Enjoyed a lovely Summerlicious experience tonight with my boyfriend and parents. Our server was wonderful, and the atmosphere was relaxed, yet sophisticated. I had the buffalo mozzarella and tomato salad to start, which was delightfully fresh and came with fried green tomatoes (yum!). For my entree I chose the French lentils, which were served with puff pastry, asparagus, artichokes and kale. The dish was surprisingly filling and had good flavour. To cap off a wonderful evening, we all enjoyed the rich and creamy strawberry rhubarb cheesecake. 'Twas a great summer night! read more

What could be better then a Caprese salad then a Caprese salad in an omelet. Seriously delicious. Light and fluffy and oozing with the perfect balance of buffalo mozzarella and fresh tomatoes -- even a bit of prosciutto. Worthy trying too is the Belair Breakfast: scrambled eggs with sharp Canadian cheddar, fried potatoes that put Tater Tots to shame and spiced sausage. A totally leisurely let-the-day slip away brunch drinking Prosecco, people watching on trendy Cumberland street. read more

We made a pitstop to Sassafraz for lattes and a sweet fix while walking through Yorkville/Bloor. I am glad we did. The lattes were good, even surpassing the expectations of my cousin who is a coffee connisseuer. The tiramisu with espresso was one of the best I have ever had. My brother really enjoyed the caffeine fix cocktail drink. I look forward to coming back here to sample cocktails and food. read more

Went here for lunch today with clients. I would go back. Food was nothing stellar but solid nonetheless and service was timely. Had the black bean soup which was a bit chunky (not sure if it was supposed to be like that); that said, it was flavourful. Main was organic salmon - it was a bit overcooked. I think it was frozen --- tasted like the Loblaws President's Choice organic salmon. Ambience is nice and airy. I could see why it draws the Yorkville (ohhh...look @ me) crowd --- I was expecting Posh Spice to enter with Beck. +ives: solid food, comfort -ives: price read more

Great food, great service and great atmosphere. Their steak's really good and it's also a great place for brunch.

This restaurant is phenomenal. Everything is superlative. Decor, Atmosphere, service (Kudos to Andreanne, one of the nicest servers in the city, and Brigitte, awesome manager!) and the food, the FOOOOOOD! Highlights: PEI grass-fed beef so tender you can cut it with a fork, cornish hen tender and tasty, quinoa risotto, hand foraged mushrooms sauteed to perfection and for dessert, amazing churros with chili chocolate and dulce de leche sauces. They know how to mix great cocktails and have a great wine list. Pricey but the quality is in proportion to what you pay. read more

Great venue in a really nice street in Toronto. The ambience, the interior, the lighting all points to an expected great experience in food. Then comes the menu - a little bit on the uninspired category. But we trudge on still glass half full kind of mindset. The Tamato Gazpacho was to be shared by both CB and me but they only bring the one bowl. We had to send it back to be split into two bowls. Never mind the snafu - the gazpacho was quite good. Now for the main course I had the dish with Bison sautéed veggies, candied carrots and mustard - nothing came together but the candied carrots was delicious. CB had the tenderloin with smoked potatoes - the dish was Vapid - medium came medium well and had an overwhelming smoky flavor, the collards was too crunchy, and the asparagus was cooked well - all in all still vapid... Finally we had the beignets and well I was not expecting New Orleans style, but it did not blow us away. Our waitress was awesome though, kept a close watch on her tables, always had a smile on her face, got CB a good wine for dinner and all in all top notch. The three stars here is for the wait staff and the ambience and maybe the gazpacho. read more

Went on Friday July 20 as part of Summerlicious. The service and atmosphere were excellent. The food was very good, my husband and I shared the swordfish and cornish hen. The appetizers, scallops and pork belly were well done. The dessert includes chocolate brownie and cheese platter. read more

You will feel delightful when realize how beautiful the inside is after entering the insignificant entry. My table was event facing a small artificial indoor wall of falling water, despite the little spraying. GREAT SERVICE, GOOD FOOD, even quiet surroundings gave me lots pleasure. In the end, extra chief chocolate was served! Nice place! read more

A friend and I went for the Summerlicious Pre Fix. I started with the Grilled Green Tomatoes topped with F'ior di latte. Lack lustre. Instead of two 3/4" slabs of tomato, I would've preferred four slim, classy pieces. Sadly, the F'ior di latte was over-cooked, rubbery. This type of cheese is best served at room temperature. To kick it up a notch, this dish could use a balsamic reduction and garnish of basil. Next was the Nine-Spice Chicken Breast. The skin wasn't crispy enough to eat, but the chicken was tasty and moist. My dessert of Profiterole was light and summery, but would be much improved with fresh raspberries in place of the jam-like centre. All said, nice atmosphere and excellent service. read more

Food was fine but a little bit overpriced.Pretty like the bread.

I'm writing this review based on my experience I had here a year ago at Summerlicious. I went with quite a large group of friends, so I was expecting the service to be below average to average especially due to our age. To my surprise they were very catering to our group. They made recommendations on the wines and didn't mind that we were here for the Summerlicious menu. I had the scallops as appetizer, which were great. For entree I had the lamb shank, which was cooked quite well. I don't recall what I had for dessert, but I remember that this was a great dining experience and they were even catering enough to take pictures for us, which means quite a lot to me when you don't see your friends as much as you would like to when you become a workaholic. read more

Came here for lunch during Winterlicious 2014. Had the roasted red pepper soup, chicken and raspberry dessert. Food was fastastic. Service was pretty good except we had to wait a long time between courses. Decor was nice in the big room. I was facing the waterfall. I don't get the ikea couches in the lounge area. I thought they looked cheap! read more

I love this place! We came here because we bought their groupon deal which was I think $68 for two set meals. The portion sizes were huge! My partner and I chose to have the bone marrow as our appetizer. I liked it but I thought that it was a bit salty but other than that I got no other complaints for it. We both got the lamb shank as our main dish, and the portion was so big that I couldn't even finish it. The meat was very tender. The only thing that I didn't like as much was their dessert, which we both got the chocolate one. The chocolate cake was extremely dry and the ice cream was too sweet. I love their service! We got seated as soon as we walked in, and I was offered water and bread pretty much as soon as I sat down. Food came pretty quickly and the servers were all very nice and friendly. I would definitely come back for their summerlicious! PS: If you want a more quiet dining, I wouldn't suggest you to come at night because the place gets pretty packed at night. I could barely hear what my partner was saying because the other tables were so loud and so close to us. read more

Had a private dinner party here a few weeks ago in the room upstairs. The wait staff was amazing and very friendly. The food was also very good. The ambiance for the upstairs private room was perfect for our event. read more

I went for dinner with my friend. The atmosphere is really nice, and the food is heavenly. Our waitress was extremely pleasant, and took care of all the details. Do make a reservation, as this restaurant is very popular in Yorkville. All in all a very good experience, and I can't wait to come back to the yellow house in the corner! read more

I had heard a lot of good things about Sassafraz and was excited to come here for lunch with my friend. Unfortunately, neither of us was impressed with this restaurant. Service was quite mediocre especially given the price point. Portions of my steak salad was very small and was nothing special. I don't think I will be returning anytime soon - there are definitely other great choices in the Yorkville area! read more

This was my 1st visit ever to this gorgeous place. I watched the creation of this establishment on a show called 'Opening Soon' many years ago and I just can't believe I've finally gone many moons later. Honestly I think if you can say anything bad about this place, your flat out un-pleaseable. This restaurant goes above and beyond in every field. A PLUS!! The place looks very tiny on the outside, but inside its HUGE! The most beautiful interior, very luxe. (it reminded me of the interior in Beverly Hills) The staff cater to Toronto's elite on a daily basis, and don't make you feel any less important even if you used a Groupon to eat here (which we did... I LOVE GROUPON!) Staff checked in with us throughout the meal to make sure we were taken care, and manager did as well. Incredible. Zero attitude. The food was just incredible, all 3 courses were so elegant, and the ambiance of the table with roses everywhere, lighting, etc. was really something. read more

The food is just average, but other than that I would give them 5 stars for service, location and atmosphere, etc. One thing I don't like about is the dog policy. They allow dogs on the patio and I'm totally fine with that, but I'm not fine with the dog owners who give their dogs food and leave a mess under the tables. My bf and I went there on a Sunday for dinner and a couple were sitting at the table right beside us. The girl kept giving the dog food and she left such a mess on the ground and that wasn't pleasant for our dining experience. We paid over $150 and I expected to dine in a clean place. read more

A really cool place, we went there around 4 so they did not have their dinner menu yet. We decided to just get drinks with a charcuterie. Everything was great, the only start missing is the fact that I order the badass mojito but got a classic mojito, also i found the brazilian to be really strong not my taste but definitely someone else's. read more

The food and service are impeccable, so I like coming here for special occasions or during special promotions when the prices are a bit more affordable. Love the ambiance of the restaurant as well and the sunny yellow exterior. read more

Georgeous interior. Good customer service - they were slow when bringing our meals but they offered us free desert and coffee to make it up.

I've had quite a few groupon based dinners at Sassafraz, and though these can be quite good, what you really want to hit up Sassafraz for is breakfast and brunch. I've had just about everything on their brunch menu, all amazing. The pancake stack doused in a thyme honey sauce, as opposed to plain old syrup, is particularly dream-worthy. read more

Wish I could give this lower than one star. Rude staff, from the moment we walked through the door the hostess was rude to our salty server, Loni who was at our table 15 minutes after we sat down and didn't bring our drinks until another 20 minutes. I don't know if the service was extra horrible because my boyfriend and I are young but either way it was unacceptable. The only thing worse than our wait time was her sass. A sarcastic smile, took things on and off our table without asking if we were done and would walk by us without saying anything, when we had dirty dishes. The one busser that came to our table was a sweetheart though, and maybe the only nice person in that restaurant, he's tall with dark hair. All we had to eat was the tartar before we decided our money should be spent on nice service, and in all honesty good food. If I ate a pack of seasoning it would have tasted exactly like that tartar. So thank you Loni, for starting my boyfriends birthday dinner off with your attitude. We went to hemmingways after and actually had a good time. Avoid sassafraz, spend your money at an actual upscale restaurant. read more

We used to love coming in here for special occasions. However, we were quite disappointed with the food/lack of attention this past weekend. We went in for brunch, and after ordering the avocado toast, we were told that the restaurant was out of avocados and that someone had been sent to pick some avocados up. For a popular establishment to provide this as an excuse was a little eyebrow-raising! Next, we picked an item that had crab cake as an accompaniment. Since we are vegetarians, we asked if fries could be substituted. After being told that it wouldn't be a problem, we discovered with the arrival of the cheque, that we were charged $7 for the fries because the chef didn't think it would be a fair substitution. Seriously? For potatoes? And to not have been told beforehand was annoying! Finally...we ordered a specific dessert because it was to be served with a passion fruit sorbet. With no indication otherwise, the dessert arrived and my 8-year-old pointed out that it was a cinnamon-vanilla ice-cream and not a passion fruit sorbet. Only after asking our server, who then checked with the chef, were we told about the change! Disappointing!! read more

This is the second time we've been here for a weekend getaway and it was fantastic again. This time we sat on the waterfall side (note: always sit on the waterfall side) and the ambiance was 100% better. The food was fantastic, well presented and satisfying. The serving staff was fun, kind and really helped to make the whole experience worthwhile. Will definitely come back again! read more

I mean it was okay. The environment was nice but the food was so so. I ordered the Cornish hen and to be honest it was pretty dry.

Perfect ambiance, amazing food, and very friendly service! We used a Groupon but were not treated any differently. I came to Sassafraz about 4 years ago for lunch and did not think it was anything special, but my recent experience has impressed me. Will definitely be coming back. read more

Stopped here for brunch and had the folded egg whites and chives which is served with kale/quinoa salad and roasted root vegetables along with sliced avocado. They also brought a plate of fresh fruit. Excellent service and great food ! read more

Arrived in town late on a Friday and stumbled into Sassafraz. While the people and service were friendly that is where everything positive to say ends. Foods was just awful. Now I have to say this was the scaled down menu in the lounge area but that really isn't an excuse. Lobster bites and Ricotta dishes were awful! I wish I had something more positive to say...guess the only positive is I know I won't be back? read more

Amazing version of cosmopolitan. We stopped in for a cocktail. It was delicious, and the don't cheap out on the quantity and quality. Well done! read more

Didn't even make it there. Our group had a reservation at 5pm (because everything else seemed book all night on a TIFF Saturday evening). The restaurant called at the last minute at just past 3:30pm to say they have to cancel our reservation due to mechanical problems at the restaurant and it is closed for the night. Less than half hour later we called and the same lady answered the phone and said the restaurant is fully booked for the evening. Obviously they are bumping people off for other guests or private party. They turned our birthday celebration into frustration, isolation and last minute scramble around town for a replacement. Either they are ultra snobbish or just plain unprofessional. read more

My husband and I dined there for the first time (we've been before for drinks) on Saturday and had a lovely experience. We had a great little booth in the bar area, which we had requested in order hear their pianist (John Roby) who is awesome and comes on Fridays and Saturdays. We were not rushed at all and ended up there for almost four hours. My husband had the duck which he thoroughly enjoyed. I had the Sirloin, which came out kind of blackened and not how I asked for it. Someone other than our waitress brought it and when she came around - she was very quick to notice the steak problem - I didn't have to point it out. She encouraged me to send it back (I hate to be that table) and quickly brought out another that was perfect. Furthermore, she saw to it that all our apps were comped off the bill. Very proactive, great customer service and I would go back as a result. read more

If you want excellent food and exceptional service - This is the place. Great ambiance, friendly and attentive staff. Did I mention the food yet? I have the Duck, it was married with apples - outstanding dish. My friend had the steak, organic, rested and full of flavor. Our waiter told us their food was all locally source and top quality. This place is a s good as it gets. read more

Sassafraz is one of those overrated restaurants in Toronto which has been hyped up due to the number of well known personalties dinning there in the past. My order took the better part of 45 mins to arrive. Champagne was overpriced as expected and less than 1/5th of the glass was filled for around $30.00. Service was atrocious. If you want a quality meal or to impress someone better to take your money elsewhere. That being said they will continue to do well regardless of the food or service because of the "Hype" surrounding the restaurant. read more

This place is overrated. Spacious but usually empty. Good service compensates pretty average food.

My husband and I visited this restaurant this past Saturday evening for dinner. It's a beautiful establishment, bright from all the light coming in. This was my first time eating there so I was not sure what to expect. We were greeted promptly by a friendly hostess, she seems nice and down to earth. We were seated and she asked us if we were happy with our spot, and we were. We were watched for a while by two men, one of whom ended up being our server. He was nice, just seemed like the typical type of server for a restaurant like that...you know, accent, turned up nose, very polished looking and up talked the whole time. Not the type of person I would have beers with lol. He took our drink orders as well our appetizer and main course at the same time. I order the Scallops and my husband ordered the Poached Lobster that came with a side salad. We were given bread with our mean. The guy serving the bread seemed more down to earth, though very soft spoken. My husband devoured the bread so he came back and asked if we wanted more. Of course my husband said yes. Appetizers: Our food was serves in a timely fashion. The scallops were served on a bed of forbidden rice with a seafood broth and cauliflower. The scallops were perfect! I don't know how you can improve on them, they were perfectly seared to a golden brown on all sides, they were tender, my knife slide right through them and the taste and texture were amazing. I'm sure the rice and broth were just garnishes but I polished that off too. The rice was great and so was the broth. My husband bit into his lobster and his eyes rolled to the back of his head, he hardly talked because he was busy eating. I tasted the lobster, it was good, but the scallops were better. Main course: While waiting for our main I did witness our server scolding the bread guy simply because he cleared the wrong table first. He cleared table B first when he should have cleared table A first...was that really anything to make a scene about?! I felt bad for him and witness another staff member roll his eyes and shake his head, saying to me that it was typical behavior. I thought it was mean and unprofessional to do that in the front of the house. I ordered the Red Pepper Risotto and my husband ordered the Bison which came with sweet potatoes. The risotto again was wonderful, I loved it! REALLY loved it! You can certainly taste the red peppers and it mixed nicely with the cheese. My husband loved his meal too. He never had Bison before so for him it was different than steak, I'm not sure if he would get it again but he wouldn't stop talking about the potatoes. We shared the cheesecake for dessert. It was really good and creamy and light. The price was not as bad as I thought it would be. I would love to go again! My only reason for not giving it a 5 star was be server's behavior with staff and his pretentious demeanor. read more

Was there last night for a special occasion. Again the food I had as an appetizer was delicious but when it came to my Duck breast entree I wasn't impressed with the side of Brussels sprouts, they were plain, and beans were okay. Usually Sassafraz can take a simple ingredient and make it extraordinary. I just found my dish to lack what makes Sassafraz so special. My friend's dish was the venison, and that was great. No complaints there. read more

I was absolutely overwhelmed by my dinner at Sassafraz last night - I went for Winterlicious and the menu options were phenomenal. Each course blew me away and I savored every last bite! My evening was only enhanced by the fantastic ambiance of the restaurant and amazing service. I would definitely recommend for anyone to try to get a last minute Winterlicious reservation - you won't be disappointed! read more

Sassafraz is one of the Toronto's gems. Brunch, lunch, dinner: they're all good, and the service is always excellent. For instance, at dinner, I asked if the risotto was vegetarian. The server confirmed it was, but asked if I ate fish, and I said no. When the fish-based amuse-bouche came for everyone else at the table, I was given my own vegetarian one--no need to even ask. Wonderful restaurant for a lovely night out, and the cafe is perfect for a more low-key, but equally satisfying, brunch or lunch. read more