Pastis Restaurant & Bar

We went to Pastis last night to celebrate my friend’s birthday. We were pleasantly surprised by the delicious meals but very disappointed in the service. Our waiter was impatient and abrupt and told us that the restaurant was closing for a two week vacation. He seemed anxious for it to start immediately. Our dessert arrived without candles as pre arranged and when I told him he did nothing to rectify the situation. Although the food was good I wouldn’t be in a rush to go back to Pastis because of the way were treated. Toronto has many good restaurants with friendly, helpful and welcoming staff. Service is important when you go out for dinner

When Joanne Kates, Canada’s top food critic named Pastis as the best restaurant in Toronto, I thought hmmmm… I’ll give it a shot. Just across the street from the LCBO at Summerhill, it’s reasonably inviting from the outside. I would totally agree with the «first to review» (Erin) writeup, the décor needs some updating and it would be nice to have them open up the space a bit — I was jammed into the traffic lane with servers and other patrons bumping into my back all night (brutal).
As for the food, it was quite good. I liked the fact that the flavours were subtle but not bland (that’s generally a very tough balance to get). The tomato salad sure felt like a taste of summer (not the one in 500 Days). As for the main, I had the calf liver which was overdone but satisfying nonetheless. Given it’s a bistro, dessert could have been nothing less than crème brûlée which is arguably hard to screw up in my view (don’t think I’ve ever had a bad one). Bottom line, solid dining spot but bring the body armour.
+ives: fresh, subtle but balanced flavours –ives: SEATING, get some cushions and open it up (felt like a mosh pit in the back)

I think this French Bistro hit its peak in the nineties when moules et Frites were words understood only by those lucky enough to have gone through French immersion. But nowadays moules et Frites is about as foreign a dish as lasagna and no one is surprised to face it on a menu.
So, Pastis is good, but the décor is tired — circa 95 — and the staff are even more so. They have maintained the snobby French attitude they have had since the day the restaurant opened but no longer deserve it, so they are even slightly bitter. The clientele is mostly middle-​aged Rosedalers who take pleasure in pronouncing the restaurant’s name correctly — «I’m going to Pasteeeece for Dinner tonight».
Whatever. I can have mussels and Fries anywhere without the attitude or the price.