This place expanded into the space next door adding a lot more seating but it's still a long wait on a Saturday night! It's a very popular casual neighbourhood bistro where a wait of 45 mins and upwards is very much guaranteed on the weekends. Yup...there are no reservations here so I'd suggest visiting during off peak hours or on the week days if you hate waiting. There is no real waiting area as you are just standing on the tiny doorway with a bunch of other hungry diners. They also operate a very popular take out service as well.
This place is run by the same owner as "Cafe Carlo," though the menus are a bit different, I definitely prefer "Bonfire Bistro" way more. There's a lot more selections available here than Cafe Carlo.
Once you do get seated, the servers are friendly and knowledgeable about the food and the kitchen turns around dishes at a good pace during a full house. They always have a huge list of specials available. They are known for their thin crust wood-fired pizzas ($15-$17) - they work well to share as an appy or a lighter main. We shared the wild mushroom pizza: porcini, portobello and oyster mushrooms with wilted spinach, fresh herbs, stilton blue and mozzarella cheese on roasted garlic sauce. This pizza was surprisingly subtle despite the strong ingredients - they seem to balance each other out.
The "Atlantic Salmon" ($22.95) - pan roasted and served over a warm creamy baby potato salad with wilted arugula and asparagus. The salmon was perfectly cooked (medium) and had a nice crispy skin. I wasn't sure about the warm potato salad but I really liked it! It wasn't overly creamy, good seasoning and the potatoes were cooked appropriately. Great price and a decent sized portion!
Ambiance is lively but not overly noisy so it provides for a great bistro vibe but you're not shouting to your fellow diners. I'd love to go back but probably on a week night (hopefully the wait isn't so long). read more