Aaargh! Without a doubt, the crummiest experience I've ever had in a Toronto restaurant. Appalling service with a capital A. Very little time for conversation as had to concentrate on fighting for every glass of wine, every bite of food, for the bread, for some cutlery! Treated like merde from the moment we walked in the door 10 minutes early (your reservation is for 7? Talk to me then). Never an apology. Never an acknowledgement that things had gone terribly wrong. Yes, the restaurant was busy. But it was SUPPER-TIME. Surely to be expected if not hoped for? Food was fine but who cares when it's made to taste like ashes in your mouth? I've had better service at a high school cafeteria. Life is too short and an evening out with a dear friend too precious for this nonsense. Thank god the dear friend paid or I'd really be poisoned. Tchah! Do yourself a favor and stay clear. read more

This place is a date restaurant for sure, but actually it's too noisy for normal conversations. Like trying to have a nuanced discussion in a bar. Of course lots of people try that too so maybe you wouldn't mind. I didn't come here on a date but being dark and fancy (full of ritualized fanciness rather than simple high quality) that is clearly the point. The food was above average, but not great, especially considering the price. Since I'll be living and working around the corner I'm sure I'll come here again, but I wouldn't walk an extra block just to come here. read more

Lunch just ok -- and pretty expensive. Service not TOO bad, but a bit slow. Foccacia bread a bit dry & stale. Arugula salad good except for the cherry tomatoes that were a little off -- beet salad quite good. A couple of years ago we had a good dinner there, but wasn't that pleased this time. I wasn't impressed enough to order coffee & dessert. read more

A very special small, casual but sophisticated Italian restaurant that never disappoints. Great wine list. (Try the Etna Rosso). The menu is updated frequently. The grilled calamari changes in it's presentation but is always unbelievably spectacular. read more

There were many tasty things appetizers we ate. I ordered the Halbot as my dinner choice, it wasn't the best it wasn't the worst. The appetizers and dinner were small portions, and the fact that everything costs and arm and a leg was not worth it. I expected more from an Italian restaurant. So far the best Italian restaurant I've been has been in Scarborough, I was hoping that Bar Mercurio would be up there but it fell flat with the small portions and the blah tasting Halbot. read more

I really really liked this place, but I think that it is a bit over priced for the quality of food you are getting. It has been a while since I went, but I think that I ordered some sort of creamy pasta dish. It was very yummy, but as I mentioned, a bit on the pricey side. I went with a large group, and I found that the staff was very accommodating and polite, and I had a good experience. Our waitress took our order promptly, and the food arrived in good time, despite the restaurant being quite busy. read more

Two meals here, neither completely satisfactory. Rigatoni Ragu tasted like stew on top of pasta, not bad at all but not what I expected. Cornish Hen appeared to have been in the oven for 2 days, dried out, very small. Neither dish was cheap; indeed nothing is at this resto. I liked this place in the past but no more. read more

Walking through the polished wood doors at Bar Mercurio, transports the bloor street pedestrian into Europe. Or a bougie facismile thereof. Either way, the long narrow room, beautiful bar, royal blue accents, little round tables and open kitchen make for a pleasing space, while the simple Italian menu (salad, pizza and pasta) and good Italian wine list pleasure the mouth. I'm addicted to the calabrese pizza with a douse of chili oil for good measure; but regularly wish I could also order an omelette (comes topped with sour cream and caviar). The pastas are well done, though the gnocchi is often heavy in texture. Of the salads, I've only tried the tuscan bean, which has been different each time, and never really on the mark (too much bean; too much chicken; too much onion; not enough of anything etc.). All in all, its my favourite place on this part of Bloor West, and a lovely spot to enjoy a glass of wine and some well done thin crust za. read more

I visited Bar Mercurio for dinner along with four others-party of five-on Thursday, October 24, 2019. The server was abrupt and rude. The mains were ridiculously small in size. The Caesar salad I ordered consisted of three pieces of romaine lettuce. We noted that the overall vibe in the place was very tense. We chose this establishment based on the excellent ratings that were posted. All in all, we felt totally ripped off and would never consider patronizing this establishment again. read more

Dropped by for lunch. Great menu with very attractive wait staff. Venison rigatoni had good flavor but the $20.00 price only buys a very meager portion. Bottled sparkling water bottle $7.00. be prepared to pay neighborhood prices read more

This place was recommended to us by multiple people at our hotel, and since we were staying next door, we thought we would give it a try. We order the pistachio pesto pizza and the ragu. Both dishes were okay, but nothing spectacular...thinking back, they could have used some more salt? We liked that it was locally/family owned, easy to get a last-minute reservation, and that the servers were friendly and let us take our time. Ultimately, will not be coming back, but cute little place. read more

Fantastic food--homemade gnocchi & pastas by Mama Mercurio; 10 gourmet pizzas; great (but price-y) wine list; warm & professional service by Roberto, Barbara. & Nicollete at dinner, & Sarah at lunch. A truly Italian-family restaurant - except better read more

The service here is unbelievably slow. We waited twenty minutes last night before our server came over in a huff to begrudgingly take drink orders. After that he was aloof and evasive all night. The food was not bad but nothing special. read more

Great Italian place in the heart of U of T Owner is nice and makes sure guess are happy with dishes Authentic, unpretentious, value, decent menu read more

Very much enjoyed the food. Would have liked better service. The waiter who greeted us didn't check our reservation, just asked us to wait at the bar. He pointed at the 2 bar stools for the three of us. We had to arrange our own seating asking the couple next to us if we may take the stool that was in the corner. When dinner is priced this high, I want service. Next he tried to seat us without realizing a group of 4 were ahead of us. Sloppy mistakes. Dinner was delicious but overpriced. Don't need to go back. read more

Cozy atmosphere, friendly & attentive service, and we found the food came out surprisingly fast! A little pricey but no real complaints.

Amazing pizza. Also great service. Steps from the holiday inn. Waiters were nice, and the atmosphere is excellent. If you don't like fancy pizza try somewhere else. Nice wine selection, too. read more

This was the best meal we have had in Toronto. Fettuccine with Morrell mushrooms and sea bass ravioli. Robert was a gracious waiter and host. read more

My friend and I had dinner here on June 22 for about a hundred bucks (incl.tip) and it was so awful that I had to have dinner a second time at home. Everything tasted like sawdust. The bread was so hard that a second bite would have meant a dentist visit. A pasta dish with shrimp had just one overdone shrimp and lots of cheap mussels. The spaghetti on the other hand was undercooked. They just don't have a selection of beers and prefer you buy expensive wine. The waiter is good at acting but not so good when it comes to service. The Menu print is so small, that in that dim light, one has to have 20:20 vision. I have managed without glasses for 72 years; maybe it's time to see an Optometrist. I guess that would be one benefit of going to this place. read more

I got a fresh fruit juice here yesterday and while the flavour was really good, it was like room temperature warm. Warm juice. No thank you. read more

This is truly a great place. Wait staff par excellence. Head chef is terrific and always has truly fresh, perfectly prepared dishes. Their pizzas are by far THE BEST IN THE CITY, their Caesar as well. Daily specials by the chef never disappoint. Good wine selection, good martinis. read more

Oh how I love this restaurant! If I could afford to live in their neighbourhood I would be there ... A LOT. I would feel comfortable sitting alone at the bar or bringing friends-date-family-colleagues for a meal. The food at Bar Mercurio is consistently great. They take great care in their food, its presentation and their attentive service. I have been eating there for several years, and it is ALWAYS great! There is something on the menu for any one (eg, any age, taste) and their wine list is quite exhaustive for a bar/bistro. I need to eat there more often (and I am going to!) Their pizzas are heavenly and their pastas are amazing. There is a teeny patio out front is you'd like to sit outside. I always get a warm welcome and I am not a regular. read more

This place was recommended by the concierge at my hotel. It will definitely not disappoint. The service was very efficient and friendly, but the food was awesome. If you like artichokes you MUST order their appetizer with the garlic and oil and cheese. I ordered the pizza and that was great as well. This is quite the gem in the middle of downtown Toronto. A must if you are in the area. read more

This is my favorite hangout on campus. Be sure to try their hazelnut biscotti and macchiato. Service is always great as is the ambiance.

Ate here for the first and last time a few months ago. The reason that I'm writing the review now is because I sent the manager two emails explaining my awful experience, and he didn't bother to respond--so it's fair to assume that they don't really care. The food is not bad, but the service is awful. The wine is very overpriced so I expected the service to match up to the price, but the staff are so uncourteous and rude. We had to be somewhere and we told the hostess that when we walked in, but the pizza took so long that we had to have our salads and then come back after our meeting to eat the pizza (all of which we had already paid for, by the way). That wasn't even the issue. When we came back and ordered more wine, the 3 ounces looked like a tester, so we said "go ahead, no need to taste" and the waitress said "no, that's it!". It was kind of hilarious and we were in disbelief so she decided that she would take a shot glass and prove that the glass she poured was really 3 ounces, which is rude and uncalled for. We told her that it wasn't necessary and that we believed her. The service just kept going downhill from there. Had to ask for things again and again, and when we got them it was with lots of eye rolls and attitude. The wine glasses smelled like the dirty rag that they used to dry them, which is so gross! I contacted the manager, he gave me his email, I emailed him twice and received no response. So, now I'm writing this review. You'll get better service at Fox & the Fiddle next door. I should also mention that the dress code for the girls working here seems to be shirts as dresses...we got an unexpected show with our meal at the bar as the bartender was putting the glasses away. Unprofessional all around. Go somewhere else! read more

Incredible meal, great service and great atmosphere, this place (though pricey) is terrific. I had a very memorable experience and recommend it to anyone on a special occasion or looking for a great meal. read more

Our party of four had a reservation for 7:45 -and showed up a bit earlier - on Saturday evening. The restaurant was not particularly busy. There was only one group ahead of us. After 20 minutes, when we asked what the delay was, the response was "We're sorry, why not buy a drink at the bar." Eventually we were seated around 8:20. Whether they had deliberately double booked, or merely couldn't predict how long prior patrons would take, we felt poorly treated. We certainly weren't offered anything to compensate for the hassle. There are lots of other restaurants in Toronto to try rather than one that thinks its doing you a favour by letting you eat there, and making you wait well beyond your reservation time. I'd give this one a miss. read more

Wow came in with high expectations with prices being pretty high. What a let down. Service was terrible. Had to ask for water a few times to a few different people. From appetizers to mains it took over 38 mins with nobody coming up to us and even asking if we needed more wine. They said that "maximum effort" is all we can give. The food was just ok. Our servicer Rob was very inattentive and seemed like a chicken with his head cut off. read more

Three of us girlfriends were looking for a place to grab some good eats and catch up - one of my friends suggested this place. While the food was tremendous, I have to agree with the others on their reviews about the poor service. It was atrocious. After having made a reservation, we were made to wait for over a half hour sans explanation. Once we were finally seated, instead of being offered an explanation, or offered a glass of wine, we had to literally beg someone to take our order. And to top all of that off, I swear that the back of my chair must have been bumped by servers passing by once every five minutes. It starts to get old after the first couple of times, and no one bothers to even excuse themselves, never mind apologize. While I was initially tempted to go back with my husband due to the enticing smells and lovely ambiance, I really don't think I have it in me to sit through an experience like that again. And it's not exactly like you're getting a good deal either, so the least you could expect is good service. read more

For the first time in years, I just a restaurant without leaving a tip. First, I was disappointed that the actual menu did not match the online menu, and the items I was considering were not actually offered. How hard is it to update your online menu??? It's faster than revising and printing a new paper menu! Second, I had been told that Bar Mercurio was famous for a cocktail called a Blueberry Tea, and the staff had never heard of it. They did figure out how to make it, and I was quite pleased with it. I ordered the carciofi salad; it was not nearly as good as I expected, and I had a hard time finding the artichoke in it (a main ingredient). However, it was not bad, and it was a healthy choice. As I ate, unfortunately, my waiter never once refilled my water, even when he refilled the glasses at the table next to me. I had great difficulty catching his eye for ANYTHING. But I was actually offended when I heard him describe the specials to the people newly seated next to me. He had not even mentioned the existence of specials to me. Is there some particular reason he didn't think I would be interested in hearing about them? I felt like I was being dismissed because I was eating alone. At that point, I decided his tip would only be 15%. After I finished both food and drink, I waited at least 20 minutes and tried several times to catch his eye without success. He never brought the check. I finally pulled on my jacket and went to stand by the register to pay. At last he noticed me and printed out an UNITEMIZED check showing just the total. I asked for the itemized version, inserted my card and opted to leave NO tip. The experience was unpleasant enough that I will not likely return, even though Mercurio is close to the hotel I will visit several times each year. Lesson to waiters: NEVER treat a woman dining alone like she is less important than the couples and groups at the other tables unless you want to forfeit your tip and her future business. read more