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Vena's Restaurant
Category: Restaurants Caribbean Caribbean [Edit]
1263 Bloor St WToronto, ON M6H 1N7
Neighbourhoods: Brockton Village, Bloordale Village, Wallace Emerson
(416) 532-3665
- Hours:
Mon-Sun 10 am - 7:30 pm
- Good for Kids:
- No
- Accepts Credit Cards:
- No
- Parking:
- Street
- Attire:
- Casual
- Good for Groups:
- No
- Price Range:
-
$
- Takes Reservations:
- No
- Delivery:
- No
- Take Away:
- Yes
- Waiter Service:
- No
- Outdoor Seating:
- No
- Wi-Fi:
- No
- Good For:
- Lunch, Dinner
- Alcohol:
- No
- Noise Level:
- Quiet
- Has TV:
- Yes
- Caters:
- No
- Wheelchair Accessible:
- Yes
12 reviews for Vena's Restaurant
12 reviews in English
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Review from Val A.
Wallace Emerson, Toronto, ON
1/14/2012 1 Check-in Here
Fantastic Roti, I usually order the goat with potato and okra and have never been disappointed.
Suggest you plan for takeout as the interior isn't easy on the eyes. Also remember its cash only, but with every item at $9 or under this shouldn't be a deal breaker. -
Review from Patrick M.
Toronto, ON
5/27/2011
I wanted to love Vena's or, at the very least, like it... but after having their goat roti this afternoon, I've got to say I'm unimpressed.
The dough was very nice, that much is true -- excellent roti. The filling, however, was lacking. Large chunks of bland potato, little sauce, and only a few big hunks of meat. Considering it's around the same price as Mother India/Gandhi Cuisine, I was surprised to find it contained maaaaaaaybe 1/4 the meat. Taken together, it was a bland, dryish meal of largely dough and potato. Meh.
It was accompanied by a little plastic cup of watery sauce that smelled of potent white vinegar and nothing else. I pitched it -- the smell was very off putting. Not sure what it was supposed to be.
Finally, about fifteen minutes post-roti, my stomach began to hurt. Still hurts, and I'm very bloated. T.M.I? Maybe, but I'm sure inquiring Yelpers want to know when food doesn't sit well.
If it weren't for this last bit I'd have given it 2 stars, with the intention of going back another time (it was the gentleman working, and I hear his wife makes the superior roti)... due to the stomach ache, however, I'm heaping on but a single, lonely, bloated star, and likely will not return.
Sorry, Vena's :( -
Review from Brenn S.
5/3/2011 1 Check-in Here
Exactly what I expected. Average, greasy West Indian Roti.
Oh sweet Gandhis / Mother India, I'm sorry, but I had to try Vena's just once! You need not worry, I'll never do it again. Promise. -
Review from susan c.
2/27/2010
Flip off, Mother India[1]. Peace out, Gandhi[2]. I got a new favorite roti dive in town and she's sizzling like a pepperpot. Vena's serves up outrageously delicious West-Indian-style roti, and I'm hooked. Here's why:
- The roti (flatbread) itself is tastier; the dough seems to have been worked over and over onto itself so that it's layered and springy; flavorful and tender to the bite but still delightfully resistant like a flirty little bread-tease.
- The fillings are lighter, flavored by coconut milk instead of the belly-bombing ingredients like cream and butter at the East-Indian counterparts
- I can customize the fillings at Vena's
- I can get goat
- I can add butternut squash
- The combination of spicy goat curry and sweet butternut squash is the kind of mind-blowing revelation that makes me kick myself for not having discovered it sooner. I am now covered in bruises.
- My roti was as big as a cinderblock and only cost $8
- Vena's does not charge tax
- I can get homemade hot sauce FREE OF CHARGE
You hear that, Gandhi? Vena's is tastier, cheaper, and throws in little freebies -- AND open on weekends -- so you can go suck it. I've jumped ship and landed off the Caribbean.
==============================================
[1] See review: http://www.yelp.ca/biz...
[2] See review: http://www.yelp.ca/biz... -
Review from Toronto L.
Toronto, ON
7/9/2011
the Toronto Lover system:
5 stars = Must visit!
4 stars = Really good. I take my friends here.
3 stars = Somewhat worth it... if you have nowhere better to go.
2 stars = Below average. Attend only when necessary.
1 star = Do not visit!
I love roti. I've tried it all over this city, from Islington/Lakeshore to Queen/Bathurst to Yonge/Steeles... and in many other cities too. Vena's makes the best roti in Toronto. I've never seen anyone eat inside, and you wouldn't want to either, unless you're hankering for a vintage game of competitive Pacman while you eat your lunch.
With a decent dining area, Vena's would be a 5. The prices are fantastic (chicken roti for $7, goat on rice special for $6) and the tastes are unbelievable. You will get a little cup with hot sauce when you order the roti: use with caution. But, make sure you use, because it's so good.
4 stars -
Review from Connie T.
Toronto, ON
Of all the roti joints in all the towns in all the world, I had to walk into this one.
Vena, I don't know what magic you fold into your roti skin and juicy curries, but you've made this gal completely smitten. You take "hole in the wall" and push it to the extreme, with your grease-laden menu board and tired man behind the counter, but I think that makes you even more tasty, in a way... more hard to get. I like it. So much so that you may be the only reason I'd extend my walking boundary past Bloor and Dovercourt. You hear that? I walked over five kilometres just to reach you today. FIVE KILOMETRES!
And you didn't disappoint: your roti selections, with the chicken and okra, curried shrimp, huge chunks of tender butternut squash, and your thick and way-better-roti-skin-than-Gandhi, you make me love you.
I know the key to the city isn't mine to give, but if it were, you would be the first recipient on my list. But you already have my heart, and isn't that enough?
Come on Vena, let's make babies together.Listed in: Toronto: Meals under $10! (And…, Hunt for good roti
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Review from Christine K.
Toronto, ON
2/9/2009
Ok - I know it's voted #1 by Now Magazine....must be when the wife is cooking!
Shame on me but when it's the husband - your order usually turns out wrong with whole potatoes instead of bite size...and the sauce is watery....
I know she needs a day off or two but can I get her schedule????? -
Review from Kat F.
2/9/2009
Vena's is located in the WORST neighbourhood but it's worth the trek to get out at Lansdowne station to check it out. I usually order a spicy squash and potato roti, sometimes adding cauliflower into the mix. This isn't your typical 'saucy' roti - it does have an amazing texture and the portion is MASSIVE (there's no way you can finish it in one sitting).
It's about a 10 minute wait for the roti as they make it from scratch, and even the most expensive item on the menu is under $10.Listed in: Best Roti In Toronto
-
Review from Lauren M.
5/20/2010 1 photo
Stopped here today on my way back from a rollerblading trip to High Park.
I hate to say it, but, I would have NEVER stopped here had I not read the other Yelp reviews. The place is pure ghetto inside. Combined with the sketchy neighbourhood means it's not exactly the most inviting venue.
There are two 2-seater tables inside, one of which is actually an 80s arcade game. So take out it is.
I tried a veggie roti with butternut squash, chickpeas and eggplant. It was HUGE, pretty tasty and only $7 all in. The roti bread was quite good. I didn't like that the butternut squash was essentially two GIANT pieces of squash rather than cut up into smaller squares, but other than that, great roti.
Mine didn't even take 10 mins, I probably only waited 3-4 mins.
Overall, very good, but I'm not quite convinced that it's the best roti in Toronto!
PS - Cash only -
Review from Roy A.
Toronto, ON
7/2/2009
Great Roti. Great Value. Unpretentious. I love the mix veg roti.
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Review from Michelle P.
Toronto, ON
2/12/2011
This is one of those places that hasn't dropped off my food radar since I first tried it many years ago. I love the vegetarian combo, but they're all very good, depending on your preference for meat. Sadly, I have to drop a star for the unloved dining area; there's nothing charming about dirty walls, and environmentally unfriendly practices (styrofoam and plastic cutlery for eating in, no recycle for cans). Make that 2 stars dropped. C'mon Vena's... I want you to do better!
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Review from Jamie G.
Toronto, ON
10/29/2010
Don't get me wrong- delish, cheep and fast...been one of my favorites for years. Sadly tonight I was 1/2 way done and found a meal worm/maggot type thing in it!!! Never again! I could get past the stores terrible ghetto appearance before, but it's ruined! RUINED!
