Before giving my 2 cents on Vizavi, I would like to explain (for the uninitiated) how the vast…read moremajority of Russian restaurants in Toronto function. Most are open for lunch and dinner and will have a menu from which you can order a meal. However, their primary source of business (and validation from the Russian community) is the "full-cover" option where the patrons order a number of seats paying a set fee (depending on the menu options and the time of day) per seat. With a full-cover, your table will be layered with dozens of dishes, with new ones added in a span of 4-6 hour. Most Russian restaurants have some live music in the evenings along with a dance floor. Although the full-cover option is available to smaller groups, it is usually utilized by larger parties. It is common for a larger group to book the entire restaurant for a wedding, a birthday party or a work function. To larger groups, the restaurant functions as a banquet hall. Most of these restaraunts serve alcohol but BYOB is a very popular option. I would recommend three basic rules you will need to follow in order to enjoy your full-cover experience: 1. There will always be more food on the table than you can enjoy at any point in time; 2. The best food usually comes later so don't over-eat earlier (see rule number 1); and 3. If there is music, don't be shy about doing a little dancing between courses (it helps burn calories). Most of the Russian restaurants offer similar dishes in their full-cover options. They are usually judged by the handful of dishes that is unique to a particular restaurant and by the quality/freshness of the food. With this in mind, here is the review of my full-cover experience at Vizavis. I have been there several times since many members of my Russian-speaking family like to book it for their birthday parties. Overall, my experience as relayed in this review has been consistent. The restaurant is a comparatively small space. A group of 30-40 people might be enough to book the entire venue. It doesn't have the tacky, over-the-top décor like faux gold high ceilings and giant chandleries (which is either good or bad depending on what you like). You won't get married here but you can have an intimate birthday party with 30 of your close friends and family. There is a decent-size dance floor and the music is pretty good, with some English and French songs mixed into the usual lineup of Russian restaurant songs. The staff is good at re-filling drinks, setting tables, replacing dishes and catering to the dozens of minor requests for new cutlery, extra napkins, etc.... With the full-cover option everyone is on the same clock and you don't have to worry about your orders being mixed up. The food is excellent. Everything is prepared fresh and you don't feel like you are eating yesterday's leftovers (which is more than I can say about some other Russian restaurants I won't name here). The braised veal ribs are fall-of-the bone delicious and the grilled meat platter served towards the end is solid. The restaurant serves some unique dishes including an avocado-mango salad, potato latkes and the house-specialty varenyky (a type of Ukrainian pierogi stuffed with strawberries). Honestly, I would go back just for the varenyky and would recommend this dish, to anyone just ordering from the menu. Overall, Vizavis is a great experience.

I have my birthday party in May 2022 Fresh prepared very…read moretasty food was appreciated by my guests The service was excellent and very fast The live music played by talented musicians plus excellent food served made my party extremely outstanding Recommend to visit the restaurant

Been wanting to come here for a while and finally did it!!! And I think it was a good pick for a…read morebirthday celebration! Love the bustling vibe of the restaurant. The tables were full while were there...we had to flag a waiter to get our order. Once that was done, the food came fast. We ordered many dishes to try. I have no complaints at all, and here are some of my favourites: Veal steak - nice and tender. And I love the sauce which has a kick to it. Cabbage rolls - a must try!!!!!!! Hummus- super tasty with the bread Osso buco - the meat was very good with the sauce it was in I love the live entertainment. The guy was talented!!! And the music wasn't crazy loud that we couldn't hear each other talking. A definite recommend!!

Discovered thisEastern European restaurant, Stroganoff in our neighborhood after searching on…read moregoogle and the food was fantastic! I'm always searching for Eastern European food as I missed this food that I used to get in Etobicoke but it's a little far from Markham so now I finally found one that is close by.If uou're looking for something new to try, give this place a try! Their meat dumplings (Plemeny)in mushroom sauce is delicious.Tibetan Mo mo used to be my favorite dumplings but now is Russian Plemeny dumplings. For our mains, we got the grilled salmon skewer and Beef Stroganoff to share for the 3 of us us since our appetizers,perogies, borsh soup and meatdumplingsitems were more substantial (not light dishes)so we didn't need individual maiins. They also give you a basket of complimentary bread slices to start so I recommend you get get the Egggplant Ikura spread cause it goes nicely with the bread(double check that you'll get bread).Since this was our first visit I'm not dure if they always give bread.Booth maindishes were delicious! I like to try their cabbage rolls on our next visit! I actually have a long list of items to try on our next visit so we'll definitely be back!

I was craving a good Turkish flatbread made Black Sea region style: with a thick crust, lots of…read morecheese and butter. I am so glad to have found this Georgian restaurant. Hachapuri was delicious and made me feel like having "Karadeniz Pidesi" on the Black Sea coast. Service was also fast and efficient. Will definitely come again and try other dishes as well.

Came here due to high review. Never have this type of food. So lets try it out!…read more Surprisingly busy on weekday dinner, but at least there's no line up. A lot of beatiful European-looking clienteles (and we are the only non-European one). lol. Upon sitting: Free bread and pickled spicy beets/cabbage are provided, along with 4 different types of sauces. We ordered: 1.khinkali (dumpling beef and pork). 3 HUGE pieces of dumpling. Theres broth inside the dumpling. Taste yummy and homey 2. Goergian bread with chese and runny eggs in the middle. best to eat while it's warm. the bread feels fluffy. cheese is not heavy as i thought. 3. (medium-grilled) baby lamb rack comes with side dishes & bread. tender. 'homey' taste (not overpowering like typical food in restaurant). 4. walnut cake comes with vanilla ice cream. cake doesnt feel condesed/heavy like typical cake! and definitely great mix with ice cream. Overall, food taste 'homey', which is good/different experience. But didnt feel compatible with high-price (receipt with food name&price are attached for reference). We will not be back as there's nth really memorable/oustanding flavor-wise..(except for the great service!) With same spending, we feel it's more worthed to spend in different restaurant. But if you never try and looking for yours-truly-experience, go ahead. After all, whats not too great for me might be hidden gem for you. Cheers!

Russian Done Right!!!…read more Being no stranger to the Russian community, as I have many Russian friends from all over Russia, and have been to Russian weddings, barbecues, other events and have eaten many traditional dinners at the homes of my friends. I have heard about Arbat from many of my friends over the years and heard such great things about it, sadly I have never eaten there before. Well, I finally got my chance as I was invited to a wedding at Arbat!!. Arbat is located near Dufferin and Center Street right near the famous Concord Foods Grocery store, a landmark in the area. It is a restaurant and an event space for banquets and weddings. It's a little on the smaller side for an event space but our group was easily accommodated. There is live music and karaoke on certain nights and the singers although Russian can and will sing in English and sing English songs ( just ask ). There are set menus for the regular diners and its charged by the type of food and the amount of guests. When the food started coming out, you tell right away who was familiar with Russian food and cuisine and who was not, as they started bringing course after course after course. Some of the guests were full after the first two courses since they didn't realize the main courses had yet to be served. I sampled as many of the delicacies as I could patiently waiting for the main courses to arrive. Every dish that was brought was made to a very high standard with fresh ingredients and high-quality cuts of meat, fish and seafood. The kid's meals were very good as well, although they were full by the time their meals came out my kids said their food was really good. We had a great time, listened to such great music and now I want to go back for dinner. Any takers?

Great restaurant, hosted our private event! Good food, beautiful venue and great service.read more

Whoever that other person that gave this amazing place a 3 star clearly a) doesn't have enough…read moreexperience with Russian restaurants and b) doesn't understand how to properly approach a "sharp" owner named Tatiana (duh) who is the sweetest and the most helpful person. I hope people don't take this seriously as he has just one review. Speaks volumes about his Russian restaurant experiences... Just FYI I have been to over 15 different Russian Restaurants, including 2 more in Los Angeles. Let's do this review right and give an amazing place justice. THIS IS THE RUSSIAN RESTAURANT RIGHT NOW. THE PLACE. ASK ANY SINGLE EASTERN EUROPEAN BAKERY IN NORTH YORK/TORONTO and they will tell you wow, everyone is going to Tatiana. We had to reserve our Saturday night 3 months in advance. People from Hamilton, St Cathrines, Pickering, Ajax, Mississauga -everyone is trying to get into this restaurant. Why? You need to understand the nature of RR (let's just go with this for Russian Restaurant(s) from now on). It's an extremely difficult and restless business - you need to be working 7 days a week, 24 hours a day. RR management and names and chefs change weekly if not every other 4 days. So, if you go to one RR and you LOVE it and go back the next week you may not find that you have the same food or the same service. Russian people drink and they dance. This is what RR is about. Don't come here with expectations of a friggin steak house on King St, what is wrong with you? It's an EVENT. It's a BANQUET HALL. People come here to wear their beautiful suits and dresses, to meet with their best friends, to drink and to eat amazing food. I've had bad food experiences with RRs but this one is great I have no complaints about the food AT ALL. (except for the holodets, anyone who's Russian will know and will understand that no one ever likes or eats it at RRs...) So. About the service. Have you ever seen Orange is the New Black? Tatiana is Red. She's not rude. She is not mean. She is extremely helpful, she is nice, she is stressed out but she is organized to the tits and she will get sh*t done and FAST. If she tells you how many people don't go hmmm...welll....i was thinking... NO. NO! TELL HER HOW MANY GODDAMN PEOPLE AND MOVE ON. If she tell you come at 8 do not come at 7. She will say what the F are you doing here. Because this is business and ain't nobody got time for your indecisiveness. Tatiana also has one of the best RR websites out there - with a full menu available online. Booze: bring your own. to the other reviewer person - are you friggin kidding me? Where else can you get a 2L bottle of wine for $12 bucks (LCBO) and a 7 course dinner with caviar, seafood, lamb, traditional Georgian food (that's hella hard to make), huge marinated oyster mushrooms, kebabs, etc for $65+10% tip and tax. HELLO. WHAT PLANET DO YOU LIVE ON. Also, $65+tip is the weekend night price. Weekday nights and brunch are much cheaper and much quieter with no sacrifice in quality. Food: i posted some legit pictures. White fish fillet stuffed with crab and baked with cheese, smoked salmon, marinated mushrooms, grilled pepers artichokes zucchini and asparagus, roasted potatoes, pate, 5+ different kinds of salads, cold cuts including chicken with apricot INSIDE (yeah.). stuffed eggplants, prosciutto with melon, chicken salads, red caviar, rice, chicken lamb and minced meat kebabs, mussels and shrimp sauteed in some kind of cheese tomato sauce, i could go on for days. you get the point, there is something for EVERYONNEEE and it's impossible to list everything I ate there. Service: Fast, attentive, cute and funny. We even gave our servers one of my mom's 50th birthday bouquets because she was sooo cute. Entertainment: Saxophone dude - you're so cute and your voice is like an Angel's. Also, those sax skills...wooow. The girl, i wish i knew your name, thank you for singing that Ukrainian song in support of our motherland. GO HOME PUTIN. Decor: Lovely. The table pieces were tasteful and charming, I love the table set up and there was plenty of room. TIP #1: Bring your own wine. There's no corking fee. TIP #2: Ask them to pack up whatever is left over! They have boxes, it's allowed and you can eat delicious resto food for a whole week! TIP #3: Dance. Enjoy yourself. You're coming into a different culture's home - embrace it and enjoy it, try new things. I LOVE YOU TATIANA!!!!!!!!!!!!

This place was embarrassingly bad. The servers were warm and friendly but the owner was a bitter…read morepill. They sat us quite awkwardly near the bar literally my back was against the bar. The owner rushed us through the meal and was generally unpleasant. She limited what we could take home as leftovers, not allowing two,e of the dishes with mayo in them and any of the pickles. I strongly suspect that they put the pickles etc. back with the stock in the kitchen. Which really grossed me out. I would not recommend this place unless you are in a large group and part of the Russian community. The staff were otherwise lovely and they food was tasty. Just the owner was weird, suspicious behaviour around the food and rude to myself and my friend.

The food here is pretty cheap, though the interior is a bit dated & it feels a bit like a cafeteria…read more(maybe that's part of the appeal). They get 3.5 stars. The complimentary bread was slightly over-baked. There was some crispness but it was a bit too hot. The hummus was ok. Borscht was decent. Okroshka was a cold soup. It was decent - quite refreshing. The soups came in big bowls. Mititei (sausage) was good: bouncy. Brizol moldova was rolled veal. Got it with home potatoes. The meat was good though a bit salty; it was egged & fried so there was some crispness. The potatoes were good - flavourful, with some crispness. Both mains came with a red, slightly spicy sauce which was good. The kompot (fruit drink) was decent, with a good flavour, though it was a bit dilute.

Came here on a trip to toronto from Buffalo with one of my Moldovan friends…read more I had a nice time. Staff was very friendly and service was quick. Food was pretty good and authentic, all of the staff seemed to be eastern european when I went, which is nice, and also spoke english. Yeah no complaints. Cool place.

What a great find in Waterloo, a real gem. We have been enjoying breakfast and lunch at Teremok for…read moreover 15 years. Galena and her husband run a very clean and efficient cafe. The pelmeni (meat dumplings), pierogi, borscht and sandwiches are always excellent, tasting fresh and delicious. While for eat in or take out we highly recommend Teremok. You won't be disappointed. Karen N

The place may be hard to find as they do not have a business sign up- but it's right beside Moksha…read moreYoga in uptown Waterloo. We came uptown for hot pot once and a friend of my made sure we drove by this place for their Napoleon cakes. However, by the time we got there, the place has already been closed. She then spazzed a good 5 minute on how awesome the cake and food at this mini Ukrainian restaurant were. So as a result, it got me pretty interested, and I made a mental note to check this place out in the near future. One morning after yoga, I stopped by the place. The store was owned and operated by an Ukrainian lady. Its very clean, and has this very calm/ serene feel. Upon stepping into the store, the place seems to emphasize more on pierogis and soups.. so maybe I'll come back to try that one day... The Napoleon cake is indeed good and the portion can definitely be shared amongst 2-3 ppl.

Pirosmani is located in a spot that's not too noticeable, but it's a great place to get a variety…read moreof different Georgian dishes. Unless there's an event happening, the restaurant is pretty empty and quiet, so the service is good and fairly quick. The interior of the restaurant is made for larger gatherings, and the decor inside shows off Georgian culture. I would make a return trip to eat here if I was in the area again!

Food is excellent, very tasty and authentic. In fact, it's probably the best Georgian restaurant I…read moretried so far. However, the service leaves a lot to be desired, if not for service this would be a 5 stars review. The prices are a bit higher than expected.