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- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Dressy
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- No
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Good For:
- Brunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
13 reviews for Frank
All Reviews
Frank
2/27/2010
I decided to devote a whole day to wandering around the newly
reopened AGO, including indulging in lunch at Frank. The restaurant itself seems to be an extension of the Gehry redesign of the gallery. It is as if everything in the restaurant, right down to the colourful iridescent acrylic tabletops is about art. It's sort of a Warhol meets Gehry meet Bauhaus. True to Gehry style though the restaurant is flooded with natural light and on a blustery winter's day it was a perfect oasis to partake in a lunch time repast.
To start I had the Risotto Coquettes on a bed of sauteed chanterelle mushrooms. The cakes were crispy, golden and when I cut into them the centres were filled with a Quebec cheese that just oozed out. I made sure to use a piece of Fred's Bread to sop up all the cheese and mushroom goodness.
My friend ordered a Chicken, Sage & Apple pot pie that came sided with what is some greens as well as some Apple Sage jelly. The pie was chockful of juicy pieces of white chicken meat. It had a great balance between the savory of the Sage and the tart sweetness of Cortland apples. The salad greens were simply just some greens lightly dressed.
Ok, again I'm predictable. I opted for the Steak Frites which is a Cumbrae skirt steak marinated then topped with a beetroot coleslaw and some creme fraiche horseradish. The frites where okay, not great, not as crispy as I like. The steak was cooked perfectly but I begin to work my way through the meal the beet coleslaw bled into the frites and the horseradish turning my plate into a huge pile of pinkness.
For the happy endings we order the Ice Cream Triptych which was three perfectly rolled balls of ice cream, one is Seville orange sorbet, one lemon cream and the middle a bittersweet chocolate. Sitting atop the ice cream was a pencil think biscuit that was absolutely stellar. It was almost like a piece of chocolate shortbread.
My gripe with Frank is the wine list. Its is strictly Ontario wines. I begrudge paying $13 a glass for a glass of local wine. As well there were no wine flight offerings.
Frank is not a quick or cheapie meal spot. Gehry's influence is evident in the plating, the actual plates, the place settings and even the napkin folding encasing the bread and finally in the price tag. I've eaten in both the other city's gallery restaurants (C5 and Jamie's at the Gardiner) and I will say that Frank would be my destination of preference. Hold on to your wallets though, this lunch was $100 (two glasses of wine) before tip.
Frank
7/3/2010
Had brunch today at Frank before enjoying the AGO. Gorgeous restaurant, great service but definitely a pricey experience.
My husband had the pancakes ($17) with strawberry rhubarb compote - said it was really delicious. I had scrambled eggs with asparagus and mille feuille ($19), also very good.
Tea selection was amazing, and served in wonderful dual-wall glass mugs on a fabulous little tray.
Nice environment if you want a fancy brunch, but not if you're looking for a greasy spoon breakfast. :-)
Frank
4/10/2010
Call me a plebe, but I simply can't imagine paying $15 (including modest tip) for a martini, especially one that's served at almost room temperature and with small, seeded olives.
So there.
Frank
12/22/2009
Yes, this restaurant is chic and expensive but what more do you want from an art gallery restaurant? The atmosphere is a little pretentious so save this place for a special occasion unless you have oodles of free-flowing cash.
They have an in-house sommelier who pairs the wine with your dinner. Their wine list is extensive and expensive. The portions are actually quite good for a more upscale restaurant, you won't go hungry! Try the Cornish hen!
With a bottle of wine, appetizers, main course, and tip for two persons was around $200.
Frank
9/14/2009
Enjoyed dinner at Frank the other night. It was as cold as a meat fridge inside, but I think this was a passing glitch. Service was top-drawer, but our server's voice topped off at 4 dB. Not sure if I can hold this against him. My lobster ravioli and veal sweetbreads was decent, but the portions are preciously small; one of the pratfalls of expensive dining I suppose.
Obligatory Title Pun: FRANKLY speaking, a tad on the expensive side.
Menu Readability: Stark, two-pager, wonderfully readable.
Need to mention: The atmosphere is actually quite cool. The work of Patterson Ewen and other artists adorn the walls.
What this place teaches me about myself: I don't hate everything with Frank Gehry's name on it.
Frank
11/8/2009
Went to Frank for Valentine's Day 2009. What more could a romantic evening ask for then fine art & fine food?
We chose the Valentine's Day 3-course meal + wine pairing and it was quite impressive. The poached pear, walnut, blue cheese and prosciutto appetizer will never be forgotten (I've even made it at home a few times afterwards) and the mains and chocolate decedent dessert made for an overall fantastic romantic evening.
For fine dining with a local twist at a great venue for pre/post-meal entertainment Frank is a great option.
Frank
8/4/2009
3 photos
Frank had been on a long list of "must try" places for at least a few months and finally my birthday rolls around and yayy brunch!
One thing to note before I start: dont expect to get every penny's worth here but do expect to be impressed by at least a few things including those lovely coffee stir spoons (see pictures)
We skipped past the mostly salad appetizers right to the mains. I had the Lobster scrambled eggs and my bf the Eggs benedict. I'm generally not a big fan of scrambled eggs but these were absolutely delectable. Soft and fluffy complete with just a tinge of added spice and chunks of lobster tail. Impressively large chunks of lobster tail. The presentation on the food was good with cute orange flowers topping your meals. The fries were only slightly greasy.
The brunch menu is extensive and yet not so much. There arent enough egg concoctions but a lamb burger and steak and eggs have graced it with their presence.
The coffee was good and strong, Georg Jensen cutlery everywhere on the table. The service was the only thing that deserves 3 stars but it wasnt surprising considering toronto service in general. Our waiter was not rude, but it was apparent we werent making his year either.
I wasnt flabbergasted with the bill..we got fries on the side, coffees, flat bottled water and 2 mains = $50
Definetely worth a try if only for the lobster scrambled eggs based on only my recommendation. Yelp!
Listed in: Farheen K. Brunches Toronto
Frank
8/30/2009
3 photos
I love meeting friends for Sunday brunch to eat and catch up. We went to Frank @ AGO today and had a great meal. To start, I shared an artichoke fritter ($13) with my friend. They looked like mini drumsticks and were served on a small salad with sundried cherry tomatoes. For my main, I had a plate of grilled veggies ($16) served on a bed of lentils. It looked and tasted amazing. We were too full for dessert but did enjoy a pot of their herbal tea ($4).
The servers were fantastic. From the moment you walk in, you can tell everyone from the hostess to the servers take their job seriously. They were able to answer our questions and make great suggestions. When I ordered a mint tea, the waitress suggested that she brings the tea list so I can maybe try something new, and I did! Also worth mentioning are the beautiful serving wares they use (which are all sold at the AGO Giftshop).
Listed in: Brunch Brunch Brunch
Frank
11/8/2009
This is the kind of slick-looking restaurant where you're paying more for the atmosphere than for the food itself.
Don't get me wrong. I was happy to try this place out. My friend suggested it because she gets 10% off as an AGO member, which was a nice bonus.
Sunday brunch was immediately busy from the moment it opened at 11 a.m. My butternut squash and cheddar cheese soufflé was quite nice, but sat on a tiny pile of wilted greens with six apple slices; overall, it paled in comparison with my friend's hearty chicken pot pie for the same price.
However, I was impressed with the attentive service - my water glass never reached below the halfway mark (and I drink A LOT of water.)
And I thoroughly enjoyed sitting in Frank. The decor is warm but contemporary with bright potlights and fun frosted glass tabletops in primary colours. A nice fit for the reopened AGO. Deceivingly comfortable leather chairs!
$40 for brunch for two people, lounging in the lap of luxury.
Frank
5/23/2009
Wow! This time around, I'm the one giving credit to the service while other have marked it poorly! Maybe they read the reviews and have since improved service? Hmmmm.
Frank was my birthday dinner. I thought, why the heck not? I want to go bougie tonight. We ordered a couple of servings of the perogies and some frites to start. Both were good. But now, I'm going to RAVE about the melt-in-your-mouth perogies. Oh. My. Goodness. "Truffled potato and porcini mushroom perogies with buttered bread crumbs truffled sour cream sauce and fresh chive" and they WERE as good as the description makes them sound. I swear I could've eaten 3 plates, but at $13 a plate for 4 (2 of each), that would've been a little TOO indulgent. So...my tactic was to cut them up in small pieces and...savour.
For my main, I got the open faced ravioli with braised beef short ribs and mushrooms. This thing is literally a piece of ravioli skin, topped with chunks of short ribs, then maybe another piece of ravioli skin on top of that and short ribs. Now going to a place like this, you wouldn't expect the plates to be very big. Well, there was a meat-bonanza on my plate. I normally can tuck away a lot, but I was quite stuffed and thought the portion quite generous. The meat was tender and moist. My other companions got this as well, but my sister got the gnocchi which was delish!
Dessert was a beautifully presented trio of rhubarb ice cream, pastry and something else (I forget), but all were good! We also had a super rich, heart attack inducing chocolate pudding, that the server so graciously insisted we try (comped). It was really nice but probably would've tasted amazing with a large glass of milk. I should've asked for a glass of milk. At Frank. 3 people could probably share this, from the sheer richness of it.
I really enjoyed my experience at Frank, service was lovely, and the food was delicious. I think it's worth it for a special occasion. If anything, get the perogies.
Frank
4/12/2009
I have been to frank once for brunch, and did a full course brunch.
Pastry basket, two appetizers and two main dishes ( I was with a friend).
Everything (minus the typo on the Menu, which oddly hadn't been fixed, considering the place has been open several months...) was pretty delicious, except for my main dish.. the pancakes were not what i'd say were.. delicious.
The hostess was nice (granted I knew her from university) and our server treated us well. He was there when we needed him.
The goats butter with the pastries is amazing!
In the end, my friend had a great breakfast, and mine was great until the main dish.
All in all for two people to brunch it cost us around $80, without alcohol.
To recap:
Good food (if you choose better than me)
Expensive (either for the rich, or a once in a while)
Great start if you plan to go to the AGO after
Frank
3/7/2009
I've been to Frank, the restaurant inside the AGO, twice. The first time was quite good. The food was tasty and well presented, and the service was excellent. The second, it was so horrid I can't imagine ever going back. So this is the sort of review that's based solely on a single bad experience, and you should take that as a word of warning. I am a member at the AGO, so I really wanted to like this place.
My wife, cousin, and I were seated upstairs in the restaurant by the hostess. The restaurant was reasonably busy, but not overly so. The hostess is the only person that spoke to us that night. We looked over the menus at waited. And we waited some more. And then the hostess seated a fellow by himself at the table next to us. And then we watched a waitress bring him some water. And another came by, but he informed her that he was already being served. And we waited a little bit more. And then we watched two waitresses quite obviously chat about us from across the room. And then we got up and left. And no one asked us what was up on the way out either.
Fuck Frank. I can't recall the last time I've been treated like that in Toronto. And I can't for the life of me imagine why. The whole experience has left a bad taste in my mouth.
Frank
3/16/2009
I recently had brunch a Frank. The food was pretty good, but not amazing. The presentation was excellent, but the service was crap.
The food, and even water took forever; the servers weren't friendly at all, and made no effort to make us feel welcome or cared for. Things were so bad that we canceled our desert order and asked for the bill because things took so long. Why does it take 15 minutes for a plate of cookies??
