The Commodore

I’ve only tried The Commodore for brunch but… going once was definitely not enough. Brunch at this small Parkdale restaurant is amazing. Only gone twice, both times I’ve managed to find a table for 2 around noon time. The restaurant has a good flow of customers and service is friendly. The vibe/​atmosphere is very relaxing and the interior has a nautical theme that is instagram worthy.
The dishes seem small in size but don’t be fooled, they can easily fill you up and the portions are just right; each dish is also packed with flavour and presented on pretty vintage looking plates. So… in terms of brunch dishes I’ve tried, the Reuben eggs benny is hands down one of the best bennies I’ve had in the city. The sauerkraut gives the dish another element when combined with the smoked pastrami and cheese. And of course the hollandaise is as good as it gets; everything in the dish works together perfectly. Also tried the octopus frittata. The combination of octopus, eggs, chorizo, and romesco sauce results in a filling meal. Lastly, the fluffy pancakes are done just right, somewhat crispy on the outside and soft on the inside. The tiramisu mousse/​espresso syrup gives the pancakes a not so sweet element.
Overall, love coming here for brunch and will most likely return… hopefully for dinner!

Tapas style restaurant with a trendy décor.
Swordfish Crudo
Will spark a plethora of different flavours in your mouth. You experience the pickled taste that transitions into a sweet savoury taste. Texture was similar to sashimi. Too bad there were only 4 pieces. Price is quite steep.
Soft Shell Crab Sandwich
The most delicious thing on the menu. The crab was fried just right (crunchy not too greasy) on top of a soft yet sweet tasting Hokkaido milk bun. You might need to order two since it is about the fist size of a petite girl.
Grilled Bavette
Ordered with uni (sea urchin) butter… what a brilliant combination! Steak was a little soft, but it was delicious.
Sourdough bread
Possibly home made and comes already buttered for you, but it was just meh and quite burnt.
Highly recommended for a small bite with talks over drinks. Bill came to be around ~$ 80 for 2 people which seemed a bit expensive, but one has to remember it is called tapas for a reason.

First time in Toronto. Amazing food/​service/​atmosphere… Best I’ve had in a while and I live NYC! Five stars without a doubt

Excellent experience start to finish. We were a group of four and ordered nearly everything off the small yet surprisingly varied menu. The bavette and shrimp toast were our favourites, but every dish was flavourful and delicious. The restaurant was nearly empty when we arrived, but by the time we left, there were no empty seats. Highly recommended!

This little restaurant has a lot to offer in terms of flavour, atmosphere and service. Let’s dig in:
First, the food. For two, we ordered and shared:
— The duck confit crêpe (although maybe a little on the small side, this was delicious. The crêpe had a nice crisp to it and was a great contrast to the savoury, tender duck.)
— The bread (now I know this is simple, but this bread is so good! Do yourself a favour, though — order it last and save it for the leftover sauces on your plates. I wish I had done this!)
— The Brussels sprouts (I don’t typically like Brussels sprouts but these changed my mind. The sweet but savoury sauce, the chunks of pork… yum.)
— the bavette steak (this tasted like home. A quite generous portion of steak you can cut with a butter knife, atop creamy mashed potatoes and smothered in mushroom gravy. It’s the priciest thing on the menu but, especially if you’re sharing, it’s worth it.)
The service was great. Rarely longed for anything (except our candle to be relit!) and the servers seemed extremely knowledgable. Also the cocktails were fantastic.
Make sure to book a reservation as this place is pretty tiny — but what it lacks in size it makes up for by offering a very enjoyable experience.

Finally got to cross the Commodore off my list! Overall, it was an enjoyable experience. The interior really is quite charming with its white curved walls and nautical themed lighting. Even the surrounding curved walls leading to the bathrooms still hold the décor theme together nicely.
We sampled a few things, and nothing disappointed. The Zucchini Parmigiana was the one thing that was a little weird as the hot cooked zucchini was smothered with cold straciatella cheese which created a weird mix of temperature, but the taste combination was smooth and pleasing. The bavette steak was tender and cooked to a nice pinkish hue, and then sliced and plated nicely over creamy pureed potatoes. Great plate appeal and a tasty meal. Portions are a bit small but nothing on the menu is over $ 20 so it balances out.
Drink menu is almost comically large in size compared to the food menu. The downside is that while you are eating they leave a food menu but not a drink menu so its hard to be able to try different drinks with your meal. Luckily in my case, they had Leftfield Brewing’s Resin Bag IPA which is a local brewed favourite, so my needs were easily met. But personally I’m a believer that you should always have a drink menu on the table. Service was admittedly a little inattentive at times but friendly on approach.
3 plates, 3 glasses of wine and 3 beers came to about $ 115 post-​tax/​pre-​tip so its not a cheap night out, but it is a great date spot. They do offer reservations, and even on a week night the place was busy, so do take advantage of that fact to help ensure you get a good table instead of having to sit at the bar or in the window ledge seats.

Went for brunch, great service, very cute place, excellent pancakes! Can’t wait to go back for dinner

Chef Jon knows what’s up. Everything I’ve ever eaten there is beyond delicious. Don’t skip dessert!

We have enjoyed both brunch and dinner. For brunch I had the Reuben Eggs Benedict — it’s an interesting dish, with a very unique flavor to it. It wasn’t necessarily something I will seek out again, but it was worth trying. For dinner, we landed on the seafood tower, which was unusual for us. It was good with lots of selection. This will be a restaurant we eat at several times.

Went here with 3 friends on one of their quieter nights. Ordered the seafood tower — portion was on the smaller size but it was a perfect sharing appetizer. Extremely fresh and delicious accompaniments for the oysters! Risotto: divine. Service: excellent, friendly, and we felt very welcome to stay a long time (and we did!). For me best part other than the food was the décor and ambiance. Dim, romantic, and all white.

I went there for a few drinks before my night out, and I been to my fair share or bars and tapas, this place made it for me for Matt and his service alone, such an out going guy, best customer service I have seen in a long time, I was blown away by his passion, we need more bartenders like him in the industry.

I’m a fan. Had dins with some friends tonight and it was delicious. We ordered the oysters, seafood tower, smoked trout and kale salad, gnocchi, swordfish and one more dish, which I don’t remember. Everyone seemed very pleased with their dishes. My fave was the smoked trout and kale salad. Sweet Jesus, that dish was divine.
I had white wine tonight, but when I return I will cocktail-​it-​up. Believe that. We sat at the bar and each drink the bartender made looked pretty and I’m sure they tasted damn fine.
Love the décor, too. For some reason I kept thinking I was on The Love Boat. Trust me, it’s a good thing.
Lastly, service was great! Both the hostess and the bartender were friendly and accommodating. Not your typical douchey, hipster joint in Parkdale. Yay!

So good. Duck confit, shrimp bread, amazing. Risotto, oysters, a bit less amazing but still pretty awesome. This gin-​based drink that went down way too easy … goes down easy. Chill spot for some good eats and drinks. Just really unpretentious, laid-​back kind of atmosphere here.

After hearing really good things about this new restaurant from a friend, we decided to make the trek across town to grab some small plates and cocktails. I started with 6 oysters, which came with really original ginger mignonette as well as the spicy-​sweet Korean gochujang sauce. Next time I’ll get 12 — they were perfect. We snacked on Swordfish Crudo (amazing, balanced, little heat), as well as the Smoked Mackerel Rillette (my date loved this one, so creamy and flavorful). Bartenders here know the art of cocktails too so it’s worth trying their house specialties. Beautiful interior which suits the neighborhood well. I really wanted to try the duck confit crêpe so will have to visit again real soon.

Wow I like interesting and different and these guys hit it on the button. Great vibe in the restaurant, I want to go back and try some more things!

Had a fantastic night here with some friends sampling a few items on their menu and sipping on some well prepared cocktails. The service was super attentive and I really enjoyed myself. Just a cute little addition in Parkdale. We will definitely be back.