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Small brunch spot with delicious food! Expect to wait for your table though! Came here on a weekend for brunch around 11:30AM without a reso, waited for about 20 minutes before getting seated promptly. This is my second time here, it's an Instanbul brunch spot and the service this time was impeccable. Always checking in on us and making sure we had everything we needed. We sat by the window at the tiny circle tables which were a little hard to eat off of since the tables were so small, but thank goodness there was a ledge at the window for us to put other things like water and our bags. Some of the things we got: Shakshouka 5/5 - Love that their bagels are thin and covered in sesame. Great for dipping into the shakshouka. Came with a small side salad. So good! Grandma's pancakes 5/5 - Probably a must get here since it looks amazing and tastes great too! The sour cherry jam that comes with the pancakes were to die for. Pastirma benedict 5/5 - Perfectly cooked runny eggs and crispy potatoes. Already been here twice and would come back again. The vibes are great, space is nicely lit but expect a wait!
Went here for brunch with a friend from out of town, and we both loved it! We both ordered the shashuka and potatoes to share, and we agreed that the food was very flavourful and filling. Service was friendly and welcoming, but they are mindful of the seating limit as they understandably have a long line! The restaurant is very aesthetic and visually pleasing, with sunny vibes.
For moi brunch places rate between mediocre to bad with a rare spot that warrants a revisit. This falls into a mediocre category. The spot is nicely set with an open bright space. However the place can get extremely loud (either the space is needs to broken up or walls covered or even spacing between the tables) so if you are here for a longer stay get ready for noise fatigue. I ordered the pancakes which are decent. They are cross between Japanese style and western style. The fellow diner enjoyed their shakshuka. I would reserve if advance as unless you are within the area its not worth the wait IMO.
Need brunch ideas for the weekend?? Check out Pasaj! There's finally an option to make a reso, so I have a reason to check it out. Yo girl just can't be bothered with a waiting list Ordered their iconic pancakes, apparently it's one of the best in the city!? And their famous Shakshouka Honestly I'd come here for the ambiance, it has a peaceful & calming vibe. The food is great but I don't really have the urge to visit again... for now at least! Comment below if you've ever had Pasaj and what else you recommend! Anyways here's the rating: Food: 7/10 Service: 9/10 Ambiance: 10/10
This was the brunch I was dying to try in Toronto. I'd read so much about it. Turkish menu, little out of the main downtown area, but still considered Toronto. Make reservations! This place on a Monday was packed! They have a retail section in the front for pastries and savory items, and coffee. Really nice minimalistic decor, but elegant and classy. We got seated straight away, tables are kinda close to each other but I think they are just trying to accommodate as many as they can. Started off with a Prosecco for my friend and a Bosporus martini, essentially a Turkish espresso martini. Made with Turkish coffee liqueur and Turkish coffee, definitely stronger than your regular kind, but a nice morning caffeine hit. Definitely not for the ones looking for a light drink! My friend and I both had the Muever Benedict, I had the smoked salmon version, placed on top of zucchini fritters with poached eggs and sumac hollandaise, served with oven roasted potatoes and a salad. This was such a blast of flavors and textures, the salmon was nice and thin,the fritters were crispy, but not too battered, loved the poached eggs, and the sumac spice was nice and subtle. Loved the rosemary in the roasted potatoes. Those were delicious. The whole dish, was light but but filling. My friends had tomatoes instead of salmon, so even lighter! Nice different take on a Benedict. The menu had so many nice delicious sounding plates. I would love to sample everything ! The pancakes I saw looked amazing and thick. The shakshuka also sounded really good. Shame you only get to feed one stomach. Nice to see a varied menu and different to usual brunch stuff. Loved this place, nice service, we took home some of their baklava and lemon pastries, which were worth taking back on a plane. If your looking for an usual place for brunch in Toronto, that serves during the week too. Try Pasaj!
Pasaj offers great Turkish breakfast and brunch in the heart of Queen East. The place is always packed, especially on weekends, so making a reservation is highly recommended. There is a 1-hour limit on reserved tables once you're seated. Service is pretty quick and food comes out within ~10 minutes of ordering. The inside can be pretty loud during busy brunch hours, but we got a table right by the window so it made for a nice and pretty ambience (looking out the window while having brunch). My favourite menu item from Pasaj is the Mücver Benedict (zucchini fritters topped with smoked salmon (or avocado / pastrami if you choose), poached eggs, and sumac hollandaise sauce, served with salad and roasted potatoes. The zucchini fritters are so yummy, and go great with the smoked salmon and poached eggs with runny egg yolks. Loved the mini roasted potatoes as well. I wish the salad portion size is bigger though. There are only a few strands of green leaves in the "salad". The Shakshouka is decent. It contains 2 eggs poached in a sauce of tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, and garlic; spiced with nutmeg, sumac, and turmeric; topped with feta cheese (which you can choose to omit or ask for it to be on the side) and fresh thyme; served with salad and simit. The Shakshouka itself is flavourful from the herbs (especially the fresh thyme on top), and contains a good amount of eggs and tomatoes - great for dipping with the simit covered with sesame seeds. Grandma's Pancakes comes as 3 milky soft and very thick pancakes with house-made sour cherry jam, tahini halva, labneh, and pistachios. It has a 'toasted pistachios' taste that is a nice contrast to the sweet sour cherry jam - much better than the basic syrup used for regular pancakes! They also have a small bakery section where you can get Turkish baked goods such as different types of acma / Turkish brioche (selection includes olives, feta, pistachios, Nutella, and lemon acma). They also have some cookies and cakes, as well as homemade grab-and-go items such as shakshouka (yes, you can get shakshouka in a jar to take home!), hummus, babbaghanoush, and lentil soup. Pasaj is a great place for a very satisfying Turkish brunch!
If you're looking to dine here on the weekend, highly recommend getting a reservation beforehand. We arrived at around 11am and were lucky to snag a table after a ~20 minute wait. Inside, the decor is beautiful -- it's a really good spot for groups of 2. Grandma's Pancakes - As beautiful as this dish is, sadly it did not live up to my expectations. The pancakes are perfectly fluffy and I really liked the helva/pistachios -- provided a nice crunch to the dish and certainly my favorite nut for dishes like this. The cherry jam was a little more tart than I expected; I expected a much sweeter sauce, thinking it would be more akin to a cherry syrup. The topping is labne which I found to be similar to a whipped cream cheese, which isn't what I would have chosen -- maybe mascarpone would have been lighter and sweeter. Visually, very appealing, but you have a tart jam and a somewhat bitter labne for pancakes that I'm expecting to be pretty sweet. Value: 3/5 Quality: 3/5 Quantity: 4/5 Service: 4/5 Atmosphere: 5/5
A busy spot in Leslieville, with quick and friendly service. The menu has the Turkish roots, but wholly adapted for a North American brunch - so the items are familiar yet unique. The egg benedicts are served on zucchini fritters and a feta sauce, with perfectly poached eggs. It's a great combination of flavours, and highly recommended. The hünkâr is a beef and tomato stew, with eggplant served with fresh bread. It's more lunch item than a breakfast item, but another familiar but unique item on the menu. Together with the plants and decor, this is rightfully one of the top recommended spots in Toronto. It's not a go to place for a Turkish breakfast, but the fusion is well worth returning to.
This venue is super spacious and pretty. Love their interior design and plants against the window. Came here for a weekday brunch and it wasn't too busy. I tried the Benny (22$) and pancakes (20$)- they were amazing. The Benny is served on a house made patty, and was topped with generous portion of smoked salmon. Would definitely recommend this place for a date/ reunion. Pros: They take credit card! + Fast service! :)
While there's a whole lot of hustle and bustle for Pasaj's grab-and-go coffee and pastries, my wife and I decided to brave the 1+ hour wait time for the walk-in seated brunch. (1. Highly recommend reserving in advance; and 2. It actually ended up less than an hour.) We got: - Break-Feast: Got rhe single portion and it was huuuuge, so can't imagine what the double would look like. A smorgasbord of traditional Turkish breakfast treats, my favourites were the grilled sucuk (strong smokiness), muhhamara (really tasty; we loved it so much we bought more t9-go), and simit bread (airy yet chewy). The rest of the stuff was pretty standard. A bit pricey but definitely good quantity as this is a sharing dish. - Grandma's Pancakes: Huge stack of three pancakes that, while nice and fluffy, tasted just ok. Sounds a bit weird, but the definite star of this dish was the generous dollop of labneh they put on top - so creamy and tasty. Service was efficient and super helpful (we were going to order a third dish but they wisely advised us that what we had already gotten was more than enough). Dining area is a bit cramped so be prepared. Overall, enjoyed the meal and glad we tried Pasaj's dining experience.
Pleasantly surprised by the brunch at Pasaj. In particular their house made simit (bread dough rings with sesame seeds) was delicious! They have a small dine in area so make reservations ahead of time if you don't want to be disappointed. It can get quite loud as conversations echo off the walls. * Break-feast - Traditional Turkish Breakfast spread with grilled suuk, pastima, salam, feta, old cheddar, börek, black & green olives, muham mara, two types of homemade jam, dried fruils, nuts, butter, hardboiled egg served with bread basket containing Turkish Sonun bread, simit, rye and corn bread. Includes complimentary Turkish Black Tea or drip coffee with refill - the bread basket could also be refilled for free. We opted for more of the simit. It was so very good! * Grandma's Pancakes - Three milky soft pancakes with house sour cherry jam, tahini helva, labne and pistachios - these were a bit more cake-like than the usual Canadian pancakes I'm used to but still very delicious. They also have a lovely takeout area with mouthwatering items to take home.
Oh boy, I feel like I'm gong against the grain by saying this, but honestly don't understand the hype about this place. The ambiance is excellent and I love all the plants and big windows, but otherwise did not feel the food was at all worth the prices or the social media hype. We tried: -the turkish latte (least fave): was weak and honestly couldn't tell how the drink was turkish at all. -shakshuka with added beef (additional $4): this was my favourite of all the items. The beef added a good crumbly texture and additional flavour. However the simit was actually really difficult to dip into the dish itself and I didn't really taste the sesame flavour all that much -zuchinni fritter benny with salmon: sounded and looked so much better than it tasted. Sadly, I didn't like this dish at all. Felt the zuchinni fritter was way too salty and not well made, soggy by the time it got to me without any crunch and was too thin. Potatoes were too salty as well and had no rosemary flavour despite the seasoning. Salad needed something to cut the acid. Overall good for the pics but taste-wise isn't up to par with its 4 star reviews.
My girlfriend and I came on a weekday morning for brunch! No line ups! Such a beautiful outdoor space and VERY ig ready if you're into that! But aside from the asthetics, the food is fabulous. We ended up ordering the Benedict's, pancakes and shakshouka. Benedicts was yummy on the zucchini fritters plus avocado- perfect if you're vegetarian! The shakshouka was interesting with the feta and delicious as always with those runny eggs- which my girlfriend enjoyed. Then the Pancakes had a perfect tang with the yogurt and cranberries! And before I forget, they also serve an extensive Turkish coffee menu. I got the cold latte with oat milk which was yummy! Meanwhile, my girlfriend enjoyed the instanbul fog which is sweetened while her Americano was "just another americano". Beautiful spot. Will come again, but definitely on a weekday to avoid those line ups!
Came here for brunch and really enjoyed it! I got the shakshouka with simit (bagel) and my boyfriend got one of their Benedict's. Both were very flavourful, full of herbs and tasted very fresh. I would definitely come back! read more
1 year ago
After trying (and failing) to snag a weekend brunch reservation at Pasaj for two weeks straight, I finally managed to book a table three weeks in advance. That alone should tell you how popular this spot is. Tucked into the heart of Leslieville, Pasaj blends traditional Turkish flavours and modern culinary flair in a cozy, stylish space that feels like a hidden gem--if that gem was packed to the brim every weekend. We started with the Mücver (zucchini fritters)--a great appetizer. They were crispy, herbaceous, and flavourful, though the portion was a little small for the price. Still, they made a tasty start to the meal. For our mains, we ordered the Shakshuka and Grandma's Pancakes and shared both, which turned out to be the perfect move. The shakshuka was rich and comforting, with bold, warming spices and a deeply flavourful tomato base. While the eggs were cooked through a bit more than I usually prefer (I like mine a little softer), it was still a delicious and satisfying dish. The pancakes were thick, fluffy, and topped with a generous sprinkle of pistachios--a lovely nutty crunch that elevated the sweetness. A little savoury, a little sweet--both dishes hit the spot. The staff was lovely--warm, attentive, and kept things running smoothly even with the full house. Now for the one downside: the noise level. With hard surfaces and closely spaced tables, the sound really bounces around. If you have sensitive ears like I do, the volume can be overwhelming--I found myself straining to hear the person across from me, and left with a bit of a headache. It's definitely something to keep in mind if you're sensitive to sound or looking for a quiet, leisurely brunch. That said, if you're willing to plan ahead and don't mind a bustling atmosphere, Pasaj is totally worth it. The food is delicious, the service is great, and the energy is lively. Just be sure to book well in advance--and maybe bring earplugs! read more
Small brunch spot with delicious food! Expect to wait for your table though! Came here on a weekend for brunch around 11:30AM without a reso, waited for about 20 minutes before getting seated promptly. This is my second time here, it's an Instanbul brunch spot and the service this time was impeccable. Always checking in on us and making sure we had everything we needed. We sat by the window at the tiny circle tables which were a little hard to eat off of since the tables were so small, but thank goodness there was a ledge at the window for us to put other things like water and our bags. Some of the things we got: Shakshouka 5/5 - Love that their bagels are thin and covered in sesame. Great for dipping into the shakshouka. Came with a small side salad. So good! Grandma's pancakes 5/5 - Probably a must get here since it looks amazing and tastes great too! The sour cherry jam that comes with the pancakes were to die for. Pastirma benedict 5/5 - Perfectly cooked runny eggs and crispy potatoes. Already been here twice and would come back again. The vibes are great, space is nicely lit but expect a wait! read more
Went here for brunch with a friend from out of town, and we both loved it! We both ordered the shashuka and potatoes to share, and we agreed that the food was very flavourful and filling. Service was friendly and welcoming, but they are mindful of the seating limit as they understandably have a long line! The restaurant is very aesthetic and visually pleasing, with sunny vibes. read more
For moi brunch places rate between mediocre to bad with a rare spot that warrants a revisit. This falls into a mediocre category. The spot is nicely set with an open bright space. However the place can get extremely loud (either the space is needs to broken up or walls covered or even spacing between the tables) so if you are here for a longer stay get ready for noise fatigue. I ordered the pancakes which are decent. They are cross between Japanese style and western style. The fellow diner enjoyed their shakshuka. I would reserve if advance as unless you are within the area its not worth the wait IMO. read more
2 years ago
2 years ago
3 years ago
Need brunch ideas for the weekend?? Check out Pasaj! There's finally an option to make a reso, so I have a reason to check it out. Yo girl just can't be bothered with a waiting list Ordered their iconic pancakes, apparently it's one of the best in the city!? And their famous Shakshouka Honestly I'd come here for the ambiance, it has a peaceful & calming vibe. The food is great but I don't really have the urge to visit again... for now at least! Comment below if you've ever had Pasaj and what else you recommend! Anyways here's the rating: Food: 7/10 Service: 9/10 Ambiance: 10/10 read more
This was the brunch I was dying to try in Toronto. I'd read so much about it. Turkish menu, little out of the main downtown area, but still considered Toronto. Make reservations! This place on a Monday was packed! They have a retail section in the front for pastries and savory items, and coffee. Really nice minimalistic decor, but elegant and classy. We got seated straight away, tables are kinda close to each other but I think they are just trying to accommodate as many as they can. Started off with a Prosecco for my friend and a Bosporus martini, essentially a Turkish espresso martini. Made with Turkish coffee liqueur and Turkish coffee, definitely stronger than your regular kind, but a nice morning caffeine hit. Definitely not for the ones looking for a light drink! My friend and I both had the Muever Benedict, I had the smoked salmon version, placed on top of zucchini fritters with poached eggs and sumac hollandaise, served with oven roasted potatoes and a salad. This was such a blast of flavors and textures, the salmon was nice and thin,the fritters were crispy, but not too battered, loved the poached eggs, and the sumac spice was nice and subtle. Loved the rosemary in the roasted potatoes. Those were delicious. The whole dish, was light but but filling. My friends had tomatoes instead of salmon, so even lighter! Nice different take on a Benedict. The menu had so many nice delicious sounding plates. I would love to sample everything ! The pancakes I saw looked amazing and thick. The shakshuka also sounded really good. Shame you only get to feed one stomach. Nice to see a varied menu and different to usual brunch stuff. Loved this place, nice service, we took home some of their baklava and lemon pastries, which were worth taking back on a plane. If your looking for an usual place for brunch in Toronto, that serves during the week too. Try Pasaj! read more
Pasaj offers great Turkish breakfast and brunch in the heart of Queen East. The place is always packed, especially on weekends, so making a reservation is highly recommended. There is a 1-hour limit on reserved tables once you're seated. Service is pretty quick and food comes out within ~10 minutes of ordering. The inside can be pretty loud during busy brunch hours, but we got a table right by the window so it made for a nice and pretty ambience (looking out the window while having brunch). My favourite menu item from Pasaj is the Mücver Benedict (zucchini fritters topped with smoked salmon (or avocado / pastrami if you choose), poached eggs, and sumac hollandaise sauce, served with salad and roasted potatoes. The zucchini fritters are so yummy, and go great with the smoked salmon and poached eggs with runny egg yolks. Loved the mini roasted potatoes as well. I wish the salad portion size is bigger though. There are only a few strands of green leaves in the "salad". The Shakshouka is decent. It contains 2 eggs poached in a sauce of tomatoes, bell peppers, onions, and garlic; spiced with nutmeg, sumac, and turmeric; topped with feta cheese (which you can choose to omit or ask for it to be on the side) and fresh thyme; served with salad and simit. The Shakshouka itself is flavourful from the herbs (especially the fresh thyme on top), and contains a good amount of eggs and tomatoes - great for dipping with the simit covered with sesame seeds. Grandma's Pancakes comes as 3 milky soft and very thick pancakes with house-made sour cherry jam, tahini halva, labneh, and pistachios. It has a 'toasted pistachios' taste that is a nice contrast to the sweet sour cherry jam - much better than the basic syrup used for regular pancakes! They also have a small bakery section where you can get Turkish baked goods such as different types of acma / Turkish brioche (selection includes olives, feta, pistachios, Nutella, and lemon acma). They also have some cookies and cakes, as well as homemade grab-and-go items such as shakshouka (yes, you can get shakshouka in a jar to take home!), hummus, babbaghanoush, and lentil soup. Pasaj is a great place for a very satisfying Turkish brunch! read more
If you're looking to dine here on the weekend, highly recommend getting a reservation beforehand. We arrived at around 11am and were lucky to snag a table after a ~20 minute wait. Inside, the decor is beautiful -- it's a really good spot for groups of 2. Grandma's Pancakes - As beautiful as this dish is, sadly it did not live up to my expectations. The pancakes are perfectly fluffy and I really liked the helva/pistachios -- provided a nice crunch to the dish and certainly my favorite nut for dishes like this. The cherry jam was a little more tart than I expected; I expected a much sweeter sauce, thinking it would be more akin to a cherry syrup. The topping is labne which I found to be similar to a whipped cream cheese, which isn't what I would have chosen -- maybe mascarpone would have been lighter and sweeter. Visually, very appealing, but you have a tart jam and a somewhat bitter labne for pancakes that I'm expecting to be pretty sweet. Value: 3/5 Quality: 3/5 Quantity: 4/5 Service: 4/5 Atmosphere: 5/5 read more
1 year ago
A busy spot in Leslieville, with quick and friendly service. The menu has the Turkish roots, but wholly adapted for a North American brunch - so the items are familiar yet unique. The egg benedicts are served on zucchini fritters and a feta sauce, with perfectly poached eggs. It's a great combination of flavours, and highly recommended. The hünkâr is a beef and tomato stew, with eggplant served with fresh bread. It's more lunch item than a breakfast item, but another familiar but unique item on the menu. Together with the plants and decor, this is rightfully one of the top recommended spots in Toronto. It's not a go to place for a Turkish breakfast, but the fusion is well worth returning to. read more
This venue is super spacious and pretty. Love their interior design and plants against the window. Came here for a weekday brunch and it wasn't too busy. I tried the Benny (22$) and pancakes (20$)- they were amazing. The Benny is served on a house made patty, and was topped with generous portion of smoked salmon. Would definitely recommend this place for a date/ reunion. Pros: They take credit card! + Fast service! :) read more
While there's a whole lot of hustle and bustle for Pasaj's grab-and-go coffee and pastries, my wife and I decided to brave the 1+ hour wait time for the walk-in seated brunch. (1. Highly recommend reserving in advance; and 2. It actually ended up less than an hour.) We got: - Break-Feast: Got rhe single portion and it was huuuuge, so can't imagine what the double would look like. A smorgasbord of traditional Turkish breakfast treats, my favourites were the grilled sucuk (strong smokiness), muhhamara (really tasty; we loved it so much we bought more t9-go), and simit bread (airy yet chewy). The rest of the stuff was pretty standard. A bit pricey but definitely good quantity as this is a sharing dish. - Grandma's Pancakes: Huge stack of three pancakes that, while nice and fluffy, tasted just ok. Sounds a bit weird, but the definite star of this dish was the generous dollop of labneh they put on top - so creamy and tasty. Service was efficient and super helpful (we were going to order a third dish but they wisely advised us that what we had already gotten was more than enough). Dining area is a bit cramped so be prepared. Overall, enjoyed the meal and glad we tried Pasaj's dining experience. read more
Pleasantly surprised by the brunch at Pasaj. In particular their house made simit (bread dough rings with sesame seeds) was delicious! They have a small dine in area so make reservations ahead of time if you don't want to be disappointed. It can get quite loud as conversations echo off the walls. * Break-feast - Traditional Turkish Breakfast spread with grilled suuk, pastima, salam, feta, old cheddar, börek, black & green olives, muham mara, two types of homemade jam, dried fruils, nuts, butter, hardboiled egg served with bread basket containing Turkish Sonun bread, simit, rye and corn bread. Includes complimentary Turkish Black Tea or drip coffee with refill - the bread basket could also be refilled for free. We opted for more of the simit. It was so very good! * Grandma's Pancakes - Three milky soft pancakes with house sour cherry jam, tahini helva, labne and pistachios - these were a bit more cake-like than the usual Canadian pancakes I'm used to but still very delicious. They also have a lovely takeout area with mouthwatering items to take home. read more
3 years ago
Oh boy, I feel like I'm gong against the grain by saying this, but honestly don't understand the hype about this place. The ambiance is excellent and I love all the plants and big windows, but otherwise did not feel the food was at all worth the prices or the social media hype. We tried: -the turkish latte (least fave): was weak and honestly couldn't tell how the drink was turkish at all. -shakshuka with added beef (additional $4): this was my favourite of all the items. The beef added a good crumbly texture and additional flavour. However the simit was actually really difficult to dip into the dish itself and I didn't really taste the sesame flavour all that much -zuchinni fritter benny with salmon: sounded and looked so much better than it tasted. Sadly, I didn't like this dish at all. Felt the zuchinni fritter was way too salty and not well made, soggy by the time it got to me without any crunch and was too thin. Potatoes were too salty as well and had no rosemary flavour despite the seasoning. Salad needed something to cut the acid. Overall good for the pics but taste-wise isn't up to par with its 4 star reviews. read more
4 years ago
My girlfriend and I came on a weekday morning for brunch! No line ups! Such a beautiful outdoor space and VERY ig ready if you're into that! But aside from the asthetics, the food is fabulous. We ended up ordering the Benedict's, pancakes and shakshouka. Benedicts was yummy on the zucchini fritters plus avocado- perfect if you're vegetarian! The shakshouka was interesting with the feta and delicious as always with those runny eggs- which my girlfriend enjoyed. Then the Pancakes had a perfect tang with the yogurt and cranberries! And before I forget, they also serve an extensive Turkish coffee menu. I got the cold latte with oat milk which was yummy! Meanwhile, my girlfriend enjoyed the instanbul fog which is sweetened while her Americano was "just another americano". Beautiful spot. Will come again, but definitely on a weekday to avoid those line ups! read more
I've dined here twice. The first time was a year ago during a peak weekend brunch and it was phenomenal. Very busy, but staff were still attentive. During my recent visit on a random Monday afternoon, the entire experience was incredibly disappointing. I dined with 2 of my friends and from the moment we walked in, I had a feeling it was going to be a long service. There were a total of 3 other tables in the dining room (no large parties). We were not greeted, but that's fine because I can see 1 server who is pretty scrambled and 1 server assistant who seems flustered. And I recognize the owner walking in and out from behind the counter to the dining room. After about 5 min we are finally greeted by the busy server and were sat another 5 min after. When we were sat, none of the other tables had any food so I thought they were all leaving. But after an hour, they started to get their food. And so it took over an hour to receive our 3 dishes and all of the breads and pastries were stale and hard. The server and server assistant were also arguing quite a bit, and the owner was showing their frustrations in the dining room, where there was no music playing, so we could all hear everything. I empathize with service workers being overwhelmed, but it really just takes a simple "I'll be right with you" or "one moment" or even "sorry the kitchen is backed up" to rectify any situation, which none of us received. We were so hungry after waiting for our food for so long and left agitated and frustrated because we still paid and tipped with a smile. It shouldn't matter if it's a weekend or weekday, you shouldn't have your customers experience bad service for your poor business etiquette. And your employees do not deserve to be so unsupported to the point where they are overwhelmed. Never coming back read more
Beautiful cozy place located in Leslieville . Went for brunch during the week and it was very calm , no reservation, no wait . Staff was amazing , sooo kind and just beautiful souls . We had the shakshuka and the grandma's pancakes to share . Portions were very big so it was more than enough . That bagel that they give you with the shakshuka it's delicious. 10/10 recommend if you're looking where to brunch in Toronto . read more
Pros: - Dishes were quite tasty, of the ones I tried my favourite was the Grandma's Pancakes - The interior design was very pretty Cons: - Portions for the dishes were quite small for the price paid (each was $18) - Service was mediocre Overall, the food was good, and the dining experience was okay. I would try the bakery items if I am in the area again in the future. read more
The interior is so nice that I want to go here all the time, but the food and service of the place has me thinking twice. The interior- there was so much thought put into this place. It was already a beautiful space that housed strange assortment of Turkish textiles. I'm glad they had a vision for it and executed the interior so well. Applause. Such a great addition to the neighbourhood. We had the Turkish breakfast for two- it is priced at 28 for one and 40 for two- it's so hard to say no especially when the Turkish tea is included. Service was really working hard- always with a smile on her face she waited on so many customers- we were told that it would be a 30 minute wait but turned out to be 50 minutes, and then after we were seated, we waited another 15 minutes to get any service. We weren't given any water at all. The food- the burek- that comes with the platter, was soggy and terribly disappointing. :( sad. The "bagel" was good, sujuk and other meats were nice. Olives were fine, dried nuts and fruits were fine. We were missing cream cheese and honey I thought, but was ok. The feta was also pretty lacking- not at all the Turkish feta that I remember. If I were to order again, I'd probably get an order of meneme as everything was cold, and the tea was a big teacup that cooled quickly rather than a tea pot- on a winter day, you need a hot plate. I tend to rate more for food rather than decor, hence the three stars. They need to hire more staff for the peak times. I'd likely just sit at the cafe next time to enjoy the ambiance, and I'm sure the summer time patio is amazing. I wish they had the traditional tea cups. It would just add to the ambiance so much. read more
2 years ago
There's a reason this place is always packed. The food was crazy good. Service was ok, atmosphere was lovely, but OMG the pancakes. Ever since our visit I've been researching how to make them at home because I need them in my life again. read more
I came here for some drinks at the café and there was a counter at the front of the store were some options, included coffee, Turkish coffee, and a couple other drinks. I really wanted the orange juice and I got that it was delicious. They make it in the house and I paid five dollars for it. The staff were extremely friendly and I'd love to come again for brunch read more
Great brunch place to spice up your brunch options! The menu isn't the largest, which to me is a plus since decision does not come easy to me when it comes to food :) What we got: Grandma's Pancake Shakshouka Over roasted potatoes Babaganoush Turkish coffee The pancake is not the fluffy kind, it's on the denser side. Texture aside, flavor is delicious. The cherry jam is star for sure! I love eggs and tomatoes, so it was only right to get this eggs submerged in tomatoes goodness! The spice level was just right. We got a couple of sides as well, the potatoes were delicious, crispy on the outside. All bits were evenly seasoned as well. The babaganoush is a must for eggplant lovers out there!!! I had my first ever turkish coffee here and I love it. I went with medium for the sugar level since that's the recommendation on the menu. It was very rich and chocolaty to me, I'd get it again for sure. I couldn't detect any sweetness at all in it, which makes me wonder what would "no sugar" taste like... read more
**Updated review** TL;DR - Skip the brunch (or just try it once!), go for the baked goods at the takeout counter. A lot has changed since I wrote my review of Pasaj. I had the chance to recently dine in at Pasaj for brunch. They offer Turkish inspired brunch every day except Tues (they are closed on Tues). Reservations are available 14 days in advance where there is a seating time limit (depending on how many are in your party). Reservations on the weekends are highly recommended as the place does get popular. They are also kid friendly as well. The restaurant actually gets quite loud when there are multiple conversations taking place from table to table. My friends and I dined at Pasaj on a Sunday around noon where we had made reservations beforehand. The brunch menu is simple, with 7 items to choose from (eggs benedict, pancakes, hot hummus plate, a smoked salmon plate (the Poseidon), shakshouka, French toast as well as a traditional Turkish breakfast spread (made for sharing)). I did notice a lot of parties of 2 did share their brunch plates where the pancakes and benedicts were popular options. My party of 4 ordered an eggs benedict (with avocado), 2 smoked salmon plates, and a shakshouka. After ordering, our server came back to our table where he notified us that there was no avocado available. My friend who had ordered the eggs benny had to opt for the smoked salmon choice while my other 2 friends who ordered the smoked salmon plates had the choice of extra salad or side potatoes. We continue to chat afterwards and then suddenly the server appears again and tells our party that there is actually avocado available for the two smoked salmon plates (however, did not mention anything to my friend who had originally ordered the benny with avocado). We were confused about this whole issue with the avocado and brushed it off as we just wanted to catch up. All our plates came together after a while and no dishes came with avocado, despite the servers notifying us earlier that there would be avocados for the 2 smoked salmon plates. By this point we were confused about the whole miscommunication of avocado and shrugged it off as another server confirmed that there was no avocado available. As we are enjoying our food...2 small side plates of avocados get served to my 2 friends with the smoked salmon plates. At this point we were a bit irked by the unclear communication. Shortly afterwards, another small place of avocado appeared for my friend who had originally ordered the eggs benny with avocado. We never complained to the servers about this (only discussed it among ourselves), but the front of house manager did come by to try to explain the whole avocado situation to us. He explained that the restaurant allocates how many avocado portions they use per plate based on how many people order a particular dish (of course the benny being a more popular dish while the smoked salmon plate is not ordered as often). My understanding is the restaurant allocates a greater amount of avocados for their benny dish than their smoked salmon dish. If the avocados used for the benny dish are all sold out, they are not able to use the avocados from the smoked salmon dish. The thing that bothers me about this whole avocado confusion is that customers who may be vegetarian have limited options in regards to what they can order on the menu. This can be a problem if a customer wants the eggs benny with avocado (if the avocados allocated for the benny dish have run out). I hope the restaurant is able to accommodate these requests if situations arise. Food wise, the brunch was good but nothing spectacular. The shakouka I had was standard. I think the real highlight of Pasaj are the baked goods which you can order to go. The simits are also made well. Overall, brunch was good to try once. Food was good but nothing that would "wow" me. Service was good as well, despite the whole avocado miscommunication. We never felt rushed during our time at brunch. I'd say go to Pasaj to purchase their baked goods from their take out counter as well as their simits! read more
2 years ago
Delicious Turkish brunch menu. Grandma's Pancakes are fluffy with pistachios and tahini helva. They melted in my mouth. read more
Recently went to Pasaj with friends who'd never tried a proper Turkish breakfast before. Seeing the cute interior, concise menu & good reviews, I quickly made a reso for the weekend. When we walked in, it was packed - always a good sign! The service was great & our food came out pretty quick. Everything was DELISH! You'd think that the traditional breakfast platter wouldn't be that interesting, but every single thing on there was tasty & great quality. Their house-made jams, muhammara & börek were especially good. The Shakshouka was piping hot & SO TASTY! Definitely going to be the one I'll measure others up to. On the pancakes, the combination of labne & sour cherry jam was new but so delicious. The dining space is small but well-lit & so pretty. They also have a bakery section at the front, but just know that it closes promptly at 4pm (we were late finishing up & missed getting some börek to take home ). Overall it was such a great experience & we'll definitely be back! *Break-Feast (for 2) 10/10 - MUST! *Shakshouka 10/10 *Grandma's Pancakes 9/10 *Istanbul Fog 6/10 *Turkish Black Tea 9/10 *Drip coffee 7/10 Note: They do ask for a credit card at time of booking & charge $25 for no-shows. Couple of hours before our reso we realized we were going to be late, so I called them and the staff was very helpful in moving us to a later time that was available. #thecharmedgourmet #toronto #turkish #turkishfood #brunch #bakery #coffee #dessert #takeout #eatingout #smallbusiness #inspired #family #food #foodie #yummy #foodlover #nom #nomnom #foodpic #instafood #yelp #yelpelite #insauga #ieatTO read more
If you're looking for a cute ambience and delicious food, definitely give this a try. But make sure to make reservations as they get very busy. Their menu is short and simple which I appreciate. No information overload. We were a group of 4 people and split a Break-Feast ($40 ) and the Grandma pancakes (split amongst 3 people). One of us got the Benedict. We all got tea and Turkish coffee as well. It was a great experience and the service was fast. They kept refilling our tea and coffee. The table is booked for 1.5h after which they remind you and give you a cheque. Overall would go again. Hopefully they'll expand to accommodate more customers. read more
This is probably my favourite brunch in Toronto right now. Their service was very good, the turkish breakfast was very tasty. The venue is beautiful, the location has not great parking but is otherwise very good. I would definitely come here again in the future. I had eggs benedict which was super good. I want it again. read more
Cute spot and IG worthy, but the brunch food that we tried was only okay. I was mentally prepared after reading the reviews here as well but we still wanted to go and try for ourselves! The shakshouka was nice, although by the time I got the dish the eggs were pretty much cooked vs. runny. We opted to add pistrami to the dish but the husband couldn't taste it at all and felt it was missing. The housemate simit was really nice, first time trying it and a perfect vehicle to dip into the shakshouka. The french toast was disappointing - we were warned it would be small, which is okay, but considering the price of the dish, they really didn't do much with it. Would pass on that one. Ordered their zucchini fritters as well - wish it had more of a crust but flavor and taste along with the yogourt dip was delicious. Very yummy! Got a few of their baked goods to bring home and everything was lovely, especially their olive acma (soft brioche bun). They have these buns in many different varities like pistacio, nutella, etc. I'd definitely stop by if in the area to grab more of their baked goods! read more
4 years ago
My husband and I stopped here on our way out of Toronto, and like the reviews all say, there was a long wait for those without a reservation, which are made months in advance. Once we were told it was a 2 hour wait, we decided to order food to go from the barista. I had a Turkish coffee and my husband had grandma's pancakes. Both were delicious and the barista was so friendly and helpful. We also ordered a few pastries that were also very tasty. Surprisingly, we were able to sit at a small table while we waited for our order, which took about 15 minutes. I'd love to return and try more food! read more
Walked by many times, never really went in except today. Enjoyed my brunch experience here. Ordered the the pancakes and Turkish coffee. Had it on the patio. It was busy. But thought why not, patio weather won't be here for long, might as well. I recommend weekdays, less busy compared to the weekend. read more
4 years ago
This cute spot is a brunch and bakery restaurant. We visited this place in the afternoon of a weekday, and it was busy!! The restaurant specializes in classic home style brunch items and Turkish breakfast spreads. We found their menu quite small with only seven items, and a sides menu. In our visit we tried a few of their items: 1. Grandma's Pancakes This dish came with 3 pancakes topped with a thick yogurt (labne), pistachios and "sour Cherry". For the pancakes we found them really thick and dense, and enjoyed the pairing with the . However, we weren't huge fans of the labne, which was a thicker yogurt. The pistachios added a nice crunch, and this dish was a good sharing one. 2. Poseidon This smoked salmon plate came as a build you own style with all the customary toppings, and a side of salad. We enjoyed this dish as we were able to decide how much of everything we wanted on our bagel. The bagel was soft, and was super filling. 3. Zucchini Fritters These fritters came in a set of 3 and came with a side of light yogurt dipping sauce. We weren't huge fans of this side, as we found the fritters and sauce plain. As for drinks we had to try their infamous Turkish coffee and lemonade . The Turkish coffee came in the cutest little set, and was super rich with a bittersweet taste. The lemonade is homemade and was super refreshing, it can never go wrong!! Overall, we loved the aesthetics and design of the place. We wished they had a slightly larger selection of menu items, but we will be back to try out some of their baked goods. read more
5 years ago
5 years ago
Loving their small dine in menu which is carefully constructed. The pairing of taste is exquisite whether you pick a pancake or shashuka. There is also pastries and breads freshly baked which you can order. Don't come in without trying the Turkish Coffee at least once. There's also alcohol on their menu, so you can dine like the weekend brunching in style. Small cute place that fits a few table...but there's also lots of people who does takeaway. Get there early to avoid having to wait long on weekends. read more
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