The Wilcox Gastropub

Finally had the opportunity to stop in for dinner last night before the Lenten season starts, so I felt the need to treat myself to something special. I had browsed the menu before and noticed an 18oz Ribeye steak. Steak is a touchy thing for me mainly because of past experiences at similar types of establishments…
First off, the ambiance and the building itself are quite lovely. Dim lighting in the bar area, a dining room that is well lit and upper area seating. No matter where you end up, you will feel relaxed and find a great time whether with a friend, date, group or solo.
The staff and service were excellent. Very friendly. Can’t ask for much else.
The bartender made a flawless (to my expectations) Jack and Coke, it was the perfect temperature and was smooth.
The food? I gotta say, that Ribeye was unbelievably great! I ordered it medium temp, but it was a bit under, but let me just say this, medium might have actually been a mistake because the damn thing was so juicy, tender and satisfying. When you order a steak that is priced at $ 39, you’re right to have high expectations and those were certainly exceeded.
This is one place where I can honestly say that I want to try everything on the menu.
Thank the Lord that Wilcox Gastropub is walking distance.

Decent place! Love the atmosphere. Great craft beer, good food, and affordable.
Love the steak and frites, poutine, and fish tacos. Definitely a go-​to when in the area.

I think I found my favorite pub in Mississauga. They have a great beer selection which I haven’t found much of in the Toronto area. In the states the craft beer craze is every where but not so much in Canada, at least this part of it. However the exception to that is the Wilcox, they had a couple of really good IPAs.
I was by myself so I sat at the bar. I really like the vibe of this place. Turns out it’s originally a house from back in the 1800s.
Food is good, very interesting menu. I went conservative and did a fish & chip which was very good. Bar tender was great as well.
I’m definitely going back next time I’m in town.

I’ve been here for oyster night and sadly they were out one night! So I recommend go early as possible!
I’ve tried a couple of dishes from their menu and food is average. Lobster poutine and burger is recommended, charcuterie board is not. Their board was not proportionate to the food served and therefore seemed empty.
If anything, I’ll definitely go back for oysters and beer.

This place is the bomb! Didn’t know such a happening place existed in Sauga! Love the ambiance, décor, service, menu, there really isn’t anything not to love about this place! Would definitely be back here. In fact, this would be a perfect spot to celebrate a friend’s birthday!
Service — ⁵⁄₅
Taste — ⁴⁄₅
Portion — ⁵⁄₅
Atmosphere — ⁶⁄₅
Price — ⁵⁄₅
Service — Excellent waitress who was attentive to our needs. She was very patient with our indecisiveness in our orders.
Taste — we ordered a dozen oysters, two glasses of white wine, the fish tacos and lobster poutine. Fish tacos was so moist it’s a must here! Lobster poutine sounded very novel but there’s actually not a lot of lobster taste to it so was disappointed by that.
Portion — regular sized portions. Nothing out of the ordinary.
Atmosphere — love their music here. They were playing top 40s. Only thing missing was a dance floor lol.
Price — their dollar oysters and happy hour specials are such a hit. Come here before 7 and they have beer on tap as well wine for $ 5! If I lived in Sauga I would totally be a regular here.

The Wilcox is sleek and very modern but still somewhat casual. I do enjoy my occasion dingy pub (before reno: Scruffy’s. Classification: dingy pub) but the Wilcox is beautiful. It’s now a place where you can take a first date or have a date night with your current beau since it has very romantic lighting in some areas. When my friend and I arrived there to meet a couple of friends the hostess was very friendly in the way she greeted us and showed us our seat.
The atmosphere had a great vibe. The music that was bumping was current and had a few Hip-Hop/R&B oldies mixed in there. I went on a Thursday and a bar rail drink (standard liquor and pop/​juice) was $ 4.50. I got a whiskey-​ginger. I don’t know how much it would be normally.
I hadn’t planned on getting food but looking at the menu options it was hard to say no so I didn’t! I got the Scotch Egg ($ 10) while my friends got the Ceviche Mixto ($ 15), the Wilcox burger ($ 17), and the Steak and Frites ($ 19).
The Scotch Egg was so tasty and well seasoned. It was served with a spicy tomato jam which really complimented the scotch egg. It was super filling so I only finished ¾ of it.
I was also fortunate enough to try some of my friends’ dishes. The Ceviche Mixto had tiger shrimp, octopus, and sole with this delicious sauce that if the appetizer had been mine I would have been tempted to lick my plate. But sadly it was not.
My friend substituted the frites of his Steak and Frites for a salad that had pomegranate, orange, mint, maple candied almonds, and a mild pomegranate vinaigrette. It looked amazing! I only was able to try his steak that was sliced up and drizzled with a chimichurri sauce. The flavour combination was great!
What really made the night amazing was our waitress Rebecca. She was very friendly and knowledgeable about the menu items and drinks. She came by our table often enough to grab empty dishes and fill our waters but not too much where we were annoyed by it. There was not a single empty plate that stayed at our table for longer than 2 minutes.
I wish I had all the monies to come here all the time but unfortunately as a student I do not. I will however visit again. I recommend this place to everyone!

I lived in Mississauga all my life but I have yet to find a place that I really enjoyed. I was hoping Wilcox would be that place!
I cannot complain about $ 1 Oysters, which they have on Tuesday and Wednesday. I enjoyed the Oysters!
As for the food, it was recommended to get the Fish Tacos! So I got that along with the nachos and lobster poutine.
NACHOS: They were a let down. We all felt that they were out too long. The cheese was cold on the nachos. We did not enjoy this dish. If they came out fresh, the dish would have been better
FISH TACOS: This came with three tacos. I was a bit disappointed, I liked the shell that they used but it was not memorable. It was a standard fish taco. I was not impressed.
LOBSTER POUTINE: I feel that you cannot go wrong with lobster. I enjoyed this dish. The béarnaise sauce complimented the lobster and the fries. I wish I gotten two of these rather than the nachos!
Wilcox was alright. A step up from the restaurants in Mississauga. I would probably be back to satisfy my oyster cravings but only on Tuesday or Wednesday :)

So this place just went from a 4 to 5 in my books.
This time I forgot to make reservations. Wait for lounge seating was 20 mins but the people who arrived after me had a 45 min to 1 hour wait for regular seats. The place was packed on a Wednesday night at 6:30 pm. Make reservations before you go!
After we were seated, a corner lounge seat opened up. And even though there were people in line, a request to move was happily obliged!
We were seated right at 7 pm (end of happy hour) but the waitresses still let us order a drink off the happy hour menu!
Wednesday is $ 1 oysters (as is Tuesday). We ordered a dozen and they were very fresh! I’m definitely coming back for more soon.
For the appetizer, we shared a scotch egg. Let me tell you that I highly regretted sharing it! Soo sooo soooo good! It’s one of those appetizers that opens up your palate and makes you hungry for the main, as opposed to making you full.
For the main, I got the pan roasted quail. This was my first time having quail. I didn’t think I’d enjoy it, but it was surprisingly good! The braised red cabbage with bacon was delicious!
Lastly, I finished off the meal with baked alaska. It’s a old fashioned dessert and that was just fine by me. It was homemade vanilla ice cream surrounded by a thin layer of cake, covered with meringue/​whipped creamy goodness! It was just heavenly!
I had a 15% off email (join the VIP list on their site) all the way from October which I hadn’t been able to use so far. But since it didn’t have an expiry date I asked the waitress if it was still applicable. She had to ask the manager but came back with the bill adjusted having made an exception, even though it was an old promotion! Can we say they really care about making customers happy?
The waitress was super friendly, but not in a fake way! All the food came out fast! Water was always topped up! Wine selection was great! Every whim was catered to!
I thought this place couldn’t get any better. I was clearly wrong!!!
Sooo … GO! GO NOW!

Third visit here now, this time I brought coworkers and we went for lunch.
Nachos: Great again — coworkers said chicken on side was really good.
Lobster Grilled Cheese Sandwich: ⁴⁄₅ of us ordered this! We unanimously agreed that it was very tasty BUT we expected a larger size — more cheese and bigger slices of bread.
Everyone really liked the fries, though they were a bit too salty for me.
One coworker asked for gravy on the side for her fries — 3 of them tried it and they all hated it (one said it tasted like fennel seeds, another that it tasted like burger grease…)
Wilcox Burger: Coworker ordered and was happy with it — said the beef was really juicy.
Looking forward to trying their fish tacos soon!

They really need to print/​laminate new copies of their menus each week! Plus the menu offerings have been the same since they opened and now all of those same menus are covered in greasy fingerprints. I’ve been here at least a dozen times since my friend lives in the adjacent condo building. The service used to be really good, now its hit or miss. Hosts used to smile and be very welcoming, now its basically «here’s your seat and greasy disgusting menu» — not cool. The place is aesthetically pleasing, was great in the summer since they have a patio and cool lounge area with screens to watch the game, good tunes, younger vibe, etc — but the menu needs a face-​lift and the service levels have dropped.
This summer I witnessed a 4 on 4 fist fight between a bunch of idiots on the patio arguing over some nonsense. What did the servers do? Nothing. What did management do? Nothing. Sorry, we got an apology about 20 mins after other restaurant patrons broke the fight up. No comps from management for the headache, just a really late apology and an offer to seat us inside. I’m just thankful no one was shot or stabbed that night, what a disaster.
I was really stoked when this place opened (I originally gave it 5 stars), so let me say this — I’ve been back to Jack Astor’s and other generic restaurants/​lounges since this place opened and my friend lives NEXTDOOR to this building. Management, step up your game or you’ll end up like the other four restaurants that failed to stay afloat at this location in the last decade.
I got your number Wilcox, and right now its a ³⁄₅.

One best places to meet up with some friends for some good eats. The décor is a take on an upscale modern pub. An intimate setting for you and your guests to enjoy a nice night out without a trip to Toronto.
They have a good selection on tap with a good range from local breweries, their cocktail list isn’t as extensive as I would have hoped but for Mississauga it’s not too bad.
Now the most important part the food. The food descriptions on the menu sound more impressive than it actually taste. I had the California burger, the bun and the burger were perfectly cooked however the toppings were under par. The burger didn’t taste fresh and was priced to be more expensive than i would have expected.
If you’re looking for a good place to hang out for some good drink deals with some friends without going to Toronto this is the place to be. But if you’re looking to a place for a good meal, I’d head down to Port Credit for some good eats.

This is my second time at Wilcox and it didn’t disappoint. The waiter was attentive, helpful and had a sense of humour which was nice. It was my birthday lunch with my great friends and I couldn’t be happier. We were seated near the entrance which separates the other sitting area, so it felt we had the entire space!
Happy: 5 friends all order their lunch burger with fries or salad. They were all happy and gulped it down. The pomegranate salad was bigger than I thought for a side, so I would like to try that out next time. The fish tacos was colourful and appetizing. I had the pan roasted quail which was nicely presented. There were more red cabbage portion than the roasted potato wedges which I would have like a few more pieces.
To end of the meal, I shared the Alaskan dessert (see photo below) and how the waiter described it, one must wonder and try it out! And for only $ 6, it’s truly affordable and one of the cheapest items on their menu!!! Each layer revealed a new surprise as you have to finish half of it to get to the small portion of the vanilla ice cream which is really tucked inside. A new surprise and treat for me!
Not happy: Believe it or not, nothing that I can think of. The food came in at a reasonable time. The service was great. He didn’t forget anything that we asked for (e.g. napkins, water, ketchup).
Verdict: You will walk out there happy and pleased that you had some amazing food. I would definitely go back for another special occasion. Or just because I want to try other dishes from their menu! Honestly, you have to try it!

Came here on Wednesday with a friend after working in the area for the day. There was a Unilocal event at this place a few months back but I missed it but heard many positive feedback from my Unilocalers, so on a day where Jays is playing Game 5 in the ALDS, my friend and I decided to come here for a visit.
Arrived at 6pm and it was already pretty packed because of the Jays, but because they have two floors, we were seated on the second floor which was nicely decorated! Our server was super nice and friendly, always a big smile on her face to make the experience that much better and as a bonus, asked if i wanted to be seated closer to the TV on the first floor to follow the game!
Wednesday was a buck a chuck, but my friend is not a big fan of oysters, so we didn’t order any. For two people, we ordered the Lobster Poutine to start, I ordered the Chicken Fettuccine and my friend ordered the Chicken Pot Pie.
Lobster Poutine was GOOD, very good fries, good gravy and cheese, a few lobster meat and it was also very good! The Fettuccine was alright, nothing really special but not bad when it comes to the texture of the pasta and the sauce, but chicken was a little rough. Chicken Pot Pie, the pie dough wasn’t puff enough when it arrived, but it was a large portion and was quite delicious.
I will for sure come back again another time if I am in the Mississauga area!

Came here late on a Saturday, and got seated near the DJ booth on upper level. Music was a bit loud, but still bearable. Service was good.
Ordered the fish tacos, Canadian burger, and sesame seared ahi tuna salad. I won’t order the fish tacos again. The shell was more like pita bread than soft shell taco. Thick and doughy. Made the ‘tacos’ taste more like mini pita sandwiches. Also didn’t taste much fish in there. However, the Canadian burger and ahi tuna salad were very well executed. Burger was a delicious medley of flavours. Salad was nicely seasoned and balanced. The sesame on the outside of the seared tuna added a good crunch. Had fries on the side — they were mediocre.

Visited during the summer for drinks. Not a bad spot to relax during patio season. Inside interior is nice too.
Only went for drinks but staff were nice and accommodating. I think they should promote their specials more or have it disclosed somewhere more prominent for customers to see though.

I’ve been back a few times since my first initial visit. (I actually forgot to check-​in during those return visits, so ignore what Unilocal says to the left of this revised review, lol)
I think the issue with the slow service that seems to be what most people complain about occurs when you’re seated upstairs as there isn’t always a staff member up there. I’ve sat both by the bar, upstairs and in the room immediately to the right when you enter the restaurant. Service was way better on the main floor as it’s easier to flag a staff member down. Upstairs, not so much… This has happened to me and it may not be entirely what others have experienced. On one occasion, it took about 10 minutes after seating down that someone finally came upstairs to take our order. Most restaurants would have a wait staff approach a table within a minute of diners being seated, to take their drink orders at the least or even bring them some water.
Anyway, on my return visits I’ve had their other samplings such as the lobster grilled cheese, raw oysters on $ 1 oyster nights, the poutine and steak. All top notch in my opinion. I find their menu for a gastropub most appeals to me and has the right mix of meat and fish from pork, beef to even tuna! This place is definitely not for vegans, which to me, is great because I’m a carnivore 100%!!
As the Wilcox approaches the busy Christmas season, I hope they can tighten up the service issues a bit, especially that pesky 2^nd floor. I’d place a staff member up there permanently on busier nights just so diners don’t feel so neglected.

So bomb.
Came back for buck a shuck and got the steak and frites and the catch of the day (salmon teriyaki).
Steak and frites was so good. I practically inhaled it. The chimichurri was the perfect amount of tang and bite.
The salmon had a great sear, smokey full flavor from the grill.
Everything was seasoned perfect and service was stellar.

Had another great night at Wilcox for my friend’s birthday and everything was great! From the group of friends, to the food and service.
Always a great place to go to!
Even with our large group, our server was still on point!

I was speaking to somebody that is more local to the area (I know, I know I live next door to ‘Sauga) but I don’t frequent this area that often. This venue apparently has changed hands numerous times. For whatever reason this place literally right on the south west corner of Eglinton and Hurontario seems like it is difficult to establish something concrete here as far as a business goes.
I admit, I knew not of this place, this corner, this mall at all. There was a recently a GTA Unilocal event here but I did not attend it so really this was my first time seeing or going to the Wilcox.
The structure itself looks old and when I say old I mean like pioneer age old, like something out of place like there’s some sort of rural home that was placed here and everything else was built around it — from the outside… on the inside you step in and you can see how the décor transform this historical looking structure into something much more contemporary… sleek yet classy and not pretentious.
A fellow Unilocaler was holding a UYE (Unofficial Unilocal Event) at this establishment and that is why I was here to get together and partake on a promotion going on this week called Burger Binge Week 2.0. This week long GTA wide event basically has many establishments offering a promo burger for 5 dollars. The burger offered by Wilcox was a burger with a fried egg, cheese and kimchi.
Our party had settled upstairs in the corner and I had joined in on the fun. I started off with a Flying Monkeys Smashbomb IPA which these days for whatever reason I have a taste for (Pale Ales) and this one was dark but not very hoppy even though I had to look it up afterwards it was 70 IBU. That seems high considering it didn’t taste overwhelmingly strong taste but a good taste. The selection of beer here is decent but not as many crafts as I would have thought but still a decent selection.
I had ordered a pulled pork poutine to go with my burger. The regular poutine was 10 bucks so I went 2 more bucks to get the pulled pork. I wasn’t going to get the lobster poutine because I can’t really eat it even though it was just another 4 bucks more than the pulled pork.
The burgers came out and the presentation was sort of nice. The kimchi and egg really set a contrast of colors on an otherwise regular everyday food item. Burgers I’ve had a few in my life and this one sadly fell into the just OK category. The bread was spongy in that the texture was hard and dry kind of like a hard sponge. When sourdough begins to get dry and spongy it’s not the ideal bun for a burger especially one with an egg on it because it will do nothing to absorb the yolk that will break. If I had to make a suggestion I’d go with a lighter bun with eggs for that reason alone. An egg bun, brioche perhaps. An improvement on the bread would do wonders. I notice many places started using Ace Bakery buns and feature it on their menu as a hook. I don’t know anybody that doesn’t like Aces as long as they are fresh.
The kimchi I ate about half of it before eating the burger and ate the other half in the burger. I can’t say it added much to the taste of the burger but it wasn’t as spicy as I had hoped. I like my kimchi borderline spicy hot. The poutine to me seemed flat and rather bland. I’m used to it being more salty. I had looked but there wasn’t any salt or pepper on the table so I just had it as is. The fries seemed to be just stuffed into this round dish and the gravy was lukewarm and it just didn’t seam piping hot as I prefer poutine to be, hot enough so the cheese doesn’t have a chance to become hard again and where you have to wait for the gravy to cool off and the fries sort of have a chance at remaining solid and crispy. Sadly the poutine was none of those things and it was the price of 2 craft beers.
While the establishment is very aesthetically pleasing and the service seemed ok I have to say I’m sort of disappointed in this place. Their menu which I had a peek at before had items on there in the $$$ range. If the simplest of items like poutine are served as such I’m afraid what a 37 dollar ribeye would be like. Their burgers are anywhere from 15 to 19 dollars regular price meanwhile I seem to be almost complaining about a promotional 5 dollar version.
Overall my bill came out to 37.70 after taxes and an auto-​gratuity of 17% since we were a large party. I had 2 beers ($ 12), the pulled pork poutine ($ 12) and the promo burger ($ 5).
I’d like to come back but I’d like to read how this place progresses in the food department because as of now the service is ok, the venue is a lock but the food for the prices IMO need some work.

I was torn about this review ’cause this place has soo many things going for it: cool vibe with various different types of atmosphere, attractive and helpful staff, a full-​on drinks menu, appetising looking food, PARKING, what more could a ‘burban girl ask for?
(I was also torn as I had such a fun time at the Unilocal event that they hosted a few weeks back.)
Anyway, to be honest, their food lacks taste. In fact, it’s pretty tasteless. Ordered Pulled Pork Poutine ($ 12) and there probably wasn’t a pinch of salt in it. I’m not a salt person, so when I say that there was no seasoning, there was no seasoning. Cheese curds weren’t squeaky as everything was already melted. Gravy/​pulled pork was just plopped on top of the fries, no layering.
We sat down before 7pm, but realised a coupla minutes afterwards that they had a special for $ 5 pitchers. However, we weren’t able to take advantage of it. It was literally 7:02pm. :(Waitress didn’t even ask, but just said «No» politely. I think it would’ve been nice if she offered/​faked asking.
Drink menu also lacked beer flights. I was actually quite surprised by this.
Great place to grab a drink/​quick bite after work with a coworker, but I wouldn’t really expect too much from the food which is a shame because everything else is working in its favour… except the FLAVOUR!