This is great spot for Persian food in downtown core. With a closure of a decent Persian food place nearby I was mostly relegated to delivery options which though decent aren't the same as getting something fresh of the grill. The setup is functional and somewhat cozy and seems like they cater mainly to the delivery crowd. Consistent flow of take out with a few people dining in. We shared an appetizer combo. The eggplant dip was very good. Hummus being decent with dolma being an acquired taste I feel. I didn't try the salad. I went for the combo of chicken and lamb kebab. I wish I had looked and chosen the bread and rice option as I can only eat this type of rice so much. The kebabs were very good with good quality meat and letting the meat shine with light seasoning. Service was courteous and they were accommodating as well for a person in a wheelchair. I enjoyed my meal and will return. They are somewhat close by and I do enjoy grilled food. read more

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Pure comfort food. 4 of us ordered 2.5 entrée and the staff was nice enough to make the rice into 4 portions for us. All the kebobs were great. We asked for a dipping yogurt and the owner recommended the one with shallots. It was really good except for the steep price of $9. Good dining experience otherwise. read more

Darvish Restaurant - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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From the Persian decor that made me feel like I was in an art gallery / museum / family home to the amazing food, I felt like this was a special place that has been created with a lot of love! Between the doogh, lamb shank, and the warm eggplant dip, this was easily enough for two people. The servers are so friendly, the portions are generous and the prices are reasonable-- a definite win for this neighbourhood! read more

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We went during lunch time right when they open we had 6 people. After us only another party of 4 arrived after during the whole lunch time so it was pretty quiet. I ordered lamb kebabs with rice, it had saffron colour on the rice but not too much. There was a little butter for the rice as well. The lamb was really well done, I'm not used to that, so it was a bit dry, but I've heard it's the Persian style. It didn't have the strong taste that lamb usually have maybe due to the well done cooking. The grilled tomato was refreshing, not too sour. It's a big plate, so nice portion for the price. read more

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Really enjoyed my dinner here the other night. Our server was very accommodating. When I couldn't decide between the zeytoon parvardeh with soup or the platter he made a swap to include the olives. It was delicious and the exact type of meal that I was craving. My friend enjoyed their kebab as well. Next time, I plan on trying their vegetarian walnut, pomegranate, and mushroom stew. The food came out quickly, too. The interior is pretty standard, a casual spot to catch up with friends and enjoy some reliable and tasty Persian food. Prices range in the $20s-30s for most mains. read more

Darvish Restaurant - Mixed platter! - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Friendly service and delicious Persian food! I loved their Mirza-ghasemi served with a side of naan barbari. They forgot the barberries with the rice for our Vaziri Kebab plate and when we asked for it, they were very generous and gave us a little cup full of barberies. I was also a big fan of their interior decoration which was very Persian-themed: Lion & Sun emblems, minakari plates on the walls, Qajari-style paintings, and classical santoor music playing in the background. My only complaint would be their limited hours -- they're only open until 9pm on Friday and Saturday nights which is disappointing for a Persian restaurant in the heart of downtown Toronto. Highly recommend this place! read more

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Great Persian Restaurant with authentic, reasonably priced food, huge portion and kind staff. I truly enjoyed their food after a long day of work! The Kashk-o-Bademjoon was my favorite dish, followed by their sour kitchen kabob. read more

Had lunch with a friend and opted for the Persian Taster, a selection of purely vegetarian dishes. The cuisine hit the sour part of the palette the most, and so the savoury eggplant dish was the highlight. Service was nice, restaurant was pretty quiet. I think I'd need to try other Persian restaurants to properly gauge how this one compares. read more

Very cute restaurant. The food was good, the staff was very nice and accommodating. The service was good and fast. Really liked this place!! read more

Darvish Restaurant - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Yum! Lovely Persian atmosphere serving tenderly grilled skewers, basmati and dips (along with other special dishes we haven't yet had the opportunity to try. Service was quick and friendly. Will be back! read more

Darvish Restaurant - Persian Taster - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

On a street mostly filled with korean food and makeup stores, Darvish is a breath of fresh air. A cozy place to meet with friends and try some new dishes! My favorite dish of the night was actually the appetizer of Zeytoon parvardeh, green olives with walnut and pomegranate. It is tangy and appetite inducing in all the best ways. Especially before the large entrees that comes with heaping amounts of rice and deliciously grilled meats. I would highly recommend trying something new, as you will be pleasantly surprised. read more

I was unfortunately disappointed by my experience ordering carry out from Darvish. I looked at the menu online then phoned in an order. I ordered the most-o-mooser and the fessenjoon. When I went to pick up the order, there was no bread. I said to the person working "there's no bread w/ the yogurt, but on the menu online it says it's served with Persian bread." He begrudgingly went back to the kitchen and came back with one piece of noon barbari for me. The fessenjoon was grainy and very oily (see photo). The walnuts were not cooked down enough. The rice and most-o-mooseer were good. Perhaps this place is better known for its kabobs, but I will not be coming back read more

Darvish Restaurant - Fessenjoon - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

They open for Persian breakfast on weekends from 10am!! Yelp is incorrect on the time to start listed as 12pm. Got there at noon and ordered pomegranate walnut stew with Fava dill rice and side of salad. Also got crispy rice and Persian rice pudding. Everything was delicious. We got our order to go and it was ready in like 10 minutes. Definitely worth visiting. Good quick service. read more

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I've ordered food from here a couple of times now and I must say that this place never disappoints!!!! I've tried the koobideh kabob, joojeh (chicken) kabob, and the khorest bademjan and I've loved all of these dishes so far! The kabob is always juicy and flavorful, and the stew is just to die for. The rice is also very fragrant and they always leave some bread and butter on the side. I really hope I get the chance to try this place in-person one day. From what I've seen by picking up food, they have a decently sized restaurant in downtown with plenty of seating. I can't wait to have the full experience someday! read more

Great food. Great ambiance. Friendly service. Unlike most Persian restaurants, had a cozy and trendy setting. Each table has a theme (wall decorations). We tried the maast-musyr and zeytoon parvardeh (olives) for appetizers. barg kebab, koubideh kebab, baghali polo and lamb shank. All were delicious. Tasty but not greasy. Faloudeh (very thin sweet Persian noodles in saffron and lime juice) was very refreshing. Definitely will go back and highly recommended. read more

The food is perfect, service was great, environment, music, cleanliness were all in really great quality! Loved the " barg" kebab, " dolmeh" and "joje kabab". read more

It's noticeable: Darvish makes their food with less salt, and that's great. Portions are not as big as in some of the other Persian restaurant ms, but that's okay with me. The food was tasty. Service was good although it seemed that the young guy serving us was learning. Prices are okay. Ambiance is okay -small and cozy. read more

Darvish Restaurant - Chicken Soltani and Barg - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

I was excited to try them since the reviews were amazing but sadly it didn't live up to my expectations. The ambiance is cute and cosy and the service is quick and friendly but the food isn't great at all. So we came in taking 5ish and the restaurant was fairly busy mind you all it's a tiny place.I ordered kash ke badejoman which is an eggplant appetizer-it was bland and flavorful less and I have had amazing Irani food in the past hence I know what I'm talking about.It was servered with bread instead of pita.For mains we ordered koobeideh with lamb kebob and koobeideh with chicken skewer. Both entrees came with small amounts of rice and overall their portioning was small.All the kebobs were bland lacked flavor.The lamb and chicken were both super dry.I wasn't impressed by the food at all. Overall the restaurant is nice and clean and they is ample of paid parking around the restaurant. read more

I visited this shop with some Iranian friends who recommended this place for authentic Iranian food. The interior gives a cozy feel and the owners are very friendly. It really feels like a family run business. The owners are very active in the community, and proudly display a photo taken with Justin Trudeau on their wall. I tried the lamb shank which came with dill and saffron rice. I got a huge serving of the lamb in rich savory sauce. The sauce very salty so a little went a long way. The meat was very tender and didn't taste gamy at all. I packed the lamb that I couldn't finish to go; it made a great second meal with some fresh rice and flat bread. In general, I thought what I tried was decent, especially if they just used less salt. I thought the lamb shank was good bang for buck compared to the kebabs. I'm not against going again to try the other items, but I probably won't be the one suggesting it. read more

Darvish Restaurant - menu - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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I would rate 6 out of 10. Lamb (chenjeh) came raw. Koobideh is not even close to what is made in Iran. Barg is basically fillet . Soup , marinated olive and yougurt was ok. read more

Food was amazing, hospitality was wonderful , polite staff, best area in down town Toronto read more

Darvish Restaurant - Main menu - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

I came here during one of the coldest nights of the year, so the Ash Reshteh (Persian Soup of Legumes, Fresh Herbs, and Noodles Topped with Whey) was very warming and hearty! The herbs used in the soup were super aromatic and added a nice blend of flavours - delicious. The small restaurant gave a nice, cosy atmosphere. read more

Darvish Restaurant - Ash Reshteh - Persian Soup of Legumes, Fresh Herbs, and Noodles Topped with Whey - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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Loved the family vibe as soon as I walked in. The server, Ryan, was well-dressed and very nice. They serve you barbari bread as a starter when you sit down. It's on Yonge St. in Toronto so it's in a good location. Decent prices. I ordered the joojeh (chicken) kabob and it was tasty. I'm a pretty hard critic when it comes to kabob since I'm Iranian and my dad is known locally (in Orlando) for his kabob. The chicken was definitely tender, the rice was not my favorite. I was looking forward to fluffy basmati and it wasn't really. I would definitely come back and try other things if I was in Toronto. Definitely a good spot if you're craving Persian foo read more

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My first Persian cuisine was in Burlington and I loved it. So I am looking for similar Persian foods in Toronto but despite the good reviews for Darvish, I didn't really like it. I got a Lamb kabob take-out through Ritual. It came with Basmati rice, 1 grilled tomato, 1 lamb kabob and 2 small butter packets. The rice, mixed with the tomato, was really soggy but then it's also because it's take-out, so all the steam got condensed and added water to the food. But that's ok. The worst part is paying $17.99 + tax mostly because it's lamb, but the meat doesn't taste like lamb. Maybe it actually is, but I just couldn't taste unique flavour of lamb... I will keep on trying other Persian restaurant and hopefully will find one as good as my first Persian meal. Food: 2/5 Service: 4/5 Price: 2/5 read more

Darvish Restaurant - Lamb Kabob $17.99 - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Took a friend of my daughters who had never tried Persian cuisine . We also mention how koobideh is my favourite and ghormeh sabzi is my daughters favourite . Everything was so tasty and the service was great . Promptly served and checked to make sure we were okay . Went on Sunday evening and no wait for a table . We were able to catch an 8pm movie no problem . We live in Thornhill and have many great similar restaurants and Darvish sure kept up . Will try it again if in the area . read more

Darvish Restaurant - Ghormeh sabzi - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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It's always fun to discover new places to eat in town. I have a few go-to places but that gets boring - who wants to eat the same thing over and over again? There are so many fantastic shops waiting to be discovered, it just takes a bit searching and some willingness to try new things. Sure there's a lot of choices near the young and college intersection any direction you go. but today I found Darvish, and it's a fantastic find. For the full review, please visit: https://www.eatwithjia.com/2020/01/darvish.html read more

Excellent food ! Very tasty and fresh. I have been to many Persian restaurants this one is one of the best ! Will comeback read more

The meal I had at this restaurant is one of the best dining experiences I have ever had. From the moment we walked in, the environment was so comfortable, warm, and inviting. The decor is amazing and we had so much fun taking it all in. The owners of the restaurant are very kind, and the staff as well are incredibly welcoming. My friends and I had a fantastic time speaking to all of them. The food is DELICIOUS. Some of the best food I've ever had.. I felt like I was eating a home cooked meal. I left full and happy. My friends, who can be picky eaters, loved everything we tried as well and left with their minds changed about different foods. The olives were one of our favorites, which was exciting as my friends typically don't like olives at all! To me, this just spoke to the spectacular quality and flavor of the food. My only complaint is that there are no locations in my hometown! I would love to be a regular, and dream of this food every day. I would highly recommend, 10/10! read more

Having been the only Persian restaurant I have tried in Toronto, I love this place and have been here many times. What I tried: 1. Mixed appetizer: 9/10. I highly recommend this dish if it is your first time trying Persian food. It has 4 great Persian staples. If I'm being honest, I fell in love with Dolmeh after trying it here. 2. Kabob koobideh with rice and salads. 9/10. This too was just short of perfect. Maybe it's my biases, but this restaurant was amazing and I would recommend to everyone. read more

Such a sweet lady who owns the restaurant - also great service. The food was really delicious. We had the Kashk-o-bademjoon (an eggplant dish) for starters. Usually I don't like eggplant but since it was mushed up it was quite yummy. The bread served with it was a bit cold and hard - perhaps if they made fresh bread in house that would really spice up the meal. For mains we shared Ghormeh Sabzi, Lamb Shish Kabob and Fesenjoon - all which were delicious! read more

The worst restaurant that l know. They charge you for food and delivery, but You don't receive any food. Instead, you get insult, harsh, rude and offensive words from them. I had guests for dinner. I wanted to treat them with Persian food. Since it was the first time that I was going to try food from Darvish restaurant (and for sure this will be the last time) I called the restaurant to be sure that they would deliver the food. Their reply was "sure we have delivery; you should go to our website and order your food and we deliver it for you". So, I ordered the food through their website and paid for the food and the delivery. However, we waited and waited, food didn't come, instead, we received a text message that your delivery has been cancelled, please contact the restaurant. We contacted the restaurant. The person who answered the phone was very rude and offensive and started arguing with us that "we gave your food to the delivery guy; you have to wait" and hung up the phone. We waited for some time and called them again and We explained it again that we have received this text message, but he didn't care at all and didn't listen, was angry at us that we are bothering them, said this is not their problem, he said you should contact the delivery guy, whoever texted you. He hung up the phone on us and didn't care that we were trying to say how we know who works for you and who is your delivery guy, we just have got an automated text with no phone number. Darvish restaurant's rude and irresponsible staff ruined the night that we had with friends. They didn't provide any food but charged us and we didn't even get our money back. read more

Having walked by for years a friend and I finally dropped in for dinner. As I was sitting there waiting for the food it occurred to me that downtown Toronto does not have many Iranian restaurants. There is Banou (sic?) to the west, Pomegranate on College and Sumac near AGO. Either way, the restaurant and its washroom were clean, which is crucial. There is an attempt at design and multiple Iranian artifacts on mantles and shelves. The waitress was quick to welcome us and offer us any table we want. There were not any other customers at the restaurant at 7:00. She was polite throughout, did a quality check and was consistently prompt. Perusing the menu tells one they have all the staples covered. There are several kabob dishes (chicken, beef and lamb) and stews. Iranian ice cream (noodled ones) and candy are offered as dessert. They have alcoholic drinks, pop and the yoghurt drink doogh. We opted to share a Koobideh Kabob and a dill rice lamb shank. The koobideh was workmanlike and fine. It was not as good as some other ones I had, but there was nothing wrong with it really. The rice was tasty. The lamb shank was quite good. it was tender, smelt good and it was huge. That was the better choice even though it is not a chelokabob (rice and kabob staple dish). The fried tomato was really grilled well. This is usually a miss at Iranian restaurants because they do not grill the tomato enough. Darvish got it right. Two things: at $18 (they call it $17.99) each the meals are a tad cheaper than other Iranian restaurants. That is appreciated. Nonetheless, their portions are smaller too. The amount of rice on the plate is lower than other restaurants. I am sure of this because dining in or taking out from Iranian restaurants always leaves me with extra rice. Not here! The waitress came over and asked if I would like more complementary rice, which was a nice gesture, but also indicative that they too know they are serving little rice. Whether Iranian or Arabic or Chinese or Japanese or Korean I just love Asian food. Time for a jog :-) read more

Walked by this place all the time and always intrigued so when a gf wanted to get tgt I suggested this place. It's a small (about 5 tables that seats 4 each) almost look like family-operated eatery. We sat next to this lady who I suspected to be the owner as she was working in her laptop but also helped out the waitress. The decor is minimal but cozy. There's a cart sitting at the corner which I suspected to be for lunch buffet. For app, we ordered the house made yogurt mixed with mint and rose petals. It came with a bread basket. The yogurt was creamy and substantial. The smell of rose is wonderful. I didn't taste the mint so much. The bread also looked house made. I don't know what is called but it was fluffy inside and slightly crispy outside with the sweetness that's kinda like cornbread. I actually like the bread better with the butter...the yogurt? I could eat it on its own. I had the pomegranate walnut stew which was amazing. I wish there was more of it coz I had more rice than I can read the stew with. It has a vegetarian version as well. For the regular version it came with chunks of chicken. It's almost like curry but with different species range from the Indian ones. My friend had the koobideh and lamb shish kabob which she liked very much as well. For dessert we got faloodeh, which is rosewater sorbet topped with vermicelli. This is a very refreshing dessert which I think will be great for summer. Overall we liked this place. The only down was their alcohol selection is very basic- beer, red or white, kinda deal. When asked what kind of Red or white do they have the waitress looked confused. Though I suspect this is not the kind of place for drinks anyways. They do have a variety of tea. I really wish I had more room to try the Persian tea but maybe next time lol... read more

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I love this place. I always get the fesenjoon. The bread/pita is always warm and delicious. The rice is always buttery and has the perfect hint of salt. Darvish is a small restaurant hidden along Yonge Street. It's nicely decorated with Persian-esque antiques and decor. The prices are average but worth it considering the love that's put into the food. What appeals to me more about this place is the fact that it's solely run by a husband and wife. The wife runs the front as the server, and the husband does all the cooking. Coming to local, family run businesses gives you the warm, pampered feeling with that home cooked feel. I always recommend this place to friends. Definitely my favorite Persian spot in Toronto! read more

Darvish Restaurant - Leg of lamb (?) and fesenjoon - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

It was my first time trying Persian food and I was not disappointed! I had chicken with walnut and pomegranate - it was oddly sweet yet delicious and I couldn't stop eating it! My sister had the lamb shank and oh boy it fell off the bone. Speaking of perfect dishes! The lamb shank is milder than the chicken dish I had but it was still good. Will definitely come back for more Persian food. read more

Darvish Restaurant - Lamb shank. - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Been here twice. Had the steamed chicken leg with barberry rice and the chicken kebab with rice. It was ok, but the chicken kebab was only available in white meat and I far prefer dark, so it could be much better. The chicken leg was a little bland but not bad at at all. The barberry rice was very tart - not my cup of tea but I'm sure a lot of people would like it. The kebab was quite good flavour-wise - the spices were subtle but nice. However, it was much dryer than if it were made of dark meat. The meal also comes with awesome flat-ish bread and butter. Service is friendly, though not super attentive. This place is more formal than all the Persian eateries I'm used to going to at Yonge & Finch/Steeles (aptly named Tehranto, lol). The settings are homey, it's a cozy little sit-down restaurant, and the prices are a little higher than the aforementioned places accordingly. The best thing about this place is the location. I would personally prefer to trek all the way to Yonge & Finch/Steeles though! read more

Darvish Restaurant - steamed chicken leg with barberry rice - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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I ordered soup and lamb shank via ubereats they both tasted very bad. Both foods were super oily and the shank was burned. Regarding the quality it was too expensive. I paid 50 CAD for only one soup and one dish food! read more

The food was ok. We started with the Kashk Bademjan which was unpleasantly bitter with an ungodly amount of dried mint (I have had it in other places where it is smoky and delicious). The bread that came with it was warm but oddly tasteless. The chicken kebab was juicy and had a subtle flavour. The koobideh was the most flavourful IMO. The lamb kebab was tasty but overcooked. The saffron + barberry rice lacked the fragrance that is often a signature of Persian rice dishes. The portions were more than generous. The kebab plates came with 2 kebabs, a lot of rice and a grilled tomato. I loved the cozy ambiance and the sweet owner. The service was attentive. read more

What a gem! I've walked by this place several times, and finally decided to go there today with a friend that was visiting Toronto. My friend and I both love Persian food, and it was surprising to find such authentic Persian cuisine near College Park! Clean, quiet atmosphere and the food came quickly. My personal favourite was the lamb shank with dill rice. The meat was super moist and fell off the bone. I loved how they didn't skimp on the dill when it came to the rice! read more

Darvish Restaurant - The juiciest and most flavourful lamb shank and dill rice in Toronto. Absolutely amazing! - Persian/Iranian Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Great tasty food it was so good and fresh , at a perfect downtown location with great friendly staff and server ..