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Real People. Real Reviews.®
Category: American (New) [Edit]
Toronto Dominion Bank TowersMon-Fri 12 pm - 2:30 pm
Mon-Fri 5 pm - 10:30 pm
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I love everything about dining at Canoe. From the food to the decor to the view to the service. Let me start first with the food, the caribou is amazing and every time I've seen it on the menu, I've ordered it without fail. Other items that I've tasted out of the kitchen have been impeccably executed with flavours and textures that always keep you interested.
The decor is beautiful and the service is friendly and professional so you never feel like you're dining at the stuffy or uppity restaurant that the steep prices may imply.
My one recommendation is that if you want to truly enjoy your experience at Canoe, try to go outside of the Summerlicious/Winterlicious time as I've heard that the quality of the food can waiver when dealing with the mass volume of patrons.
I went to 6 different summerlicious events this year and Canoe gets the top rating.
My list:
1) Canoe
2) Auberge du Pommier
3) Epic
4) Biff
5) Jump
6) Lucien
Why did Canoe top the list? It excelled on all three fronts:
A) SERVICE
B) AMBIANCE
C) FOOD
Even though we did not reserve a window seat, they obliged when we asked for one. Also, the waiter escorted us around the restaurant when we wanted to take pictures - even offering suggestions for picture locations.
The view was spectacular. I was seated right by the window overlooking the ACC and Hanlan Point (Toronto's Islands). For once, the food had competition: I kept glancing away from my dishes to look at the scenery.
As for the food, I have to admit that it did not make me scream in delight but everything was cooked just right (texture / seasoning / balance). Presentation was killer. The highlight for me was my dessert - it was soooo smooth and delicate.
I plan to have my AMEX ready for the next *licious event!
I have enjoyed many breath taking meals at Canoe in the past, only because of winter or summerlicious. Summerlicious this year was particularly memorable due to our fantastic waiter. Not only was our food amazing as usual, but the waiter we had treated us to complementary dessert wine and spent a lot of time at our table chatting and engaging us.
It was different than any summerlicious that I have ever been to. Normally the staff is running around like chickens with there heads cut off. This waiter took the time to provide us with a true culinary experience. I had the Goat cheese queich with pickled veggies and the alberta beef. For desert I had the cheese selection, delightful . I left feeling full, surprised by the amazing experience I had and wanting to come back again tomorrow to do it all over again!
See you in the winter Canoe!!
If you want to experience a great dining experience this is the place to go to. Get off the elevator and the tone is set. ...and nothing can beat the spectacular view of the city skyline at night.
The Cuisine and presentation are flawless and they have an excellent wine list to match . The staff are very personable and offer excellent suggestions when stumped with your wine selection. I don't believe they have misstepped once in the times I have come here.
It is truly a pleasurable dining experience.
May be the best restaurant in Toronto. Views of the city make this a great spot for a visitor. Food is beautiful, very well prepared. Wine list is exceptional. Restaurant visbly pleasing, wait staff on top of their game. The only negatives - parking; it's a hike into the building; toilets are way outside the restaurant.
I heard Canoe was one of the best restaurants in Canada, so I just had to try it. In addition, Canoe has a focus on regional cuisine, which draws me in like a moth to a flame. Fortunately, I was already in Toronto :). After actually dining there, I do hope that Canadian food catches on in Atlanta. We already have a restaurant called Canoe, so they'll have to call it Rowboat. Hey, a girl can dream.
Almost every seat in the house is great. From the 54th floor of the TD Bank Tower building, you can see across the city. What a sleek, cosmopolitan feel! This is Toronto from its best angle. Inside the restaurant, the decor is sophisticated and simple with a warm modern disposition.
Canoe has a focused menu -- plenty of regional (or at least national) cheeses, seafood, interesting red meats, and seasonal veggies. Here, the Canadian bent seems to make perfect sense and detracts from nothing. The platings are just lovely. One in our group had an octopus dish that was right out of Michel Bras' playbook. I enjoyed a rather simple fish that was perfectly delicious, though I do regret not splurging for the tasting menu. Seriously, when the chef has this much artistry and clarity, it's worth it. Canoe's food was approachable even by those in our group with less of a fine dining focus, which speaks again to the talent and vision of the chef, Anthony Walsh.
Service was attentive and well executed, but most of all, the staff had a genuine attitude of pride towards the food they served. It was easy to tell from their descriptions and mannerisms that they thought the food was amazing, and I'm sure that contributed to my judgement.
Yes, the food is expensive. I'm sure the rent and ingredients are too. At some point, when you're evaluating fine dining, it's art! I'll always remember this dinner and hope to return for the tasting menu.
So, is Canoe the best restaurant in Canada? It offers my favorite straight culinary experience in Toronto, with Opus being my actual favorite restaurant. Restaurants with great views have a tendency to offer mediocure food and become tourist traps, but this is the opposite. I highly recommend Canoe to both locals and tourists.
Listed in: Chow
The deal here is the chef's table, and while that intimacy is going on: the awesome views compete in a sensory duel with what you're trying to eat.
They served up some dishes, doling out it, some foie gras, some sweet lamb, some insanely melt in the corner of your mouth cheese from Québec that yet knew it could be cool at any border.
All of it: rife with life.
Look at Michael U.'s review for a rational explanation.
We stopped by Canoe for a pre-dinner cocktail (or 2) and were lucky enough to nab a window seat. What a view!! It was fantastic being able to view the city and the islands from our bird's eye view, with delicious cocktails in hand.
Our server was incredibly personable and even wrote down a nice list of things for us to do while we were in Toronto. We probably could've stayed there the rest of the evening and been happy, but I'm a vegan leaning vegetarian and the menu was pretty meaty. So, since a girl's gotta eat, we settled up, but are left with really nice memories of our time at Canoe.
Amazing view.......it reminded me of the late windows on the world...
Yes, I understand it's only half of the height, but when it's this far up into the sky, the type of the view is pretty much the same. It's also aided by being so close to the CN tower. It looked as if you could just reach out and touch it.
Awesome food, the food was worth at least 4 star. I just had to bump it up to 5 stars for my overall experience.
So, let me start over from the top. After a week of incredibly tiring work I had to drive up to Toronto from NJ for my cousin's wedding. That's 1100+ miles of driving in 48 hour period. I was tired and in pain by the time I got to the restaurant. The open bar definitely helped in easing the pain, but seeing family and friends in one awesome room was a huge plus.
Now I just need to take a vacation to recover from this trip.......
I travel to the Toronto area around once or twice a year, and this time I decided I wanted a bit of a splurge for dinner. Having considered many other higher-end places, I I figure I can go to good French and Italian restaurants in the bay area, so decided on Canoe due to its "Regional Canadian" cuisine.
My coworkers and I got in a bit early for our reservation, so we went to the bar area, which had a really good view of the city. We had a bit of a wait and was seated after our reservation time, but the service once we were seated was very good. We considered the tasting menu, but decided that we can get a bit more variety if we just ordered a la carte and tried each other's food.
To start, we got the oysters, appetizer sampler, and sweetbreads. The oysters were fresh and really good, as good I've gotten at other places, and the appetizer platter was also good. However, the sweetbreads were fantastic! For my entree, I got the suckling pig, which was good, though I was slightly disappointed that the 3 preparations did not include pork belly. I had a small taste of my coworkers' entrees and the poultry dish (squab or quail?) was the best.
The highlight of the meal for me was the fabulous cheese platter...they have an all-Canadian cheese menu and I got 7 different cheeses! My favorites were the unpasteurized goat's milk cheeses from Quebec, I guess the lack of pasteurization really does makes a difference. Since these type of cheeses are illegal in the States I'm really glad to be able to try them. The portions were plentiful, and they provided a lot of bread, nuts, fruit spread and honey to go with the cheeses, so I had enough leftover to eat the next day. The cheeses were just so good that I didn't even want to try the desserts my coworkers ordered.
For wine, I had a glass of a Canadian rose bubbly at the bar, followed by a Canadian reisling for appetizers, Argentinian malbec for my entree, and Australian tawny port-style wine for dessert (good thing I wasn't driving!). They were all decent and reasonably priced, and went well with the food. The service was overall good and well-paced.
Sure, it was a bit pricey, but I thought this place was worth the experience (I would have paid for the cheese platter alone!) I would definitely recommend it for anyone looking for a splurge meal in Toronto.
The view is crazy, being on the top floor of some billion-storey office building. Service is pretentious. I felt "less than" going in here and I hate that feeling! I like to think I'm pretty awesome, and the last thing I want is some place I'm a patron at to make me feel inadequate. Cocktails look yummy though I haven't tried them. Food is quite good. Presentation is lovely. Wine is good. The view is amazing!
Overall experience, if you're stuck up and like to think you're on top of the world, go here wearing your designer suit and tie for your business lunch and look at us little people below (who appear as insignificant specs) from the 54th floor of this finance building.
Don't get me wrong, the food is quite good, but this place is so esteemed most likely because it's so fancy and pretentious and people speak highly of it only so that they can feel like they're included among the elite crowd of its pretentious lunch-goers. Plus, there are other restaurants that are less pretentious and have equally good or even better food than Canoe, so it's not the food that'll make me come back, but the service and overall stuffy atmosphere is keeping me away.
Pretentious, shallow service. Like honestly, it's just lunch, no need to act all holier than thou. Yawn. Overrated. I don't think I'd ever come back here. Don't get me wrong, the food was quite good, I'd just rather go some place where I felt more welcome. I much prefer going to Jump (out of the two I've tried from their chain).
Listed in: Cream-O-da-Crop Fine Dine…
Excellent view if you get a window seat. It really makes the experience much better.
The food is good... I'd hope so, given it's so overpriced!!!! Definitely better than the food at the CN tower, but I wasnt wowed!! Best place to go if you can expense your meal!!!
Big disappointment - this is a top-notch restaurant and it still doesnt have their own in-house sparkling water. What the heck!! Most high class restaurants serve their own sparkling water now, doing their part for the environment and offer better tasting sparking water at reasonable price. What a let down!!!
Usually when I'm visiting a city I'm not familiar with, I like to check out which restaurants are the most booked or fit for foodies on http://OpenTable.com. I remember Canoe coming up and stating that it was Canadian fare. After looking at the menu I knew this was the place I was searching for.
When you first get to the top of the building, you feel like you are part of an exclusive club, the space is very welcoming, airy yet intimate at the same time. There aren't as many tables as I had expected but that's usually a plus.
We started off with a nice bottle of wine and the Seafood appetizer that came in huge clam. Everything on that clam was delicious and fresh. The shrimp, lobster and oyster tasted as they had just come out of the water 1 minute ago. I ordered the bison steak which was delicious and my dining companion ordered the rack of lamb. Nothing in this place was average. You could tell there was a lot of attention in the preparation of all the dishes that were served to us. Canoe is one of those places that you pay top dollar for but you leave with a big smile knowing you paid for what you got. This was a fantastic dining experience and any foodie that's in Toronto must try this place out.
* I think they change their menu seasonally
Arriving just after the power lunch crowd, we still had to wait about 10 minutes for our reserved table at 1:15.
Very busy restaurant.
The decor was simple and clean and the views over the city are second only to the cn tower itself(then again you can't see the cn tower when you're in it)
We ordered the maple cured bc salmon gravlax, which was very succulent. The flax bread accompaniment was light and crisp. The smoke salmon garnish was wrapped around some greens and enoki mushrooms and was good but didn't outshine the actual gravlax.
For mains we ordered the tortiere, and a special for the day, a striploin with a caribou and escargot ravioli garnish. Certainly a unique meal.
The tortiere was very heavy but nicely seasoned with the slightest hint of nuts. The pie shell was not crunchy but was very aromatic, strong enough to contribute to the beef flavour.
The striploin was cooked perfectly, and was cooked as is to get the pure beef flavour. The raviloi was al dente with a strong filling. The bed of mashed potatoes were very creamy.
The service was good, but the food took a while to come out. When the bill came, I sincerely wished I had a business visa to charge it to, but it was a very unique meal with a special view.
Canoe is located on the 54th floor of TD Tower in the southwest corner, which offers you an unobstructed view of the CN Tower and Lake Ontario. The atmosphere is relaxed on the semi-formal side and attracts a large business crowd. One quick look around and you will find patrons wearing a jacket and shirt and tie, or shirt with no tie and a few with sweaters and turtlenecks (and, yes, everybody wears pants.)
The environment does get a little louder as traffic picks up but it's not so loud that it drowns out the music playing in the background. Personally, I don't mind the noise because it's within reasonable levels and the advantage to dining at a noisy restaurant is that nobody can really hear what you're saying, so it's not necessarily a bad thing.
The attention that a customer receives at Canoe is what one would expect from a fine restaurant. The restaurant offers a complimentary coat check and staff take the initiative to assist patrons with their coats. When you are seated, the server will pull out the chair for you and place the napkin on your lap. If you arrive at your table as a group, the server will wait in the background until everybody is seated before leaving.
Teamwork is apparent at this restaurant as waiters frequently greet one another as they pass each other by and pat each other on the back. I think this adds to a positive dining experience, because you can get a sense that the wait staff is there to serve and they enjoy what they do. Never does one get the feeling that they see their job as being just a job. I also noticed that when the server sets the table, he inspects the placement of the set to ensure that it's properly in place. Such attention to detail is a hallmark of fine dining.
The waiters are prompt and efficient and knowledgeable about the menu and the operations at Oliver & Bonacini; they proudly share with you the accolades Canoe has received and the restaurant's standing in the industry. I don't see this as being boastful as these tidbits make me feel like I selected the right restaurant.
I was born and raised in Toronto and the only real Canadian food I've had up to this point is poutine. What is Canadian food? What does Canadian food taste like? Well, Canoe is a Canadian restaurant. The menu and ingredients are Canadian. Even the restaurant was designed by a Canadian, so I am told. If you want to experience authentic Canadian cuisine, then look no further.
I'm not going to pretend that I know anything about fine (Western) cuisine, because I don't. My "expertise" is in Chinese cuisine. Nevertheless, you don't need to have a sophisticated palate in order to appreciate the quality and flavours of the food at Canoe, or at least with the entrée I ordered today.
I ordered the Skin Roasted Heritage Salmon served with ginger spaetzle, duck confit, and fordhook mustard greens upon the recommendations of my waiter. The skin is delivered crispy and the meat is very moist and tender when it arrives at your table, but don't take too long to finish the salmon because it's still cooking as it's sitting on your plate. I don't think there's any special way to eat this dish, but I find that picking up a little bit of each ingredient in your fork and experiencing a mix of texture and flavours in your mouth makes each bite an interesting one. Of course, you should sample each ingredient on its own so you know where the flavour is coming from.
I was concerned that the portions would be insufficient, but surprisingly, it was just right. I didn't leave the restaurant stuffed but I didn't leave hungry either. My waiter informed me that the chef designs his menus with his clients in mind and I should say that the majority of Canoe's lunchtime patrons have to go back to work afterwards and the last thing they would want is the itis right before a meeting.
I think the bread at Canoe deserves a special mention. Apparently, Oliver & Bonacini makes its own bread and each restaurant serves a different kind of bread that's freshly baked and distributed from First Canadian Place. I generally don't like eating bread, but I must say that I thoroughly enjoyed the bread they serve at Canoe. The crust is crispy and the bread itself is so soft and moist. If I could buy bread like this at the supermarket, I would eat bread everyday.
There were many other fine restaurants that I could've picked to pop my fine dining cherry but I'm glad that I chose Canoe, because I walked into the restaurant with high expectations and I was not disappointed. When I read what other reviewers on Yelp had to say about Canoe, I couldn't help but question whether their positive reviews were overinflated, but I must agree with them by adding to the praise that the food and service at Canoe is above par. The waiters do a great job of reading tables and they are very patient and attentive. I would definitely go back again.
Food was average. Presentation average. View is amazing of downtown Toronto, but the overall eating experience is average at best.
Not worth it for the price! (fortunately I didn't have to pick up the tab while I was there!!)
If you've ever talked to anyone who eats in Toronto, it seems like everyone has ate there except me. When I say I have never been there people look at me like I'm from another planet. So the opportunity presented itself to eat at Canoe. And it is worth the odd stares.
I would recommend to anyone that hasn't been there to at least try it. Although it is expensive, it is not as outrageously expensive as I thought. Lunch courses are between 20-30 which isn't that bad. What will make your experience more expensive is if you order an appetizer ($10-$20) and of course alcohol.
Most of the stuff on their menu includes words I don't know the meaning of. Shows my high end dining knowledge. 2 of the 3 in our party ordered the specials of the day. One was a pasta something something, I had some beef of some sort, and the 3rd dish was perch. Everyone thoroughly enjoyed the food and all the flavours mixed in. I don't know how many ways you can cook a roast of beef, but somehow the slices of beef I had were amazing.
What I like about high end restaurants is that when you get your nicely presented dish, there seems to be more "filler" stuff then there is actual the food. You look at it and go "that's it". Yet after you eat the dish you are satisfied. It seems like at the lower end restaurants you have to eat a lot to be satisfied. Maybe its just me.
I was impressed with the speed of their service. We were sat down, ordered, ate, and paid the bill in about an hour. They were extremely prompt with things and I'm sure they make an effort to get people on their way back to work.
Put 5 stars on the board for this place.
I loved, loved, loved this place!
I went last night because it was my birthday. Not to sound like a broken record, but it is on the 54th floor of TD Tower. This means that the decor of the place is obvi beautiful and the clientele is composed of business people. You get a nice view of Toronto from the window. Reservations can be made on the Internet, which makes things more convenient. I had a reservation for 7 PM and requested a window seat. Both my reservation and request were carried out. I found the service to be excellent and the food was great!
Come here for a special event... and don't forget to ask for window seat.
http://www.oliverbonac...
I do not even know what to say. Yes. This was the most expensive dinner I have had in years. Dinner for two was $350.00 with tax and tip, modest bottles of wine and one dessert.
That being said, it was an outstanding dining experience and worth the price of admission. My only complaint about the restaurant is the noise level. Canoe is very loud. My wife and I split the Canoe plate as a first course. The Foie Gras was good, and easily the least successful part of our dinner. The Lobster Salad, Salmon Tartare and Filet were beyond reproach.
My Caribou saddle was easily the richest, most tender steak I have ever eaten, my wife's Lamb loin was quite flavorful in a way that cuts of Lamb in restaurants often are not.
The fig and date pudding, which we ordered on the advice of our terrific server in lieu of cheese (which he also loved) was an outstanding dessert.
I was wowed by the quality of Canadian wines we had with our meal.
Truly an experience to remember.
Listed in: Top Restaurants
I am very thankful for the concierge suggesting Canoe while in Toronto. At first i thought the restaurant would be all about the view and the food would have been just so-so. I arrived there without a reservation on a Friday night but since I was by myself I figured it wouldn't be too difficult to find a place to be seated. I went in to the lounge area and to my surprise it was not crowded and there were plenty of seats at the bar. I was greeted by the bartender and was offered a glass of champagne on the house since she had just poured an extra one. I decided to try the tasting menu "Taste Canoe" since it had so many wonderful items. The Amuse Bouche was a house cured tuna with some kind of infused apple. I had never tasted anything like the apple before and it was amazing. Next was an Iced Green Tomato Soup with lobster, ricotta and basil. This dish was presented by the Chef de Cuisine, John Horne and it was like no soup I have ever tasted. All the ingredients married well together and the Pinot Gris it was paired with was just perfect. Next was a Organic Yolk Ravioli with beef cheek, fava beans and asparagus. Once I cut into the ravioli and the egg yolked oozed out the dish was outstanding. For the main dish I went with their Tea Smoked Duck Breast with fois gras, toasted wheatberries, rapini and morel mushrooms. Wow, wow and wow this was a great dish! It was my first time trying fois gras and it was just perfect with the other ingredients! The desert was a wild ginger pana cotta with strawberries and pistachio cookie. The presentation was wonderful but I am just not a fan of pana cotta. The bartender noticed I had only taken one bite and asked if I like cheese which I responded with a yes. She left for a moment and brought me a plate of two cheeses, crustini, honey and some jam and took the pana cotta away. Like everything else, the cheese plate was amazing. Needless to say I will deffinetly be back to Canoe next time I'm in Toronto. The food was amazing and the service was out of this world!
Surprisingly good.
Generally places that are expensive are at a distinct disadvantage because your expectations are so overinflated (in both extremes) based on the high emotional investment that people place on their experiences there. There's also generally a great deal of buzz surrounding these restaurants from foodies and social climbers.
Canoe's no exception.
I arrived not knowing really what to make of the place. Half my friends telling me that it was "a once in a lifetime place" and that I'd love it while the other half say that it "wasn't that good" or "not worth it". Strong and polarized viewpoints to say the least.
So, I decided to do a weekday lunch there. The crowd alone was worth the price of admission. It was like a Harry Rosen store where all the mannequins were animatronic. Very much a boys club... but sprinkled with a few beautiful women along the way.
The service was absolutely outstanding. Top notch all along. Friendly and prompt without seeming in-your-face or annoying.
The food. In the end, I was pleasantly surprised. The steak tartare appetizer was particularly stellar. Presentation and flavor was tops.
Definitely worth a drop in.
So, it wasn't my money, so I didn't really order with regard to cost. Which makes it nice at a place like this. Very artsy presentation of unique dishes in a great atmosphere/view. Was perfect for the business dinner I was attending.
The food would rate a 5 star, the service/speed of food would be a 3 star, which gives it an average of 4 stars.
I had a wonderfully prepared caribou steak dish that had a number of interesting root vegetables and chocolate nut combination surrounding. Very nicely done.
Good wine and a great view of the lake/city. Would recommend for an upscale meal or date.
I had been waiting to go to Canoe for about 100 years and perhaps had over-hyped it in my mind. Yes - the food was wonderful - 5 stars. Yes - the view is incredible and the sevice was outstanding. Where it fell short of greatness is that it really felt like being in an office building with a bunch of suits grabbing a bite after work. Furthermore, if you're going to wash up before dining, you have to go down the hall to the public loo, with its buzzing fluorescents and puddled countertops. It really killed the ambience; great restaurants need to hit on all 5 senses.
Wow. Wow. That's all I can say about this place.
My fiancee and I are both foodies from San Francisco, and we have eaten at just about every great restaurant in the SF Bay Area. Canoe would easily be a top restaurant in SF or NY City, if it were to move to either city. The food was fabulous, and the service was both warm and attentive.
And the view, holy cow, REALLY fabulous. If you can only go to one high-end restaurant on your trip to Toronto (either for $$$ reasons or time constraints), this place should be high on your list.
Yes its beautiful, the menu reads beautifully, the wine list leans heavily upon local (great if you like) but the service lacks the polish and finesse one would expect at this price point. We enjoyed the prix fix tasting menu without the local wine paring and opted instead for a mid priced bottle of Bordeaux (celebrating an anniversary.)
The servers could use a little culinary 101, which is easily applied if and when the management sees the necessity (like now perhaps.)
I enjoyed the number of tall toques bobbing around the kitchen upon the heads of the line cooks... maybe it's my San Francisco food snobbery shining through but a bit more attention upon the food would be better served for all . Looking for advise? Save the dough and go have a cocktail in the bar area with high backed chairs while enjoying the magnificent view-
Listed in: Best Martini (usually gin)…
I loved this place. Took my husband there for a birthday dinner on a Thursday night. I made reservations on Monday so couldn't get a table before 9:30pm but we went there at 9pm and sat at the bar which has great views too.
The table was ready by 9:20 and they gave us a cozy one with a great view. The food was excellent - especially the pork belly and the beef main courses. Dessert was the most decadent flourless chocolate cake with a very sweet birthday message piped on to the plate.
The service was impeccable and the wine selection pretty impressive. We were there till midnight and never felt rushed. My husband loved the surprise and I got a lot of credit for not much effort. Will definitely go back for more.
Listed in: Good ones
Full review in blog, highlights below:
Our first round of food arrived with my friend receiving the "Mushroom Soup - no creme, no butter" and myself the Paillotte de Chevre with Walnut and Honey. Tasting only a bite of the Mushroom soup but listening to Heather ooh and ah about it with each bite we inquired how exactly this porridge-esque concoction was made and we were told that it was essentially a mushroom stock that they use for some of their other sauces with a puree of marinated pan seared mushrooms blended in. Thick, succulent - the very essence of the mushroom. My option was certainly a more heavy choice and featured thick round of ashy yet unctuous cheese similar to Humboldt Fog atop a crispy piece of cracker crust and topped with a single almond and lavender honey. Served warm and slightly melting the flavors of this dish melded flawlessly while the addition of the frisee, beets, and flowers served to add a vegetal component to the dish.
Arriving next our next course consisted of Applewood Smoked Duck Breast with Lingonberries, Salsify, and Spiced Walnuts for my friend and the Foie Gras with Sunflower Root, Pumpkin Muffin, and Walnut Pickle for myself. Taking only a single bite of my friend's duck and salsify I will say that the rare meat was delicious and she very much enjoyed the dish. On my side, the foie was a beautifully cleaned piece-albeit small for the price-and the accompanying components were interesting to say the least. Crisp and woodsy the Sunflower Root was a nice balance in texture while the balsamic pickled walnut was the very definition of savory. Small and sweet the a small piece of baked sweet potato and a pumpkin-pumpkin seed muffin graced the left side of the plate and the whole plate showed a unique progression in flavors from sweet and soft to unctuous and creamy to crunchy and savory.
Our third courses were decided on late but turned out to be our favorites of the afternoon - for my friend the Steak Tartare with Potato Chips and Pepper, Onion, and Yolk and for myself Yarmouth Lobster with Yukon Gnocchi, Crispy Sweetbreads, Creme Fraiche, and Preserved Lemon. As I don't eat beef flesh I skipped the tartare but was told it was "amazing." As for my dish -without exaggerating this is probably in my top ten dishes of the year. Flawless potato dumplings with a firm exterior yielding a creamy melt-in-your-mouth center were absolutely laden with fresh butter poached lobster and crispy pan seared sweetbreads while the whole dish was then topped with a creamy sauce of sweetened lemon and tangy crème fraiche. Half expecting the characteristic flavor of the thymus to overwhelm the delicate lobster I actually found that the lemon/crème/chives admixture served to mellow the sweetbreads while drawing forward the lobster's sweetness. A wonderful take on "surf and turf" featuring two ingredients I'd have never thought to pair - the bite I spared to my friend led her to a resolution to return for a full plate of her own in the future.
After such a sublime meal and great service, Greg's suggestion to "tempt" us with dessert really didn't require much effort - we ended up ordering two. Starting first with the Dark Chocolate Truffle Cake with Sour Cherry Compote, Chantilly and Pistachio Ice Cream. A dark chocolate ganache well tempered in its decadence by the sour poached cherries and creamy Chantilly crème plus a dollop of smooth ice cream that tasted very much like salty Pistachios atop a pistachio cookie crumble - plenty of textures, temperatures, flavors, and nuance.
Our second dessert - again a contender for top 10 of the year, this time in the sweets category. Sticky Date Pudding, Whisky Sauce, Cherries and Apples, Bacon Toffee Brittle, and Creme Fraiche arrived in a large bowl and really didn't "look" to be anything special - at first bite however, looks didn't matter one bit - looking up at Heather I realized she agreed. Steamed through and appearing to be somewhere between a custard and a bread pudding in texture the date flavors simply melted in the mouth while the whisky sauce ascended to the palate creating a flawless blend of spice and heat with the sweetness. Further enhancing the experience were diced pink lady apples and sweetened cherries smoothed out by the crème fraiche. Finally, adding texture was the Toffee - a creamy butterscotch with potent top notes of salt and pork that paired beautifully with the whisky sauce and the pudding both - to call the mélange of flavors well thought out would be the understatement of the year.
I have to say I definitely "get" the appeal of Canoe and despite the fact that some may consider it to be a bit too "businessy" I personally found every aspect of the execution to be calculated, refined, and full of finesse - if I lived in Toronto this would definitely be my destination to impress out of town guests and on my next visit I fully intend to return for the nightly tasting menu.
Listed in: Most memorable meals., Best Gnocchi
Canoe was good, but not great-excellent... which is what I was expecting.
I've often thought there is a correlation between a restaurant's height - like, how high up it is from the ground and the quality of the food. Far too often, the taller the restaurant, the view seems always better then what is on my plate.
Having said that, the view from Canoe is awesome. It was dusk on a Thursday evening. And granted, my wife and I ordered from the Winterlicious menu. So while I begrudgingly accept that the "cheap" menu may not have the same flair and pizazz as the full menu - it just wasn't very good - and because of that, I'll be hard press to return when I'm next ready top drop a few hundred bucks on dinner. Also, when looking around, our plates didn't seem like they were lacking in quality or size from the regular fare.
A completely forget-able bean spread and bread was served to start. Even the dash of truffle oil couldn't pull it into the win column.
Our starters - One was a goat cheese souffle, the other a lobster/seafood soup. The texture of the souffle was great - light and fluffy, mixed with some micro greens. But the soup was just plain bad. Too bad - but this is Canoe we said - the mains will be awesome.
One of them was quite good - a forest mushroom (probably my favorite ingredient... mushrooms) ravioli in a cream sauce. The flavor was great, but the sauce was a bit salty. The other main was a sea bass - which combined an Asian flavor with a fairly heavy, almost gravy like sauce. I saw where they were going with this, and I liked the idea very much but the dish just plain missed the mark.
Dessert was a sticky pudding and apple crumble, and these were both quite yummy. The crumble featured a candied rosemary which was nice.
Wines were paired very nicely with each dish - I mean to write them down, but I never do.
In summary, I expected more from Canoe. I expected to be challenged and impressed. I ended up looking for the salt. The view was beautiful...
There's a reason why they continue to win awards at Canoe.
Not priced as a weekly restaurant but definitely for special occasions.
Food and service were both top notch. in fact I would go as far as to say that the service was one of the best if not the best i have ever had. Well done!
If you go in the near future and you like white wines then try the Henry of Pelham 1998 Riesling. Amazing!
Definitely my favourite place in the city, and the deserving winner of Toronto Life's Top Restaurant Review.
Eating at Canoe is like no other experience you'll ever have. From the moment you walk in the door and are greeted by the hostess, to the expert mixologists behind the bar, to the service in the dining room, to the absolutely fantastic food prepared by their expert kitchen staff, it is worth every penny that you will spend. And you can spend a lot of those pennies.
The food is expertly prepared and beautifully presented. Canoe focuses on Canadian Regional Cuisine, meaning products sourced in Canada, and following, with a twist, some good old fashioned Canadian recipes. Prepare to indulge in Oysters from the East, Caribou from the Yukon served with a classic Tourtiere, BC Crab, and more.
A fantastic wine list, with something respectable no matter how much you want to spend. Even their house wines, custom blends done at Cave Springs Winery in Niagara, are a good choice.
While many people who have not enjoyed this restaurant may automatically assume a certain pretentiousness to it, once you step inside you will feel immediately at ease, welcomed by their friendly and highly polished staff.
Listed in: Best Happy Hour
What a great experience - from beginning to end! The views were remarkable, the cocktails were fantastic. We did the tasting menu with the wine options SPECTACULAR! You know how some places are very strict about not letting you change anything on the tasting menu - well they let us! The service was exceptional! I would go back in a heartbeat.
Don't usually dine at a fine dining establishment like this but decided to splurge on this trip to Toronto. I was certainly not dissapointed.
The staff are absolutely amazing here. They were friendly, helpful, attentive and always there if you needed them. The view was stunning. The meal was the best part though.
I had the Alberta Lamb Loin and the meat was just so delicious. The whole entree was probably one of the best meals I've ever had.
This restaurant is expensive, but I would very highly reccomend it, just a wonderful experience.
While the service was 5-Star and food 4-Star, the experience left much to the imagination. I think this place is more suitable for business affairs or men going with men to dinners, etc.
Not incredibly romantic atmosphere and the layout is too cafeteria-esque.
On the plus side, the Caribou from Yukon was out-of-this-world and the Sommelier was very helpful and fun to converse with.
I'd recommend this place for large parties or business meals. Nice wine list too. Pricey night out not worth it for an intimate affair.
Good food on the pricey side. For special celebration, it is good!
While the service is wonderful and the food delicious - this to me isn't the most romantic place for dinner. It's quite loud and doesn't feel all that romantic... not really a place to get cozy. More of a place to take business colleagues. Trust the sommelier! They really know their stuff.
Based on the fact that I had my wedding reception here, my review could be a little biased but being an extremely picky customer I walked into the restaurant expecting to give it a four star rating and walked out with a five.
The service was fantastic! what an amazing group of staff !
Spectacular view , probably one of the best in downtown TO.
Finally but not the least, simple, quality food with an amazing wine list and an excellent bar!
A great place to hold functions or even reward yourself with a quick drink at the bar on a Friday afternoon!
Holy hell the view is stunning here! Not just the lofty Lake-view perspective from the top of TD Tower, but also the spectacle of the inner workings of its kitchen, which is visible from the dining room.
The wait staff is also first-class. Extremely professional and courteous though I sometimes could sense that they are screaming on the inside. Perhaps it is because they must always maintain an atmosphere of calm, even in the face of fickle clientele and kitchen mishaps.
Our dinner was botched when our waiter forgot that breadcrumbs were in the topping of the dish that my friend ordered (Sara has severely allergic reactions to wheat products). Even though our waiter was informed about Sara's condition, she just didn't have the the FULL list of ingredients memorized--something that could have been mitigated with a quick fact-check in the kitchen.
Apart from this small snafu, which had us eating at separate times, we enjoyed the experience with the staff. Our waiter apologized a million times over, the food bearers were prompt to describe each dish in detail, and our coats were handled so smoothly that we hardly noticed their absence and return.
As for the meal: the foie gras on my monkfish melted like butter. But that's all I remember.
It seems that the view, ambience, and customer service trumped my memories of the food!
I'm giving this place a 4.5 stars because of the location and ambiance. This is very trendy and full of good looking people. The view of the city is breathtaking so when you make a reservation, make sure you get a seat by the window (I unfortunately, didn't know that when I booked my table).
The food is presented beautifully. I loved everything I ordered except, not so much the chilled cucumber scallop soup. But maybe my palate was not as developed back then (3 years ago). I'll have to go back and try again.
Use the "summerlicious" or "winterlicious" program to get a great deal on a three course meal.
Listed in: Eat Your Way Through Toronto
One of my favorite restaurants, so much I rented out the place for my wedding 10 years ago.
delish. lunch reservations for summerlicious. seated right on time, great view of the CN tower from our table and great view of the kitchen from our table as well. The kitchen was fully staffed and clean looking, very cool concept of open kitchen, they're so clean they have nothing to hide. We got our water, drinks and orders in perfect time. The waiter was a very courteous french-english girl. She described our dishes to us before we ate them and everything was sooo delicious! All the food came out on time and in perfect temperature. I had the Capon and it was mouth watering. The dessert was a chocolate fudge cake with caramel sauce... sooo good they put gold flakes on the chocolate. Go here, its expensive but at least you're getting what you paid for... every penny!!!
Neighborhood: Queen Street West
Toronto, ON
Toronto, ON
Toronto, ON
Toronto, ON
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