- Restaurants |
- Nightlife |
- Shopping |
- Coffee & Tea |
- All
Drift
- Price Range:
-
$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Music:
- Background
- Best Nights:
- Fri, Sat
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Smoking:
- No
- Coat Check:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Average
- Good For Dancing:
- No
- Has TV:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
30 reviews for Drift
Review Highlights
-
"I had sweet potato fries and flourless chocolate cake." In 7 reviews -
"Fabulous beer selection, including Cameron's 266 on tap..." In 3 reviews -
"A wonderful list of Inexpensive pints and without a doubt..." In 4 reviews
Loading...
30 reviews in English
-
Review from Emily C.
We walked by here on a saturday afternoon looking for a brunch/cafe type of place -- and in the area of Dufferin and Bloor, there isn't too much. About a block west, you have maybe one sketchy Portugese "cafe" (but it's more of a bar/tv spot) but I digress. We were thinking it's pretty hopeless around here, and nearly walked right past Drift.
Super inconspicuous on the outside, I'm glad they had a little brunch menu on the window that caught my eye. After being seated (it was super empty, but I guess we were a little past lunch hour) so we got to observe the decor and interior quite well. Really rustic/quaint, very cute.
As for the food, I can't comment on their dinner obviously since we only had brunch. But it was fantastic! Super simply made but good quality. My bf had the 'drift standard' which was eggs and toast and fries. I had the 'hueovos driftos' which was a fried egg, soft, on tortilla and black beans and a side of really fresh greens with vinegrette. So good! We also had a latte (which was only like 50 cents more than a regular coffee when it's usually double or something everywhere else). The latte was great, well worth it.
We'll definitely be back for a drink on some random night. They had a large drink list and some hefty martinis. Looks promising!! -
Review from Chris P.
Came here for a first date to have some drinks. Glad I was finally able to check this place out as it has always been packed the few other times I've tried to go (clearly a good sign).
There's seating for about 30+ people so it's a pretty small place. Even on a Sunday night the place was almost full by 10:00. They have a large spirit selection and a healthy sized wine list so you're sure to find what you like here.
I first went with a caesar and asked for it to be spicy. It was not spicy. But it was good. Not totally sure what they put in their casears but it was a little different than the usual mix. Second up I decided to try the Nightcap. This little three-spirit cocktail has Tequila in it so, really, you can't go wrong here. It's served neat but the server brought a glass of ice with it should you choose to have it on the rocks. I decided to keep it chilled which suited me nicely.
I like the decor of Drift. It's warm and friendly and unimposing. The crowd was lively. Can't say I remember the music selection really, but since I was there for the company it's a good thing the music blended into the background to be able to carry on a conversation for a few hours.
Need to come back to try the food.Listed in: You & Me
-
Review from Heather K.
Toronto, ON
Will keep this short and sweet. Drift rocks.
Nice eclectic decor, relaxed atmosphere, Mostly though, I just love how fresh and seasonal the offerings are. Great place to go for a date or with friends.
They also do a mean brunch on the weekend. Quite possibly the best eggs benny I have ever had. -
Review from Angela L.
If I didn't cook such similar fare at home so often, Drift would be my go-to spot for casual dinners. The dimly lit interior that's constantly filled makes for a comfortable atmosphere where you're never the only table, but there's never a wait either.
The food is great and of high quality, but not too fancy. The service is consistently pleasant. One of my most memorable meals here featured a gigantic beef burger topped with homemade grainy mustard and super fresh red onions and tomatoes. Their poutines are loaded with cheese curds and chicken gravy. For nights when I'm not as hungry, the soup and quiche of the day combo are perfect. I also love that their ketchup is "homemade" and the wine always comes in nice big glasses.
Eating at Drift is sometimes inspiring, but always a treat! -
Review from Esther H.
Drift has a beef stew right now that's really amazing---we've gone back for it about four times now.
Otherwise, Drift has a comfortable atmosphere, fresh food and attentive service. A good go-to place for a casual meal or drinks. -
Review from Molly C.
Toronto, ON
The food at drift feels clean and fresh, like food you would make for yourself if you took more care in selecting the ingredients and more time to prepare it.
I adore Drift and lately have been finding myself there once every couple of weeks.
They just changed their menu and some of the new stuff is truly great. The smoked rainbow trout appetizer, served with crostini, lemon ricotta, and pickled onions, is pretty special. It's light and fresh and really flavourful. I would recommend any of the Drift salads, but right now the one featuring pomegranate seeds and breaded goats cheese (if you're a goat cheese fan) is wonderful. Not to mention, their homemade ketchup is the best I've had so far and goes nicely with the crisp, well seasoned fries.
I think pints cost more now than they used to but they still have a great selection of St. Ambroise beers and tons of cool stuff behind the bar.
Definitely definitely will be back. -
Review from Jay M.
Toronto, ON
I don't usually write multiple reviews for a place but Drift changes so much every 3 months that there is something usually worth mentioning. I still like Drift and would definitely still recommend it, but this experience wasn't as impressive as the many many other times I've visited.
They've now gotten rid of all the lower lounge styled tables and set proper dining height at all the seats. They also changed their menu to 4 different categories: Small Plates, Large Plates, Sandwiches, Sides
One thing I have to hand it to this place for, and one of the reasons we keep coming back, is how fresh the food is. Unfortunately the execution of the current menu was a bit lacking this time. We had 1 large plate, the Smashbomb Quarter Chicken with Roasted Red Potatoes ($12) which was really disappointing. Small chicken leg with not much meat on it with some potatoes au jus. Also ordered a Club Sandwich with Double Smoked Bacon ($10) which was decent because of the delicious bacon and the fact I dipped it all in the chipotle mayo from the sweet potato fries. Otherwise not really worth the $10 price tag so I'd skip it upon return. Oh and what I liked about my last visit, how the menu had the ability of ordering combos with a sandwich and a side, has gone back to just selling them individually. So we went with the sweet potato fries ($4) as always and a poutine ($5), both of which outshined our main dishes.
Pints are now $5.75 + tax but the selection makes up for that (Flying Monkey Smashbomb, Mill Street Organic, a slew of St Ambroise options, and a few other good local names to choose from) and they still have a monster selection of great beers in bottles at decent prices too.
The good news is that since the menu changes so frequently, I can assume that any doubt I had in last nights experience will be reset with a new awesome selection of fresh food to choose from.2 Previous Reviews: Show all »
-
12/8/2011
Stopped in last night for the first time in months. One thing I noticed is that the place is slowly… Read more »
-
12/8/2011
-
Review from Dishan W.
While I did not get the chance to fully utilize the menu here in terms of booze and food (was driving to a dinner after) I really enjoyed the little time I spent here in Drift, it's more suited to be an indie coffee shop judging from their interior space and their very bare bones wooden furniture bookshelf etc.
I probably feel that way since we did arrive before sun down and when it started to get darker they dimmed the lights down low to provide a far more intimate feel, so this might not be the best place to come down for a raucous time but it is well suited to catch up with an old friend over a pint or two and these 4 stars is keeping a scenario like that in mind.
I would like to make a return trip here to try out their food and more of their drinks menu too, but it's not an area I frequent so not sure what the likelihood of that will be.Listed in: My November 30
-
Review from Monica F.
(This review's only based on the food I had....)
Two stars seems harsh but the phrase "Meh...I've experienced better" sums this place up to a tee.
The pork sandwich was one of the worst I've ever eaten. Can you say DRY? Jeeze. You know when you bite into a sandwich and it rips the roof of your mouth? The pork itself was SO dry.. tasted like it was sitting in an oven for hours (don't know if they were having an "off" day or what? ) And it didn't help that it was served on toasted bread. I was hoping for a nice chewy bun but was so disappointed when I saw it came with bread (see pictures.) I can appreciate that you wanna be "different" from other places but at least make it taste good. The fact that the sandwich was uber dry could have been remedied had the sandwich been served with some mustard, mayonnaise, ANYTHING?!? But seriously, we had to ASK for mustard after we all took a bite and realized there were no condiments on it. So strange....
I got my sammy with sweet potato fries and ughhh! I normally love sweet potato fries but these were BURNT. So pissed. I'm sure they would have been good if they weren't burnt but I'm not coming back to give them another chance. Like, honestly? Not impressed... I should have said something but am not the type to send food back. I say nothing and then yelp it when I get home. Haha.
We (4 of us) were the ONLY ones in the restaurant the entire night so I really can't see any excuse for the horrible food. We also got a couple other things off the menu and neither of them were worth writing about.
I came here with high hopes based on the review's I had read but left quite disappointed. I honestly don't know what all the hype is about. I'm sure this place will stay around based on the extensive and cheap beer selection, it's just too bad they couldn't get the food right.Listed in: My S#!% List
-
Review from Emily R.
Toronto, ON
I love this place.
Great liquor and beer selections with more than reasonable prices.
Service has always been very friendly and accommodating.
The space is cozy, and there are a few board games that you can choose to play at your table.
The food is great. I've had the sweet potato fries, salad, and beet burger. I wouldn't exactly call it a burger, though. It is beet hummus (I think) in a flour tortilla with some veggies that is folded into a burger shape and then grilled. It's totally delicious. I find myself craving it often.
I imagine the really great prices are to draw customers in since I believe the place is still relatively new, so I don't expect the prices to remain so low, though I will still remain a customer when they do hike them up. -
Review from William T.
Scarborough, ON
After a long day at CNE me, my girlfriend & friends came to Drift. The interior had dim lighting & had a cozy feel to it. We sat down & a while later were brought 4 glasses of water. They had about 25 bottled and 6 on tap.
I ordered a Flying Monkey which was a light ale. My companions ordered a Fruli, a Pear Cider, & Mill Street Lemon Tea Beer of which I tried & liked them all..
I saw a box of Scrabble sitting at the bar, I asked the barman if I could have at it, then we comenced to some serious scrabbling.
Overall I liked this venue & I will most likely stop by here again when I am in the area. -
Review from Yvonne T.
I have never been a big beer drinker - but Drift may have me converted. My friends and I came to Drift after a long day at the CNE. One of the gang live in the Dufferin Grove area, and so I quickly opened up my Yelp app to see what was good. Drift came up.
We arrived to a dimly lit, modern restaurant clad with wood furniture and photos/artwork of various local artists. The space is not large but was rather full for a Monday night. We found ourselves a seat but were ignored for some time until a server finally brought 4 glasses of water. The beer list is scribbled on a chalkboard. They had about 25 bottled and 5-6 on tap. I opted for a Fruli and a Pear Cider. Told you I was not much of a beer drinker!
My companions ordered a Flying Monkey (light ale variety) and Mill Street Lemon Tea Beer.
I liked all the beers we sampled. The noise level is high at Drift, but we ended up sipping back beers to a game of Scrabble that we borrowed from the bartender as we saw it sitting at the bar and so noise level didn't affect us much at this juncture as we were all focusing on forming the next 100-point word.
I will definitely come back to this bar in the future! -
Review from dani p.
Bradford, ON
Working in the Bloor/Dufferin area, it has been hard to find a perfect after-work place to get a cold beer and something good to eat.
The beer selection was great- more so the bottled list, but I was drawn to the Mill Street Organic on Draft. Being a vegetarian, I was not limited at all with options. So far I have tried the vegan beet burger which was amazing and creative; the grilled cheese (stacked with pear, aged white cheddar, etc) and the appetizer cold bean salad.
I have never been let down by the service or food at Drift in the handful of times I have been. The decor is also nice; not trying too hard to be hipster, but classic brick walls, and the church pew booths really impressed me! -
Review from Jennifer K.
Markham, ON
CMYE: Bloordale Bar Crawl #5
Drinks: Mill Street Lemon Tea Beer
Drift was surprisingly quiet... painfully dead compare to Three Speed... But being quiet does have its advantages... as Drift is a good place if you want to have some down time or more personal time with your friend.
Though the draft choices were limited... the bottled options were huge.. and did make my Yelp Drinking Buddy a little confused for awhile..
Sweet Potato Fries ($4) was disappointing... I found it a little mushy and a little burnt...but I was hungry.. and I would eat that and drink my beer and be happy
My Yelp Drinking Buddy since having a Steak Sandwich at Three Speed is ready for dessert.. Chocolate Flourless Cake ($6) topped with roasted peanuts which he enjoyed... For me is another brownie moment... and I feel like I need my Coffee!!
Candlelight .. Soft Music...Cheap food... Reasonable Priced Drinks...Comfy Armchairs...All elements for a Cheap Date... or a Night Cap to end our bar crawl...
The End......... -
Review from Kent P.
-COMFORTABLE/NICE SPACE
-EXCELLENT FOOD (ALL UNDER $10)
-KITCHEN OPEN LATE (ORDERIN' AROUND MIDNIGHT)
-PINTS = $5
I liked this place a lot.
Only think I wasn't a fan of :
The bathrooms are like a maze to get to. Long hallways, numerous doors, a creepy stairwell up to Bloor that is blocked off. I felt like I was about to walk into a scene from Hostel.
Daniel B wrote a better review.
TTYN,
PAT -
Review from Kennedy R.
Toronto, ON
It's nice to have more options that Disgraceland and Ethiopian food. I was excited to try Drift when it opened but it took me so long to get around to it. The other day, I needed somewhere nearby and affordable so I decided to strike Drift off my to try list. This place was playing Cults (my new favourite band) when I came in so I knew that it was a good choice.
The decor was okay, I feel like they were aiming for hipster haunt but fell short of the idea. The exposed brick? Hip. The wall art? Not so much. It reminded me of Swiss Chalet. The reclaimed church pews as banquets? Hip, and a terrific idea.
For a Monday night, this joint was chock full of people. There was only one server on duty that night but he was attentive and quick.
We ordered the sweet potato fries as a starter. Holy snood, they were amazing! The menu said that they were flavoured with a Toronto spice mix. I detected a hint of Indian flavour in the mix, it was a delightful and well-executed nod to Toronto's culture of multicultural. The way the fries were cut was an anomaly. Most of the fries were on the thicker side, a great improvement over the de rigueur skinny cut that so many restaurants serve. They came with a side of smoky, chipotle mayo.
My sandwich of the day was a BLT with a twist. They used back bacon instead of regular bacon. This substitution worked well and made for a great sandwich. The basil aioli and bread were wonderful.
One more thought, can we please put an end to housemade ketchup? It never works. I just want good old Heinz, not an oddly textured ketchup/salsa hybrid. -
Review from Bloordale M.
Toronto, ON
I was at Drift last night. We were looking for a patio but Beirut Palace was closed and we sat at Roma for about half an hour and were totally ignored. We left to head Collegeward and then espied the inviting, wide-open window at Drift. We had asparagus and yogurt soup with mint (lovely fresh flavours for a warm summer evening). I had a slice of quiche - quite nice. The filling was tasty and the pastry was good but the top edge of the pastry was quite burned. I didn't really care but some might. My friend had cod cakes and poutine. Both were good. Somebody complained about wedge cut potatoes in the poutine but last night they were square cut fries.
The beer was icy cold and the service was perfect.
I will go back and I recommend this place to others. -
Review from Val G.
Time to set up a time-lapse camera on this block. The neighbourhood is changing fast. Drift is another example of young food & bev entrepreneurs transforming a crusty old Portuguese dive bar into something great.
It's a bar firstly but they have a daily menu that is small and feisty. Featured on my visit were lots of atypical savoury pub fare. I'm pleased to say it was mostly vegetarian choices as well, with a few chicken options and one deceiving vegetarian sandwich that contained mushrooms in a beef broth gravy. Our server was very good at pointing this out though.
The menu item that stood out the most was the pakoras. They were so light and obviously freshly cooked, it was like tasting this food item for the first time. I hope they keep these on the menu permanently.
The prices at Drift, I must emphasize, are very reasonable and competitive, even for the spirits. The selections of wine and beer is stellar too. Get thee to Drift! -
Review from Sam H.
ETOBICOKE, ON
I have been here twice now and it is lovely. The staff are very polite and sweet. The clientèle are 20-30 some-things very casual unpretentious vibe. Nice place for a date or a quiet drink with the girls. The food is very good. Extensive beer selection, and fabulous poutine. My only wish is that the lighting was a little dimmer at night. I love this place.
-
Review from Daniel B.
After four increasingly stellar visits, this beautiful space on Bloor Instantly vaults towards the top of my list for great places to go out in Toronto.
Outstanding and surprisingly affordable scotch list. A wonderful list of Inexpensive pints and without a doubt some of the best food found in a pub in Toronto. The grilled eggplant sandwich is to die for.
"Wonderful ambiance" someone said... it's impossible to say it any better.
A keeper. -
Review from U U.
Toronto, ON
I'm not really feeling the 4.5 stars worth of hype for this place - but I will probably go again given the chance.
Pros:
-Location- this is a fun pub in a neighbourhood that needs fun pubs.
-Prices - the food and drinks are indeed affordable.
-Beer Selection - great selection of bottles and some solid beer on draught including, my favourite, Millstreet Tankhouse, as well as Mill Street Organic, Steamwhistle Pilsner, and (I think) Cameron Stout .
-Friendly Service
Cons:
-The food was mediocre at best. The vegetarian chili barely had any spice, and seemed to be lacking sufficient salt. It was also served luke warm. The sweet potato fries were burnt and mushy. The curried spring rolls are a great concept, but were just lacking flavour.
I'm not counting this place out yet. The owner seemed like a nice dude and it is still a good place to go for drinks. -
Review from Sahra G.
Cheap pints, cheap beer and great selection and prices of alcohol await you at Drift. The bar has great mid century modern decor. The liquer is decently priced (HENNESEY IS $19!! cheaper than any other bar I have ever been to).
They also offer a rotating menu of anti pasti selections, sandwiches and soups for those who are peckish.
This bar is fantastic and is in an area in need of great local bars, 3 Speed is in for some competition. I can't wait to go here again. -
Review from Rafi N.
Toronto, ON
The bar scene can either be very lively and exciting or laid-back and relaxed. The name says it all as Drift is the latter.
*** FOOD & DRINK ***
I had sweet potato fries and flourless chocolate cake. To drink I had a beer, but I can't remember the name. It was a stout, but not Guinness. Drift has a wide selection of beers, so it's a great place to try something new.
* Sweet Potato Fries | $4 *
These were good for the most part. A lot of pieces were just fried skin, but once you got the pieces with flesh, they were good. The outside is crisp, but the flesh is really soft.
* Flourless Chocolate Cake | $6 *
The cake is good but it would be better described as a brownie. The caramel sauce on top of it adds a bit of saltiness which is welcome when you're drinking beer. There were quite a bit of peanuts on top which I thought was too much. I think less peanuts would be better or maybe if they were crushed. Still, this was a tasty dessert.
*** ATMOSPHERE ***
Drift is very laid-back and the decor suits the mood. The furniture is trendy, but not hipster. They have the brick wall theme which is almost ubiquitous at bars. The tables have candles but the entire bar is moderately lit (not too dark). There is music playing in the background and I could have sworn I heard A Tribe Called Quest. Old school hip-hop and a relaxed atmosphere is great.
*** SERVICE ***
Service was great. Our server greeted us immediately upon entering and quickly cleaned up a table for us since we were picky about where we wanted to sit. He was patient with me since I wasn't too sure what I wanted to drink and was quick with good suggestions. The food came quickly after ordering. He also thanked us for coming as we left.
*** PRICE ***
The pricing is good. I know a lot of places that consider themselves "upscale" would charge double for the same food. The price of drinks is competitive.
* Sweet Potato Fries: $4 *
* Flourless Chocolate Cake: $6 *
*** THE LOWDOWN ***
Drift has a great selection of beers. The food is good, though I only had a snack and dessert. A trendy decor and a relaxed environment make for a great night. If you're looking to chill with some friends over some drinks, come here... If you get my Drift.Listed in: Noise 'n Poison
-
Review from Yvette L.
Toronto, ON
We were so pleased when Drift opened... what a great local!
Fabulous beer selection, including Cameron's 266 on tap some good bottled American micro brews. The menu is a real treat as the portions are not enormous, and the price is generally $9 or less. Sides are extra, which is fine by me as it's nice to just order a sandwich without fries sometimes. (One thing I've noticed is that the food is not at all salty. One friend complained that it wasn't flavourful, but I don't agree. It's nice not to go home from a restaurant feeling like you've eaten a salt lick!)
Best: Chicken sandwich (free-range), generous bowl of sweet potato fries (ok, sometimes I order them!) and the pork burger. -
Review from Patrick M.
Toronto, ON
Nice little spot for drinks and a bite, no doubt! There are few things that keep it from hitting the 5 star mark, however, and I think these are easily remedied.
First, the good to great:
* Draft beer list is small but very nicely chosen. Not a poor choice amongst them. Any pub that serves me draft McAuslan oatmeal stout scores big points right there! And at $5 ($5! I say!) it's practically stealing.
* Three Unibroue bottled options (Fin du Monde, Trois Pistoles, and Blanche du Chambly) means they have three of Canada's very best beer offerings available. They also have 750ml bottles of Chimay. Sweet!
* Chicken sandwich -- ok, so I'm not a fan of cranberry preserves... that's my bad for ordering it. Other than the cranberry, though, this sandwich was wicked good. And the toasted bread? I think I might serve prison time if I confess to the things I want to do to it.
* Pork burger. Daaaaaaaamn. Tasty! The ground pork was perfectly cooked. Perfectly -- ever so slight blush to the meat, loose but not crumbling, nicely seasoned... why are people so scared of undercooking pork burgers? It's not hard, and Drift proves it.
* Service. Service was superb. Super nice guy who was very attentive, let us take a couple samples of beer (even when I confessed we'd tried them before, just couldn't decide what we wanted and could use a refresher). He was serving double duty as bartender and server and made it look easy.
* Boardgames. And wo! GOOD boardgames, not just the crummy tile-raided copy of Scrabble, beer-stained Trivial Pursuit, and assortment of VV'd kids games nobody ever plays. They had Catan. Sweetness. Note to other pubs: having Candyland on your shelf is cute and all, but c'mon. Give us games we'll actually play.
The Not so Good:
* Poutine. It was soupy and lacked salt, while the taters were wedge cut. It's not that it was bad (hence "not so good"), it was just... off. Less robust fries, a thicker gravy (or maybe less of it), and just a pinch of salt. I may sound picky here but, hey, EVERYONE in this city does poutine. If you're going to deviate from the classic, you better have something amazing, and this isn't it.
* Decor. This definitely will sound picky... but most of the decor is cool, ol' vintage and second hand / rescued stuff/junk/art/swank. But they also have a bunch of photos framed in dollar store plastic that just look really out of place. When you've got weathered, re-purposed windows serving as frames and artwork, man, ditch the crap frames and tie it together better. It distracted me, what can I say?
So, Drift... meet Three Speed and Holy Oak. Enjoy vying for my love and affection. I may play hard to get but, trust me, I'm worth it. -
Review from Ian B.
Toronto, ON
Live in the area and saw this place open up a few months ago and every time I walk by it I keep remembering I want to check it out.
Finally went in for lunch this week and was very glad I visited!
I got the crispy chicken wrap with fries and was very impressed. The wrap was big and tasty and the fries were GREAT! Nice n crispy and well seasoned, although towards the end they were very salty.
The key was the chipotle mayo dip though - lovely stuff. Couldn't get enough of it!
Good ambiance, and nicely decorated, well worth a trip. (It's great value too!)
The only negative was the time it took between sitting down and eating. It wasn't busy when we got there and there was only one person serving and one person in the kitchen. It seemed to take way longer than it should have, but either way, I was starving, and I ended up being very well fed. -
Review from Daphne B.
Toronto, ON
I visited Drift once again..... still love it!!! Service was great and the snack was delicious!!! Oh yeah.. venitilation was much better... ;)
1 Previous Review: Show all »
-
5/24/2011
I ventured into Drift on my way home from work for a pint and a snack last week. What a nice relaxed… Read more »
-
5/24/2011
-
Review from Jennifer L.
Toronto, ON
CHEAP drinks. $5 pints and $5.95 mixed drinks. $4 serving of these ginormous sweet potato fries. I wouldn't even call them fries but potato gumby sticks, the kind you can whip at people's heads.
-
Review from Ceecee P.
Toronto, ON
So incredibly mediocre. I wish I could give 2.5 stars. Good beer list. Dull music. Food is fine- nothing that you will think about after or look forward to, but it is generally OK. I feel like the owner thought "how could i make a bar that appeals to the largest possible demographic without offending anybody's taste" and this is what they came up with. Meh.
-
Review from Jessica W.
Toronto, ON
Great scotch selection alongside good prices, fantastic food (mostly finger foods) and nice service.
