could have done as well. The room is large and cold with the white/black minimalist decor. It was very difficult to flag the waiter to get water, a menu, an explanation...etc because all noise echoed so you didn't dare call out. (They were told in advance it was his birthday and they did *nothing*) Very pricey and clearly not worth it. Needless to say, neither of us will recommend the place to any of our friends. On the other end of the spectrum: Joso's [seafood] Hadn't been for many years. Went there a few weeks ago for another friend's birthday and it was perfection. The food (there was 10 of us), the service, the ambience (!). I had mentioned it was his birthday and they took it upon themselves to dim the restaurant lights and bring the dessert cake with candles and sing HB, as well as changing the music on the speakers to "16 Candles" by The Crests! Pricey and worth every hard-earned penny!!! Sun Dec 28 22:37:24 -0800 2008 4276234 82227 schmecht 2 4289151 czehoski? i love it there actually. i've always had good food and friendly service when i went. i'm usually pretty hard to please, but that remains one of the favourites. i went during summerlicious and what we got was really good!! the beef tartare is a bit bizarre but i'm sure that's the nature of the dish itself. Fri Jan 02 01:12:20 -0800 2009 4276234 198517 pinkskittles 2 5104494 Have to agree with you on Czehoski's. Although we had a great waitress the food was diappointing to everyone of our table of 9. I had the poutine which was fine except I paid $10 for it. For $10 they should give you a big plate full. 95% is potatoes and there is hardly a cheaper ingredient in the kitchen. Now I am not suggesting mamoth proportions but just fill the damn plate. For my main I had the cheeseburger. I was not the first to mention the patty was overcooked and tasteless. I think when you serve a $12 cheeseburger without any sides it should come with some pretty iinterestinfg condiments rather than Heinz Ketchup and French's mustard. A Big diappointment. Thu Oct 15 01:50:22 -0700 2009 4276234 100294 Conductorchris 1 4279639 Pangea... Recent visit just left me so disappointed we didn't go somewhere else..just seemed like a waste of an evening.. The food was so bland, overcooked...even the bread was dry, stale. Mon Dec 29 08:06:16 -0800 2008 4238235 115868 burlgurl 2 4288223 Ditto, Pangea is on my list of the worst Top Ten ever! Thu Jan 01 15:05:09 -0800 2009 4279639 100701 millygirl 3 4838166 Six months after the last post, and Pangea is still massively disappointing. I think they make their money off the BMO employees who work in the Manulife Centre, and have nowhere else to go for their fancy (?) lunches. The place is all corporate-faux-style and no substance. The food is mediocre, the service is lousy, and the bill is large. Tue Jul 07 19:33:34 -0700 2009 4288223 1091488 Ludivine 4 4838704 Totally agree ludivine. I had one of my worst meals there. In fact, there were 8 of us at the table, and everyone agreed. One friend ordered liver and it was so overcooked he sent it back. Only the replacement order was just as bad, actually worse. They seemed to have no clue! Wed Jul 08 04:18:06 -0700 2009 4838166 100701 millygirl 1 4280163 Rodney's. when they refused to seat a larger than anticipated group in an empty restaurant, i crossed this off the list. u can get good, fresh oysters at a lot of places now (Oyster Boy a local favourite) and steaming lobsters and crabs should not be rocket science. Mon Dec 29 10:50:47 -0800 2008 4238235 222311 dickiegreenleaf 1 4288053 Pizzeria Libretto hands down! One and a half hour wait for some burnt, soggy pizzas with bland tomato sauce. What a joke! Terroni's on Adelaide is much better! Thu Jan 01 13:32:07 -0800 2009 4238235 10810 Charles Yu 2 5167585 Charles - I wish I had read this before I went to Libretto. : / I had high expectations after reading so much positive feedback on this board and hearing from friends who lived in the neighbourhood. I suppose it is a fine neighbourhood joint. But definitely not worth a special trip. I would rank Terroni and Mercatto above this place for pizza. All of the pizzas (3 types) I sampled were soggy. The tomato sauce was without zing. The flavour combination in the sausage/rapini/olive pizza was oddly off. Service was, on the other hand, delightful... Mon Nov 09 11:45:07 -0800 2009 4288053 93263 Yum2MyTum 1 4288328 I would have to say Live on Dupont St. Meant to be one of the best raw food restaurants (there are few) in the city, and possibly the first, I couldn't have been more disappointed. The dish I had was cooked and couldn't even be considered raw, so it is not because I can't appreciate raw food. I had an asian thai dish meant to have sweet potato noodles with greens and got a few stringy noodles in tasteless broth with a piece or two of spinach. It was awful. And memory doesn't serve me on the price but I believe it was over 15.00. Thu Jan 01 15:51:11 -0800 2009 4238235 244331 HerMajestyPrincessBaklava 2 4289150 strange.. every time i go to Live i have an awesome experience. i find their cooked items to be quite nice... i recommend going with the specials... they're considered specials for a reason. i never had that dish you're talking about though, i'm not big on noodles. i find them very affordable for what you're getting, especially considering it's organic. Fri Jan 02 01:09:34 -0800 2009 4288328 198517 pinkskittles 3 4293869 I am allergic to nuts. Went to Live (as they have nut-free options), I ordered a nut-free combo for take-out. Get home, wolf it down, only to fall severely sick. Turns out they gave me a regular combo by mistake which had all kinds of nuts. My boyfriend spent $120 for 2 combos and dessert. So overpriced and careless servers. I should mention that they did refund our money when we alerted them to their mistake. But why even have nut-free options on the menu if you're going to put the nuts in anyway??? Sat Jan 03 20:50:17 -0800 2009 4289150 253921 Ironchefa 4 4294338 My partner and I went to Live last year and weren't charged for our bottle of wine. We pointed it out to our server, who fixed the bill and brought it back. Later we realized the first charge was put through too so we had been billed twice for dinner on our Visa. We called and were told we had to come down to the restaurant to get a refund, which was out of our way. When my partner got there they didn't apologize or offer anything for our troubles - not even a cookie. I thought that was poor service considering we were the ones who pointed out the wine wasn't on the bill in the first place. Not impressed. Sun Jan 04 07:12:02 -0800 2009 4293869 101037 Beef Pattie 1 4289149 i'd have to say CAFE VERT was the WORST place i went to. i went there specifically because their website boasted organic and natural options.. when i got there, they had run out of more than half of their organic items and have replaced them with conventional stuff from no frills. so they had organic chicken, but they replaced it with strange no frills chicken... which would be fine if they let you know ahead of time and adjusted the price accordingly, but no, they still charge you the organic chicken price and you have to ask if it's organic today. if i saw "organic chicken" on the menu and said "i'd like the chicken" i'd expect to get organic chicken... but i had to actually talk about it to the girl to find out that neither the chicken or the yoghurt or a bunch of other things there were not organic. it's very deceiving and i don't support them at all! restaurants that boast organics usually pride themselves on that, but that restaurant does not. why couldn't they just do like other restaurants do and say "we're out of that"? it's not like it's so hard to find organic chicken or yoghurt if you run out... you're in toronto, there are many options! but no... no frills is across the street, so go there instead? wtf?! they're awful and deceptive... i ended up eating there anyways, but other items that i could be sure was organic... the food i ended up having there was very mediocre... not worth the money. i'd never eat there again!! not just because the food sucked and was horribly bland, but because of how deceptive they are. STAY AWAY FROM CAFE VERT!! i went to CHIMICHANGA tonight... that food was kinda poor... and they charged us for the birthday cake thing... usually restaurants give that for free.. i thought that was kinda stingy. it tasted like chocolate dipped, custard covered sock... yuck. Fri Jan 02 01:07:15 -0800 2009 4238235 198517 pinkskittles 1 4289881 I would have to say Bar Volo on Yonge Street at Wellesley http://www.barvolo.com/ but they are more of a drinking place anyway Fri Jan 02 10:10:42 -0800 2009 4238235 42561 kas 1 4290475 Margarita's on Carlton. I know it's a mistake to order a seafood "stew" special at a Tex-Mex place, but I did anyway. I saw someone leaving and coming back with No Frills bags and I can't swear it was my meal, but I like to think it was. Came to my table with almost every mussel shell closed. The rest of the seafood was OK, but I was put off by the fact they served me closed mussels. Would have complained, but I was in a hurry to get to a show after dinner. Fri Jan 02 13:51:34 -0800 2009 4238235 123543 Pincus 2 4976550 Both Margarita's are filthy, filthy places *shudder*. Tue Aug 25 11:52:33 -0700 2009 4290475 31675 capiscum 1 4290660 One of the most horrific dining experiences that I've had in Toronto was at Thuet. A friend and I went for brunch and the food was horrible (how is it possible to completely screw up brunch?). The waitstaff were disorganized and clueless. All in all, it was one of the worst brunches I've ever had (including those had at sketchy "greasy spoons"). Totally not worth the price or the hype. A huge disappointment! My favorite place for brunch used to be Czehoski, but I've had a couple of bad experiences recently. They rarely alter their menu, which can be frusterating if they only serve 5-7 dishes for brunch. I've been going there for over 2 years and there hasn't been much variation in the choices. I went last week with a friend and ordered the $10 french toast which was supposed to come with carmelized bananas. My plate showed up with some kind of candied fruit (I still don't know what they put on top of it, except that it wasn't bananas and it was disgusting). Since the whole point of the dish was the bananas (who's going to pay $10 for two tiny pieces of eggy-bread???), I asked for the proper garnish. The waitress went next door and bought two bananas. 15 minutes later I received a side dish with 4 tiny slivers of caramelized banana. At this point the french toast was cold. BRUTAL! If you only have about 6 pricey dishes on the brunch menu, you'd think you'd be prepared to make them properly (especially if you have a fully stocked fruit store next door). Czehoski used to be brilliant -- great beer and fairly good organic food. Now it seems that they're just coasting on their former reputation. That last experience was the straw that broke the camel's back -- I won't be going back any time soon! Fri Jan 02 14:56:43 -0800 2009 4238235 209724 msmuggins 2 4294372 Czehoski changed owners, chef and menu about three months ago or so. Sun Jan 04 07:27:56 -0800 2009 4290660 62905 Dimbulb 2 4359229 I also had a horrible experience at brunch at Thuet. We made a reservation since we were a large group, but there was a revolving door of servers assigned to our table. It took an hour to give our order, our food took forever to come, we had to refill our own coffee and water and then our empty plates sat on the table for 30 minutes. And then they added the standard big group gratuity to our bill! The worst part is I wrote to the restaurant to say what a shitacular birthday brunch it had been, and I got no response - not even a non-apology apology. Marc Thuet can Bite Me. Mon Jan 26 12:39:27 -0800 2009 4290660 212849 fitzlicious 1 4293612 For disappointing, I'll go with Didier. Oeufs en cocotte tasted of tomato sauce (canned), lamb dish tasted of olive (overly so). On the plus side the carrot mousseline tasted of carrot :) Service was subpar, perhaps due to the fact that we didn't opt for the Valentine's menu that they carried over to the night we went. Sat Jan 03 18:43:28 -0800 2009 4238235 11247 Mandy Lin 1 4297926 Most disappointing? Cafe du Lac. First the space - Quebecois style cuisine served in a space better suited to College street is a tad off-putting. It felt cold, uninviting and generic. I don't mean the walls need to covered in tchochkes but something to warm up the space wouldn't be a bad thing. The service? Verrry average. They could barely decant our lovely '93 Bordeaux and had to be asked for water and cutlery. And the food...well, in a word, meh. I've had worse, and I've had much much better. Duck that was flavourless, soup ditto, dessert an adventure in bland. My dining companions all had the same reactions to their food. Boring with a capital B. Finish it off with a most unadventurous cheese plate and call it a night. Most fulfilling? Caplansky's. And the Gallery Grill. Mon Jan 05 11:55:09 -0800 2009 4238235 52948 escoffier 1 4838278 Worst recent experience: Big Momma's Boy on Parliament. A group of about eight of us went there for dinner and I'd heard good things about it. Wrong! First of all, we were seated in the totally deserted upstairs area, which was freezing cold. (We had to ask, after a few numbing minutes, for them to turn down the AC). They also cranked up the music noticeably after about 10 minutes, so loud we had to raise our voices to be heard. Cocktails before dinner were overpriced and nothing special at all. Our main courses of gluten-free pizza, mac-n-cheese, burgers and salads took well over an hour to arrive, so long that even the most patient of us were wondering what was taking so long. One of us made a point of asking before ordering whether a side salad and a side of mac-n-cheese ($5) would be enough for dinner. The waitress said it would be. We all started laughing when we saw the portion of macaroni. It was so small it looked like it was served in a dipping-sauce bowl! The side salads were nothing more than mixed greens from a bag plopped into soup bowls. I could make a better salad myself in three minutes, much less 90, and it wouldn't cost me $7. The mac-n-cheese ($15) had one flavour: salt. It was described as "creamy" but was extremely dry and bland. The few chunks of tomato in it were colourless and flavourless. I didn't try the pizza but I will say it looked better than the other food. The "burgers" were tiny and served on bread cut in wedges-- more sandwiches than burgers -- and served with a side of kettle chips, again probably pulled out of a bag and thrown on the plate. Not worth spending $13 on! The service wasn't terrible but it was definitely the most disappointing meal i've had in a very long time. And the servers should be honest about portion sizes so you don't leave with a growling stomach and have to stop for a decent meal afterward! Tue Jul 07 20:13:38 -0700 2009 4238235 120807 Rpo 1 4838455 Most dissapointing? The high end places like George - knife and fork placed the wrong way around and a waitress who was WAY too garrulous about HER preferences... and just the general negligance, and I can't remember what we ate - perhaps that's the wost thing after dropping $400+ Note Bene .... the lobster salad is a crime - bllue chese and buttermilk dressing? Don't. And if I have waited so long for a glass of water that I have to steal some from my companion who was seated earlier I think that's ridiculous, especially given the big squad of "managers" who were roaming the room. If you are not a big shot, bring your own water! Tue Jul 07 21:49:25 -0700 2009 4238235 45168 KitchenVoodoo 2 4840717 Ya, as much as I love David Lee's dishes, I thought that lobster salad was off in its flavour combo too. It just didn't work for me. SWS Wed Jul 08 14:01:11 -0700 2009 4838455 50683 Splendid Wine Snob 3 4950805 What? No mention of the bitter olive oil? First place I've ever been tempted to BYO EVOO. Sun Aug 16 11:47:23 -0700 2009 4840717 12072 Googs 1 4838529 360 Revolving at the top of the CN Tower. I know, I know - it's not about the food, it's about the view. I could not believe, however, how this seems to be an excuse for getting away with poor food. My meal (the details of which I actually cannot recall, as it was so unremarkable) was very bland. A companion's fish and seafood was not fresh and quite overdone to a tough consistency. To top it off, a server accidentally spilled almost an entire pitcher of ice water all over me. Unfortunately I was wearing an all-white outfit. Yikes! It could have happened anywhere, of course, and it indeed was an accident, but it didn't help that the rest of the dining experience was so blah. I wasn't even comped my meal. Oh well. The view was great ;-) Another regrettable meal was Swatow, which I was eager to try after reading some good reviews on this site. A beef dish was laden with pink pickled ginger (the sushi garnish), which struck me as very odd, and did nothing to enhance the flavour of the dish. Worst of all, I could see one of the staff smoking in the kitchen! Never again will I return. Tue Jul 07 22:30:16 -0700 2009 4238235 292967 topbanana 1 4838592 In Toronto, Le Trou Normand wins hands down: a friend and I went for dinner during Winterlicious perhaps three years ago. We went in with fairly low expectations, and just decided to hit it up for the fun of it on a whim. The food was so terrible that we spent most of the night laughing at how inedible our meals were and how poorly prepared. Thank goodness the portions were small, so not a lot of food was destroyed in the process of decimating those dinners. Tue Jul 07 23:50:39 -0700 2009 4238235 75881 vorpal 2 4838707 Coppi - after years of loving it, the last we went it was so bad in terms of service and food, we thought we were in another restaurant. Can't beleive they still have a following. Wed Jul 08 04:19:10 -0700 2009 4838592 100701 millygirl 3 4840880 I recently went to Julie's Cuban and was really dissapointed. Had been there twice before and had some really tasty tapas style dishes. This time everything was bland and very so so. The plantain cups were dry and had no taste. The mango and avocado salad also had no taste. The Beef was underspiced and so/so. Even the mohitos were underwhelmng....not enough mint I think. On top of that - the service wasn't great. Kept having to go searching for our waiter. Won't be going back again. Wed Jul 08 14:43:42 -0700 2009 4838707 167313 jrabbit2727 1 4892793 I went to Cantine for Summerlicious... It was so so so bad.. Let's do this chronologically. Ok so when we walked in, the ambiance was, err, dead. Or close to it. An older crowd hung out there, and by older, I mean the ones from the retirement living centre across the street. And their care-takers. Ok, not so bad so far... When the guy sat us, the tablecloth was very dirty. There were solidified food stains on the tablecloth! Very unprofessional, as well as absolutely disgusting. I asked to sit somewhere else. "Do you work in the restaurant industry?" someone asked me. As if I need to be an employee of the restaurant industry to realize that your tablecloth was disgusting.... The service seemed a bit cold. One guy (out of the three who waited on us) seemed like he hated his job. One was happy. The other just seemed irritated that I didn't want to sit at the table with the solidified food blotches on it. We did Summerlicious... I ordered mussels, which I had to send back to the kitchen because they weren't fresh. And by not fresh, I mean they tasted like the zoo. I've never eaten seafood so bad before. I don't know how they're allowed to serve that. Not only were they not fresh, but they were dried out. They were probably sitting around for a while, and then reheated all throughout Summerlicious or something, because I don't know how they could have something so not fresh! It was gross. They replaced it with chicken, which was pretty decent. What bothered me more is that they still served it to other customers! I saw one woman sit with it in front of her while her dining partner ate... She clearly wasn't going to eat them (but I guess didn't want to send it back to the kitchen). This was by far the worst restaurant I've visited in a long time. I don't know how something like this still exists in Toronto, especially in Yorkville! But I guess if there's a community there then that's what keeps it around. It's cheap, and as long as you don't order seafood and sit at a clean table I'm sure it's fine! The wine was the highlight of the meal. Can't really mess that one up. They let us sample wines before we committed, which was good of them. Sun Jul 26 20:18:10 -0700 2009 4238235 198517 pinkskittles 1 4892856 Another big disappointment was an unexpected sub-par dinner at Batifole. Overcooked calves liver in a plate of watery gravy and a super greasy pork stew smothered with cheese. One serving of the lattter has more calories and artery clogging grease than 10 of Nota Bene's bourdine noir!! Sun Jul 26 20:53:20 -0700 2009 4238235 10810 Charles Yu 2 4950814 As you well know, Charles, follow the chef not the restaurant. Many changes there, not all of which are reflected on ChefDb.com. If you liked it in the past, you should figure out when that was and find that chef!!! Sun Aug 16 11:50:36 -0700 2009 4892856 12072 Googs 1 4893269 Astoria on The Danforth. Service was very slow and the place wasn't busy. I ordered a chicken souvlaki with the usual sides that come with it. The salad was unremarkable and tinges of brown on the lettuce. Souvlaki was well past it's prime, over cooked, almost withered on the skewer. I would normally send it back but as I mentioned above, we had waited a long while. I usually like the potatoes with the meal and I was surprised to see fries on my plate and no roasted potatoes. I was told they ran out of potatoes!!!!! You think this might have been told to me at ordering?? Service was poor and was in my face when I complained, meal was poor and this was a place I used to like. Never again for Astoria, and if asked, I tell everyone. Mon Jul 27 05:52:22 -0700 2009 4238235 72183 Poorboy 2 4893389 I had a meal there a couple of weeks ago. The chicken was actually pretty good and the fried calamari was excellent. However, the sides were atrocious. I had watery rice and this one was exactly that. If I had to go again, I'd just have the calamari. Mon Jul 27 06:54:55 -0700 2009 4893269 157056 grandgourmand 1 4950071 Not a restaurant restaurant, well, not a restaurant at all. BUT I was on a pie high before and everyone recommended Wanda's Pie in the Sky of course there were like five recommendations overall so it was not exactly helpful but overall, majority here said Wanda's had nice pies. And the pictures on their site was nice. The pie was terrible. It was...lifeless, too sweet, yet the apples were not sweet at all...and the crust was bland and I think they used too much cornstarch or something cause the filling felt grainy. It also reminded me of cherries, there were no cherries in that pie. Even my friend who likes to sugar-coat everything outrightly said "that place was not good." Sun Aug 16 00:29:37 -0700 2009 4238235 212885 AngelSanctuary 2 4971450 Have mercy. Here's the scene: shreiking two year old and starving family and bumper to bumper traffic on Steeles Ave West. The fatal mistake of turning off the traffic to eat at ...drum roll please... Gourmets of China. At first I thought it must a bad candid camera joke that the food was that weird/bad or my tongue had a stroke. It's a crime to make food that bad and cast a shadow of shame the entire world of Chinese eateries. Surreal. It was like it was a Chinese restaurant that had cooks who had eaten at food courts and never had a clue what went into Manchu Wok's food but took a guess and cooked with one hand tied behind their back. I am very sad for folks who had their first Chinese "food" experience here. I should have known better. Edit: Ok, check out the crazy ratings on Restaurantica. The most bizzare factor: is that the service staff are so nice and work very hard. Highly confusing. Sun Aug 23 20:35:53 -0700 2009 4950071 74166 Idas 1 4976863 I believe the following quote from Dante's "Devine Comedy" should be made to hang over the entrance to The Gallery Grill at Hart House, University of Toronto campus: " Abandon Hope All Ye Who Enter Here." Tue Aug 25 13:13:23 -0700 2009 4238235 221534 Doctormhl1 2 4977010 Then you haven't eaten at Ryerson's Oakum House. We were there on Aug 22 for a wedding, and it was so bad that I doubt any of the 100 guests ate more than 20% of the main course. There were 3 choices, and 2 were completely inedible. I ordered a vegetarian dinner because I was told it was the most promising, but somehow they gave me the salmon. It must have been cooked for an extra 45 minutes, and it was very dry to the point that I had trouble eating it. The texture was similar to pork. By wife's vegetarian course consisted of a 1/4 acorn squash on a bed of couscous, with some vegetables in a tomato sause that tasted like they opened up a can of tomato paste an mixed it with those vegetables, on top. The squash was almost uncooked, maybe they cooked it for 30 seconds in a microwave. I hate to say that I'm not exaggerating, this was one extremely nasty dinner. I hope my friends who held this wedding don't see this. Whatever you do, don't ever book any event that involves food there. The catering was provided by Ryerson. Even the Hors d'œuvre were very poorly prepared. Tue Aug 25 13:57:11 -0700 2009 4976863 41175 foodyDudey 1 4979402 Fat Belgian Was there in the spring and decided not to order mussels like everyone else in my party. I though I would try a seasonal special - duck breast on a bead of risotto. The duck was over cooked with absolutely no pink to the meat and was served cold. The risotto was just plain bad. Besides mussells they menu isn't very Belgian and the beer selection was sub par. Wed Aug 26 09:38:10 -0700 2009 4238235 1104594 Cheeze N Pickles 1 4981452 Terroni on Queen St. W Pappardelle with shrimp, artichokes, and mint. The pasta was too thick, doughy, and pastey. I picked out the few shrimp and 'chokes leaving the pappardelle barely touched. $16 for a primi portion. Wed Aug 26 20:43:29 -0700 2009 4238235 88766 suddenly susan 2 4982767 La Maquette I knew this place was going to be old school but it was worse than I thought! Food was OK, nothing special and very over priced. I ordered the lamb medium rare and it came out grey! Everything came with bland whipped potatoes. Wine list was pretty main stream. Service mediocre. I'm not sure how this place wins award for the most romantic in the city!! Maybe I was missing something. Thu Aug 27 09:43:10 -0700 2009 4981452 101309 LCMB 1 4984224 Without a doubt: Leslie Jones. Sweet little place with only 5 or so tables, I had been there for a private party and enjoyed it so agreed to meet a friend there. I got there first and I guess my superhero powers were turned on (Invisible Woman!) so no one offered me a drink. I had to get up and get someone's attention to get a drink. My friend showed up and we ordered appies - they were out. Fine - suggest what might be available. No, it was left up to me to guess. For main I ordered the daily special - beef medallions. When I tasted it I thought it had been boiled! My friend thought it might have been microwaved! I called the owner over to explain it to him quietly and suggested he take a bite to taste it. He walked out onto the patio and didn't come back in until we'd left. NEVER will I set foot in that place again. Thu Aug 27 17:28:54 -0700 2009 4238235 178536 lightlybattered 1 4987718 The David Duncan House. Mind you, not the WORST dining experience - I reserve that for Prairie Ink - but certainly the most disappointing. It started when the DC told me he'd made reservations at "that house at the lights north of York Mills"; I thought he meant the Auberge du Pommier. Silly me. Alas, wrong house. Pretty house; pretty uninspiring food. We started with an appetizer plate. My shrimp was not the freshest - it didn't smell bad but the flesh was not firm; in fact was going mushy (I should have complained but didn't). The steak was a tad overdone: I asked for rare and got med-rare. Not the end of the world. The meat was OK but hardly the "outstanding" that they use to describe the cut. Bland vegetables. Given the raves I'd heard, I expected exceptional, though I would have been happy with very good. I guess my expectations were too high; I was sorely disappointed. It wasn't a terrible meal (barring that shrimp), but it was certainly a pricey meh evening. We should have gone to the other "house". Fri Aug 28 21:17:00 -0700 2009 4238235 1103056 ghoti 1 4988063 Osteria Ciceri e Tria. No wait. I expected it to be overpriced and mediocre. It didn't disappoint. Sat Aug 29 06:35:17 -0700 2009 4238235 12072 Googs 1 4990580 Nothing even comes close to my dinner at Splendido. Actually, I could have gotten better food at 1/10 the price at Jack Astor's. Sun Aug 30 12:58:40 -0700 2009 4238235 227391 evansl 2 4991450 Sorry about your experience at the "old" Splendido. You should give them another chance as they are now under new ownership and have a new menu. Sun Aug 30 19:12:30 -0700 2009 4990580 109924 T Long 3 4991504 My most recent disappointment was at Il Fornaro -- I hadn't been there before and I'm about to take a bite of the thin crust pizza when the waiter sprays the table beside us with ammonia cleaner. The smell was so strong that's all I could taste for the rest of the meal. Sun Aug 30 19:39:39 -0700 2009 4991450 1094680 kali3 4 4992473 OMG. I hate when that happens! Or when they seat you near the bathroom and you are overpowered by the stench of the urinal cake. Mon Aug 31 08:32:14 -0700 2009 4991504 88766 suddenly susan 1 5013638 Giovanna Trattoria on College street. The manager was yelling at his staff the entire time. I don't speak Italian but the gist of the barking was "see those five over there? Make sure you never talk to them" and they followed it to a T. Worst experience ever. Tue Sep 08 10:45:41 -0700 2009 4238235 204258 Everythingtarian 1 5109937 I'll second the motion on Langdon Hall as being a lunchbag letdown. I used to work in the region and would often entertain clients there. Nice room and grounds , but food was not up to snuff for the price and the "reputation." Definitely not destination worthy, or worth the tank of gas to drive there and back... That said, most disappointing experience was Boris Bistro. Hands-down. Sat Oct 17 05:51:57 -0700 2009 4238235 288839 Thatcher 1 5112766 Too bad - the food was okay. But right in them middle of the meal, theye shutthe lights off, evidently inresponse to a request by a nearby film crew. Not dim - off, leaving us to struggle with our dinnners by touch. I wrote to the manager the enxt day, expecting at least an apology. No response - nothig. Never again! Sun Oct 18 14:47:22 -0700 2009 4238235 54222 ekammin 2 5114099 Where was this? Mon Oct 19 08:10:10 -0700 2009 5112766 123543 Pincus 3 5162518 I'm so glad someone mentioned LE TROU NORMAND in Yorkville. It was a horrible experience. I went there with 4 of my coworkers for lunch. 1st : THE WAIT. We waited about 35 minutes before we got our food, and we had to tell them we were in a rush because I think it would have taken an hour otherwise. When you have approximately 1hour for lunch, you can't wait that long for your meal! They should know that 2nd : THE FOOD. Nobody was happy with their meals. I got the Salade Nicoise - big disappointement. All I could taste was cheap sardines, and the eggs didn't look fresh. Others got mussels, and pasta and were very disappointed too. Avoid that place! Another place to avoid is Bella Vista Trattoria on College. It is honestly the WORST PIZZA I have ever had in my entire life. We ordered the Bella Vista pizza, their signature one. It was so dry and ABSOLUTELY TASTELESS. We still talk about it 2 months later. It realy was that bad. Oh and the ceasar salad was very boring too. Now here are some places I enjoy (all completely different). Im never dsappointed when I go there! -Djerba la douce -Scaramouche -Grazie -Island Foods Fri Nov 06 18:59:26 -0800 2009 5114099 1122405 covergirl 1 5162581 bad reccomendations I've gotten from CH include the blue chip truck at city hall, Dante's italian, magoo's hamburgers, shawarma max on yonge, and south st. burger Fri Nov 06 19:44:41 -0800 2009 4238235 115105 duckdown