Came here for the Sunday Steak & Grape special (8oz striploin with a glass of house wine for $30). I'm kicking myself for not taking a photo, as I was so disappointed by the end I knew I had to review. Sliced vegetables were the side but it was the equivalent of two button mushrooms, one pickled shallot, 3/4 of a fingerling potato, and three asparagus stalks...I don't get it when restaurants skimp on the cheapest parts of meals, like rice and potatoes. The medium rare steak was done as I asked but I think it was just pan seared, with a a splash of gravy....acceptable but nothing to write home about. The house Cabernet Sauvignon was good, and the server was super sweet. Would not return but to try the AYCE mussels and maybe half priced wines. read more

Came here for Winterlicious, and I've had better. The oysters were very good , but they were also not cooked and prepared. The food was okay. I had a soup and it was VERY salty. The food itself was quite bland or very salty and nothing special. When we got the chocolate tart dessert, mine was covered in sprinkles and whipped cream with fruit, while my friends was plan with nothing on it. Standards much? read more

My lobster, grilled cherry tomatoes, and potatoes were SUPERB! read more

Pure Spirits - Seafood Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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It was like a pricier red lobster. Very large and loud. Impersonal. Service was... just fine. Brisk and didn't check in much. Food was fine. I had the brussel sprouts side. It was very dry. The duck was very nice. Well seasoned and cooked just right. Wine list is generous and great range of prices. Dinner mates enjoyed their meals. One had the burger and shake. Shake was good. Burger was dry and over cooked. Over all... meh. read more

Pure Spirits - Yummy duck! - Seafood Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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I have to admit I was very excited to eat here for lunch, however after being seated, my excited turned to not impressed. We went here for lunch and there were maybe acouple tables occupied, it took roughly 10-15 mins to get a waitress to order drinks. There seemed to be double (at least) the amount of employees compared to customers which made me very confused. The prices did not impress me either even though it was an "oyster house". Once we got our drinks we placed our food order, ended up with the chicken salad and asked if they could make the chicken blackened seasoned (personal preference) the waitress who was very nice said she had to ask her chef which I completely understood. She came back and said they could not (I didn't care too much, but what restuarant doesn't have that seasoning lol). We got our salads and for the price, the portions were small, was still hungry after finishing and they said they could make peri peri chicken (I had no clue what that was haha) ended up saying thank you and grilled chicken was ok haha. I do not know if I will be back as the first impression was ok, but not satisfying. Salad was good and staff was friendly, but other ran that I was disappointed. read more

Fantastic Oyster Place, here you are guaranteed fresh oysters of various species, some I haven't seen anywhere else in TO. They also have a great wine selection, which complements the delicious menu perfectly. I personally recommend Gewurz from Alsace with Lobster pasta...it's pure heaven! Service is not intrusive and servers know their menu and can make tasteful recommendations. Will be back in a heartbeat! read more

We had a nice dinner here tonight; it was good, but not great. The wine list is too expensive for the choices. The Caesar salad was OK, but the dressing was a bit sweet. I like bacon as much as the next person, but it does not belong in a Caesar salad. Rebecca and Phil had nice pasta dishes. There was plenty of lobster in the dish and the truffles were a nice addition. The squash ravioli was very nice. Unfortunately, my bar-b-que ribs was very ordinary. Although the meat came off the bone easily, it was dry. The flavor was ordinary. This was an up and down meal. Parts were good and parts were ordinary. I doubt i will return. read more

I have only had oysters here, last summer and fall when they were $1 per oyster every Tuesday. I have never came for any thing else. For oysters this place is good on Tuesdays for the $1 price. The oysters on sale are always north american and are usually malpeques. They are usually cleanly shucked. I know I can probably buy a bunch in the grocery and shuck it myself for less, but really I hate shucking oysters! I however love eating them. The selection of oysters here is decent, not extensive by far compared to Rodneys or Oyster boy, but they are ok. Service is polite and non intrusive, but not super attentive, you do need to look for your server a bit if you like sitting in the patio. read more

Pure Spirits was my first encounter with the Distillery District. As soon as I walked into the place, I could feel the age and I instantly got the style. The room is great, the patio huge and the atmosphere inviting. UNFORTUNATELY..... Because we didn't have reservations, and apparently their patio was fully booked (empty when we arrived) we were ushered around the side to their "IBIZA" drinks patio. It was nice enough, but it didn't have the energy of the actual room and patio. IBIZA also only had one server handling about 10 tables, and no sort of support around him. That considered, he did a fantastic job and had a good sense of humour.... especially considering the situation. The prices are expensive, and with that I guess I expected a higher level of attention as far as staffing goes. By far the busiest area of the resto was the IBIZA casual patio, and it was by far the most under-staffed. Mind you, we caught them around 7:00 on a Wednesday night, so they may have been preparing for later. That being said, I liked the vibe, I liked the oysters and I will be willing to try it again. They had a good beer selection, great wine list and the staff that I did encounter were very nice. Stay tuned for an update! read more

Pure Spirits Oyster House & Grill put on one of the best presentations of oysters on a half shell I've ever seen. Not only did it look good, but it was very fresh, nicely chilled and had some great options for flavoring each oyster. I love the rustic setting in the restaurant. If we're ever in Toronto again, we'll be back to Pure Spirits Oyster House & Grill as well. read more

Came here the other night for a birthday. It was only three of us and we made a reservation. There were no problems getting in but the service was something else. We ordered at around 7:45pm and it took about 40 minutes for our food to arrive. We ordered two steaks and the burger dinner all of which were sub par. Personally for the money we paid (bill was $160 +tip) I would not come back here. read more

Pure Spirits - Steak - Seafood Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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I was here last Saturday night and was severely disappointed. We sat on the patio and the table was in rough shape with things peeling off. When we asked for glasses of ice water, we were given ice cold water. When asked for actual ice, the waiter laughed it off and never brought it. I ordered the chop salad... very disappointed. I really expected higher quality. Maybe the Distillery District truly is a tourist trap. read more

I read the three star review and i wanted to believe it was wrong.... the restaurant gets 5 stars for ambience and 5 stars for oysters. The oysters were super fresh and the selection of both East and West Coast was super. the Irish oysters were the only ones that dissappointed. the gentelmen who was behind the oyster bar was very knowlegeable! Mussel menu looked amazing we did not have time to try them! the Halibut fish and chips however were very soggy and extremely disppointing! French fries were painfully salty Go for oysters and great selection of wines and local beers....and have an extremely enjoyable experience. read more

Stopped in for a business luncheon. Had the oyster special for an appetizer. Oysters were huge and fresh, came with three different sauces, I quite liked the mango sauce. Atmosphere and service were excellent. Would recommend. read more

So the food here is good. Their seafood dishes and appetizers are cooked to perfection. Often you go to restaurants and the fish is over cooked. That is not the case here. If you go, try the snapper and rainbow trout. Now for the bad. I will probably never return again. It's -1 outside, feels like -4. We were 3rd in line, which was fine since I wanted try something new and was not in a hurry. When asked for the wait time, the hostess would say she didn't know. We were told the restaurant was at full capacity, including the seating at the bar. It could be 20mins to an hour or more. We waited about 1/2 an hour. During that time, many groups left the the restaurant, but only 2 people were seated. When we were eventually seated, about 6 tables and the bar area were empty. Why would they have their guests wait in the cold when several tables were free? Other guests came in after me and also questioned why they were made to stand in the cold when the restaurant was empty. Some were told its management's policy, others were told it was to avoid overwhelming the staff and kitchen. I was told that whether we stood outside or inside, we would still have waited. If true, I don't understand why you would not explain to your guests that they could be seated inside but there may be a wait due to volume. The only conclusion I can come to is that they wanted to appear busy and drum up interest by creating a lineup outside and claiming the restaurant was full. By the way, the lineup outside never died down, no matter how empty the restaurant became inside. I watched empty tables, booths and bar, with a clear view to those waiting outside. read more

They're set up as fine dining but the food is really lacking on a lot of fronts. The oysters are amazing, but hey, anybody can get amazing oysters--you just have to buy them, there's no cooking involved! I had the special last night, a breast of capon with gnocchi, spinach, and asparagus. The gnocchi were so soggy they were almost mashed potatoes. Flavour also nothing special; tasted like they were boiled in chicken stock from a bouillon cube. The capon was undercooked, a little bloody around the bone, so I had to eat around that. There's nothing less pleasant than underdone poultry. Consequently, the rest of the breast was a little on the gelatinous side and quite unpleasant. The spices rubbed into the breast were completely generic: a bit of rosemary, salt, and pepper. I was hoping for something a little more creative. Also, it apparently came in a hazelnut sauce, but the sauce did not taste of hazelnuts at all, more like chicken stock, so what's the point? Veggies were fine; it's hard to mess up steamed spinach and asparagus, but they certainly didn't save the meal. So I would come back, but only for the oysters and maybe possibly try their steamed mussels on the all-you-can-eat night. The chef's cooking is bland and careless, so better to stick with the stuff that comes ready to eat right out of the ocean. read more

I still would give a near 5 mark to food but clearly service has to improve. Last time I went there, my GF told me she found waiters not efficient and not nice but I did not find that obvious. This time I did! More than half an hour to get appetizers then again after, for the entrees. And instead of being apologetic, waiters became pretty rude whereas WE could have, as well as oblivious and totally neglecting for our waiting table! I will NOT go back there until I hear/read that they worked on and fixed this. Such a pricey place with good food needs good, better managed, directed and well-mannered waiters and staff. Just instruct your staff how to please and respect customers when kitchen is a little bit behind. read more

Came here on a stormy night in the midst of the Christmas Market. The wait was ~30 minutes in the rain and cold but luckily there was a heat lamp. Moans and groans about the weather aside (something the restaurant was not responsible for), my friend and I were seated and promptly greeted by our server. We had about 2 dozen oysters (fanny bay, kusshi and kumamotos), sweet potato fries, salmon and bottle of red. I think the standout order was the salmon which was grilled to perfection, juices bursting with every bite and somehow melted in your mouth. Would definitely recommend but perhaps when the weather is nicer and the patio could be taken advantage of. read more

Only reviewing oysters here. Oysters were fresh enough, but the selection was limited on boxing day, with almost all selling out by 7pm. Sauces were good. Staff was friendly and the service was good (we sat at the bar -- no wait). The decor is sleek and modern. I'd probably come back here if I was craving some oysters and happened to be in the distillery district, but probably wouldn't make a special trip. read more

Came to the district expecting a bit more as far as restaurant choices. We are no huge fan of oyesters but were getting really hungry and did not feel like pub food. We took a chance in spite of the low ratings and so glad we did. Neither of us ate oysters, but I had the salmon which was smoky, flavorful and slightly sweet. My partner had seafood pasta with clams, mussels and octopus in a spicy tomato sauce. Both portions were ample and the ingredients were fresh. We shared the French fries with parmigiano and rosemarry. 10 bucks is a lot to spend on fries, but I tell you what....days later we are still talking about how amazing they were. They came with 3 dipping sauces....aoli, vinegar and a spicy ketchup. DO NOT LEAVE WITHOUT ORDERING THE FRIES. Thank gawd they don't have these at home. I would weigh a thousand pounds. We sat at the bar and the lady that served us was awesome too. read more

I booked online with Yelp ( Open Table ) for Valentine's Day Dinner. Reservation system worked perfectly. Pure Spirits called me to confirm and I also recieved an email with full details. We have been to Pure Spirits before and have enjoyed both service and food. My partner has Celiac Disease and we tend to share gluten free meals. The waitress was very contienous and knew exactly which questions to ask both us and the kitchen. She even split and plated our shared mains. We started with a dozen oysters on half shell. Extremely fresh and shucked perfectly. Just enough brine and detacted from shell. We like smaller west coast oysters and ended up with two types. Horse radish was fresh shaved and very fine grate. For mains we shared a Caesar salad (minus croutons) and lobster truffle mushroom pasta (again GF). Caesar was traditional (not creamy) and great. Crispy bacon is nice touch and something I like to do at home. Pasta is very rich and full of flavor. Having a split order was more than enough given the flavors. We looked to the server for desert recommendation and she made a great selection. Two perfect americanos ( nice crema and water level) with a milk and honey budino. We had theater tickets for 7:30 and our 5:30 reservation worked perfectly. Stroll down Tank Lane and stopped in a few shops along the walk. Perfect dinner and a wonderful evening. read more

Solitary seared salmon lunch was yummy. Service was a little perfunctory, but that might be because I was dining alone. But the manager saved the day by starting a conversation right before I was going to leave... read more

Pure Spirits - Seared salmon - Seafood Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

We ate here on our last night in Toronto. It was not that crowded, which surprised us and the restaurant. The service was a little slow, but the food was most excellent. I ordered the yellow tuna - my son a steak and my daughter and wife the pasta seafood dish. Nothing was left on the plates when we were done eating. We enjoyed 3 Desserts which were a nice size. I ordered the pie. Our hotel (Fairmont) suggested we try pure spirits for dinner, and as usual there recommendations were spot on. read more

Took my boyfriend for dinner for his birthday. I know he loves seafood. He had the starter calamari , which was very unique and delicious, and the ciopini ; broth was flavourful , had melt in your mouth salmon, muscles, lobster, shrimp. I had the 12 oz ribeye. SO GOOD! I didnt enjoy the bed of kale and Brussels sprouts but that's just a personal thing. It's upscale ish in price but worth the atmosphere and quality. Definitely returning. read more

Beautiful patio! A must visit in the summer. Surprisingly good veggie burger, reasonable sangria, and friendly service. A great place to lounge in the summer. read more

Food was good could of been better I found my pasta was good but stuffed in this small bowl over flowing with pasta, my partner had the surf and turf she loved it but it was salty all the elements on the dish was salty, wine was good waiter suggested a wine, 1 sip and I sent it back, we wanted the cookie sandwich with ice cram was really excited to try, only to find out they didn't have any ice cream so fell short, could of had a wonderful review I would go back again read more

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Food was pretty good, but incredibly expensive, which I suppose is just a mark up for being in the Distillery District. I got the Japanese clam chowder, which was savory and unique, as well as the Caesar salad, which was bigger than anticipated so yay! Husband got the fish hush puppies, which were surprisingly good and the falafel wrap, which comes with fries and a side salad. Service was excellent - very attentive on refilling the waters, and I appreciated that the water was room temperature and not with ice. read more

It was a nice summer evening when we dined at this place. This restaurant is in a interesting locale. Perfect place to sit outside and watch the pedestrian traffic in the distillery district. As for the food nothing to write home about. Bouillabaisse was very bland and tasted more like a cold fish broth. We ordered sticky toffee pudding for dessert and were quite disappointed. Bread was good and the Oysters were the only saving grace for the meal. read more

Four of us went in for a bottle of wine and some oysters. Venue: beautiful interior design. Although we sat at a booth, I thought the bar looked gorgeous and very inviting. $$$$$ Oyster and Wine: Oyster from PEI... very good. Wine fine. $$$$ Service: It is very disappointing when the restaurant looks great, food was good, but the service was so-so. Our server gave out the impression that he could care less. We definitely felt he was not friendly. By the way, it was around 5 pm, so the restaurant had about 3 tables occupied and a couple of drinkers at the bar. It was not busy at all. In a nice restaurant like that, definitely a let down when the server gave out a negative vibe. The restaurant is in the distillery district where there are many other fin restaurants. I probably won't come back to this one because of the service. $$ read more

The staff is very friendly and welcoming here! I ordered a bloody Caesar and asked if they could throw in fresh oysters in my drink and although they didn't have that on the menu they were happy to do it for me. *In fact if they permanently put that drink on the menu and start selling it like it's going out of style, I would hope I get mine free when I go back ;-) Because I will be back! The oyster bar master new in detail his product and was really good at describing the different tastes. Oysters were perfect, cold, fresh and delicious. The Rosemary Parmesan hand cut fries amazing too. read more

I wish I could give this place 6 stars. The ambience of the location was amazing. Because it was the holidays - we had to wait for 90 minutes to get a table. The server was friendly. The food was delicious. I ordered the pure spirits papardelle - it was well cooked and tasted delicious. I forgot my scarf there - the server chased us down in the cold maybe a block and gave me my scarf. The customer service at this place is top notch. I will definitely go back there again. read more

The restaurant hits all the basic requirements to be considered a great restaurant. The beautiful patio escalates the entire experience. The food was pretty good. I ordered the pure spirits pappardelle. It had a lot less lobster than what I was paying for and I tasted almost no truffle in the truffle cream sauce. The portions were perfect. Not to much and not to little. The service was excellent. I would highly recommend this restaurant read more

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Amazing meal. Food and drinks were 5/5, but the service was not the best. They messed up the drink order and then charged us for a cocktail we never even had. While taking the order the server seemed like he was rushing. The steamed Canadian lobster and Mac and cheese was amazing, so was the lobster truffle pasta dish, kitchen did amazing read more

They have a new menu and it's terrific. Especially recommend the bay scallop appetizer (4 gorgeous scallops), the seafood potato pie and the coconut panacotta. The chef and waiter were also incredibly accommodating--I wanted to take food home for my husband, just home from hospital, and they made up a special meal for him. Delicious! read more

Ate there in July and it was great. Ate there last weekend (Nov. 10) and it was disappointing. Started with Cumbrae's beef meatballs: no taste. It also arrived at the same time as the entrees. Open-face grilled swordfish with salad was extremely salty (both the tuna and the salad!). My guest had beer battered cod and chips which was more like cod-flavoured batter with chips. For dessert, we had roasted pear with whipped ricotta quinoa and pumpkin seed / sunflower brittle (not bad) and vanilla crème brûlée (the sugar on top was barely carmelized making the dessert more like warm custard). The server indicated the menu had recently changed, but that should not result in a sub-standard meal. read more

Lunch menu was excellent. Had the meatballs and a burger with fries. Friend had the lobsyer ravioli. All great. Service was great.

Went here for dinner and had an ok experience. There were four of us and we shared oysters, which was good but not extraordinary. Three of us got the lobster pappardelle and I remember it being better about a year ago. Server was great and very helpful. Overall, it was a good experience but there are other restaurants in The Distillery that might be better to go to. read more

We went as a party of four for dinner without a reservation. The place was packed but the hostess was very nice and found a booth that could accommodate us within 15 minutes or so. We had a drink at the bar during this time. Once we got our table, we ordered 24 assorted East Coast oysters. Personally, I liked the ones from Martha's Vineyard best. The oysters were fresh and tasty. For the main course, I ordered sesame seed ahi tuna and it was delicious. The tuna was cooked perfectly and the side was a wasabi mashed potato which was also great. We finished things off with a cheese platter that was good but sadly didn't live up to the rest of the experience. The food was good if a bit pricey for what you get, the service was good and accommodating and overall it was a rather pleasant experience. The atmosphere was great and the music was good. I will definitely go back at some point. read more

Great for a date night out. Very beautiful restaurant with wood flooring, wooden semi-private booth seating and brick wall. Ask for Ben, his french accent is the best! Food is superb. The winterlicous menu is perfect! Salmon was cooked to perfection. The clam chowder was the perfect blend. The creme brule was amazing. The only setback was the time it took for the main course. A little too much time between items but if you aren't in a hurry this is the place for you. read more

I wanted to go to the boiler house and since they are closed i decided to go to this place. When we walked in, we were greeted by server which was nice. I ordered fish & chip and it was right and portion was good. I will go back If I go to Distillery district. read more