Ardo brings Southern Italian eats to Corktown. We were seated by the window which opens up onto King Street - there are only a few tables at the front, so try to grab one! Chef Roberto Marotta offers Sicilian dishes and refreshing Campari cocktails. The Polpo ($13) was my favourite dish. The octopus was perfectly grilled and tender, chewy and fresh. I found the burrata ($19) slightly underwhelming. The cheese was firmer and the wine-preserved peaches were not as sweet as expected. :( Carpaccio ($16) was good served with arugula, cheese, pistachios, and mushrooms. As far as salads go, the cavolo ($14) was fun, cheerful and colorful. Kale, romaine, radish, with crispy parsnip and shaved parm. The ragú ($17) was fairly standard, meat sauce on pasta. We packed the rest to take home. The margherita was topped with fresh basil, a midweight crust, but it wasn't particularly memorable. ($14). The desserts are simple. The cannoli is popular and plated nicely. The ricotta center was a bit runnier than desired. The pistachio gelato was delicious though. Overall, we had a nice meal here. In terms of service, it was a bit slow, but the restaurant is still new. We might have ordered a lot of carbs, but it might have been nice to have been offered bread. By the time we finished out meal, the table next to us had cycled through two seatings. We looked longingly at bread served next to us.. twice. Sometimes, all a girl wants is bread. Lots and lots of bread. read more

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This is one of the first Italian restaurants I went to since I moved to Toronto. The food is fantastic! I have tried their pizzas and pastas and neither will disappoint. They do change up their menu quite frequently so you will always have a variety. Just make sure you make a reservation because they are always busy. I walk by this restaurant almost everyday and they are always filled with people in the evening. read more

fyi prices are outdated on web site for cannoli, accigue, ragu, polpo, and cannoli (all $1 extra) read more

recently moved to Toronto from Montreal. Our favourite restaurant in Montreal was Trestevere and we were looking for a similar resto. We found it in Ardo Restaurant. We had great food, nice waiters not super expensive. Great location ! read more

I was lucky enough to visit this restaurant twice in two weeks. The food is very good. Portions perfect & flavours multi layered. However the menu needs to be more clear - ordered gnocchi and it came with a cream sauce with no mention of that on the menu. Our service was markedly different in the two visits. I believe this is because the lack of experience. Removing plates before everyone was finished, etc. But the server was very attentive - that happy medium between not enough and too much. And also there was barely five minutes between the first course finishing and second course being placed. Which is a kitchen issue. I really like this restaurant and the food, and would recommend it. Just interesting the two different experiences. read more

Great place for authentic Italian food. Beautiful restaurant! Very nice menu. Definitely try any pasta AND pizza! The atmosphere is relaxed but also classy and romantic. read more

We came here for staff dinner on a Wednesday night. Overall great atmosphere and good food. The wine we chose was quiet enjoyable as well. But the food overall wasn't "exceptional" as I'd expected - everything tasted fantastic but nothing stood out. read more

Ardo Restaurant - Italian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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"Is this place Ar-do or Ar-don't??" This was my exclamation last night after tasting yet another disappointing course. To be fair, the service was very good and so I have to be clear that this rating is purely based on the quality (or lack thereof) of the food. For our first course, we shared several dishes: the Etna pizza, anchovy crostini, octopus salad, and beef carpaccio. The pizza held such promise based on the description on the menu (tomato sauce, fior di latte, rapini, house made chili oil, house made Sicilian spicy sausage) but the execution left much to be desired. It came out tasting very bland and mostly of the dough on which the sparse ingredients were laid. It was a similar story with the lackluster other dishes. For our second course, a bunch of us ordered the lobster ravioli...problem was, they ran out of ravioli so had to substitute with bowtie pasta, which turned out to be a disaster. At least they gave us an option to switch, that I seized on to pick the salsiccia, which ended up being half-decent but nothing to write home about. The wine list was meh and no option to pay corkage and BYOW. As a result, I'm sorry to say that I will not be rushing back here. read more

We were very disappointed in the service at Ardo. The waiters were more concerned with the chef's desires than the enjoyment of the customers. The arrogance was a total turn off and we are experienced restauranteurs who dine out 5 out of 7 nights a week. We will not return to Ardo. The food was ok but the experience with all of the waiters was most unpleasant. When we need to request our dirty plates to be removed more than 3 times, something is wrong. \ read more

Went there last evening with a group of 4 and had an excellent meal. The menu was clearly, service was great, and would come back if/when I'm in the area. I'd recommend the grilled octopus out of the appetizers we had though the carpaccio comes in a close second. I had the sarde as my main after reading reviews and it tasty as described, but probably not for everyone (you really do need to like sardines to like this). read more

Sat at the bar and had amaaazing drinks and GREAT food. Super friendly staff. Get the octopus. Trust me. And the pizza was soooo good! 10/10 would try again read more

Favorite restaurant in Toronto. Amazing authentic Italian flavor and dishes. I sat at the chefs table and the experience was perfect. Interaction with the staff was so much fun. Intimate atmosphere where you could stay all night. read more

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I go to many restaurants throughout the gta (including Italian - being Italian myself) and this place was not at all as the many fabricated reviews say it is. They try to portray themselves as a high end restaurant unfortunately the quality of the food and how it is cooked is very poor. A Big Mac truly would have satisfied me much more than spending how much we did for such bad quality. My friend and I ordered a pizza to share and a plate of pasta each followed by dessert. The gnocchi was extremely soggy/over cooked. I mentioned it to the owner who was a real jerk about it saying he could recommend other places that serves gnocchi! Disgusting for an owner to say that. The pizza (literally) had absolutely no flavor to it. Not even the basics as salt. Lastly and most importantly. We had ordered the cannoli for dessert and the filling had gone bad/rotten. It tasted like rotten egg. I had to give it back and asked him to try it and he said it must be my taste buds! The waitress said she was going to go to the back to try it and that the owner wouldn't let her. It got thrown out and he was hiding in the back until we had left. Our waitress was friendly, the ambiance was nice, but the quality of food and the personality and mannerisms of the owner was awful. He was always at the front bar drinking glasses of wine when maybe he could have been ensuring their food wasn't past expiration and prepared well. I'd definitely NOT go back to this place. Terroni, Buca, Cibo, Dimmi's, Nudo and Campagnolo (to name a few) are all way better choices than Ardo. The owner mentioned he had other 'unfortunate experiences' in his other restaurant ventures and I can absolutely see why. I don't see this place lasting more than a year. read more

My boyfriend and I have become regulars here. I absolutely adore the atmosphere and how I always feel like I'm walking into someone's home. The owner Roberto and the young guys working the kitchen bar are amazing. So genuine and the food is just ridiculously amazing. I can't say enough great things about it. A hidden little gem. Homemade lemonchello to finish your meal ;) read more

We tried this place after reading reviews and recommendations from our friends, and so we had to experience this restaurant. We ordered a few appetizers, mains and a few desserts and I must say that the mains and the desserts were fine; unfortunately, one of the three appetizers that we ordered was wrong, and the bread that we ordered was stale. In addition to, the service seemed very chaotic, and there was so much commotion coming from the kitchen as they seemed to have caused one of their patrons an allergic reaction. Finally, the servers weren't too attentive. I probably would not return to this restaurant. read more

A truly artisanal meal experience! Have a seat at the chefs table to watch the creation of some really fantastic meals! Chef Roberto brings his years of experience in Siciliano cuisine to your senses. Try the Sarde pasta - it's sardines at the next level ! read more

Very good Sicilian food with interesting choices. This is a small, busy restaurant with a good buzz. Wine prices a bit high; good cocktails; small selection for beer. Excellent service. This is a great choice if you're looking for a quality food experience and don't mind paying for it. read more

Great Cannoli The rest of the dishes fell short to me. The service was friendly and professional/upscale and design of the restaurant is pleasant. read more

Decor: Nicely done. Good feel. Polpi: Perfectly grilled, tender, with just a little char. Caponata complimented it nicely. Sarde: Just like the online menu picture (pity I did not look at it before going), it is one fillet of sardine atop of a tennis ball sized mound of pasty tasting pasta. Sauce has no flavour...just lukewarm and salty. Tried to eke out the sardine fillet to finish the paste/pasta. Disappointing. Cannoli: Best part of the meal. Crispy outside that breaks into delicious shards in your mouth, creamy, just sweet enough ricotta filling, studded with fragrant candied orange peel and bits of chocolate. Worst part of the evening: Our server. She kept hip checking my chair (once, hard enough to move me and the chair) in her eagerness to get to the table beside us (three gentlemen who made it clear they had expense accounts). Never apologized, even once. The tables were very close, so when she lingered (often) at their table, her ass was pretty much overhanging our table and in our face. She giggled and flirted with the expense account holders, showed them pictures on her personal cell phone and drank from one of their wine glasses,complimenting them on their good wine selection. Basically, our food was slammed on our table on the way to theirs. It was only at the end of the meal did she slow down, smile and ask how our food was. Tip time, I guess. Even though we live in the neighbourhood, we will not be back. Well...maybe just to get the cannoli to go.... read more

Great addition to the neighborhood! Drinks are solid - very Italian, appetizers are tasty but on the small side. Recommend the Gnocchi, nice light sauce - tasty without being too strong or piled on. Will come back soon and report back! read more

Everything we ordered was melt-in-your mouth delicious. I have several dietary restrictions and they were kind enough to suggest modifications and make me the gnocchi with another sauce and a few small modifications (a lot of higher-end restaurants can be strict about making substitutions). I appreciated that they were patient and went back to the kitchen to see how I could be accommodated. I can't wait to come back! A few small things - they charged us for bread, the portions could have been a bit more generous, the restaurant is a bit noisy (likely because it is long and narrow), and took a while between courses (but we were a party of five). Otherwise, felt that the restaurant certainly lived up to the hype! read more

So refreshing to see passion and palate collide. Chef/Owner Roberto keeps to the authentic Sicilian flavour and sources his ingredients from across Canada and around the world. Highly recommend sitting at the Chef's Table where you can witness first hand Roberto and his team creating magic for the table. So glad this is steps from my door as I will definitely be a regular! Note: this is not the kind of place you ask for substitutions, if that's a problem. That would be like asking Picasso to use crayons! This is EDIBLE ART! read more

Authentic, delicious southern Italian food. We sat at the chefs table and got to witness some real passion in the kitchen. Ended up ordering way too much food because everything looked so good! Had the crostini, carpaccio, arrancini, pizza, sarde pasta and the beef shoulder. Everything was incredible!! Fresh, flavourful and made with love. Even the bread is made in house and it is to die for. I highly recommend this place. I definitely will be back! read more

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We love Ardo! It's our go-to neighbourhood spot for any kind of celebration dinner. Came here last night for the fourth or fifth time to celebrate my birthday and as always we had a wonderful experience from start to end. All of the food was spectacular - the flavours are so authentic and unique. To start we ordered the bread (amazing! The olive oil is out of this world), the arancini and the burrata. All wonderful. For our mains we all had various dishes. I always order the funghi gnocchi and can't imagine ordering anything else it's that good. But luckily I was able to have bites of everyone else's so I tried lots of yummy meals! Some pizzas were tried, the orecchiette pasta and the feature seafood pasta of the day. The inside ambiance is also wonderful. A cozy little space which is perfect for any kind of occasion. If you live in the area I highly recommend you come eat at Ardo! read more

Staff are super friendly and looked after our group very well. Food needed a little salt but otherwise a great experience.we had the Burrata, Mushroom Gnocchi, Ragu Pappardelle & capri pizza. read more

I went to Ardo for a casual dinner or lunch so many times and had great experience. I also had a birthday dinner for a bigger group and I was so happy with the service and the food. Roberto and his wife are super nice and accommodating. When Roberto is around he would step out of the kitchen and talk to people to see if they like the food and their drinks. I love the ambiance there and would strongly recommend this place. read more

Cute little restaurant almost tucked away on King. I really enjoyed the food and service. The menu doesn't have too many options, but in this case I think it's a good thing - allows them to prepare those items very well! Would definitely return! read more

Amazing place! The owner gave us a glass of Sicilian wine which we loved and bought a bottle after. I've been here before, surprisingly service and food still outstanding. Nothing pretentious, just well executed food and service. We got the table in front of chef bar and was amazed. Don't feel read more

It was pretty good, but nothing so special that I'd make the trip here over visiting other Italian restaurants. Our cocktails were suberb (I think they were the house cocktail.. something fizzy and fruity). The charcuterie platter was really good -- no pates, all cured meats and cheeses. I would order it again if I came back. Service was good, but no more or less than you'd expect at a nice place like this. My main was fine, but nothing to rave about. read more

I was recommended this restaurant recently and was not disappointed at the experience. Exceptional and caring service with fairly knowledgeable recommendations for someone picky in our group. We ordered four things total for three people, under the recommendation of our server; the peche n' zola pizza, salsicca pasta, potato and cod croquettes, and the daily ravioli special. We started off with the croquettes, which were very light and fluffy with clear notes of the cod. The peach and gorgonzola pizza was very sweet and savoury, with pronounced, but not overpowering gorgonzola taste, nice and sweet peach taste, and a nice and crisp crust. The salsicca was very well seasoned and tossed, the pasta's firm texture helped to bring together all the flavours. The light hint of spice from the sausage helped to give the dish a little bit of a kick. The ravioli special was six pieces of butter-nut squash ravioli in a lobster bisque/stock (I don't fully remember) with some mussels and baby shrimp. A discrete, yet prominent lobster flavour as well as a creamy squash taste helped to blend the flavours together. The leftover bisque/stock also went well with the bread we had available :) An overall pleasant experience. read more

Small, intimate, Sicilian restaurant. Have eaten here a few times for lunch and dinner. The food is very good overall- the arancini are wonderful, and I'm often tempted to order a dozen of them instead of a main! Recently had a pizza here which was rather disappointing, but everything else I've had has been really good. Service has always been prompt, knowledgeable, and friendly. If possible, avoid the two tables closest to the door. read more

There were three of us and we knew it would be difficult to be seated there without a reservation on a Saturday night and we were right. But we didn't expect to be turned away without even an offer of being wait-listed or being offered seats even when there were three seats at the bar - that we asked about. This was some time back but we were really turned off by the snooty attitude. read more

The sarde is fair. Two fillets on top of a softball sized mount of (slightly rubbery) pasta. Don't go if it is a hot/humid day or evening NO AIR CONDITIONING! And what's worse, I had to beg for water refills. Small busy space, but this one isn't that hard. The octopus was really tasty though. Negroni was served with a huge orange wedge that overpowered the drink. The couscous with shellfish was much better than the Sarde, but the shrimp were a bit overcooked. Clams were delicious. Overall, mixed bag. read more

This experience, at one of the supposed "best new restaurants in Toronto" , was entirely lackluster. The server was disengaged, borderline rude, and inattentive. The food was either over seasoned, under seasoned, or just not note worthy. And the environment was confusing with a purportedly authentic southern Italian feel, but horrendous disco playing - music only so awful I l've only heard it when I planned my wedding "do not play" list. For appetizers we ordered the pizza special (amazing), arrancini (amazing), insalata di mare (quite unimpressive and mediocre) and fried anchovies (amazing). For dinner we ordered the halibut (overpriced and WAY over salted), the lobster ravioli special (super unflavorful, and underseasoned) and salsiccio pasta (decent). For dessert we ordered the cassato (good) and gelato (straciatella and pistachio - only the pistachio was good). On a finer point, it was seemingly a big deal to get new cutlery and side plates after our messy appetizers, and had we not asked for the table to be wiped of the oil that was spilled all over it, it would have remained oily and dirty. Over the course of the meal, the service continued to be unremarkable, and the food / atmosphere just ok at best. Wine selection was decent and affordable on a positive point! I would not come back again. read more

Excellent service, excellent food. All in all our new go to place downtown. My wife discovered Ardos last week and she had to show it to me last night. Chef Roberto is a joy !! jvh read more

I moved into a condo and stumbled upon this restaurant. The food is incredible and the staff are incredibly friendly and eager to help. I've been back three times this week--it's that good! Definitely try the Norma pasta and the octopus, clam, and shrimp appetizer. read more

I'd like start my review by pointing out that Ardo, charges you for all the people that don't show up for you reservation which can sometimes happen with larger groups. My feeling is if you're going to do that, you better set the bar high for service. At Ardo, this is not the case. Our reservation for this awful night was made 3 weeks in advance. When we arrived, the table we reserved had people who were just served their mains. They suggested we find some other place in the neighbourhood to have drinks until they were ready. That's a waste of our time and for a restaurant that charges people for cancellation, pretty low. They finally seated us at the chefs table which only had 5 stools for 6 people and was designed bar style making it difficult for us to have a conversation as a group. Their only solution for the negative experience was a glass of proseco. The server was rude and the staff seemed to be pretty indifferent about it all. Avoid this place. read more

Excellent food, underwhelming experience. We made a reservation for Saturday night to celebrate a special 30th birthday. The restaurant called us on Friday to confirm our reservation for that night - we had to clarify that our reservation was made for Saturday, not Friday. They were unable to remedy their error, somehow they had given away our spot and they were only able to offer us a reservation for seats at the bar for our Saturday night reservation. We were eager to try out this restaurant and took whatever we could get. The space at the bar was tiny, we ended up sitting in front of the dishwasher. The staff bickered in front of us behind the bar which was a little off putting. While the food was excellent, it was rushed. We had not even finished our appetizer when our main course arrived. Perhaps tainted by the reservation mix up, our experience here was less than ideal. read more

Food: One word, Pasta! Second word, Delicious I also enjoyed the pizza I found the rectangular shape approachable and table friendly. Service: could use a refresher. While friendly was lacking a little je ne sais quoi. Ambiance: delightful and quaint. All in all a fine experience. read more

Not worth the price Order the pasta di giorno and really no taste at all, very plain, suppose to have anchovies and truffles. Portion is small and price was steep. $38 for lunch. Not worth to come back. read more