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The Red Tomato
Categories: Restaurants Asian Fusion Restaurants Italian Asian Fusion, Italian [Edit]
321 King St WToronto, ON M5V 1J5
Neighbourhoods: Entertainment District, Downtown Core
(416) 971-6626
- Price Range:
-
$$$
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- Yes
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- Yes
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Takes Reservations:
- Yes
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- Yes
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Alcohol:
- Full Bar
- Noise Level:
- Loud
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- No
19 reviews for The Red Tomato
19 reviews in English
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Review from Katie L.
Ajax, ON
11/18/2011
The location is bizarre. I felt a little embarrassed when I walked in with my boyfriend and was told we were eating in the basement.
The server was fun and friendly.
The décor is atrocious. Anyone who's been knows that I'm referring to the God awful murals. I did not feel like I was eating somewhere classy by any means, but that didn't mean the food would be bad.
My boyfriend had spaghettini and meatballs. The meatballs were as big as my fists, but the lighting made it impossible to tell if they were really cooked when he broke one up because there's this red glow to all the lights. He didn't get sick, so I guess it was good.
I found it hard to order since everything was basically made of the same ingredients and prepared in an unusual way.
I definitely wasn't impressed when the waiter informed me that because I have an allergy to mushrooms I have to order something without mushrooms because everything is pre-prepared.
They do have some really unique beers and that was a pleasant surprise.
All in all, I'd say this is a place you go for drinks and not to eat. -
Review from Heather B.
Scarborough, ON
1/8/2012 1 Check-in Here
REALLY didn't enjoy my meal here last night.
I walked into the restaurant and saw all the nice candle lit tables with fresh white tablecloths and great atmosphere. THEN the waiter told me to decend down the stairs to where Red Tomato really was. I was then met with red booths, tables and cheaper tealights - Bummer.
I have a thing about restaurants who present themselves well with nice table settings - usually means you get a better meal and they take pride with their appearance.
Anyways .. Red Tomato also had Tv Screens in different areas. I hate restaurants that have that. You should be there for dinner with your company to engage in conversation - not watch the Leafs Hockey game score.
I had the 2 course meal with a drink for $26.99
I had the 6-hour oven roasted beef brisket with grilled mushroom risotto.
GROSS..
The sauce that drenched my meat was WAYYYYYY TOO SALTY. Omg it just took away from the whole meal. Then I digged into my risotto and it was undercooked.
The only thing I enjoyed was my glass of wine.
The server just basically came to take our order and never checked back in with us and didn't have much of a personality for that matter.
I wouldn't come back here - There are other restaurants that look promising and a few which I've been to. Most of the restaurants on that stretch have prix-fixe menu. -
Review from Taz M.
East York, ON
1/23/2012
The only thing worthwhile about the Red Tomato restaurant is their waitress who had full blossom riped tomatoes...and a decent looking face...
Food was not good...Got crab cakes which were okay...Chicken satay were dry and not even warm...Lobster crab soup is alright...Stuffed calamari with risotto is different, but this one tasted rubbery... The mussels with leek sauce is interesting, but mussels were not tasting fresh...The ginger ale I ordered was a very small glass...All this for $65! Not a good place to dine overall... -
Review from Grace C.
9/8/2011 1 photo
Yes, their location is weird. Fred's Not Here is the restaurant next door and to get to the Red Tomato, you go downstairs to this basement, albeit snazzy basement area. While looking for a place to eat before the baseball game, we were drawn in by their 2-course dinner + drink special for $25. I'm not a big drinker and I didn't think I would have room for an appetizer or dessert, so I opted for the flat iron steak with rosemary thyme garlic flavored with baked gorgonzola polenta. The steak was tender though they did not cook it medium rare. The gorgonzola polenta was really good. Since it was a Tuesday night, it wasn't really busy. The desserts are petite sized so don't worry about not having room for it!
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Review from Michelle S.
7/25/2010 2 photos
Yeah!! And yeah for the Yelp app or I would have never found you in my tourist wanderings through downtown Toronto. I wanted a bar that was cozy, dimly lit, and cool for the single lady just lookin for some vino and food. Loved IT!
First, hellooo is this the cutest, hippest, most relaxing bar ever? ! "Yes", I'm going to have to go ahead and answer my own question. Yeah! Second, the bartenders were beyond nice and so hip! I felt like I was in a neighborhood bar back home. Third, food? Ummm yum! And they may a very special vegetarian pasta dish for lil' ol me! Awww. Love u Red Tomato! I told all the other people at the convention about you! If I'm ever in Toronto again, guess were I'm hangin? I'm a lil' "j" of all that Toronto has to offer. Can u open a locale in CHI town?? -
Review from Sergey S.
2/13/2011
Keyword for the this place is "weird".
You see a big sign, enter the door, see the tables ready... and then a guy on the reception says that Red Tomato is downstairs, so instead of entering the restaurant you are descending to the basement. Weird.
Than you get seated and despite the huge size of the room, it looks dark and claustrophobic. Yet, you constantly have a feeling like you sit in the middle of a busy street - people passing by all the time. Hmm, weird!
You look at the menu, and there is nothing to recognize - all fancy names and strange combinations. Mine looked like a tiny piece of semi-cold fried meat, slapped in a pond of soy sauce, with a pile of salad leaves casually dropped as a side. Uneatable piece of straw carefully placed across that strange place completed the picture. Oh, just weird...
En fin. If you enjoy the dark and empty spaces, are looking for some artsy pile of ingredients looking way better on the chef' contest photo than in your stomach, and do not care to stay hungry after paying a hefty bill - Red Tomato may be your choice. Otherwise, I see no reason to be there. -
Review from Brian S.
8/30/2009 3 photos
A horseshoe bar, a curving staircase and outdoor seating offering a great view to everyone. The open kitchen sets the tone for a lively meal, a place where friends can meet and talk away into the night.
The famous Coconut Shrimp, Calypso Chicken Pasta, tasty Samosas, Pad Thai noodles, Nachos with Chicken Confit and 5-spiced Buddha Wings are quite a treat. Frequented by business types, club hoppers and theater goers it is very popular in Toronto. -
Review from Aaron S.
2/1/2011
The staff was very friendly and helpful. The food was something different. My group ordered several appetizers and they were less than satisfying. The Korean BBQ short ribs stick out in my mind. They were dry and incredibly flavor less. This is all unfortunate as this is a nice restaurant with a good location.
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Review from Maureen P.
Toronto, ON
2/21/2009
This is mine and my partner-in-crime's happy place.
Soup. Happy hour. Company. Happy!
Happy hour is from Monday to Friday from 3-6pm. (They have happy hour at other times as well, but can't recall exact dates & times.) Appies and sharing plates plus other items on their menu are available for a cheaper price point.
The soup is why we come here.
Lobster and crab bisque with a phyllo pastry baked over the bowl. Crack the pastry with your spoon and let it gracefully drift into the soup. Once your first spoonful of bisque and phyllo pastry combo waltzes in your mouth is when you'll truly understand what happiness really means. Now that's what I'm talkin' about babe!
The other items we ordered were non-memorable. At the Red Tomato, the soup is my taste buds' one and only.
For next time, I'm seriously contemplating ordering the soup as a starter and then ordering a second soup as my meal. -
Review from Steve P.
10/7/2009
It was a Thursday night and my fiancee' and I were exploring King St. There are within any half mile range more places I can count to eat at around here. I saw the sign hanging outside for this establishment and immediately had a memory of my mother raving about this spot, since we are a family of foodies, I decided this would be a good bet.
Upon walking down the steps into the main room we noticed it was absolutely jammed packed, it was seriously like a sardine can there were so many people here. The hostess asked if it was just the two of us and started to write our names and then out of the corner of her eyes spotted a table opening up so she gave us that one. I kinda felt bad for the 12 other people that were waiting along the rails behind us but hey, I'm not the one seating people. Moving along..
Our server literally had to be a contortionist to reach us due to the crowd, but reaching us she was friendly and had all the specials both meals and soups ready to go at a moments notice. We both decided on Pasta dishes that at the moment escape my memory. I'm sure that she had a simple linguine dish whereas I chose something a little more exotic with chicken and a garlic sauce. Hers was very tasty and came out promptly. Mine took an an extra 5 minutes and when I got it the pieces of chicken were cold. Also, the pasta was very spicy. It didn't say that it was spicy in the description however when I got it I could only handle a few bites before calling it quits. The server took notice and they did give a slight discount on the bill so I will give them points for that. We'll give it a shot again. -
Review from Ryan L.
6/22/2010
Went in for a quick dinner before a movie at ScotiaBank Theatres. While other restaurants along this stretch of King West practically grab you off the street and try to get you seated in their joint, we had trouble convincing the staff here that we wanted a table. When we asked for one we received an abrupt response asking us which restaurant we wanted to dine in (they have two restaurants in one).
Our server was polite. The food delivery to the table was odd, though. We each had ordered two appies as our meal and made it clear to the server that that was how we would be dining. Each dish was brought separately with a five minute or so delay in between each. It worked, but was a bit odd.
Each dish was delicious. The shrimp dim sum were great, though the "wow-wow" chili sauce could have had more kick. The calamari were fried perfectly ... very tender. The baked scallop was terrific as were the coconut shrimp. Portions were a bit on the smallish side, even for appetizers. -
Review from Mariko M.
3/9/2010
I was here last Wednesday for a casual meet up with a friend visiting Toronto. We did not have a reservation and were able to be seated in the lower level without waiting too long.
Environment = Chic, cute, aesthetically pleasing
Food = Mediocre; their menu is attractive and there is a variety to choose from.
Drinks = Great! Like the menu, there is a variety of cocktails to choose from.
Service = Excellent! Staff were friendly, professional and pleasant. -
Review from Shell P.
11/30/2009
Cute place! Somewhat unusual mix of mostly Italian food, with a dash of Asian menu items thrown in for good measure.
I stuck to the Italian fare, though was nearly tempted by Dim Sum.
Interesting and tasty take on the Caprese Salad (not your usual/boring sliced mozz/sliced tomato/basil leaf concoction). My meal was satisfying and hearty. -
Review from Dan F.
Toronto, ON
2/19/2011
We went for a light dinner and had the lobster bisque, crab cake, and coconut shrimp. The bisque lacked either lobster or sherry flavour, the crab cake was lukewarm and insanely salty, and the coconut shrimp were greasy and bland. With a drink each the meal cost more than $65 and left us both unsatisfied. A very disappointing performance for a Toronto classic. One star for good service.
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Review from Lyndsay G.
Toronto, ON
4/30/2011
I had lunch at Red Tomato with some friends last week and it was terrible! I had the Red Tomato Ceasar salad and I couldn't finish it because they used WAY too much garlic! I LOVE garlic but this was disgusting! It was saturated in garlic and the taste overpowered the salad. I had the worst garlic breath for the rest of the day and it even overpowered my gum. I had to eat a whole pack just to make it through the day! Also, the buffalo wing salad doesn't tell you on the menu that its super spicy. My friend had it and she loves spicy food and couldn't handle it. The service was good and they were good about the whole thing but the lunch was awful! They also charged $3.50 for a can of pop! Crazy! I won't be going there for lunch ever again...maybe not even dinner. This used to be one of my favourite places that I used to recommend to people...not anymore!
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Review from Alexandra K.
3/10/2010
I had an absolutely delicious dinner here after a stressful check-in at my hotel. The ravioli (vegetarian) was delicious, so well cooked with delicious vegetables as the garnish. For dessert my friends and I enjoyed some absolutely delightful cocktails. I had a Long Beach Iced Tea. It was strong, but not too strong, with some serious sweet flavor. The service was super friendly and quick. When I asked what they recommended for vegetarians, the waitress was very knowledgeable and helpful.
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Review from Lucy W.
3/16/2009
Very unassuming- I stumbled upon this restaurant near the theatre district, advertising their prix fixe menu and it was wonderful! I had the Tom Yum wonton soup and Duck gnocchi- large portions, great value! Friendly and efficient staff, cool red modern decor in this asian fusion restaurant.
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Review from Lindsey S.
Toronto, ON
5/6/2010
decided to go here for dinner with a friend after browsing the King strip and its menu appealed to us more then other. we went with the fixed price menu which was a really great deal (i think it was $25 for wine, main and dessert) . i had the brisket which was incredible.
great atmosphere, service and lovely meal!
recommended! -
Review from Betty C.
North York, ON
12/20/2009
I recommend this place when you're in the theatre district especially if you're in a group. What I really like is their very diverse menu. I've tried a range of dishes already (asian, north american, pasta, etc.) and have always found it enjoyable. A solid A-OK.
