Don Ellis | Last Updated: September 01,2009 8:14:06 pm
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S  pend more than a million bucks on what was a former car dealership and you too can have a spot capable of luring the highly desirable King West masses. Indeed, the scaffolding has come down and the heavily anticipated Spice Route opens to the masses tonight. The new Ian Schrager–esque restaurant has been generating much buzz, as this is the latest big-budget effort from Nick Di Donato (Liberty Group) and Charles Khabouth (INK).
The two club kings, who have earned their impressive stripes, surprised the local masses last year by teaming up in order to produce the Tattoo Rock Parlour. With Tattoo, the layout and design was in the hands of Khabouth (Guvernment, Ultra Supper Club and Dragonfly), who cleverly spun out a big-budget, graffiti-drenched residual squalor.
With Spice Route, the design is all Liberty Group. Or more specifically, creative director Nadia Di Donato primed the space into what is destined to be a perennial favourite. When the partners took over the space - which was previously the short-lived Touch Lounge (originally, the building was a Mitsubishi dealership) - in 2007, they quickly went to work turning the 8,000sq space into their definition of a Buddha bar-esque restaurant.
Di Donato knew what it would take to bring the large, square space to life. Her vision was to set all inhibitions aside and outfit the space in pure Japanese, Chinese, Thai and Indian regalia. Fast forward a year, and oversized antique doors now welcome you into a huge, dark and earthy space, tricked out with its bamboo flooring and Douglas MacRae wallpaper (gorgeous photography? Look closer – these are handcrafted paintings).
With dollar sign design and nonchalant Buddha statues in tow - and not a sign in sight - Spice Route boasts a natural physical and attitudinal resemblance to Chicago's Japonais; A hand-carved Buddha icon from the1600's hovers over the host station. Walls are pockmarked with tea light candles.
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 AT A GLANCE
Spice Route Asian Bistro
499 King St W, Toronto, ON, Canada
416-849-1808
King West
Venue:
Restaurant, Lounge
Hours:
Mon.-Fri. 5:00pm-1:00am Sat. 5:00m - 2:00am
Price Range:
$$$ (within reach)
Payment:
Master Card, Visa, American Express
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THE BUZZ
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IN THE AREA
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215 Reader Reviews | I took out a very important client stopping by on a layover back to the states. I was embarrassed by the food and the service. He commented that the food reminded him of the food court in a mall back home and actually asked the waitress seriously if they us MSG. We had terrible stomach aches and bloating, I will never, ever, come back again, it was the worst dining experience EVER!
1. Daniel Lee's Review :: March 13, 2010 Daniel Lee's Rating: 1 Stars |
The drinks are still the same though, prices and quality wise. That is probably due to most of the staff being the same as before.
I am giving it three stars for having nice bathrooms, comfortable seats (armchairs) and good drinks. Bad food though.
2. Terry Howe's Review :: March 07, 2010 Terry Howe's Rating: 3 Stars |
WORST PLACE ON EARTH!! :X disgusting food, $10 for a small springroll cut into 10 smaller pieces... food tastes like it's been sitting in the back for hours... way over priced, no where to actually chill.. everyone just stands around and stares at the people eating.. and the bouncers are all from sort of mafia.. i went with my friends for a nice bday dinner... my friend went to the pbathroom, was leaning on the sink to apply her makeup as many of us do at home and out... and the sink fell on her!!! and to my absolute shock instead of appologizing and making sure she's okay the manager starts blaiming her saying she was most likely sitting on it!!! my friend was speachless since she was already in shock that her legs almost got smashed from a sink falling on them... so i defended her saying it wasn't her fault that she should be getting an appology and they're lucky she's not suing them.. the manager starts yelling at me, A PREGNANT WOMAN!! tells the bouncer to get rid of me!! my husband steps in to defend me and 4 bouncers jump him cutting him up as he was trying to protect himself... one bouncer almost knocked me down as he was jumping my husband... IT WAS THE WORST EXPERIENCE OF MY LIFE.. and ive read this about this club on other sites about the rudeness and repulsiveness of the bouncers... it's repulsive.. save your money.. go anywhere else.. :X boring as hell.. the music sucks... the service is slow as hell... you end up sitting around starving.. everyone is ubsurdly rude you have no idea.. it actually boggles my mind how these people can be doing what they're doing.. just don't go, please..
3. MARS's Review :: March 06, 2010 MARS's Rating: Stars |
Not so terribly bad. It was overpriced and too rushed. But otherwise, not bad at all.
4. Thom A.'s Review :: March 02, 2010 Thom A.'s Rating: 3 Stars |
I was there last night(Sat.Feb.20) and I went with couple of my girls, we all were expecting to have a great time, but to be honest, to all the ladies out there, there are MUCH BETTER places to go. Lets just start with the good things...The decore was nice, the service was good(at the moment), since we got our drink very quickly , and the price was decent but we had to get through soo many poeple just to get to the bar! Now starting with the bad things...The music wasnt my thing, and beside it was way too loud to hold up a conversation. I have no idea why the music is loud in the first place, it is a resturant and people wanna talk! Second, the crowd, I thought was way too old, expecially the men. They looked like, they're in their 40th and married trying to get some action! (SAD) Adding to that, it is more a middle eastern crowd, and thats okay, but they could be very rude at times. Third, Way too crowded! you were literally rubbing yourself against someone else just to get to the bathrooms, Fourth, Did not like the washrooms, I thought it was very open. and dont like the idea of men and women sharing public bathrooms!
5. Anonymous's Review :: February 21, 2010 Anonymous's Rating: 1 Stars |
I was so pumped to go to this place because the decor looked excellent but the food was really bad! minus the tempura calamari, the main course (Chinese Black bean chicken and beef with crispy noodles) was terrible (Manchu Wok and Mandarin are way better), way too salty and made me and my companion break out in pimples afterwards. The atmosphere and decor were nice alright, too bad they can't match that with the terrible food. Thank goodness I didn't get sick though.
6. Anonymous's Review :: February 17, 2010 Anonymous's Rating: 1 Stars |
So glad I read this!!! I was going to make reservations for my boyfriends birthday but if I'm going to be treated like a worthless customer, like many of the people commenting, I think I will pass. Thanks everyoe for posting your comments!
7. Jenn's Review :: February 15, 2010 Jenn's Rating: 1 Stars |
I would give this place 0 stars if possible. All nice and fancy inside, but useless as the food is terrible.
8. J.L.'s Review :: February 04, 2010 J.L.'s Rating: 1 Stars |
The music is too loud to hold a conversation and its quality varies to almost bipolar levels. Nice washrooms, though.
9. Sandra Ferris's Review :: January 23, 2010 Sandra Ferris's Rating: 3 Stars |
I am very disappointed with the quality of food and service at Spice Route. There was no variety in selection - everything was deep fried and fattening. If you want a heart disease or clogged arteries Spice Route is the place to go to get one on a Sunday evening. A disgrace to the Asian food culture, the food at Spice Route tasted like leftover grease, and their noodles were cooked using the whole box of salt. Their noodle dishes are the epitome of sodium intake in excess. I would not recommend anyone to go here. Not only was the food horrible but the service was even worse. We waited over 30 minutes to flag down a server and the place was dead. The servers are afraid to look at you because you might ask them for more food, even though their theme for Sunday nights are 'buffet style" costing $24 a person. Even worse, when we asked if the drinks were "bottomless"to fit the buffet styled theme, the server shook his head in disbelief and moans "OOOOHHHH NOoOooo this is not Mandarin"....How rude is that?!! Did he not just try to put down both his customers (us) and Mandarin. How dare he even compare Spice Route to Mandarin! Spice Route is a non classy wannabe authentic cuisine and it's failed miserably in succeeding to provide quality food and service. Its pretentious authenticity is covered up by the expensive decor. Our money goes to the decor and not for quality food and service. $400 later for cheap leftover cooked samplers, I am still sitting here hungry and would advise people out there to not make the same mistake to go to Spice Route. Unless you want to be disappointed or are prepared pay more for your gym membership and medical bills from all the cholesterol and sodium they feed you, stay away from this restaurant! The food is fattening and non-filling. The dishes are small samplers that taste like an oil spill hit your table. This was my first and LAST time going to Spice Route. Don't make the same mistake my friends and I did tonight going to this overpriced wannabe Asian cuisine restaurant. If there were an option I would give this restaurant 0 stars.
10. Sad And Disappointed.'s Review :: January 18, 2010 Sad And Disappointed.'s Rating: 1 Stars |
Nice place but way too loud.... Service too slow.... A real meat market with no class.... Just forget it...
11. Fred's Review :: December 30, 2009 Fred's Rating: 1 Stars |
FOOD IS OK, SERVICE COULD HAVE BEEN BETTER. tHE BARTENDER EVEN WAS BAD MOUTHING A CUSTOMER TO MY FRIEND AND I, RIGHT THERE 5 FEET AWAY FROM THEM. Its true nice place too meet married men or middle eastern men, FROM PREVIOUS REVIEW! PlEASE NOT AN ATTRACTIVE CROWD AT ALL!
12. Anonymous's Review :: December 15, 2009 Anonymous's Rating: Stars |
The food was a deep-fried celebration of the mediocre, while mid-level hookers mingle with suited second-chancers in the background.
13. Steve D.'s Review :: December 11, 2009 Steve D.'s Rating: 1 Stars |
Terrible hostess - very rude and with a snobby attitude. The wait service was so-so. Overpriced and too rushed.
14. K's Review :: December 07, 2009 K's Rating: 2 Stars |
Went to Spice Route Tonight Nov 21 09,
i have been many times and its always the same thing! service is not good at all 25 min waiting at the bar to get a few drinks is unreal get some more bar staff that want to work! Also depending on what bar you go to the drink price will not be the same thats not normal at all, to doormen are losers and only let woman in well thats not fare at all!(that are not on guestlist). Also its a great place to hang out if you middle eastern! not that i dont like them dont get me wrong but they should be selling sawarma outside that place man would they make money forget about the streetmeat hahaha
15. Daves's Review :: November 22, 2009 Daves's Rating: 2 Stars |
food - okay
service - horrible. The manager is definitely very rude, and with no sense of customer service. He even told our group (while we were almost out) to go back and clean up the seat because my friend was wearing a glittery dress. (i don't know any restaurant that tells their customers to clean up their seats)
decor - beautiful
will i ever go back? No
16. Anonymous's Review :: November 21, 2009 Anonymous's Rating: 1 Stars |
For all those who poo-poo the 905'rs, get a life.
You have the nerve to insult the staff as being snobs, take a look in
the mirror.
I am going to the Spice Route at the end of the month. I will be comparing the miso black cod to the one that I had recently at Nobu in manhattan.
I am hoping that the staff is at least cordial, after all I am merely
a 905'r, with probably more money than many of you care to admit.
17. 2posh4u's Review :: November 09, 2009 2posh4u's Rating: Stars |
Décor is very nice. The people were all polite and helpful. The tuna is excellent, one of the best in the city. In fact I have gone there many times just for the tuna.
18. Richard 's Review :: November 04, 2009 Richard 's Rating: 4 Stars |
Went there tonight...Not too busy as it has now been open for a year. Enjoyed the decor and zen like feel that the place offers. Drinks were made to order, nothing extradinory, just plain. All in all the decor made up for the bland drink. Female blonde bartender with the oily hair who obviously did not take pride in her appearance was also sharp and rude. I say the place is good for a drink and nice convo with a friend. Eating...I don't think so. Not worth the money.
19. Christina's Review :: November 04, 2009 Christina's Rating: 3 Stars |
Don't eat the rare tuna. It gave me food poisoning. I was in the hospital over night and sick for over a week. I will NEVER go to Spice Route again. Such a shame because the food tasted delicious before I found out it was contaminated
20. Melissa's Review :: October 31, 2009 Melissa's Rating: 1 Stars |
Very nice bartender (Rob). We would go there again just for him.
21. Denise Chan's Review :: October 19, 2009 Denise Chan's Rating: 4 Stars |
Beautiful place. Great hot spot. Horrible food. It is comparable to food court food. So saucy lacking flavour. Absolutely nothing healthy on the menu. The good stuff is the really unhealthy stuff that is deep fried. Food pricy for what you're getting. Not a place to eat- mingle yes.
22. LC's Review :: October 18, 2009 LC's Rating: 1 Stars |
I was there last friday for dinner with a few coworkers and we had a fabulous time. The food was delicious - I enjoyed the sharing-style menu which allowed us to try a variety of dishes. Lemon chicken is a must! We stayed and hung out around the bar afterwards - great place to unwind after work. I give it 4/4 stars for sure.
23. Chris's Review :: October 13, 2009 Chris's Rating: 4 Stars |
Awesome place to hang out for a few drinks after work or on the weekend! Beautiful decor and great music too!
24. Carrie's Review :: October 13, 2009 Carrie's Rating: 4 Stars |
I was there last week and I must say that the doormen are extremely rude and pretentious to everyone except the regulars (ie. Bar Stars). It's almost funny to stand outside and watch these losers invoke their "power" - what a joke they are! This wasn't our first time at this place and we've noticed a distinct pattern of rude, nasty behaviour, not only from the doormen, but the servers and manager as well! The attitude of the staff is what gets me...they all think they're sooo cool even though they're merely LOW-LEVEL bar staff. They love to create a line-up outside when the place is empty inside! What are they thinking? This doesn't make a place more desirable it only makes it less desirable! What happened to making customers feel welcome and providing good service? Spice Route might have been a hot-spot but it's not now....especially for those of us who are discerning and expect a certain level of service. Let the 20-something, 905-ers with no money hang out there, I'd rather spend my money elsewhere thanks! Bottom line: don't waste your time or money there!!!
25. CB's Review :: October 12, 2009 CB's Rating: 1 Stars |
The ambiance is GREAT!! The food is average and the service was terrible!! We had to get up and go to the bar every time we wanted a drink. The waiter never once checked in on us. The busboy gave better service than the waiter. It's a great place for drinks but I probably won't be dining there again.
26. Kelly Tam's Review :: October 12, 2009 Kelly Tam's Rating: 1 Stars |
My boyfriend and I went there the night of September 23th, 2009. He was from another city and that I wanted to show him some chic place (I thought this restaurant was)after his long day of bisiness meetings. I very much liked the atmosphere, however the Customer Service is definitely 'a must' to improve. The waitress for our table was really (and I meant really) flirting with my boyfriend, she acted like I was not there at all. She did not even notice that there were two people at the table not just one while she was doing her job. I have never visited any restaurant that has a waitress who said "Anythting I can do for you?" to my boy friend four times for the first 10 minutes that we were in the restaurant as this waitress did. I, however, would feel a lot better and more comfortable if she looked at both of us while asking. Too bad, she did not. She did not look at me at all the whole night might be the best way to say. Things turned even worse when my boy friend and I got cozy and were into our conversations. This waitress acted like she was jealous and it showed. I have never experienced this kind-of-circumstance before. Believe me, it was on the opposite side of an impressive evening. Definitely not go back there again.
My Tip: Ask for a waiter if you are on date - and (still) want to try this restaurant.
27. Anonymous's Review :: September 30, 2009 Anonymous's Rating: 1 Stars |
Was there last night (Sat Sept/26) and food was just okay, service was mediocre but i have to say the DJ was amazing and made our night. Great eclectic mix of music! Anyone know who he is?
28. Joanne Ricci's Review :: September 27, 2009 Joanne Ricci's Rating: 3 Stars |
Although the decor in this place is highend, this place is pure noise! None of us could hear each other and the food was below par. The bouncers need to check in their attitude!
29. Nah's Review :: September 20, 2009 Nah's Rating: 1 Stars |
Actually, Sylvia... he's the absolute worst. top 80's faves...? Aaagh
30. Gwen's Review :: September 13, 2009 Gwen's Rating: 1 Stars |
The DJ on Saturdays nights spins teh best music i've heard in this city. Not over the top dance music but great groovy lounge and chill. Awesome!
31. Silvia G's Review :: September 13, 2009 Silvia G's Rating: 4 Stars |
FOR THE INFORMATION OF ALL AND FAIRNESS THE WINE GLASS DIDN'T BREAK YOU THREW IT ON THE FLOOR AFTER YOU WERE INFORMED 25 MINUTES BEFORE THAT WERE WOULD BE CLOSING. RESPONSE. " I AM GOING TO SIP AT IT SLOWLY" SO YOU COME IN AT 1:40 AM YOU BUY TWO GLASSES OF WINE AND YOU NURSE THEM TILL 2:30? WHEN THERE IS NO ONE LEFT IN THE PLACE! THEN YOU SPIT ON THE BOUNCER AND YELL RACIAL SLURS AND AFTER THAT YOU THROW ROCKS AT THE PLACE . WHICH WE HAVE ON CAMERA . REAL CLASSY LADIES .
32. TORONTO.'s Review :: September 06, 2009 TORONTO.'s Rating: Stars |
Beautiful Restaurant. HORRIBLE HORRIBLE SERVICE. Bouncers kill the ambiance. Too Aggressive overbearing and rude. Don't even think of complaining if you find anything suspect in your food, the manager will not address it AT ALL.
33. Karen's Review :: September 05, 2009 Karen's Rating: 1 Stars |
Beautiful restaurant. Horrible Customer Service. Bouncer is very tacky, agressive and rude. He snatched wine glasses out of our hands (btw the wine glass broke)because we didn't finish up fast enough.
34. Anonymous's Review :: September 05, 2009 Anonymous's Rating: 1 Stars |
I hate to say it (after so many people have already done so), but Spice ROute has gotten even worse. Go for drinks, and that's it.
35. Trent Garry's Review :: September 01, 2009 Trent Garry's Rating: 1 Stars |
After reading the host of negative comments on this site, I almost backed out of my meal out with 7 friends to Spice Route.
When we arrived we were seated directly in a wonderfully air conditioned room whilst our fabulous waiter (Mark?!?!) gave us a talk through the best way top order for a large group of us. He helped described portion size and sharing platters so that we didnt over or under order. He weas amazing! The meal arrived on time - we all LOVED it and had plenty to eat.
When one of my party mentioned my birthday, Mark promptly retunred with a birthday platter fo goodies and a candle - complimentry and just in time to have with the wine which was delicious.
All in all a FABULOUS dining and social experience which everyone loved!
36. Rebecca's Review :: August 25, 2009 Rebecca's Rating: 4 Stars |
Great place to spend a Thursday night after work - good food, nice atmosphere, great music and awesome patio!
37. Diana's Review :: August 15, 2009 Diana's Rating: 4 Stars |
Nice space, loud, boisterous, great for the deaf, dumb & taste bud defficient. Spicing just a notch above mall food court variety. Servers try but can't compensate for the indifferent greating by the hostess. There aren't quiet & intimate tables, very appropriate for the teenage & twenty something crown who don't know any better. Patio looked nice but was all 'booked' with 2 empty tables with 'reserved' signs - may be we did not look 'cool' enough for the patio. Will not go back!
38. Gasp's Review :: August 07, 2009 Gasp's Rating: 2 Stars |
I ate there for lunch with my sister in law today. The atmosphere was very nice, however, the food was awful. It was totally lacking in flavour and heavily salted. It's probably the first time that I haven't finished a meal because I was too full.
39. Jo-Ann 's Review :: July 29, 2009 Jo-Ann 's Rating: 1 Stars |
place sucks.i had to go,invited for a birthday party. the black brother on saturday night is a complete loser, music is terrible but what do you expcet on king street. all you 905ers that come down to the city on saturday nights, please stay on king street and dont go anywhere else in the city, you guys are all losers and posers with your button shirts untucked over your jeans....hahaha!!!! you guys look all the same
40. Vinny Gallo's Review :: July 26, 2009 Vinny Gallo's Rating: 1 Stars |
I've been to Spice Route on various occasions last year and was uber impressed - the crowd was fabulous and it was the place to be seen. But, when I ended up there with girlfriends after work one evening last week, I was less than impressed. Dare I say that it has gone the way of many other restaurants/bars like it and is now catering to middle-of-the-road clients who are just now starting to frequent it? Too bad but c'est la vie.
41. Jennifer A's Review :: July 22, 2009 Jennifer A's Rating: 2 Stars |
I used to really enjoy eating and hanging at Spice Route. I no longer feel that way.....
I guess anyone who wants to walk in...CAN! The crowd was terrible. It was all 905 cookie cutters, trying WAY to hard!
Women looked like they were wearing left over bridesmade dresses and the men in H&M. Aldo must have had a sale because everyone had the same shoes!
42. S's Review :: July 02, 2009 S's Rating: 2 Stars |
Great food and great atmosphere - definitely a place to return to!
43. Katherine's Review :: June 30, 2009 Katherine's Rating: 4 Stars |
Bartender with the elvis hair needs to lose the attitude - 1 star
44. Jim's Review :: June 30, 2009 Jim's Rating: 1 Stars |
I live in the area and have been walking past daily thinking, that looks like a great patio. I finally went last night with a good friend. The decor is wonderful, although I couldn't tell when I first walked in if this was a restaurant or a night club. It's understandable, since I was told by the bartender that the place is a buzzing night spot on the weekend.
We sat on the patio, at a generously sized table. The food we tried was great, and all other plates passing by to other tables looked and smelled very appetizing. My only criticism of Spice Route would have to be the much too casual and untrained staff. The waitresses, while very friendly, are not professional enough for serving food, which they don't actually do themselves. It seemed to me that I was more likely to get a lap dance from any of them, then have my table wiped off before I was seated at it. The food runners/ bus boys are so untrained that they cleared the sauce from both sharing plates we ordered before we were done eating. So I was left with a salmon hand roll that I had taken one bite out of and no shoyu, wasabi or ginger to dress it.
I don't think I'll be gong back too soon. I suppose if you absolutely must be seen in the trendiest spots and are willing to sacrifice service quality for being a scenester then by all means throw down a little too much money for a nice time on the patio, just don't expect anything exceptional.
45. Neighbourhood Local's Review :: June 24, 2009 Neighbourhood Local's Rating: 2 Stars |
Just had dinner and it was beautiful! The space is overwhelming but the decor is gorgeous. Super trendy Asian feel. Our server was charismatic and he kept us well informed of how long our food would take and if there were any delays. Since many people have complained about service in the other posts, I would recommend going in before the huge dinner rush (we went from 6-7pm) By the way, I could sit in the bathrooms for hours because they were so fabulous and calming! (Really a must-see to get what I'm saying.) Would definitely go back again.
46. Jodie's Review :: June 15, 2009 Jodie's Rating: 4 Stars |
I would give this restaurant a zero if it wasn't for the beautiful washrooms.... Our first encounter was with the rude, snob-toned hostess - who claimed we did not "confirm" our reservations, although we called and confirmed that very day. We had requested that champagne be on our table upon arrival and since we "didn't confirm" we would have to wait at the bar for 25min(?) so they could put out just 8 glasses and an ice bucket. Our food was so disappointing. I anticipated that the gorgeously descriptive menu would have at the very least a hint of the claimed ingredients - but no, the Soy-Ginger Salmon smelled so strongly of fish (which for the ignorant could be passed off as - that's just the way salmon smells) and the vegetable pakoras with coriander yoghurt dipping sauce was just plain BLAND. All together our table ordered 17 items, everyone ordered an appetizer and main+1 - and all 17 items were brought out at the exact same time. Just dumped into the middle of the table like a 'free-for-all'. After clearing the plates we were given the dessert menus but never asked if we actually wanted to order anything - instead our waiter abruptly brought us the bill and basically told us that we were out of luck for coffee and dessert because our table needed to be turned over.. After our initial reaction of 'you can't be seriously pushing us out of here?!' we were fobbed off onto the duty manager who looked concerned and seemed to be actively trying to find a new place for us to sit, unfortunately the solution was 'we could move you outside' - yeah right, it had been raining that evening and all of the patio furniture was wet! Needless to say we had no problem taking our patronage elsewhere to spend the rest of our Saturday night.
47. Farrah Thompson's Review :: June 01, 2009 Farrah Thompson's Rating: 1 Stars |
This place was jam packed on a Thursday night. The patio area wasn't too bad though, but I wish they had table service out there or at least another bar because people were clawing over each other for drinks.
48. Gerard Dalin's Review :: May 26, 2009 Gerard Dalin's Rating: 3 Stars |
I've never been a fan of Asian fusion.
And I've never been a fan of having to hunt for parking.
Combine the two and you get closer to 2.5 stars.
Wasabi noodles - uh? Pomegranate porkchops - waay too sweet!
I've given Spice ROute 2 tries, and unfortunately, cannot give it a 3rd. But I must admit that this place does have a loyal following. They must all be dance club lovers. Not me.
49. John King's Review :: May 17, 2009 John King's Rating: 2 Stars |
Drinks are cheap but the food is horrible. I'm sorry. I could get better cuisine in the food court of eaton centre. I was there this evening and about 4 hours later i'm still suffering from the stomach cramps. They just bombard the food with excessive spices. I bet the sodium content of one meal is enough for your whole month's allowance.
50. Justthetruth's Review :: May 17, 2009 Justthetruth's Rating: 1 Stars |
What is up with the staff? Nice looking place but service is awful! I have given this place a fair try. I have had a bad experience everytime. Particularily embarrassed when clients from out of town asked me to meet there for drinks. I had to convince them that all night spots in Toronto had this type of service. Tall bartendar with the Elvis hair and bad attitude....."BUDDY....YOU'RE A BAAARRRRTENDAR"....loose the attitude! The manager hasn't a CLUE how to treat guests. Pulled chairs almost from right under my clients A** !!! He said he needed them and gave no explanation other than that. It was astonding! No class there and definitely some insecurity issues amongst them. Never going back. If you want to compete with some high end places, you have to bring your attitudes out of the trailer!
51. NOT NYC's Review :: May 14, 2009 NOT NYC's Rating: 1 Stars |
A great place to chill and hang out with friends! Good food and great drinks! Good job Liberty Group!
52. Andrew's Review :: April 23, 2009 Andrew's Rating: 4 Stars |
Food, staff, service - all is good at spice! 4 stars for sure!!
53. Anonymous's Review :: April 23, 2009 Anonymous's Rating: Stars |
I absolutely love Spice. The food, staff, decor, and music are awesome!! I will definitely be returning!!!
54. Mary K's Review :: April 23, 2009 Mary K's Rating: 4 Stars |
What's up with the no dance clause?
55. Stacy's Review :: April 23, 2009 Stacy's Rating: 2 Stars |
Saturday night with the girls.
Spice Market vs Spice route clearly you jest - not even close. Gagging for a drink, apps arrived before our waiter even thought of presenting the wine list we requested only three times. Food was ok, too salty for my taste or maybe it was the lack of refreshments throughout the night.
Highlight must have been flashing the crowd in the washrooms when the locks mysteriously didn’t work. Hmm who designed this place, six stalls for a bar with what capacity? Never mind the manager (who clearly has never left Toronto cheap shoes and all) explained or rather yelled I must not have UNDERSTOOD how to lock the stall (twice). Clearly at 37 yrs old I am yet to master a stall lock.
Would I return for dinner, no. Drinks..... definitely not.
56. Foodie's Review :: April 22, 2009 Foodie's Rating: 1 Stars |
went here to celebrate my girl's bday 2 saturday's ago...
Let's start w/ the bads:
-Bouncers at the door are arrogant jerks. the one tall black bouncer acts like he's God...they pick and choose who they let in. NOOOO line-up. He'll let you in if you pay HIM!
-the bouncer inside (tall white guy stands near the door up near the restaurant part, talks like terminator)will YELL at you if you make noise & tells you that you can't yell b/c it's a restaurant. It was 12:30AM!!! people are NOT eating anymore at that time! It's friggen BAR buddy! So, get over yourself buddy!
-no dancefloor
-bartenders are kinda rude
-long wait (esply if you're in a group)
GOODS:
drinks are reasonable
decor is gorgeous!! you can fit 3 girls in one bathroom!
patio is beautiful & huge!! this place (regardless of staff) is gonna be packed in the summer
place is absolutely beautiful
Would I go back? Yes but only 4 the music, decor & drinks. Steer Clear of the jerky bouncers!!
57. R's Review :: April 22, 2009 R's Rating: 3 Stars |
WoW!!!
After reading all these reviews, I do not know if I should have my bday Jam their?
Anyother ideas?
5 couples good food and maybe turns into a club???
58. Raj's Review :: April 14, 2009 Raj's Rating: Stars |
I have to say that I'm surprised so many people on here are claiming that this restaurant offers excellent food. I ate lunch at Spice Route recently with a group of about 20 coworkers and between all of us we must have covered most of the menu and the consensus - glorified greasy chinese food. Don't get me wrong, the restaurant itself is beautiful and the decor is definitely worth seeing but I would never waste money on a meal at this place again. Despite the fact that we were among the only people in the restaurant at the time and had booked the reservation well in advance, the service was beyond slow. All of our meals came out individually and some people had completely finished eating while others were still waiting to get their meals. The food itself was awful and I wouldn't have been able to distinguish it from Asian food I'd order at a cafeteria.
Overall recommedation: go for drinks, but skip the meal.
59. Anonymous's Review :: April 03, 2009 Anonymous's Rating: 1 Stars |
I used to really like Spice Route, as it was next to Totem gym.
The staff were real nice, and the rest of it is OK.
Once I worked out the VIP thing getting in was easy. Sadly, last month I walked in looking for someone I knew on a Wednesday, and there was noone there. So I left! I was informed by the tall balding doorman next friday I was BANNED for not buying a drink! That's sick. If you value your friends don't risk this place. Bye-bye Liberty group.
60. Banned At Spice Route - For Not Drinking's Review :: March 30, 2009 Banned At Spice Route - For Not Drinking's Rating: 1 Stars |
There are some tasty gems among the appetizers, but much of the food is glorified Mandarin fare. Most of the stuff is overpriced.
Service is mediocre. The people running and working the place have an inflated sense of their restaurant/bar's worth in terms of quality and cool.
Yes, the decor is beautiful. But, the atmosphere is pretty lame. The crowd has too many patrons of the "desperate" variety. i.e. Desperate to appear cool/sexy/hip/in-the-know. This is where the people who aren't really in-the-know regarding Toronto's food/party scene go because they think it is the "in-spot".
61. Meh's Review :: March 16, 2009 Meh's Rating: 2 Stars |
not sure how this place manages to have a line up of people waiting to eat there...the food is awful and cold....and the staff hovers around you making it uncomfortable to enjoy your meal.
62. Flexx's Review :: March 11, 2009 Flexx's Rating: 1 Stars |
Spice Route was set up for failure from the start. Its ambiance, sculptures, beautiful table settings and faux-art easily outstrip its mediocre food and poor service. Like the many perfect one line catch phrase reviews on the Internet for Spice Route, the initial visual impact of the place, the experience quickly devolves into the shiny apple metaphor. As the stellar Internet reviews belie obvious falsehoods due to their repetitive reptilian simplicity, the impressive decor of Spice Route cannot hide bad service nor the heart of any restaurant, the quality of its food - in this case a rotten, and likely neglected core.
While in all probability, a good business plan on paper. The failure to execute on the day to day operations of service and food quality make this place a poor dinner destination outing with friends. Spice Route only exists on the merits of its lounge and not as a dinner venue. With half the business plan carrying the other half, and as novelties wear off, the Spice Route will be swept away, like the trade routes of old.
63. Sickboy's Review :: March 10, 2009 Sickboy's Rating: 1 Stars |
I went to Spice Route for the first time this weekend and had a great time! We went for a friend's birthday. The food was good - lots to choose from and many dishes that can be shared! Decor was great and fabulous atmosphere! I give it 4 stars!
64. Mindy L's Review :: March 02, 2009 Mindy L's Rating: 4 Stars |
WORST PLACE EVER! SO OVER RATED! HORRIBLE OILY AND TASTELESS FOOD, HORRIBLE SERVICE, GUYS THAT GO THERE ARE SLEEZY,THE MANAGERS THAT WORK THERE ARE EVEN MORE USELESS. HAVE NO IDEA WHY PEOPLE EVEN WANT TO GO THERE.
THE ONLY GOOD THING ABOUT THIS PLACE IS THE DECOR.
65. N's Review :: March 02, 2009 N's Rating: 1 Stars |
After reading mixed-reviews, I decided to check out Spice Route for myself. A few of us made a reservation and were seated on time. The food was pretty good and the staff was friendly. It was very busy by the bar and the tunes were good. I would consider going back.
66. Mark's Review :: February 28, 2009 Mark's Rating: 3 Stars |
Had dinner there the other night with a few friends, and food was good, staff was friendly....I'll definitely be returning soon!
67. Alice's Review :: February 28, 2009 Alice's Rating: 4 Stars |
Wow,I was planning on having my birthday party there but after reading the reviews and seeing how consistantly bad they all are I decided against it. Thanks guys.
68. Joe's Review :: February 26, 2009 Joe's Rating: Stars |
I don't know what people are complaining about - great food, beautiful resto-lounge, a great place to spend your weekend! I give it 4 stars and I'd definitely return.
69. Carmen's Review :: February 25, 2009 Carmen's Rating: 4 Stars |
Excellent venue! Spice 4 Life was right - exactly what King West was missing!
70. Stacy's Review :: February 25, 2009 Stacy's Rating: 4 Stars |
THE WORST PLACE ON KING- only a matter of time until there is no one in there. The patio will save this place only out of convieniece. The male bartenders are rude and way to past their prime to be in the industry. Move on! Such a dissapointment.
71. Sara's Review :: February 22, 2009 Sara's Rating: 1 Stars |
Spice for Life;
Ya, it WOULD be a good place for twenty-somethings if they allowed all of the twenty-somethings to ENTER!! They don't advertise anywhere on their website that there is an age requirement but when we got there the bouncer wouldn't let us in because its 25+. What's up with that??!
72. Annoyed's Review :: February 15, 2009 Annoyed's Rating: Stars |
Interesting place.
+1 star for the cool fun atmosphere.
+1 star for the fun cool dancing and music.
-1 star for the music being so loud and in your face.
-1 star for parking situations.
-1 star for the service.
- 1 star for the par-average food
73. Del Magret's Review :: February 15, 2009 Del Magret's Rating: 1 Stars |
This place fails to advertise on their website and affiliated sites that there is an age requirement of 25+. Therefore, IF NOT 25+ YOU ARE NOT WELCOMED TO BE THERE
74. Gurls Para Of Sen's Review :: February 15, 2009 Gurls Para Of Sen's Rating: Stars |
Had dinner there last night with four girlfriends after a spa treatment. Despite being told that they wouldn't take reservations because of Winterlicious, when we arrived without reservations, we were asked by the hostess if we had reservations, and when we told her we were told they wouldn't take reservations, she says it must be because they were fully booked. Regardless, we were seated very quickly at a huge banquette table, which made it very hard to hear each other because of the loud music playing. Also, it is very dark inside and we could barely see each other. Our waitress was very nice and very fast, and our food arrived fairly quickly. Our appetizers were very good, the baby bok choy, and the vegetable tempura were excellent. Then the main courses arrived. We could have gotten food like this at Manchu Wok. The pork fried rice looked like take-out and the chicken legs were so overcooked they were dry and almost inedible. My lemon glazed chicken tasted like chicken balls from a take-out place. Very, very disappointing. The only other bright spot was my dessert, a sundae with huge tapioca bubbles. I would probably never go back there, unless I hear they've hired chefs who can actually cook.
75. Waterlogged's Review :: February 11, 2009 Waterlogged's Rating: 2 Stars |
Married men in there 40's stay home, plz....
This place is turning in to the big easy!
76. Anonymous's Review :: February 10, 2009 Anonymous's Rating: Stars |
Horrible. service from our waiter was almost non-existent and the tables on the first floor are so close together that every two seconds people were bumping into me and yes i am petite! .. but to top that turn off was the food. glamourized manchu wok was what it really was and it ended up costing us way than regular manchu wok.. no thanks to both. i felt slightly nauseated from the greasiness as well. never returning.. ever. lastly, our server saw that our plates remained untouched but do you think he asked what was wrong? nope!
77. Claudine's Review :: February 07, 2009 Claudine's Rating: 1 Stars |
Never knew such a place before that could treat there customers and DJ's like garbage and with no respect at all until now. If u want to be treated like garbage go here. Real disappointing
78. Jerri T.'s Review :: January 22, 2009 Jerri T.'s Rating: 2 Stars |
The place is gorgeous, the atmosphere dim and relaxing and the music great.
If only the food was worth eating. The drinks and bartenders left a LOT to be desired. I would only go back for maybe a beer on the patio on a summer evening - something premade... :|
79. Ana's Review :: January 20, 2009 Ana's Rating: Stars |
NOT RECOMMENDED! I couldn't wait to go home and write a negative review. Food wasn't spicy or even tasty! I could (and do) cook much better at home. Service was fair at best. Our server couldn't even remember what he had already served us/what was remaining. I could hardly see the menu it was so dark, not to mention far to loud, and cold.
Not a lot of vegetarian options (besides side dishes). Pad thai noodles weren't cooked properly. I brought the leftovers home to fix the next day.
Very much a bar atmosphere, with a line up for the woman's washroom weak cocktails and poor service to proove it.
I will not return or recommend.
80. V Phillips's Review :: January 12, 2009 V Phillips's Rating: 1 Stars |
1 star is too high to rate this complete shambles of a venue. Its really embaressing for Toronto that places like this exist. Liberty Management couldnt even afford to properly train or develop a proper system where reservations are respected and accounted for.
Myself and 9 other freinds had prepurchased tickets and made reservations for NEW YEARS EVE, we were told to arrive a little before 11pm for our booth, we didnt get seated until midnight on a booth for 6 people, half of us could not sit down. Management were nervous, disturbed and had absolutely no idea what was going on at their restaurant. Completely ruined our New years eve, I also have freinds who made reservations for dinner on another night and did nto get seated until an hour later.
Worst restaurant/lounge in Toronto I have ever come across, the extremely poor customer service and hideous management was enough to put me and all of my freinds off this place for good.
81. Shannon's Review :: January 10, 2009 Shannon's Rating: 1 Stars |
Depends on what you are looking for. If you want to dress up, walk a red carpet, see and be seen and hang out in a really really cool looking place in a hip neighbourhood ... Spice Route is a place to be. You will not get food worth the $$ you pay, the dishes are way too big for the table (no idea what they were trying to do there)and the service is just plain non-existent. Spice Route is one of those too cool for school type places but has bad food. It really is too bad as they they are design sound and have some good names backing them up. Go to crush or le select instead if you are in the area.
82. J-Rod's Review :: December 18, 2008 J-Rod's Rating: 1 Stars |
Unsure what this place has to offer apart from nice decor, poor customer service and lack of training. People should only visit once and not return, not worth the expense or wait. "Spice 4 Life", you (Liberty) should be ashamed for writing this.
83. Peter's Review :: December 03, 2008 Peter's Rating: 1 Stars |
Its just all about the atmosphere..
SERVICE + FOOD is SHIT !!!
84. Ankit's Review :: November 29, 2008 Ankit's Rating: 1 Stars |
This message is for the Spice Route owners:
Your cuisine: 5 Stars
Your wine list/Sommelier: 5 Stars
Your bartenders: 1 Star
With the exception of Rob Cardno and a very attentive woman whose name I didn't get, your bartenders need to be taught basic customer service skills. I thought it might just be me, but on 3 separate occasions my friends and spouse noticed that we become invisible when seated at your bar. What's up with that?
85. Karen Jacobson's Review :: November 27, 2008 Karen Jacobson's Rating: 2 Stars |
We thought this place was pretty great. This was our first time there last night and we were pleasantly surprised. We went with friends of ours, had dinner, and seriously, we would go again.
The only thing that kind of bugged us was that we had to get out of our table before we were ready because there was another seating reserved. That would be all fine and dandy if we had someplace else to go within the lounge. There wasn't. There were a few seats , which we were lucky enough to get.
Service was great, food was amazing except for the noodles being a little soggy. But the rest, great! We would definately go back!
86. Linda & Greg's Review :: November 23, 2008 Linda & Greg's Rating: 3 Stars |
First time I went there I was amazed with the place, the bar with suspended ceilings with screens and the water fall, the whole decoration of the place its just incredible! Very nice patio as well, I loved the fireplaces in the water. I waited at the door less then a minute to get in. People who diss this place have no taste and no idea of the amout of time and work involved to develope this project.
Its places like The Spice Root that give glamour to Toronto.
I loved it go there many times, it truly deserves the 4 star!
87. Miguel Goncalves's Review :: November 14, 2008 Miguel Goncalves's Rating: 4 Stars |
hummm spice for life, thank you Liberty for posting that. After reading all of these terrible reviews you would think instead of employing someone to post a positive review on here you would hire a general manager for your restaurant that has a clue what they are doing. Please do something about your service.
88. Lisa's Review :: November 12, 2008 Lisa's Rating: 1 Stars |
I agree - I just read the "Spice for life" review to see what the buz was all about (I've even heard some comments in real-life conversation), and it reads like a promoter's comments, rather than a poster. A long one too.
89. Dale Marshall's Review :: November 09, 2008 Dale Marshall's Rating: 1 Stars |
SPICE 4 LIFE?? You have got to be kidding! You obviously work at this venue. Spice Route is actually one of the worst venues in Toronto! The food is terrible and the service is worse! This place is a joke.
90. What?!'s Review :: November 09, 2008 What?!'s Rating: 1 Stars |
Re "Spice for life's" review i hope Spice Route is paying you well
for your amature PR work
91. Randy W's Review :: November 07, 2008 Randy W's Rating: 1 Stars |
When I think of Thursday nights, I think Spice! Ever since it’s grand opening in May 2008, my friends and I have been doing our best to secure a Thursday night reservation every chance we get! After Work Thursdays at Spice Route are definitely considered a favourite amongst us ‘twenty-somethings’ and easily on the top of the best nights in T.O. lists!!!
From the second we reach the big wooden temple doors adorned by torches and fountains at the front entrance, we just know it’s going to be a night like no other.
Behind those doors lies an asian inspired oasis – in fact, the perfect place to relax and unwind after a hard day at work!
The resto-bar is adorned with numerous Buddha statues, as well as wall décor depicting ancient ruins. Tables are filled with young professionals dining on a delicious asian-inspired feast. The menu is set up so that you can order a few dishes to share with your friends, and there is definitely something for everyone! Sushi rolls, lemon glazed chicken, pad thai, citrus salad…. the list just goes on and on. Not sure what to order? Just ask the staff as they’re good at pointing you in the right direction! But make sure to save room for dessert – the white chocolate cheesecake is definitely hard to resist! Not only does it look like a masterpiece, but it is absolutely divine! And while you’re at it, make sure to pair a few drinks up with your meal – the spiked cold teas, and the zengria are just a few of my suggestions!
Young business professionals surround the main red-lit bar in the center of the resto-lounge shmoozing amongst one another. It’s a great place to mingle, meet new people, catch up with friends, unwind with coworkers, and run into old friends, while listening to the perfect mix of electric and house mixes. It’s definitely the place to be and be seen!
During the summer months, the patio is where it’s at – truly an oasis which allows you to escape the everyday Toronto cityscape! Behind the tall cedar hedges and wood fencing, lies a row of beautiful cabanas, fish filled ponds, torches, and my favourite – 2 bars! In fact, I recommend visiting the bar closest to the cedar hedges facing the street….as the bartender there makes THE BEST mojitos in the city! He does an amazing job, and they are definitely like no other I’ve ever tasted!!! If mojitos are not your thing, no worries, as martinis, wines, beer, and mixed drinks are all at your fingertips! Still not sure what to order? – just ask the bartender what he recommends and you will surely not be disappointed! Red Dragon Martini’s are also a favourite on the menu!
If you ask me, Spice is exactly what the King West area was missing amongst its ‘hard core clubs’ and ‘not so classy bars’. It’s hard to believe that a venue existed in this location prior to the opening of Spice Route – in fact I can’t even remember the name of the place that once occupied this space! What I do know, is that I could never imagine a Toronto without Spice from here on in…it’s already become a landmark for us young professional party-goers, now up there with places like Ultra and Maro.
Although you’ve probably read mixed reviews on Spice…I’d challenge you all to try it out on a Thursday night, as I feel that you will not be disappointed! I’ve tried it out on both Fridays and Saturdays, and although everything is good…there is just something unique about those After Work Thursdays. Again, getting in may not be easy…. landing a reservation may be just as difficult….and getting in and out of the patio on those bsy summer nights may be a bit of a pain…..but something must be said about a place that is so much in demand…..after all, good things are worth the wait!
So…for those who ‘twenty to mid-thirty somethings’ (sorry no cougars here) who have been looking for a ‘new place to call home’ on a Thursday night – Spice Route Asian Bistro Bar would be it!
Where Thursday is definitely the new Saturday - I’d say it’s time to spice up your life and let the journey begin…
Hope to see you on all this Thursday!
Cheers,
-‘Spice 4 Life’
92. Spice 4 Life's Review :: November 07, 2008 Spice 4 Life's Rating: 4 Stars |
Great place. If you are coming for an event, make sure you come at least an hour early before the start time. Parking is hell on King and if you don't come at a good time. You will have to walk (and wait) a lot.
93. Jake Campbell's Review :: October 08, 2008 Jake Campbell's Rating: 4 Stars |
A displaced suburban hangout with desperate patrons. Food is top quality take-out. Unfortunate in most respects. The fish pond and washrooms save it.
94. David Brown's Review :: September 28, 2008 David Brown's Rating: 1 Stars |
A displaced suburban hangout with desperate patrons. Food is top quality take-out. Unfortunate in most respects. The fish pond and washrooms save it.
95. David Brown's Review :: September 28, 2008 David Brown's Rating: 1 Stars |
A visually dazzling environment with decent (but not spectacular) food is unfortunately stained by the horrendous service and mindless security people. I realize that things can get busy, but 1/2 hour between visits from the waitress - even when I'm waving the menu and asking to order?
How about this exchange with the "door security" when my friend "Bob" was attempting to return to the patio after a trip to the facilities:
Security: "You can't go out there - it's full"
Bob: "I just came from out there...my drinks and my party are all out there"
Security: "Sorry sir, you still can't go out there, you'll have to wait in (the massive) line"
Bob: "I don't think so - I've got a drink out there and you're not making any sense"
Security: "You still can't go out there"
Bob: "Okay then. I have a $200 bar bill out there - I guess I'll just leave"
Security: "Okay sir...uh (scratching head and straining to think)...wait...um...(grabs Bob's shirt)...go back to the patio"
I'm sure all of the mindless "clubbies" will put up with this type of service, but the folks who spend the real money will quickly grow tired of this. It's too bad, because this place has great potential.
96. Annoyed Canadian's Review :: September 26, 2008 Annoyed Canadian's Rating: 2 Stars |
Don't mean to pile on the bad press wagon but this place was awful...terrible food and service...if you want to do the 'dinner then dancing' thing I'd recommend Ultra or The Fifth but don't waste your money here, might be new but def. not better.
97. Paul's Review :: September 12, 2008 Paul's Rating: Stars |
I went to Spice route with 3 of my friends, one of whitch is 8 months prego. We had reservations for 7:00pm and were still not seated by 7:45. I asked if my friend could sit somewhere and was told as soon as a seat becomes available. SAD. I had to go back again a week later for a work function, the service was awful and I waited 25 minutes for a drink. I really woudn't mind paying that much for food if the service was semi decent.I e-mailed the manager a month ago and still no responce...I am a concierge and would NEVER recomend this restaurant.
98. Kelly's Review :: September 04, 2008 Kelly's Rating: 2 Stars |
I found the whole place very impressive. I wish I would have enjoyed some food there because the menu looked very good. The women there were amazing and I thought that the age mix was very nice. I'd go back again, especially if the beautiful brunette I was talking with at the bar is there too. Check the place out, it's worth a look.
99. Steve Coleman's Review :: September 02, 2008 Steve Coleman's Rating: 3 Stars |
terrible bathrooms to do coke in...the chicks are not very thin or overly nice, which I need. Never had the food cause i wanted to fill up on boos and didnt have enough money to get anything with...considering all the drinks I needed to buy myself to make the broads look better and once I had enuf and just sooo magically met a few hot broads...ohh yeah...
they got me to buy them drinks all night too and I didnt even get any poon at all...
pfft..the rippers would be way better...I get poon everytime I go there.
I'm the man.
100. Adam Newkhoak's Review :: September 02, 2008 Adam Newkhoak's Rating: 2 Stars |
South Beach meets White Hoodies at the Food Court.
While the ambience and atmosphere exudes ultra chic, especially on a hot summer's night in the Tdot, save your sexy vibe for another spot. Eat before you come, as the food down the street on Spadina tops this food court menu. Get your drink on while on route, cuz the alcohol and service at the ultra-swanky main bar is on par with the family punch bowl. And if you're looking for the posh diversity of the hottest city north of 40; drive pass this joint...even the restaurant's manager will interrupt your dinner mid-chew and tell you don't belong here...sans apology.
101. Jonah's Review :: August 30, 2008 Jonah's Rating: 1 Stars |
I was shocked when I arrived at Spice Route - "hot spot"? I think not. Certainly it was crowded and the lineup outside was long but once inside I found it a haven for unattractive 40 year olds - both men and women alike. Nothing like the crowd when Easy on the 5th or Brant House were hot spots. A bar can have great decor, an amazing setup, and the best drinks in town but if everyone is greying, balding and wrinkled it's not going to give off a very hip, fun-loving vibe. My girlfriends and I left after about 15 mins and went to Century Room where people were in their 20s and 30s!
102. Isabella Arza's Review :: August 26, 2008 Isabella Arza's Rating: 2 Stars |
Sexy, sleek and swank. Not stuffy and no attitude at all. Spice Route, you ARE a gem. This is my kind of place!
103. Anonymous's Review :: August 21, 2008 |
Sexy, sleek and swank. Not stuffy and no attitude at all. Spice Route, you ARE a gem. This is my kind of place!
104. Randy Marche's Review :: August 21, 2008 Randy Marche's Rating: 4 Stars |
Spice route...Well, what can I say? When will Toronto get tired of beautiful but pretentious clubs where pretty people stand around in their Sunday best trying to pretend their interested in the generic soulless dance music pumped out of speakers, while sipping overpriced under-liquored drinks and begging the bouncers to get past some velvet rope to get from one end of the club to the other? Do you really need to be seen that badly? Is your self loathing Miami-envy really that ingrained?
My buddy's and I got there, asked for a table (several were open) and were told table's were food or bottle service only. She left, we sat down anyway. The same server came back, took our drink orders, and never said a thing to us about it. Obviously, wasn't such a big deal. Tried to get on the patio, was told there was a line up to get on the patio...we stared at the bouncer blankly for 30 seconds, then erupted in laughter as we turned on our heels and went to 2 Cats up the street...and whats with the guy in the bathroom begging for spare change? You spend a mil renovating a classy space, overprice all your weak drinks and average beers, have some meat-shield blocking the entrance and the patio, then you guilt your patrons into paying some dude in the bathroom handing out piss-rags and offering spritzes of cheap cologne? Toronto...why? We can do better. I tell you how to fix this club...take the guys at the patio, put them at the front door, keep tabs on your occupancy (before they come in, duh!)open up the patio, get rid of the toilet jockey's, teach your bar-staff how to mix a real drink, and as long as their paying, let people sit where the hell they want.
105. Byron's Review :: August 18, 2008 Byron's Rating: 2 Stars |
Went there for lunch with a colleague. Food was overpriced for what we had. Unremarkable asian fusion at 2x the normal price. Service was excruciatingly slow, and when mentioned to the manager (after waiting 10min. just to see him to make a point), I received nothing (no apology, future comp. drink. bill discount. nothing). Unimpressive.
Was dragged back by some friends for drinks recently... shockingly similar experience. This is after a few months to work out any kinks, and it was on a slower patio night. The 'fancy' bar served nothing but basic red/white and beer. I asked for 3 different items from the drinks menu - - none were available. no apology.
When one of the guys in our group went in to use the facilities he was barred from returning to the group on the patio. they were "at capacity" and letting people in/out one at a time. REally?? perhaps some sort of wrist band or hand stamp would work since he was now trapped inside compelling our whole group to head in. Interestingly I noticed a number of young hot blondes slipping in and out with ease - - apparently bouncers have different rules for different people.
Then, to kick things off, another friend had wax from a candle spilled on her leg by the washroom attendant... that stuff hurts! not a word of apology, or offer of a simple 'lemme buy you a drink"
I get it... Spice route is the 'it' spot. It's cool to go there, and they graciously haven't added a cover, or hired really jerky bouncers. HOWEVER, if they don't improve the menu (or the value), and revamp customer service, they will become the next has-been bar on the strip.
106. Mr.B's Review :: August 17, 2008 Mr.B's Rating: 2 Stars |
I had a very bad experience at Spice Route last week. While the food was decent, the service was terrible and when I voiced my concerns with management they belittled me and brushed me aside. They need a course in customer service!!!!!!
107. Ashley Faust's Review :: August 15, 2008 Ashley Faust's Rating: 1 Stars |
My God people, get a grip. Any bar/restaurant doing 800 covers for dinner a night as well as doing high volume at the bar is going to have some hiccups. Of course you can get cheaper food north on Spapina (if you don't mind staring at the ducks hanging upside down in the window). And I'll gaurantee you that could get quicker service at a pub down the street(because no one is there). Every new club/restaurant in the city goes through these growing pains. Spice Route is packed night after night with hot men and woman and charge less than six bucks for a drink. I'm amazed at the people that say they'll never go back after their FOURTH bad experience. There's reason you've been there 3 or 4 times in the last three months; because it the hottest place in the city. If that isn't your thing then stop annoying fellow Spice Route patrons with your dour look and stay away.
108. Rob's Review :: July 29, 2008 Rob's Rating: 4 Stars |
Waited over an hour to be seated and we got there 5 minutes before our reservation. Was told that a waiter spilled red wine on a diner who happened to be a birthday celebrant and their table was given a complimentary round of drinks to compensate and this same group was holding up our reservations for an hour. A whole hour to have a round of drinks, yeah sure. At this point, I had to take it out on the hostess, who took it graciously. I apologized to her afterwards as it was clearly not her fault, as I found out that overbooking is common practice at Spice Route. Someone pointed out the manager whom I approached and surprisingly unapologetic said, "Tell me what would make it better?". I figured a round of drinks was fair for a group of 10. Thanks for the free round. The food was either really good or I was starving and a little trashed from the drinks had while waiting to be seated. I had the blackened cod and deep fried squid and shrimps. Like someone posted earlier you can get the same dishes for a fraction of the price a few blocks north on Spadina, that said the decor(which is nice) is partly what you're paying for and the King west scene. Our waiter was spectacular and I guess he had to be or he wouldn't be getting a tip from someone whose waited over and hour and complained that the AC was freezing our table. Overall, if you've got time to kill, like asian food in a nice place and want to practice patience.. check it out. I won't be anytime soon.
109. Mark Claudio's Review :: July 29, 2008 Mark Claudio's Rating: 3 Stars |
I went to Spice Route this past Thursday and had a great time. Upon my arrival I checked in with the hostess and asked if I could take a look around and have a drink prior to being seated. When I returned to the front desk I had my mind set on sitting on the raised level and expressed this to the hostess. The hostess got me a table on the level that I had requested even while they were experiencing a huge influx of patrons and were extremely busy. Our server was attentive, the food came promptly and was delicious. The hostess even checked in on us during our meal which was extremely impressive. I have to say that I had a great experience at Spice Route and must conclude that those who didn't share my experience may have been expecting a fine dining experience that is not in accordance with the concept of a rest-lounge in a trendy new area of Toronto.
110. Jared's Review :: July 28, 2008 Jared's Rating: 4 Stars |
The place itself is okay, nice decor, nice patio. But the neccessary attitude at this place kills it. The bouncers are horrendous. We were on guest list and still were hassled by them, despite the fact that the place was fairly empty. Needless hassle, really dampened the mood for the night. There are alot of other lounges/restaurants in this area that will treat you far better. This place is not worth it.
111. Pami's Review :: July 22, 2008 Pami's Rating: 1 Stars |
The snobiish bouncers ever... NOTE: A little smile does not hurt!!!!!
ONLY friends of the bouncers (AKA FABRIC SOFTNERS with Attitude) were being let in. I heard inside was completely empty so obvious the whole line up outside was for SHOW ONLY. Oh and that WATERFALL outside, I am suprised no has has complained until now.. a few people completey stepped in the water and soaked thier socks and shoes.
Don't bother going there unless you are a pre·ten·tious Loser.
112. Miss Q's Review :: July 20, 2008 Miss Q's Rating: 1 Stars |
Booked a reservation for Fri, July 18th for 8pm via the internet and stated in the comment section:"patio preferred and this is for Summerlious". Well, we were seated on the patio. Medocre decor but nice, big tree gave it that bit of boost. Some of the furnituring looked like it was from Zeller's...that fakey,wooven, basket, weave-look. Wait at least 20 mins for a witress to come over. Ordered a spiked ice tea(pitcher size) and said that we were here for the Summerlious menu. She didn't come back until 20mins later..didn't think it was that busy on the patio and was wandering why there wasn't many people eating. She now said that the Summerlious menu was for inside not outside. Didn't understand that..what's difference with serving in or out? So, we decided to order right from the menu. The food came faster than the drinks! Nothing much to say about the food...O.K but not dazzling! The spiked tea claimed to have 4oz of booze but I guess with the 3/4 full of ice would water that down a bit,no?? Need more booze! As we were eating, a wait staff lean over my shoulder in front of plate which his hands touched a piece of lettuce! How rude! Wait until I'm finished or at least ask! They're eager to clear plates for some reason. Definitely not the best wait staff. Truly needs to improve! Don't think I'll go back!
113. Michelle's Review :: July 19, 2008 Michelle's Rating: 2 Stars |
I have been to Spice Route a few times, two of those visits were for dinner. I have to agree with the other reviews about the food. It wasn't very appetizing. Don't get me wrong, it wasn't horrible but it wasn't good either. Our servers, both times, were really friendly but lacked in product knowledge and had to leave us a couple of times to ask the kitchen questions that we had asked them. Overall, our dinner experience was okay. I've been there a handful of times for drinks with friends and there is one night that stands out the most. A couple of friends and I went to SPice Route for drinks before our dinner reservation at Brassaii. It was pretty quiet when we arrived since it was early. There were 2 girls behind the bar that were serving us. They started talking about a negative review they had read somewhere about the bartenders. One of the girls started going on about how it was unfair that the bartenders were getting a bad wrap. Apparently, it is not the bartenders that are horrible but instead it's the managers. She kept going on about how the managers "suck at their jobs and as a result, we can't do our jobs properly." I have to admit, it was pretty funny listening to the two girls bitch about work. I've never experienced this before but I wish it would happen more often at the restaurants I go to. My favorite line was "If management could just stop putting things up their nose and get their shit together, we wouldn't be so miserable. God, I hate this place." HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! I give them 4 stars for entertainment man. Oh, FYI, this was a conversation between the 2 girls, not them and us. THAT would be VERY unprofessional. LOL. We were just eaves dropping.
I spoke to one of the managers before one of our dinner reservations onenight (we waited a little longer than we expected to for our reserved table). I think his name was Neil. Anyway, he was really nice to us and gave us free drinks for our troubles. So I guess the place is hot and cold, there is no consistency. I don't mind the place but I won't be going there for dinner anymore.
114. JC's Review :: July 18, 2008 JC's Rating: 2 Stars |
After review after review (seemingly written by the same disgruntled employee… who has an exceptionally large amount of time on her hands) I believe she has gotten the point across that she had a bad night at Spice Route. I will just say that the place is one of the more interesting restaurants I've been to in a while. Food could be better, but still all my nights have been quite memorable.
115. Anonymous's Review :: July 17, 2008 |
Reading all of these reviews, I was apprehensive of trying Spice Route out, especially as a young customer, ESPECIALLY for Summerlicious.
I feel as though this restaurant is getting its sea-legs. Let's divide and conquer:
- Call me a Toronto snob, but the decor was not as phenomenal as I had been lead to believe. I had heard that the bathrooms were especially nice, but they reminded of bathrooms seen at Cheval or C-Lounge - nothing special. The 10 foot glass window on my right hand side as I went to the bathroom was... disquieting, but interesting. Try it - you'll see what I mean. The decor was certainly nice, but nothing particularly fantastically unique. It was also extremely dark inside. The patio was pleasant, but our table wasn't set until we actually received our food, and the plexi-glass cover above the booths was dirty. I have certainly been on nicer patios - Fuzion, for example, or even Ultra.
- The service was alright. We weren't served for a little while, and the manager himself had to come take our orders. We had 4 servers throughout the night, which was haphazard and difficult to tip for. Everyone was nice enough, but just mixed up. Also, the hostess was lovely and managed to seat us on the patio despite it being a very popular patio dinner time hour.
- The food was good, but not unique. The salmon was cooked very well, but had plain vegetables and a normal soy sauce. Essentially, everything there could be had at a lower price elsewhere. The bright spot was the dessert: exotic sorbets, very flavourful. T
- The drinks weren't well made. My Red Dragon martini was watery and not great. My friend's Mango Tamarind was too strong. It felt like something a college student would mix in their kitchen. The bright spot drink-wise was their spiked teas: I had a cold Pomegranate Spiked Tea and it was fabulously refreshing - perfect summer drink.
All in all, this place has the POTENTIAl to be a hard-hitting, wonderful and unique place, but it's simply not there yet. I don't know if it ever will be: it may just attempt to coast along on its trendy location and reputation alone.
Post script: if you are younger, this is not the place to go on a weekday night. It was definitely an older crowd.
116. Anna's Review :: July 17, 2008 Anna's Rating: 2 Stars |
Didn't even get in for our dinner reservations for 10 p.m. Huge line-up, attitude at the door, so we left. I'm not spending my money at a place that isn't interested in receiving it. I am not an employee or ex-employee of Spice Route. I don't know anyone who has had a good night here. Could these good reviews are from current employees or friends of the owners?
117. Shelley's Review :: July 17, 2008 Shelley's Rating: 1 Stars |
After review after review (seemingly written by the same disgruntled employee… who has an exceptionally large amount of time on her hands) I believe she has gotten the point across that she had a bad night at Spice Route. I will just say that the place is one of the more interesting restaurants I've been to in a while. Food could be better, but still all my nights have been quite memorable.
118. Diane Trewe's Review :: July 17, 2008 Diane Trewe's Rating: 3 Stars |
Reservations made for 9pm for a party of 10 three weeks prior. We were not seated until 10pm. I spoke to the hostess twice within that hour and was told that the server has given the bill to the table and are just waiting for the patrons to leave. She also mentioned that she advised the manager, Neil Navalta of the situation.
A friend at one point within that hour asked to speak to the manager regarding the wait time & all he said was that there's nothing that can be done to speed up the process.
Once our table was ready, I asked the hostess to have the manager come by so I can speak to him as I was the one who made the reservations. He never came by from the time we were seated to when we placed our orders, so I approached him. His demeanor was very cold, not apologetic & with arms crossed. No offer any compensation was given until after I suggested it. I did not hear once that he was sorry for the wait and just used the excuse that, 'These things happen and it's out of our control.' I advised him that for a restaurant to accept reservations, whether for a party of 2 to 10, they should have a better system when moving patrons along once they have finished their meal and drinks at their table. A simple suggestion to move to the bar or patio if they chose so that the following reservations can be seated at a decent time. From the ambiance of the restaurant/lounge, one would expect at least some sort of customer service. Especially in the King West area, their service was unacceptable. BTW, according to a server, this restaurant tends to overbook, which results in our unfortunate experience.
119. Geraldine Calixterio's Review :: July 15, 2008 Geraldine Calixterio's Rating: 3 Stars |
I read all these reviews (looks like most of the bad ones were written by the same person (disgruntled employee?)) Nonetheless, we arrived without reservations but they were able to seat us right away. I think we were very luck and would recommend reservations. Sleek interior but for me the most impressive part of this restaurant is the jungle like patio area where we were seated.
120. Anonymous's Review :: July 14, 2008 |
I read all these reviews (looks like most of the bad ones were written by the same person (disgruntled employee?)) Nonetheless, we arrived without reservations but they were able to seat us right away. I think we were very luck and would recommend reservations. Sleek interior but for me the most impressive part of this restaurant is the jungle like patio area where we were seated.
121. Gregg Missoni's Review :: July 14, 2008 Gregg Missoni's Rating: 3 Stars |
I made dinner reservations on a Saturday at 10:30pm. We arrived and the hostess told us she was not a hostess and would have to wait for a hostess to come out (Why was she standing at the front when she was unable to provide customer service to patrons? No idea.). A hostess came out and the "non-hostess" did not mention to her that my party was waiting. I went over to the new employee and explained that I had 10:30pm dinner reservations. She gave me a buzzer. I asked why I needed a buzzer if we had reservations and she told me it would only be a '10 to 15 minute wait'. A friend of mine took the buzzer and went up to the "non-hostess" who originally greeted us to ask why we needed a buzzer when we had reservations. The "non-hostess" was extremely rude to my friend. I didn't hear what she said but at the end of their interaction, the "non-hostess" turned to me and said in her best-valley girl imitation, "Oh my god, you need to tell your friend to relax!" and walked away. I was shocked and at that point we decided it was absolutely time to leave. The "non-hostess" decided that she had more to say to us and went out her way to come up to once again to let us know that my friend needs to calm down. The "non-hostess" also told us that she had planned to give us free champagne (wow, what an honour!!!) but since my friend was being so difficult, she wasn't going to get that for us anymore! Incredible! I told the "non-hostess" that she was extremely rude and that was very poor customer service and that we were leaving. Again she stopped us to let us know that my friend was rude and was yelling at her!! While I didn't hear the exchange between the "non-hostess" and my friend, I can say with absolute certainty that my friend did not yell at her. Unbelievable! Clearly, I won't be back. None of us will. We all went to Brassai just east of Spice Route. We were able to get a seat on the patio, had excellent service, and had a wonderful night. We told staff at Brassai about our Spice Route experience and the staff told us they have heard the same complaints several time before about Spice Route. Spice Route is a club, oozing with (unwarranted) attitude. Until they improve their customer service and cater to people who enjoy fine dining experiences, I would not recommend going there.
122. Michelle K's Review :: July 06, 2008 Michelle K's Rating: 1 Stars |
The only redeeming quality of this place is the decor. Food is very mediocre and the service staff somewhat incompetent. If you’re looking for a place to have some drinks on a patio, then Spice Route may offer a pleasant experience.
The place reminded me more of a club that serves food then a real restaurant focused on its primary product. The menu truly disappoints. Absolutely any Asian restaurant in the area would be able to offer better quality food, not to mention at a fraction of the cost. Work fried rice reminded me of cheap cafeteria food.
There is something to be said about the beautiful bathrooms, but you have to wonder about a RESTAURANT where this is the main attraction. As I said before, drinks on a patio, sure, dinner, save your money.
123. Irene's Review :: July 05, 2008 Irene's Rating: 1 Stars |
A brief synopsis of my experience: My friends made reservations for my bachelorette party 4 weeks in advance, when they got there, the reservations did not exist. All dressed up, the hostess or who ever told them they could have the party on the patio – which was fine except it, was cold and about to rain! The manager there was the rudest thing ever and should not be a manager. We were told before we even ordered our meals that we would have to leave by 9:30 pm (it was about 8:00 pm at this point). He told us to leave once we voiced out dicontempt. Therefore, we did. At first, we did not want to pay our bill because of his rudeness and realized that the waitress (who was actually so nice to us) might have to pay for the bill out of her pocket. We paid and left. We decided to go to the Pub next door and got SPECTACULAR service. Folks, nice posh places do not employ mannerly individuals all the time. The place is nice inside though.
124. Anonymous's Review :: July 04, 2008 |
I have been to this venue 3 times for drinks, dinner and a birthday event. In all three occassions I have not been impressed and WILL NO LONGER WASTE MY TIME OR MONEY at Spice Route.
-the menu is over priced. A quick walk to Spadina and you can get similar tasting food, if not tastier, for 1/3 the cost - the menu definitely needs work for the price they expect you to pay
-wait staff for bottle service during a birthday event were not attentive and slacking - to add insult to injury they slap on an 18% gratuity charge (not 15%) and expect you to pay it even though the service deserved much less than the standard 15%!!!!
-bouncers ARE rude and obnoxious - where do they think they are? Tau Nightclub in Las Vegas? (it's a restaurant/lounge on King Street for pete's sake)
-manager at the time of the birthday event was very rude and and talked down to the birthday girl - in fact blaming the birthday girl for the cause of the service problems at the door and at her bottle service
-the bathroom line up situation during a busy Thursday night is ridiculous - i would expect that kind of chaos at a nightclub.
The upside is the patio and decor...The downside is EVERYTHING ELSE! They had better get their act together for Summerlicious and moreso before patio season is over if they intend to keep their clientele. As for myself, Toronto has many other options (existing and newly opened) that exceed the expectations of my dining and lounge experience. I'm never returning to this place or looking back.
125. Never Returning's Review :: July 04, 2008 Never Returning's Rating: 1 Stars |
A brief synopsis of my experience: My friends made reservations for my bachelorette party 4 weeks in advance, when they got there, the reservations did not exist. All dressed up, the hostess or who ever told them they could have the party on the patio – which was fine except it, was cold and about to rain! The manager there was the rudest thing ever and should not be a manager. We were told before we even ordered our meals that we would have to leave by 9:30 pm (it was about 8:00 pm at this point). He told us to leave once we voiced out dicontempt. Therefore, we did. At first, we did not want to pay our bill because of his rudeness and realized that the waitress (who was actually so nice to us) might have to pay for the bill out of her pocket. We paid and left. We decided to go to the Pub next door and got SPECTACULAR service. Folks, nice posh places do not employ mannerly individuals all the time. The place is nice inside though.
126. Naz's Review :: July 04, 2008 Naz's Rating: 1 Stars |
Negativity, negativity, neg... well. I've been reading all these posts, and a lot of the "bashing" posts sound like they're from the same hand. Disgruntled employee?
127. Anonymous's Review :: July 03, 2008 |
Negativity, negativity, neg... well. I've been reading all these posts, and a lot of the "bashing" posts sound like they're from the same hand. Disgruntled employee?
128. Daniel Fere's Review :: July 03, 2008 Daniel Fere's Rating: 4 Stars |
i went there last night and it sucked. it was a nice place but the service sucked so we went across the street to the brant house.
129. Baller's Review :: June 28, 2008 Baller's Rating: 1 Stars |
I love how someone posts a review describing a negative experience and then some fool writes another review saying it couldn't have happened and the person is told (in predictably horrible grammar) "your mistaken".
130. Pete Largo's Review :: June 27, 2008 Pete Largo's Rating: 1 Stars |
Martha,
Obviously you are either Sandra posting or a friend or relative of Sandra's. I have had nothing but horrible experience with Sandra and Spice Route in general and I will never go back. Absolutely horrible customer service and the food was disappointing.
131. Christine's Review :: June 27, 2008 Christine's Rating: 1 Stars |
Give them some time people. From what I hear, they're working on the staffing situation so MAYBE we'll be seeing some new staff. HOPEFULLY this is true and we'll start seeing some new faces. Friendlier and more experienced faces! Their bartenders and hostesses are MEAN and unprofessional! If it's not true....I give them until the end of patio season because I can't imagine people going there once their lovely patio is closed. I guess we'll just have to wait and see. I wonder how many customers they'll piss off during summerlicious?
132. Insider's Review :: June 26, 2008 Insider's Rating: 2 Stars |
Worst customer service I have ever experianced. Ever. Don't waste your time! This place is going to sink faster than the titanic with these people's attitudes. Plus, i think they are probably world record breakers for slowest bar tender and the most stone cold hostesses with permanent "blue steel" face. Gimme a break! There is more to a dining experience than just "atmosphere". I would have had a better time at Burger King!
133. Not Pleased's Review :: June 26, 2008 Not Pleased's Rating: 1 Stars |
Sean,
Are you sure you're talking about Sandra from Spice Route. She accommidated myself and other friends of mine on many occasions!!! She is the sweetest little thing, in fact my husband calls her " little miss sunshine" cause she's alway smiling! I have reservation this weekend and can't wait to tell her what you said, because obviously your mistaken!!!
Martha
134. Martha's Review :: June 25, 2008 Martha's Rating: 4 Stars |
This is an email I sent to Liberty Group (I've added a few words not included in the original email). Most horrible customer service I've ever received in my entire life.
My name is Sean and I would just like to inform you on how appalled I am by the customer service at your new restaurant Spice Route. Never in my life had I run into so many problems with the service with one restaurant. The first time I had made reservations for dinner, I waited almost an hour past my reservation time for my party of 3 and finally left out of frustration and hunger. No one at the restaurant working seemed very concerned that we were waiting that long or tried to alleviate the situation. The second time, my girlfriend reserved dinner for a party of 9. Originally, it was for 7:30pm, then she was told several days later that it was switched to 7:00pm. We accepted that. 2 days before the night of our reservations, Sandra (probably still in high school) called my girlfriend and said it had to be switched to 6:30pm. She also told us we only had a 2 hour window to eat. We were told originally that we could eat and drink as long as we wanted into the night. The 2 hour window was quite upsetting as it was for a special occasion. Now we were being told that we had to show up an hour earlier then our originally requested time, and this was done last minute. My girlfriend told her that it was impossible as members of our party could not be there at 6:30pm. She said there was nothing she can do and that if my girlfriend continued to give her attitude, she would have no problems cancelling our reservation. While we were understandably upset at the change of plans, we would hardly categorize it as "giving attitude". I told her I would discuss with the members of our party and call back. After discussing it with them, we concluded that it was impossible to meet the earlier reservations. Then I called and asked for Sandra again. This was maybe 2 minutes later. I was told she was "in a meeting and unavailable". I said that that was quite unlikely as my girlfriend had just spoken to Sandra moments before. They then reluctantly put her on the phone. I told her how this is the second time already that I had a problem with the restaurant and he has yet to sit down and eat. She started yelling that she will not take abuse from me or my girlfriend. At that point, I had not raised my voice. When she started yelling, I raised my voice as well and said this was very bad customer service. She promptly yelled "Your reservation is now cancelled!" and hung up on me, (b*tch). I called the tart back and when she answered, she started shrieking that she's doing the best she can over and over again, peppered by the F word. We were quite taken aback as she seemed to be having some sort of breakdown. We have never experienced anything ilke this with a restaurant, much less a Liberty Group restaurant which is usually held to such high standards. Needless to say, we eventually cancelled our reservation. Today, I tried to make a Summerlicious reservations for a month from today, via Amex front of the line. I was told Spice Route will not take reservations for groups larger then 5, which Im assuming is because management wants to save the larger tables for regular paying customers who will spend more. They also refused to put tables together to accomodate our party and said there was nothing they can do and didn't seem the slightest bit concerned that I was upset over the situation.
I must say I am extremely disappointed as I have had such wonderful experiences with Liberty Group restaurants before. Its very appalling the way customers are treated at this establishment. I have heard identical stories from 8 friends who have gone so far. ok food, great ambience, horrible customer service. Now I understand that there are alwyas wrinkles to iron out with a new restaurant opening and its a trial and error process but the treatment we have received so far has been unconscionable. When you have such a new restaurant, the most memorable and powerful publicity is word of mouth and customer service. As excited as all my friends were after seeing the beautiful decor and the delicious sounding menu, we can safely say that we will never again try to visit this establishment and I can vouch that alot of other people I know will do the same, whether its from their own experience or through word of mouth experiences. What if I was a food critic? Even a bartender I spoke to, who works at Spice Route completely agree with us that management has been completely incompetent whether its due to the staff they hired and trained or just the lack of control they have had overseeing the restaurant. I am very disappointed that it has come to this, after the first and second incidents, I still was willing to give it another chance. I undersand that its a business and they must look out for their best business interest but sometimes when you care so concerned about little issues, you end up missing the big picture. While one can say that no one would really care or miss our one group's presence, I can assure you that if you keep this current group of management and staff in control of the restaurant, over time, customers will cease to return. I dont need to tell you that there is nothing competitive then the restaurant industry and that they are a dime a dozen and that no matter how nice the restaurant looks or how good the food is, people will not come back if they are treated like crap. I wish you guys luck with Spice Route, if you keep this current team, you will need it.
So that's my experiences with this piece of sh*t so called restaurant. In other major cities I NEVER experience this kind of treatment. It is now my mission to spread the word to as many people as possible to make sure no one else experiences what I have from Spice Route.
Need the rest of the story in more detail, just email me, I'd looooove to share it with you. Also, there should be a rating service in the negative.
135. Anonymous's Review :: June 23, 2008 |
Wow. I cannot believe all the bad reviews this restaurant is getting. I was going to book (or try to book) a company function (retirement party for one of the partners in the firm) at this restaurant but thanks to all these reviews, I have decided not to waste our money or time at Spice Route and have decided to have our company function at Bymark instead. Thank you to all the reviewers and my friends that shared with me their own horror stories. Saved me from really humiliating myself and blowing A LOT of the companies money!!
136. Food Guru's Review :: June 23, 2008 Food Guru's Rating: 1 Stars |
I've been to Spice Route for drinks on a Thursday and thought decor was absolutely beautiful (minus the skulls and ox photo), good crowd and drinks were priced well, but wasn't too keen on trying dinner as I'm not a big fan of asian fusion. Although curious to try to see what all the fuss was about.
Was very skeptical about going there for dinner on Saturday after the terrible reviews, but thought give it a try as its a nice venue and we had a friend from out of town visiting...so we should at least try it before it folds...well at least the restaurant portion of it.
Bouncers outside were very friendly upon arrival, but the hostesses was not very welcoming, defintely unprofessional and had a bit of an attitude. Seems they only hire pretty people to stand there and for the them to actually have to work to find a reservation was way too much for them to handle. She actually seemed annoyed when she couldn't find reservation and just told me there's no reservation.
How hard is it to find reservation when you give spelling of first and last name and time of reservation? When she did locate reservation told me it was mispelled in their system - so how is it they confirmed the reservation when my friend called them half an hour earlier telling them we were running 10 - 15 mins late for our reservation and said it was okay? She didn't look at me after this, perhaps realizing it was her mistake she couldn't locate reservation on the computer. And did she apologize? Of course not.
Despite the incompetencies of the front staff, experience in the dining area was quite enjoyable as we had a great waiter - very friendly, attentive and accomodating but not overbearing. Presentation of food was fabulous, but food itself wasn't all that great - it was edible, but I just kept thinking it was simply bland Chinese food but cost twice the amount it normally cost if you were to eat in Chinatown.
Save your money, if you want Chinese food better off eating in Chinatown and then head there for drinks afterwards as the crowd is not a bad looking crowd and they have a very nice patio. More of a mingling place - see the place turning into a lounge and not remain a bistro bar as they named it.
Bouncers inside were quite friendly as well - as were the bartenders, but definitely should do something about the hostesses....not very welcoming when you come to a nice place like this.
If they don't want to turn clients away from the front door then hire more experienced staff as hostesses to handle reservations.
137. Lynne's Review :: June 23, 2008 Lynne's Rating: 3 Stars |
This is an email I sent to Liberty Group (I've added a few words not included in the original email). Most horrible customer service I've ever received in my entire life.
My name is Sean and I would just like to inform you on how appalled I am by the customer service at your new restaurant Spice Route. Never in my life had I run into so many problems with the service with one restaurant. The first time I had made reservations for dinner, I waited almost an hour past my reservation time for my party of 3 and finally left out of frustration and hunger. No one at the restaurant working seemed very concerned that we were waiting that long or tried to alleviate the situation. The second time, my girlfriend reserved dinner for a party of 9. Originally, it was for 7:30pm, then she was told several days later that it was switched to 7:00pm. We accepted that. 2 days before the night of our reservations, Sandra (probably still in high school) called my girlfriend and said it had to be switched to 6:30pm. She also told us we only had a 2 hour window to eat. We were told originally that we could eat and drink as long as we wanted into the night. The 2 hour window was quite upsetting as it was for a special occasion. Now we were being told that we had to show up an hour earlier then our originally requested time, and this was done last minute. My girlfriend told her that it was impossible as members of our party could not be there at 6:30pm. She said there was nothing she can do and that if my girlfriend continued to give her attitude, she would have no problems cancelling our reservation. While we were understandably upset at the change of plans, we would hardly categorize it as "giving attitude". I told her I would discuss with the members of our party and call back. After discussing it with them, we concluded that it was impossible to meet the earlier reservations. Then I called and asked for Sandra again. This was maybe 2 minutes later. I was told she was "in a meeting and unavailable". I said that that was quite unlikely as my girlfriend had just spoken to Sandra moments before. They then reluctantly put her on the phone. I told her how this is the second time already that I had a problem with the restaurant and he has yet to sit down and eat. She started yelling that she will not take abuse from me or my girlfriend. At that point, I had not raised my voice. When she started yelling, I raised my voice as well and said this was very bad customer service. She promptly yelled "Your reservation is now cancelled!" and hung up on me, (b*tch). I called the tart back and when she answered, she started shrieking that she's doing the best she can over and over again, peppered by the F word. We were quite taken aback as she seemed to be having some sort of breakdown. We have never experienced anything ilke this with a restaurant, much less a Liberty Group restaurant which is usually held to such high standards. Needless to say, we eventually cancelled our reservation. Today, I tried to make a Summerlicious reservations for a month from today, via Amex front of the line. I was told Spice Route will not take reservations for groups larger then 5, which Im assuming is because management wants to save the larger tables for regular paying customers who will spend more. They also refused to put tables together to accomodate our party and said there was nothing they can do and didn't seem the slightest bit concerned that I was upset over the situation.
I must say I am extremely disappointed as I have had such wonderful experiences with Liberty Group restaurants before. Its very appalling the way customers are treated at this establishment. I have heard identical stories from 8 friends who have gone so far. ok food, great ambience, horrible customer service. Now I understand that there are alwyas wrinkles to iron out with a new restaurant opening and its a trial and error process but the treatment we have received so far has been unconscionable. When you have such a new restaurant, the most memorable and powerful publicity is word of mouth and customer service. As excited as all my friends were after seeing the beautiful decor and the delicious sounding menu, we can safely say that we will never again try to visit this establishment and I can vouch that alot of other people I know will do the same, whether its from their own experience or through word of mouth experiences. What if I was a food critic? Even a bartender I spoke to, who works at Spice Route completely agree with us that management has been completely incompetent whether its due to the staff they hired and trained or just the lack of control they have had overseeing the restaurant. I am very disappointed that it has come to this, after the first and second incidents, I still was willing to give it another chance. I undersand that its a business and they must look out for their best business interest but sometimes when you care so concerned about little issues, you end up missing the big picture. While one can say that no one would really care or miss our one group's presence, I can assure you that if you keep this current group of management and staff in control of the restaurant, over time, customers will cease to return. I dont need to tell you that there is nothing competitive then the restaurant industry and that they are a dime a dozen and that no matter how nice the restaurant looks or how good the food is, people will not come back if they are treated like crap. I wish you guys luck with Spice Route, if you keep this current team, you will need it.
So that's my experiences with this piece of sh*t so called restaurant. In other major cities I NEVER experience this kind of treatment. It is now my mission to spread the word to as many people as possible to make sure no one else experiences what I have from Spice Route.
Need the rest of the story in more detail, just email me, I'd looooove to share it with you. Also, there should be a rating service in the negative.
138. Sean C's Review :: June 23, 2008 Sean C's Rating: 1 Stars |
This is an email I sent to Liberty Group (I've added a few words not included in the original email). Most horrible customer service I've ever received in my entire life.
My name is Sean and I would just like to inform you on how appalled I am by the customer service at your new restaurant Spice Route. Never in my life had I run into so many problems with the service with one restaurant. The first time I had made reservations for dinner, I waited almost an hour past my reservation time for my party of 3 and finally left out of frustration and hunger. No one at the restaurant working seemed very concerned that we were waiting that long or tried to alleviate the situation. The second time, my girlfriend reserved dinner for a party of 9. Originally, it was for 7:30pm, then she was told several days later that it was switched to 7:00pm. We accepted that. 2 days before the night of our reservations, Sandra (probably still in high school) called my girlfriend and said it had to be switched to 6:30pm. She also told us we only had a 2 hour window to eat. We were told originally that we could eat and drink as long as we wanted into the night. The 2 hour window was quite upsetting as it was for a special occasion. Now we were being told that we had to show up an hour earlier then our originally requested time, and this was done last minute. My girlfriend told her that it was impossible as members of our party could not be there at 6:30pm. She said there was nothing she can do and that if my girlfriend continued to give her attitude, she would have no problems cancelling our reservation. While we were understandably upset at the change of plans, we would hardly categorize it as "giving attitude". I told her I would discuss with the members of our party and call back. After discussing it with them, we concluded that it was impossible to meet the earlier reservations. Then I called and asked for Sandra again. This was maybe 2 minutes later. I was told she was "in a meeting and unavailable". I said that that was quite unlikely as my girlfriend had just spoken to Sandra moments before. They then reluctantly put her on the phone. I told her how this is the second time already that I had a problem with the restaurant and he has yet to sit down and eat. She started yelling that she will not take abuse from me or my girlfriend. At that point, I had not raised my voice. When she started yelling, I raised my voice as well and said this was very bad customer service. She promptly yelled "Your reservation is now cancelled!" and hung up on me, (b*tch). I called the tart back and when she answered, she started shrieking that she's doing the best she can over and over again, peppered by the F word. We were quite taken aback as she seemed to be having some sort of breakdown. We have never experienced anything ilke this with a restaurant, much less a Liberty Group restaurant which is usually held to such high standards. Needless to say, we eventually cancelled our reservation. Today, I tried to make a Summerlicious reservations for a month from today, via Amex front of the line. I was told Spice Route will not take reservations for groups larger then 5, which Im assuming is because management wants to save the larger tables for regular paying customers who will spend more. They also refused to put tables together to accomodate our party and said there was nothing they can do and didn't seem the slightest bit concerned that I was upset over the situation.
I must say I am extremely disappointed as I have had such wonderful experiences with Liberty Group restaurants before. Its very appalling the way customers are treated at this establishment. I have heard identical stories from 8 friends who have gone so far. ok food, great ambience, horrible customer service. Now I understand that there are alwyas wrinkles to iron out with a new restaurant opening and its a trial and error process but the treatment we have received so far has been unconscionable. When you have such a new restaurant, the most memorable and powerful publicity is word of mouth and customer service. As excited as all my friends were after seeing the beautiful decor and the delicious sounding menu, we can safely say that we will never again try to visit this establishment and I can vouch that alot of other people I know will do the same, whether its from their own experience or through word of mouth experiences. What if I was a food critic? Even a bartender I spoke to, who works at Spice Route completely agree with us that management has been completely incompetent whether its due to the staff they hired and trained or just the lack of control they have had overseeing the restaurant. I am very disappointed that it has come to this, after the first and second incidents, I still was willing to give it another chance. I undersand that its a business and they must look out for their best business interest but sometimes when you care so concerned about little issues, you end up missing the big picture. While one can say that no one would really care or miss our one group's presence, I can assure you that if you keep this current group of management and staff in control of the restaurant, over time, customers will cease to return. I dont need to tell you that there is nothing competitive then the restaurant industry and that they are a dime a dozen and that no matter how nice the restaurant looks or how good the food is, people will not come back if they are treated like crap. I wish you guys luck with Spice Route, if you keep this current team, you will need it.
So that's my experiences with this piece of sh*t so called restaurant. In other major cities I NEVER experience this kind of treatment. It is now my mission to spread the word to as many people as possible to make sure no one else experiences what I have from Spice Route.
Need the rest of the story in more detail, just email me, I'd looooove to share it with you. Also, there should be a rating service in the negative.
139. Sean C's Review :: June 23, 2008 Sean C's Rating: 1 Stars |
Spice Route has an amazing patio and an awesome decor on the inside. However, the SERVICE here is TERRIBLE! The doorman are completely unprofessional and rude. There was no organized lineup outside of the place, and people looked confused left right and center... Potential customers didn't know where to lineup, since the doormen made no attempt whatsoever to organize a line at all.
If this place wants repeat business, they really need to step up there game service-wise. If you want good service in King West, try Brant house across the street.
If you can't stand unprofessional service at an expensive venue, than you should definitely avoid this place at all costs and ignore the hype...
140. Matt's Review :: June 20, 2008 Matt's Rating: 2 Stars |
Wish I could even give this place a proper rating. Have not even been given the chance. Tried numerous times to make reservations on seperate occasions only to be declined. And judging from the reviews, I figured summerlicious would be a good time to get some friends together and finally give this place an opportunity to redeem themselves. Given the fact that maybe they need to work on the rough patches every new resto experiences but to say that they cannot accomodate a party of 8 because "putting the tables together in the restaurant isn't pleasing to the eye". oh please. Thus far, the service has been ridiculous via phone and I don't wish to experience the service IN the restaurant. So no thanks, I'd like to give this place a -5 in all areas.
141. R's Review :: June 18, 2008 R's Rating: 1 Stars |
I went to a birthday at spice route recently despite all the negative reviews...boy, was that a big mistake! the venue itself is gorgeous but the service was terrible which wasn't surprising since all the staff in the venues run by charles are aweful. why does his company keep hiring such pretentious, high/drunk staff that seem to lack experience? i guess toronto is lacking good service staff...or perhaps they are just working in better managed venues such as The Spoke Club, Ki, Marben, Bymark, Jump. Venues like Ultra, Brant, Cheval, Spice, Century Room, Lobby...they all seem to lack good service but they certainly do not lack rude, pretentious wasted staff. such a shame...these places could be so amazing if it wasnt for the staff (including managers). Charles, perhaps you should do some scouting at your competing venues....
142. L.L's Review :: June 18, 2008 L.L's Rating: 1 Stars |
My friends and I had dinner on saturday. Gorgeous venue, beautiful space, great vibe!! Nothing like this in the city. It's about time. We were seated right away for our 7:30 reservation. Service was friendly and the food was tasty and fresh. Great value!! Dinner for 4 plus taxes and gratuity $170. Spice, we will be back.
143. Karen Thompson's Review :: June 17, 2008 Karen Thompson's Rating: 4 Stars |
This place has real potential...however bad food, bad service and bad crowd out ways the positives. The crowd ranges for early 20's to creepy people in their late 30..... I wouldnt recommend eating there, my best friends food showed up 30 minutes after my order and she was sick for 3 days from eating their gruel.... Great decor, however they need to get themselves organized in order for this place to survive!!!!
144. Anonymous's Review :: June 16, 2008 |
Food is great. Atmosphere better than most venues in Toronto. Nadia has done a fabulous job designing this space. My hat goes off to Nick and Charles. They have a winner here.
145. Dom Sicilia's Review :: June 16, 2008 Dom Sicilia's Rating: 4 Stars |
This place has real potential...however bad food, bad service and bad crowd out ways the positives. The crowd ranges for early 20's to creepy people in their late 30..... I wouldnt recommend eating there, my best friends food showed up 30 minutes after my order and she was sick for 3 days from eating their gruel.... Great decor, however they need to get themselves organized in order for this place to survive!!!!
146. Brooklynn's Review :: June 16, 2008 Brooklynn's Rating: 1 Stars |
After a bad nite there last week , I called the AGCO , and found out that there capacity was only 250 people , WHAT ? ALL THAT SPACE !!!! Well they pack it in on the count that they won't get cought !!! but one day the AGCO will get them with there pant's down !!!!
147. Anonymous's Review :: June 15, 2008 |
Worst service & food ever!! Have been ill for two days now! So very upset with my Spice Route experience!
148. Christa's Review :: June 15, 2008 Christa's Rating: 1 Stars |
After a bad nite there last week , I called the AGCO , and found out that there capacity was only 250 people , WHAT ? ALL THAT SPACE !!!! Well they pack it in on the count that they won't get cought !!! but one day the AGCO will get them with there pant's down !!!!
149. Mark's Review :: June 15, 2008 Mark's Rating: 1 Stars |
The place is beautiful, but the food and service is horrible. The food lacks creativity and taste. There is nothing particularly good tasting or exciting about the menu. Unfortunately the service is not much to talk about either, we are still waiting for our waiter to return.
Very disappointing as the patio is lovely and wonderful people seem to frequent this venue. It's only a matter of time before people who are actually interested in good food and service catch on. Needless to say that we can't expect much since the owners are more familiar with the bar/lounge scene and do not know what is needed to run a successful restaurant - Good food and service.
150. Anonymous's Review :: June 13, 2008 |
The place is beautiful, but the food and service is horrible. The food lacks creativity and taste. There is nothing particularly good tasting or exciting about the menu. Unfortunately the service is not much to talk about either, we are still waiting for our waiter to return.
Very disappointing as the patio is lovely and wonderful people seem to frequent this venue. It's only a matter of time before people who are actually interested in good food and service catch on. Needless to say that we can't expect much since the owners are more familiar with the bar/lounge scene and do not know what is needed to run a successful restaurant - Good food and service.
151. Shazia's Review :: June 13, 2008 Shazia's Rating: 1 Stars |
What to say... Busy, busy as all hell... had a dinner reservation on a Thursday night, had to fight my way to the door through a sweaty mass of 905's, get to the door and the doorman told me i had to pay $20 to get in because it was too busy. after arguing with my friends paid the $20 and got in. Patio was busy but inside was light and the decor was very trendy chic. Took about 25 minutes to get a drink before we even ordered and to say the service was poor was an understatement... all in all one of the most taxing evenings out ive had in a while... the avg 30 something crowd doesnt mix well with the elitist wannabes and the suburbanites visiting the big city... all the luck to them.
152. Flix's Review :: June 13, 2008 Flix's Rating: 1 Stars |
I think that once they iron out the kinks...this place could be great. the menu and drinks are well put together. they need some major work on the staffing issues and the organization of the restaurant. some experienced staff/managers are needed in order to make things flow. It would be a shame to see such a great space not get their act together! I agree that the uniforms are hideous.
153. Holli's Review :: June 11, 2008 Holli's Rating: 3 Stars |
went for dinner on a beautiful summer evening. had reservations and were taken to our table out on the patio right away. caught a glimpse of the inside which was similar to Buddha Bars around the world - exquisite decor! the service was a little slow and slightly confusing as to who our waiter actually was - but it didnt matter. it was a beautiful evening and the ambience on the patio was perfect - we didnt mind spending a little while longer on the patio!
the food was unbelievable - the best food we've had in Toronto for a while! highly recommend the ahi tuna salad - the worlds bestest salad - it was out of this world! we also had the black cod and seared yellowfin tuna - generous portions and flavours like you wouldnt believe. definitely second to good flavoured indian and thai food -loved the indo-thai fusion selections on the menu! cant wait to go back and try all others!
it wasn't overly priced - we both ate for $100 inclduing just a couple of drinks - great value for the food and ambience.
could do with more mature front desk staff than the high school hostesses!
highly recommended!
154. MK's Review :: June 10, 2008 MK's Rating: 4 Stars |
Clearly the many bad, okay terrible, reviews have made an impact. The bar staff bent over backwards to make our spice route experience positive. Drinks at the bar were delivered promptly and even though we didn't have a reservation they squeezed us in (although there were several empty tables). Our waiter was nice. The food was good, not great (although the lemon chicken was exceptional). The one negative was speed getting drinks to our table. Yes, service is a little slow but overall it was a good experience. Five of us ate and drank with tip for 40 bucks each. They're still new -- let's hope they work out the kinks. Worth giving a second try.
155. Mike's Review :: June 08, 2008 Mike's Rating: 3 Stars |
Nice decor - weird crowd... was there two weeks ago and met a 19 year old drunk out of his skull college student and a 50 year old drunk out of his skull farmer from Caledon... not impressed with the crowd... although the patio was stunning!
156. Anonymous's Review :: June 07, 2008 |
Nice decor - weird crowd... was there two weeks ago and met a 19 year old drunk out of his skull college student and a 50 year old drunk out of his skull farmer from Caledon... not impressed with the crowd... although the patio was stunning!
157. Lola's Review :: June 07, 2008 Lola's Rating: 1 Stars |
Would have given 0 stars if given the option.
158. Anonymous's Review :: June 06, 2008 |
I have to agree with all the negative reviews. Friends went for dinner last weekend with a reservation for two and waited two hours for their table. When they asked to speak with the manager he was rude and dismissive. The actual dinner took three hours because of the terrible wait staff.
I met up with them afterwards and was faced with the same terrible service from inexperienced bar staff. The interior is definitely impressive (copy of Tao in NY/Vegas) but I give this place 2 months before it becomes a tourist attraction. (PS what's with the hideous outfits for the bartenders--cheap, cheap, cheap!)
159. Erica's Review :: June 06, 2008 Erica's Rating: 1 Stars |
Would have given 0 stars if given the option.
160. Diane Chan's Review :: June 06, 2008 Diane Chan's Rating: 1 Stars |
The worse service ever! We had reservation at 8pm. We got there 5 minutes early and had to wait 30 minutes to get seated. Then, we had to wait another 15 minutes before someone came to take our order. We actually had to talk to the manager to have someone at our table. The staff was very snob and incompetent and obviously inexperienced (no manners and the kind who piles all your plates in front of you!). No excuses where given after we complained. No one came over to ask how our meal was. Our empty plates were in front of us for a good 15 minutes. They forgot our drinks and our appetizers came late. The bill, of course had an error on it, they overcharged us for drinks we never had. The food was ok, but everything seems to be fried in the same oil (everything tasted like tempura). The only way I would go back to this place is if it was free and if I would only have drinks on the patio- cause I have to admit, the place/decor is very nice! But everything else, mediodre. Go somewhere else if you have a choice!
161. Anonymous's Review :: June 05, 2008 |
The worse service ever! We had reservation at 8pm. We got there 5 minutes early and had to wait 30 minutes to get seated. Then, we had to wait another 15 minutes before someone came to take our order. We actually had to talk to the manager to have someone at our table. The staff was very snob and incompetent and obviously inexperienced (no manners and the kind who piles all your plates in front of you!). No excuses where given after we complained. No one came over to ask how our meal was. Our empty plates were in front of us for a good 15 minutes. They forgot our drinks and our appetizers came late. The bill, of course had an error on it, they overcharged us for drinks we never had. The food was ok, but everything seems to be fried in the same oil (everything tasted like tempura). The only way I would go back to this place is if it was free and if I would only have drinks on the patio- cause I have to admit, the place/decor is very nice! But everything else, mediodre. Go somewhere else if you have a choice!
162. Brigitte's Review :: June 04, 2008 Brigitte's Rating: 1 Stars |
Our waiter on the patio was terrible. Overly familiar and amazingly slow. We pracitcally had to send out smoke signals to get his attention. There was another waiter who seemed really efficient, an Asian fellow, my fellow diners and I remarked how great the disparity was among wait staff. A real shame. The food was average at best. Nothing exceptional.
163. Sandra's Review :: June 03, 2008 Sandra's Rating: 2 Stars |
Made reservations & waited over an hour & half & never got seated. Kept asking the hostess nicely if we were going to get seated & she kept saying we were next needless to say that never happened as having to wait 1.5 hours for a table is just unacceptable. My friends & just left. Don't listen to the hype this place is certainly not as impressive as it seems.
164. Anonymous's Review :: June 02, 2008 |
Made reservations & waited over an hour & half & never got seated. Kept asking the hostess nicely if we were going to get seated & she kept saying we were next needless to say that never happened as having to wait 1.5 hours for a table is just unacceptable. My friends & just left. Don't listen to the hype this place is certainly not as impressive as it seems.
165. SK's Review :: June 02, 2008 SK's Rating: 1 Stars |
We had reservations for 10pm and waited for over and hour and a half to be seated. We finally left as it was clear we were NOT going to be seated even though we were promised several times that our table would be up next. A beautiful location - too bad the service is terrible!
166. Anonymous's Review :: June 01, 2008 |
We had reservations for 10pm and waited for over and hour and a half to be seated. We finally left as it was clear we were NOT going to be seated even though we were promised several times that our table would be up next. A beautiful location - too bad the service is terrible!
167. Lyss's Review :: June 01, 2008 Lyss's Rating: 2 Stars |
The SATC Night that Finished Upon Arrival. Rushing to get to our 9:30 reservation (and calling beforehand), we were relieved to hear that our table would be ready in a few minutes. Phew! but, When did a few minutes become 90? Alas, 1.5 hours later, we were seated, and ONLY because we made our way back to the door to speak to somebody. How long would it have been after that? I guess we were just too curious (and hungry) to leave. Not much from the hostess, either. (I think I missed the apology in all the noise). "We are busy and waiting for the 8:30 seating to leave". I beg to ask, why accept reservations for 9:30 when you have an 8:30 seating? Do you really expect people to sit, order, dine and pay in one hour, in a high-end resto-lounge???
Oh, and for those of you who still want to go, the suggestion from the waiter was to NOT come thurs, fri or sat, as it will be impossible to eat on time. Come during the day. Doesn't anybody have a day job anymore? Del Boca Vista, anyone?
I didn't forget to mention the food. It's just not worth the space. Eat somewhere else beforehand and go for drinks.
168. Anonymous's Review :: May 31, 2008 |
Let me begin with the only positive...Sprice Route looks great on the inside. It's a shame the rest of what it offers doesn't measure up.
We too had reservations at 9:30pm. Upon arrival, we were told that our table would be a few minutes. At 10:15pm we were still waiting and were told that there were a few tables that had paid the bill but would not leave and that they had been sat at 8:30. Here's a question...why would you seat tables at 8:30 knowing you have reservations coming in at 9:30?
We were given drinks and the promise that our table would be ready shortly. 10:15 quickly turned into 11:00. We were preparing to leave and were given a table right away. The chef came to our table as well and gave us some appetizers on the house. The waiter apologized profusely and said that they just opened and are still trying to iron out the issues. Here's a few more questions...where was the manager in all of this? Why did the manager AND NOT THE CHEF come to our table? And why, during all of this waiting did the hostesses not keep us updated and check in with us? It might just have diffused the situation.
Seeing as the owners of C Lounge and Ultra own this new restaurant, you would think they would have brought their prior expertise and knowledge to this venture and ironed out some of those issues.
This is not the first time that a new and trendy restaurant has needed to "iron out issues". It seems to be their MO. I wish we could all use that excuse in our own jobs to account for poor performance. These new and trendy restaurants need to realize that sexy interiors are not enough. We need great service and food too as that is what we remember and pass onto others. So I guess then, the morale of this story is that you are better off waiting a bit before you visit these new ventures. The only thing is...it might no longer be the "It" spot!
169. Anonymous's Review :: May 31, 2008 |
Come here for drinks but don't waste your time eating here! This has to be the worst run restaurant in town sadly coupled with the most
promising atmosphere in town.
I'd been to spice route a couple times for drinks and ejoyed it and
decided to come back to try it out for dinner despite the mixed reviews i'd heard about the food. Things were a disaster from the moment we arrived - our group of four had a reservation for 8:30 and didn't get seated until 9:30. We received no apologies from the staff for the 1 hour delay and when one of us mentioned to the hostess that other restaurants tend to offer complimentary drinks or appetizers in such situations we were met with a blank stare and were ignored thereafter. When we finally sat at our table for four we were given only two menus and only one set of cutlery. We ordered our food right away and asked for more place settings at the same time. Of course our food arrived before our place settings and three of us were left unable to eat until well after our food had begun to get cold. Several items of our order arrived via a waitress who could not even identify the dishes to us and who eventually took them back to the kitchen out of concern that maybe they were meant for another table. When we finally did eat, hours after arrival, the food was decent but not much better than late night chinese restaurants on spadina that cost a fraction of the price. The only great thing about the night was the beautiful room and the buzzing vibe - which you don't need to eat there for.
My advice - go eat a truly great meal at Lee's down the street and come to spice route after and enjoy the room without the horrifying service and unspectacular food.
170. Brett's Review :: May 31, 2008 Brett's Rating: 1 Stars |
The SATC Night that Finished Upon Arrival. Rushing to get to our 9:30 reservation (and calling beforehand), we were relieved to hear that our table would be ready in a few minutes. Phew! but, When did a few minutes become 90? Alas, 1.5 hours later, we were seated, and ONLY because we made our way back to the door to speak to somebody. How long would it have been after that? I guess we were just too curious (and hungry) to leave. Not much from the hostess, either. (I think I missed the apology in all the noise). "We are busy and waiting for the 8:30 seating to leave". I beg to ask, why accept reservations for 9:30 when you have an 8:30 seating? Do you really expect people to sit, order, dine and pay in one hour, in a high-end resto-lounge???
Oh, and for those of you who still want to go, the suggestion from the waiter was to NOT come thurs, fri or sat, as it will be impossible to eat on time. Come during the day. Doesn't anybody have a day job anymore? Del Boca Vista, anyone?
I didn't forget to mention the food. It's just not worth the space. Eat somewhere else beforehand and go for drinks.
171. Antonella's Review :: May 31, 2008 Antonella's Rating: 2 Stars |
Let me begin with the only positive...Sprice Route looks great on the inside. It's a shame the rest of what it offers doesn't measure up.
We too had reservations at 9:30pm. Upon arrival, we were told that our table would be a few minutes. At 10:15pm we were still waiting and were told that there were a few tables that had paid the bill but would not leave and that they had been sat at 8:30. Here's a question...why would you seat tables at 8:30 knowing you have reservations coming in at 9:30?
We were given drinks and the promise that our table would be ready shortly. 10:15 quickly turned into 11:00. We were preparing to leave and were given a table right away. The chef came to our table as well and gave us some appetizers on the house. The waiter apologized profusely and said that they just opened and are still trying to iron out the issues. Here's a few more questions...where was the manager in all of this? Why did the manager AND NOT THE CHEF come to our table? And why, during all of this waiting did the hostesses not keep us updated and check in with us? It might just have diffused the situation.
Seeing as the owners of C Lounge and Ultra own this new restaurant, you would think they would have brought their prior expertise and knowledge to this venture and ironed out some of those issues.
This is not the first time that a new and trendy restaurant has needed to "iron out issues". It seems to be their MO. I wish we could all use that excuse in our own jobs to account for poor performance. These new and trendy restaurants need to realize that sexy interiors are not enough. We need great service and food too as that is what we remember and pass onto others. So I guess then, the morale of this story is that you are better off waiting a bit before you visit these new ventures. The only thing is...it might no longer be the "It" spot!
172. Patricia's Review :: May 31, 2008 Patricia's Rating: 1 Stars |
My girls and I were doing up a Sex and the City night and decided on Spice Route for dinner. Without having read any reviews, we went with high expectations. Off the bat, I will say that the decor is gorgeous (as is the bathroom) and the patio is great! However, our reservations were for 9:30pm, and we got seated at 11:05pm!!! Every time we approched the hostess about our table, she told us it would be another 5-10 minutes. Extremely upset at this point, we were about to leave and head somewhere down the street, when they told us they'd be seating us. Only out of complete hunger, we decided to stay. They were very unapologetic about the fact that we had to wait that long and were acutally very snooty about it. They even told us that there were other people who were also waiting that long, as that was supposed to appease us.
Once seated, the chef came to our table personally and gave us several free apps (there were 4 of us) and our waitor Paul, who was very apologetic for our long wait was also very nice and brought our food immediately. They tried to change our dining experience, but at this point, it was too late and dinner seemed to be the anti-climax of the evening!! Most of the dishes were good, although not great.
Perhaps I'll go back, but it'll have to be on a MOnday or Tuesday night at 6pm for an early bird special, when no one else is around!!
173. Amanda B's Review :: May 31, 2008 Amanda B's Rating: 2 Stars |
Come here for drinks but don't waste your time eating here! This has to be the worst run restaurant in town sadly coupled with the most promising atmosphere in town.
I'd been to spice route a couple times for drinks and ejoyed it and decided to come back to try it out for dinner despite the mixed reviews i'd heard about the food. Things were a disaster from the moment we arrived - our group of four had a reservation for 8:30 and didn't get seated until 9:30. We received no apologies from the staff for the 1 hour delay and when one of us mentioned to the hostess that other restaurants tend to offer complimentary drinks or appetizers in such situations we were met with a blank stare and were ignored thereafter. When we finally sat at our table for four we were given only two menus and only one set of cutlery. We ordered our food right away and asked for more place settings at the same time. Of course our food arrived before our place settings and three of us were left unable to eat until well after our food had begun to get cold. Several items of our order arrived via a waitress who could not even identify the dishes to us and who eventually took them back to the kitchen out of concern that maybe they were meant for another table. When we finally did eat, hours after arrival, the food was decent but not much better than late night chinese restaurants on spadina that cost a fraction of the price. The only great thing about the night was the beautiful room and the buzzing vibe - which you don't need to eat there for.
My advice - go eat a truly great meal at Lee's down the street and come to spice route after and enjoy the room without the horrifying service and unspectacular food.
174. Anonymous's Review :: May 29, 2008 |
The ambience is spectacular however this is not the place to eat. If you want fusion done better you will be going to Lee's anyday.
The patio is great for drinks. The reviews on slow service are bang on, especially if you are a woman at the bar trying to buy a round.
175. Anonymous's Review :: May 27, 2008 |
One of the Worst dining experiences I've had in Toronto. The main problems are two fold: a general lack of organization amongst the young staff, and an inability to negotiate the distinction between a club and a restaurant.
We waited for over an hour for a table (we were a couple). The table we received was close to the bar, so invariably we had people leaving their drinks on the table, sitting, walking / standing buy us...etc. The server was nice, but forgot our drinks, some food, and generally had no sense of what was happening.
A really disappointing experience, despite what I thought to be a really interesting menu and great look to the place. I do not recommend eating there--perhaps going for a drink is the best way to enjoy (thought good luck in getting a drink with the attractive bartenders only spending their time with the olders dudes hitting on them).
176. Anonymous's Review :: May 27, 2008 |
The ambience is spectacular however this is not the place to eat. If you want fusion done better you will be going to Lee's anyday.
The patio is great for drinks. The reviews on slow service are bang on, especially if you are a woman at the bar trying to buy a round.
177. Aj's Review :: May 27, 2008 Aj's Rating: 1 Stars |
One of the Worst dining experiences I've had in Toronto. The main problems are two fold: a general lack of organization amongst the young staff, and an inability to negotiate the distinction between a club and a restaurant.
We waited for over an hour for a table (we were a couple). The table we received was close to the bar, so invariably we had people leaving their drinks on the table, sitting, walking / standing buy us...etc. The server was nice, but forgot our drinks, some food, and generally had no sense of what was happening.
A really disappointing experience, despite what I thought to be a really interesting menu and great look to the place. I do not recommend eating there--perhaps going for a drink is the best way to enjoy (thought good luck in getting a drink with the attractive bartenders only spending their time with the olders dudes hitting on them).
178. W.J. Robinson's Review :: May 27, 2008 W.J. Robinson's Rating: 1 Stars |
IT SUCKED !!!
179. Nancy Ashome's Review :: May 23, 2008 Nancy Ashome's Rating: 1 Stars |
Being in the bar industry myself I have to say truly disappointed!!! The service was terrible as was the food. Atmosphere is the only thing going for Spice Route. I would rather eat at Manchu Wok anyday or perhaps McDonalds.
180. Anonymous's Review :: May 17, 2008 |
I think the Spice Route is an amazing venue! The food is delicious and the service is impeccable. The patio is also a great place to chill with friends and have drinks. I enjoyed my dinner there so much that I am celebrating my birthday there this weekend!
181. Anonymous's Review :: May 16, 2008 |
Being in the bar industry myself I have to say truly disappointed!!! The service was terrible as was the food. Atmosphere is the only thing going for Spice Route. I would rather eat at Manchu Wok anyday or perhaps McDonalds.
182. Amanda's Review :: May 16, 2008 Amanda's Rating: 1 Stars |
As I’m reading the review’s that have been placed about Spice Route – I don’t know what people are talking about the location, décor, food, drinks and service are all outstanding, hottest new place in T.O! - can’t wait to go back
183. Angela's Review :: May 16, 2008 Angela's Rating: 4 Stars |
I think the Spice Route is an amazing venue! The food is delicious and the service is impeccable. The patio is also a great place to chill with friends and have drinks. I enjoyed my dinner there so much that I am celebrating my birthday there this weekend!
184. Elaine's Review :: May 16, 2008 Elaine's Rating: 4 Stars |
This place makes the Mandarin seem like Kultura. Don't believe me? try it. You'll hate it.
185. Cliff's Review :: May 16, 2008 Cliff's Rating: 1 Stars |
From the moment we walked in the door, all the staff were very polite and accommodating. Our server, Patrick, was awesome. He was very nice, helped us with our menu choices, and his timing was great. We never felt rushed, or that things were taking too long… it was perfect.
The food was amazing, we had such a hard time trying to decide what to order because everything sounded great! We ended up ordering a bit of everything. I do not frequently dine at traditional Indian/Chinese/Asian restaurants, so when I first heard about the restaurant and the menu, I was a little hesitant. The subtle spices and textures of the various dishes compliment each other without being overpowering.
The atmosphere is very relaxing, the music was very appropriate to the “feel” of the restaurant, and the detail in all the décor is incredible. I have recommended the Spice Route to all my family and friends, and all are looking forward to seeing what all the hype is about.
186. Marlene's Review :: May 12, 2008 Marlene's Rating: 4 Stars |
My friends and I had a booth of 8 for dinner, and because of the vibe we staid all night for drinks. This is the new hot spot on King West.
Great value,price and vibe.
187. Matt P's Review :: May 12, 2008 Matt P's Rating: 4 Stars |
Spice is unique and flavourable. The food is great and the portions are huge. I suggest everyone check it out because it has a great patio, tasty food and a great vibe.
188. Joe's Review :: May 12, 2008 Joe's Rating: 4 Stars |
Spice is the hottest place to be with the chillest patio!!!
189. Tammy's Review :: May 12, 2008 Tammy's Rating: 3 Stars |
What an absolutely beautiful space, and wonderful dining experience. Service was attentive, menu was original, and food was beyond expectations. Make sure you visit the extremely unique washrooms ...
Overall, a real treat. I will be back!
190. Maureen Grainger's Review :: May 07, 2008 Maureen Grainger's Rating: 4 Stars |
I hear all the nay-saying... but, really, as a club, Spice Route is great. I do agree, though, food needs to be tinkered with.
191. Brad Lowe's Review :: May 07, 2008 Brad Lowe's Rating: 3 Stars |
ooooohhhhh what a nite , I couldn't wait to get out of there , the food was fusion meets confusion - SUCKED - never again !!!
192. Nancy Denmark's Review :: May 07, 2008 Nancy Denmark's Rating: 1 Stars |
I couldn't wait to get home , eeeehhhhh , it SUCKED !!!!! THE FOOD WAS LIKE FUSEN MEETS CONFUSEN !!!!!!!!!
193. Nancy's Review :: May 06, 2008 Nancy's Rating: 1 Stars |
Went to the opening and while the decor is nice its not outstanding. In fact, when compared to other venues in the city, it seems a little recycled. Service was fine not offensive. The food is nothing more typical Chinese food; no fusion, no creativity. With that said, I have no interest in ever re-visiting for food of any variation but may venture there for drinks in the summer to enjoy that patio; it is quite nice.
194. Anonymous's Review :: May 05, 2008 |
Oddly enough. Nobody is writing about the killer patio. Very nice... crowd and all.
195. Anonymous's Review :: May 05, 2008 |
Went to the opening and while the decor is nice its not outstanding. In fact, when compared to other venues in the city, it seems a little recycled. Service was fine not offensive. The food is nothing more typical Chinese food; no fusion, no creativity. With that said, I have no interest in ever re-visiting for food of any variation but may venture there for drinks in the summer to enjoy that patio; it is quite nice.
196. Tiffany Russell's Review :: May 05, 2008 Tiffany Russell's Rating: 1 Stars |
Oddly enough. Nobody is writing about the killer patio. Very nice... crowd and all.
197. Gisella Williams's Review :: May 05, 2008 Gisella Williams's Rating: 3 Stars |
Well ohhh my God , what the hell guy's what a rip off with the food , and the price don't go together , I would have to agree with the other persons last review,I think I would have had it better if I got a hot dog from the lady accross the street ( Elizabith ) , I should have had food there @ the dog stand and drinks there @ spice route .....but then again there are lot's of spot's to hit on King st. now I can say been there and done that !!! so no more ....PEOPLE SAVE YOUR MONEY AND TIME . I do have to say that they may not last too long with food like that !!!!
198. Anonymous's Review :: May 04, 2008 |
Just got back from an amazing dining experience.
Small tasty tapas and great flavours.
Friendly and tentative staff.
A great addition to King Street and Toronto.
JG
199. Anonymous's Review :: May 04, 2008 |
Busy... but good.
200. Terrance G.'s Review :: May 04, 2008 Terrance G.'s Rating: 3 Stars |
Well ohhh my God , what the hell guy's what a rip off with the food , and the price don't go together , I would have to agree with the other persons last review,I think I would have had it better if I got a hot dog from the lady accross the street ( Elizabith ) , I should have had food there @ the dog stand and drinks there @ spice route .....but then again there are lot's of spot's to hit on King st. now I can say been there and done that !!! so no more ....PEOPLE SAVE YOUR MONEY AND TIME . I do have to say that they may not last too long with food like that !!!!
201. Michael's Review :: May 04, 2008 Michael's Rating: 1 Stars |
Just got back from an amazing dining experience.
Small tasty tapas and great flavours.
Friendly and tentative staff.
A great addition to King Street and Toronto.
JG
202. Jimmyg's Review :: May 04, 2008 Jimmyg's Rating: 4 Stars |
Ok...I need to brutally honest here...how do I describe my food. Let me start by saying...beautiful club. And I will never figure out how some drops 3 million dollars to create this 3rd uncle special...and than serve food like we had. If I were in a plane crash, the food would be better. Absolute garbage fusion. G-d help anyone and someone kidnap the chef. We think the chef trained in Prison somewhere near Cuba or Sunnybrook hospital but were not sure. Food that taste like your 93 year grandmother would make after reading a recipe in a seniors digest. Absolute humane society quality, but Im not even sure if we donated our plates to the toronto humane society, that the animals would even eat it. Go there for drinks but dont spend a nickel eating there. We should have picked up on it..when we arrived we even noticed other patrons not finishing their food. One person even dumped the entire plate of food in take doggy bag. Stay clear. If your hungry your better off grabbing a slice of pizza from across the street. Worst food ever eaten. A complete disgrace to the word fusion let alone asian! Im sorry for writing this but the food is that bad. Susur lee was there last night too and I think they would have had to call an ambulance if he tasted or ate anything there last night. Really.
Rating: 1
203. Anonymous's Review :: May 03, 2008 |
stunning decor, beatifully done and a gorgeous patio.
204. Anonymous's Review :: May 03, 2008 |
I see that they are trying very hard play a very much worrn out shoe , it was ok I was not too , too impressed , how ever good luck , your gonna need it there , It's a club after all.....!!!
205. Anonymous's Review :: May 03, 2008 |
Ok...I need to brutally honest here...how do I describe my food. Let me start by saying...beautiful club. And I will never figure out how some drops 3 million dollars to create this 3rd uncle special...and than serve food like we had. If I were in a plane crash, the food would be better. Absolute garbage fusion. G-d help anyone and someone kidnap the chef. We think the chef trained in Prison somewhere near Cuba or Sunnybrook hospital but were not sure. Food that taste like your 93 year grandmother would make after reading a recipe in a seniors digest. Absolute humane society quality, but Im not even sure if we donated our plates to the toronto humane society, that the animals would even eat it. Go there for drinks but dont spend a nickel eating there. We should have picked up on it..when we arrived we even noticed other patrons not finishing their food. One person even dumped the entire plate of food in take doggy bag. Stay clear. If your hungry your better off grabbing a slice of pizza from across the street. Worst food ever eaten. A complete disgrace to the word fusion let alone asian! Im sorry for writing this but the food is that bad. Susur lee was there last night too and I think they would have had to call an ambulance if he tasted or ate anything there last night. Really.
206. M's Review :: May 03, 2008 M's Rating: 1 Stars |
stunning decor, beatifully done and a gorgeous patio.
207. Nima's Review :: May 03, 2008 Nima's Rating: 4 Stars |
I see that they are trying very hard play a very much worrn out shoe , it was ok I was not too , too impressed , how ever good luck , your gonna need it there , It's a club after all.....!!!
208. Manny's Review :: May 03, 2008 Manny's Rating: 1 Stars |
Just coming back from dinner. I must say, you can really tell that it's by the Ultra people. Dinner was great... but at precisely 10:00, our dining table was clearly in the way of the partiers.
209. Anonymous's Review :: May 02, 2008 |
Great space... but I see it becoming a nightclub in a very short time (if not already).
210. Anonymous's Review :: May 02, 2008 |
May 2, 2008
Excellent food, decor exquisite, staff wonderful. 4+ OVERALL
211. Anonymous's Review :: May 02, 2008 |
Just coming back from dinner. I must say, you can really tell that it's by the Ultra people. Dinner was great... but at precisely 10:00, our dining table was clearly in the way of the partiers.
212. Dawn Rushton's Review :: May 02, 2008 Dawn Rushton's Rating: 2 Stars |
Just coming back from dinner. I must say, you can really tell that it's by the Ultra people. Dinner was great... but at precisely 10:00, our dining table was clearly in the way of the partiers.
213. Dawn Rushton's Review :: May 02, 2008 Dawn Rushton's Rating: 3 Stars |
Great space... but I see it becoming a nightclub in a very short time (if not already).
214. Andrew Tong's Review :: May 02, 2008 Andrew Tong's Rating: 3 Stars |
Excellent food, decor exquisite, staff wonderful. 4+ OVERALL
215. Rosemary Sproviero's Review :: May 02, 2008 Rosemary Sproviero's Rating: 4 Stars |
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MBO Toronto :: Toronto Nightlife & Clubs
