We were in the area near St. Joseph's Hospital and wanted a place to have brunch. We found this beautiful local vintage looking eatery and bar. The staff and customers were very friendly and pleasant . I had a craving for Huevos Rancheros. It was so good! My wife had the Homemade Sour Dough and Squash Toast with Pomegranate seeds, housemade Ricotta, Walnuts. She topped it off with a Poached Egg. I would like to see some Reduced Balsamic Vinegar drizzled on the top but it doesn't need it. We had a wonderful brunch meal and are looking forward to try the lunch and dinner menu. Til next we meet . read more

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Had one of the best brunches here in a while. The ambience is of a renewed cosy and vintage diner. The servers are really nice. We had the chicken on cornbread and I forgot the name of the other dish but it had layers of meat with an egg on top. Both items were delicious. The chicken has a twist from regular chicken waffle types, the coleslaw is spicy but the cornbread is sweet so that results in a fascinating flavour. The other dish was salted perfect and we enjoyed it a lot. We had a side of home fries and they were salted really well so it didn't feel bland or anything. The only problem is drip coffee is a bit pricey. But otherwise, this is definitely one of my favourite places in Toronto! read more

The Ace - Chicken on cornbread -yum! - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Small brunch place that surprised us with its amazing dishes. I tried their daily special which is one of the best brunch dishes I've ever had. But forgot the name, the dishes had potato, egg, bacon and Kale. We also tried fried chicken sandwich which is delicious as well. Reasonable price, incredible food, excellent service!!! Defiantly recommend!! read more

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Pro: - Poached Eggs - Location - Friendly Staff Con: - Prices - Furniture in bad shape - home fries are too dry - Portion Size - Coffee tastes pretty bad read more

The Ace - Menue - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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3.5 stars I love the Roncesvalles area and stopped by this place for brunch on a Sunday morning with friends as per the good reviews I found online. The place is small, but super cozy and cute inside. The brunch menu is also small, but has a few different options. FOOD: I ordered the special, which was a frittata with a side salad, and my boyfriend ordered the chicken and pancakes. We thought both of our dishes were alright. My frittata was good, but a small portion and a little burnt. My boyfriend thought his chicken was too tough and lacking spice to counter the sweetness of the syrup. OVERALL: Small portions for the price. Food was mediocre. Not sure if we would return. read more

After a disastrous day of let down after let down, we randomly ended up here for dinner. Thank goodness we were able to end off our day on a high note. This tiny little bar/restaurant makes you feel like you've gone back in time. Cute little tables, vintage chairs, the wallpaper,... The service was friendly and entertaining. Can you name a restaurant at which the staff randomly picks up a guitar and then starts singing? They're good singers too! I started with a tequila cocktail made with egg white and Cassis. It was delicious! Five of us sat at a table and we each ordered different dishes so we could try a bit of everything. We ordered: Duck gravy poutine. This was very tasty and wasn't meant to be shared amongst five people. We devoured it. I insisted on the fried Brussels sprouts cuz we all need to eat our veggies. Really good. The bottom of the dish was kinda greasy but hey, these things were fried so it was expected. The turkey burger with all the trimmings was alright but it wasn't my favourite dish. It came with fries. Glad we saved the gravy so we could dip our fries. The dill aioli was pretty good too. The fried chicken I felt was a tad dry, but that's also because I had the white meat. The cornbread was a bit too crumbly and dry for my liking. The fish soup of the day consisted of mussels, potatoes, and sausages. The mussels were good but the broth was maybe a little light on salt. I really enjoyed the steak tartare. I think I could've eaten a double portion of that alone. My favourite of the evening were the scallops (special of the day) on du Puy lentils with housemade sausage. Now truthfully, there was something in the seasoning of the sausage that just didn't make it a wow for me, but the scallops were perfectly seared and cooked. I loved them. I think this place was on that show, "You Gotta Eat Here" for breakfast/brunch? Roncy is kinda off my beaten path but I can see the draw of this place as a local bar/restaurant. read more

We stopped by to try one of their peameal dishes and we bummed they had just ran out! But our second choices did not disappoint. It was a bit crowded today New Years so there was about a 30min wait to be sat. I had the fried chicken and Johnny cakes which are like a corn bread pancake. Really very tasty and went well with the fried chicken which had a sweet taste to it. My girlfriend had the eggs Bennie with hot capicola subbed for the peameal bacon. It had a leek and parm Hollandaise sauce that went really well with it. I would highly recommend this cute diner like neighborhood spot. Definitely a locals spot as several of the client were know by name. Hey if the locals love it you know it's good!!! read more

The Ace - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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Came in on a Monday night (Labour Day Monday to be exact) as I saw they had $1 corkage and buck a shuck oysters on Twitter. Nice! I've never been to a resto where you can bring your own wine (not in Canada, anyway) so this was a bit of a fun adventure for me! I had a nice bottle of white from my birthday that we figured we'd enjoy while having dinner, so we brought that. We sat at the bar while we waited for a table. Cool atmosphere, not much was fundamentally changed from this old Chinese restaurant till now... still old bar stools, low counter. I thought it was cool. The stools were a bit uncomfortable after half an hour or so... thankfully a table came up and we moved to a booth right in front of the kitchen. We ate the oysters at the bar, the house sauces are great, nice flavour. We ordered the rest of our meal when we got to the table. The cocktails we ordered and drank before we opened our bottle of wine were really nice. Some sort of tequila thing. For food, we ordered the Filipino dish of the night which was chicken adobo.. and for the other dish we ordered beef carpaccio. We shared both. The adobo was okay, two pieces of chicken, nicely seasoned, on top of jasmine rice and veggies. The whole meal with tax was $57. The food was good, not great, but I am willing to give it another try. I would absolutely go back and try other things on the menu, especially on a Monday when they have the same deal. Great price and good atmosphere. The service was really good and overall I'm a fan of this cool little joint. read more

The Ace - Chicken Adobo - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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+++ - They take American credit card ++ - Extremely friendly staff - Well seasoned potatoes - Very cheesy and delicious (three cheese) grilled cheese - Sautéed Italian sausage breakfast was good + - Friendly staff - Our party seemed to all enjoy their breakfasts (It's a can't go wrong kind of place) - Don't forget to order passion fruit mimosa - OJ is above average as well - - Small establishment, don't go in with more than 4 DYK: - Peameal bacon is pretty much what we Americans refer to as 'Canadian' bacon read more

Ventured to the west end for a Saturday Brunch here at The Ace. There was a moderate amount of seating, several booths and a few two seater tables, making the restaurant date and toddler friendly. I wouldn't recommend coming here with a group larger than 4. Arrived shortly before noon with a friend, there was a short 10 minute wait before getting seated. We are big eaters so naturally, three mains were ordered. 1. Sauteed Italian Sausage, White Beans, & Rapini, topped with a Fried Egg & served with Brown Toast - $12 - (7/10) - The sausage was crumbled with the white beans and topped with a runny egg. I didn't have the toast, but it looked like a hearty whole grain toast I would eat if I wasn't avoiding gluten. We would have enjoyed this dish more if there were larger, more wholesome chunks of sausage. 2. Huevos Rancheros - Two Farm-Fresh Eggs served Over Easy with Black Beans, Guacamole, Sour Cream, & Salsa Fresca, on a Fresh Corn Tortilla - $11 - (8/10) - This was a gluten free option as the tortilla wraps were made of corn. The over easy eggs were farmer fresh. I usually don't like runny eggs, but the runny yolk perfectly fused the flavours of the guac, beans and tortilla together. 3. Nicoise Salad - Italian Tuna with Green Beans, Arugula, Tomatoes, Potatoes, Hard-Boiled Eggs, Olives, & Lemon - $12 - (5/10) - Gluten free & dairy free - Always love my greens but this salad wasn't too inspiring. The arugula was fresh and the two green beans included were cooked to crisp. Downsides: small portion size and sparse sprinkle of toppings. The portion size is comparable to a side salad. 4. Fresh squeezed Orange Juice & Grapefruit Juice - $4.50 a glass - (9/10) - Can't really do wrong with fresh squeezed juice. My personal preference is to include some pulp and to serve this in a more generous glass. Rating Summary: Food: 7/10 - average for the dishes noted above, portion sizes could be larger for the price Atmosphere: 9/10 - enjoyable diner vibe Service: 8/10 - water service was lacking and servers could be friendlier read more

The Ace - Top left: Sautéed Italian sausage white beans, fried egg and toast. Right right: Niçoise salad. Bottom: Huevos Rancheros. - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

2 stars for the poached eggs, 1 star for the name (our son's name is Ace as well!). The restaurant really needs to be renovated. The furniture is super run down and falling apart (my chair had a hole in the seat and they had applied tape to cover that instead of replacing the chair). We ordered the Ace Breakfast, Ace Benedict and coffee. The coffee was bitter and tasted burned, the home fries were overcooked and super dry, the portion sizes were rather small considering the price. Only the poached eggs of the Ace Benedict were really enjoyable. This visit was a one-time experience for us. read more

The Ace - Ace Benedict - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

This place was good and had a nice old fashion feel. Came here for breakfast on a Saturday and got a seat relatively easily. Got a burrito and home fries and my friend got a grilled cheese and home fries. The burrito and the grilled cheese were both good, but definitely something you could easily recreate at home for less than $10. The home fries were delicious! They were perfectly crispy on the outside and soft on the inside and perfectly salted (something that is seriously underrated). Service was friendly and the place was cozy, a cute place on Roncesvalle. read more

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Last night I had the most wonderful experience at The Ace! Although I never mentioned it, it was my 30th Birthday. Even though I didn't say anything, it felt like you knew because it was just such a special experience with impeccable service, incredible food, and really delicious cocktails. Our server, who was from PEI (I'm sorry I forgot your name!!!) deserves so much credit for his positive and professional attitude, attention to detail, and ability to be there when we needed him, but gave the perfect amount of space when it wasn't required. This is so so difficult for a lot of servers to do in Toronto, and it made for such a lovely experience. Thank you so much!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We had the cod to start which was one of the most interesting starters I've had in a long time. Loved the beet salad as well. My steak was done to perfection and was so so tasty. Our server made some perfect recommendations with well thought out answers showing how knowledgeable he was about the ingredients on the menu. Thank you for making this night special for both me and my partner. I can't wait to come back. read more

Everything about this little spot was great. Cocktails, Service and the food was fun and tasty. Spoke with the chef about a detail and he tried a variation....really into what they do, energized and responsive. If they have a Special...don't pass! read more

Saturday morning, sharing a beautiful meal with a beautiful friend. Both had the duck confit and shared a side of the French toast. Duck confit was a good twist on a classic. Well-rounded and checked all the boxes. The French toast was a tad over sweet, but still had lots of flavour. Great ambiance and music too - small kitchen and dining , intimate. read more

I adore this place. This was on my list of spots to try in Toronto having read some glowing reviews on Yelp and elsewhere. I now see why others find The Ace quite charming. I loved the outside facade of this Roncey gem. The servers and hosts/hostesses were effortlessly chic and friendly. Some of them even had this Duffy-like aura. I mean, they did play a lot of Motown and 60s music (i.e. The Chiffons, The Supremes, Martha & the Vandellas) while we were there! (Gotta love retro chic!) Anyway, the food. Fantastic. The X-Mas Burger was a creative take on holiday flavors in the form of a hamburger --- and um, how great is it to have this available in June? AMAZING! It came with some fantastic fries. The strawberry basil margarita was everything! I wanted to have more and more... but my good boy side took over that night so I had one -- and enjoyed every sip of it. I loved the mixed china and marble tables. It really did feel like a diner, but one that is a la Rachel Ashwell. (That was soooo early 2000s of me to say that! Oh well. It sorta felt like her presence was with us that night!) Overall, we had a lovely (and substantial!) meal and I could not have asked for a better casual (dinner) night-out! read more

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Amazing customer service and excellent brunch specials. My favourite brunch place by far because they do vegan substitutions. The theme of the restaurant is definitely a throwback in time which I love. I had a vegan breakfast that our server and chef put together (tofu, home fries, beans, toast,) and side of fruit and my friends had challah French toast and two eggs with kimchi rice and pork belly. Both enjoyed their meal. I will definitely come back. read more

The Ace - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

We lived in Roncy for six months and miss the ace dearly. Their dinners are suburb for a Thursday night spontaneous date night. Local fresh eats, menu seems to change with the seasons / what is readily available in the market. On top of that, the cocktails this bar can whip are incredible. Fantastic wine and beer selection, too! If you're going for their brunch (drooling..) enjoy! my only suggestion for the owner is to fix the banquette seats. They have become so worn down a few of them actually dip inward when you sit making this five foot nothing human feel three feet at a table! read more

What a gem! This place is quirky, country, roadside feel with best comfort food yet. Though hard to find a parking space, this restaurant as well as the strip are worth the trouble to enjoy a relaxing afternoon of great food, relaxation and sights. Tried the Ace Country - fried chicken and flapjacks and it's delicious. Bit of maple syrup with a tangy slaw balances out this heavy dish just right and this is a brunch menu item! Could have fooled me because it seems easily ordered as dinner too! At $16, it is great value and wonderful creativity from chef and staff. read more

The Ace - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

First time at The Ace and it was really good! Had the Bison Burger which was tasty and cooked well. A little pricey in my opinion. Saved room for dessert and had the Skor pie which was INCREDIBLE. Rich, buttery toffee with Ritz cracker crust and chocolate on top. read more

The Ace - Bison Burger - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

GREAT STAFF!!!! I went in to sample their Christmas Burger but it was not on the menu, everything else sounded just as good. After expressing my disappointment, the waiter inquired with the chef and he said as long as your willing to wait for it, he can whip it up.... Pleasantly pleased and truly grateful, not only did i get the burger but my dining mate was giving a quick wine sampling as she found something she liked. if not for one thing, the staff was kind, gracious and truly helping in answering questions about the menu. I THANK YOU FOR A WONDERFUL EXPERIENCE P.S. DID I MENTION GOOD DRINKS!!! read more

Just had a very nice meal at The Ace. Prices are a bit expensive but the food is top quality and you are paying for more than just taste. The service is fantastic, the atmosphere is extremely relaxing, and the speed at which you get your food (in my experience, albeit I was the only one there) is also very good. Only negative I can think of is the fact that you basically share the same seating structure with whoever is sitting in the booth behind you. Not a big deal, but if the person behind is rowdy and moving around a lot, you'll definitely notice. Oh, they also have a great selection of drinks and Ontario craft beers/ciders. Would definitely recommend if in the area and looking for a casual dining experience! read more

Went for brunch here this Saturday at the suggestion of friend to catch up. Although the restaurant was busy the entire time we were there, we were fortunately seated right away when we arrived around 1:30 p.m; there was always a few people waiting to be seated. Brunch is served at The Ace on Saturdays and Sundays until 3 p.m. As many have said, the place had a "kitschy" ambiance. I don't usually go to diners, but I'm always up to try somewhere new that friends suggest. The diner was narrow, had a small open kitchen and lined with small booths. Service was really friendly and the space was cozy. I ordered the Ace Benedict - two poached eggs with parmesan leek fondue & peameal bacon, served on an english muffin with home fries and a couple slices of fruit. Delicious plate...enjoyed every bite. Coffee was regular diner coffee. The only trivial or inconsequential detail to most is that the smell of food and the small diner was trapped in my long hair...I could smell the diner in my hair and clothes when we stepped out of the restaurant. Otherwise, friendly, very casual brunch spot with great prices. read more

The Ace - The Ace Benedict - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

Took my parents here for a Mother's Day brunch. They loved the decor/atmosphere and were even more impressed with the food. We all had our eyes set on some dessert after our meals but couldn't get any as we were all too full. Would definitely love to come back and try the full menu one night. Tip - they know how to make one hell of a cocktail. read more

The Ace - The Ace breakfast - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

On Sunday, Nov 3, 2019, around 12pm. Waited 45mins. Ordered the Egg Benny Plate, did not eat anything else that day. Got really sick Sunday evening from food poisoning until Wednesday! Will definitely not coming back to this place. read more

A small and cozy diner, wait is pretty long but you could walk around the area. Fried chicken on Johny cakes was amazing!! Chicken was crispy outside and tender inside, with the coleslaw, and syrup on the corn bread gives the perfect mix of sweet, sour and salty. French toast was pretty good, inside was a little rich so we didn't need the maple syrup. Eggs bene was okay, eggs were a little overcooked but the homefries came with them were incredible. Very glad to came to explore this area in Toronto and would recommend this place for a date. read more

Brunch brunch brunch! Their menu has the usual brunch items. However, the real gem are the daily recommendations that your server will tell you about that are not on the menu. I ordered the chicken and waffles with a sunny side duck egg on top. The chicken was evenly battered and not overly greasy. The waffle was crispy and egg runny. We also got the omelet. However, nothing too special about the omelet. Great service though! read more

The Ace - Omelete - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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Amazing service and amazing food. The waitress was nice and polite enough to let us stay eating until 3.30pm (technically when theyare closed) We ordered the fried chicken bbq burger and the xrimas turkey burger. They were amazing with the fries and house salad. Waitress told us to next time try the oatmeal home made ice cream. We will definitely be back!! read more

The Ace is our go to spot for brunch for the friendly staff and the mouth watering food! We honestly have never been disappointed with anything on their menu, but if it's your first time I'd recommend the BLT (add egg), the banana blueberry French toast, or the Croque Madame. If you find yourself with some home fries or anything else thats a vehicle for aggressive dipping ask for their dill mayo What makes us come back so regularly is that the experience goes beyond the food. Everyone who works here is always so friendly! And seeing the chef at work with such a buzzing energy is always great to see. You really feel like there's a lot of love that goes into her cooking. Anytime we have friends or family visiting, we take them here because it's consistently such an enjoyable experience. Hands down, best brunch in roncey / parkdale / high park! read more

It's a small, narrow diner that looks like it's definitely a place where you'd have to line up during peak hours. Luckily for me, there wasn't a line when I went for brunch (late) but the place was full. Not sure how often they change their specials, but on this specific day, it was Lobster Benedict, so we got that and the Croque Madame. The Lobster Benedict was pretty disappointing. Nothing special and the lobster was over cooked (poached in butter). It was just a mediocre benedict and I would have preferred more sauce. It was pricey too and smaller than other places even taking into consideration the lobster. Not being please with my dish, I didn't have high hopes for this place so when I tried to Croque Madame, I was really surprised. It's honestly so good. I ended taking the Croque Madame instead. Loved the leek and Dijon cream sauce. Pretty sure that made the dish. I'm willing to look past the Lobster Benedict because it's not always on the menu and looking forward to trying more! read more

The Ace - Lobster Benedict - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

This was a good breakfast place to visit. Amazing food and the menu was short and simple so I didn't have to stare at fifty different breakfast options. I got the weekend omelet which was amazing it had goat cheese inside and roasted garlic peppers on top. On top of that mimosas were good but priceeey. read more

While not yet "as good as it gets", 5 stars shows the potential this place will almost surely attain! I can't in good conscience give less: 4.5 is closer the mark; 4 would do them a disservice. Reason being while there's room for improvement, this revitalized Roncy relic really hit the ground running! (That's a hell of a lot of Rs. Yay for alliteration!) Restored from a truly odd marriage of 50s diner and 80s Chinese Food Place, the owners (and their team of family and friends) really went the extra mile: what they couldn't salvage for its original purpose, they re-purposed (check out the awesome wall-mounted tea lights!). Seriously, this place is eye candy of the highest order (and I'm not talkin' about the servers or clientele, though surely there are plenty enough beautiful people milling about on a Saturday night). It's small, equal parts cozy and sweaty, with a half-dozen bar seats, a half-dozen tables for two, a table (or two?) for four, and the large front table that seats eight pretty comfortably. Note that they *do* take reservations, though I suspect this may not last as their popularity grows and the limited space demands greater turnaround. As for the food, drinks, and service, while there are still some kinks to be ironed out -- hence the room for improvement -- they've got the foundation of something great. Some highlights and notables: * Steak was asked for rare and arrived thusly, something I'm not accustomed to in this city. With four of our table ordering the steak it's pretty impressive the small kitchen hammered them out in a timely fashion and perfectly cooked to boot! All were nicely aged and damned tasty. Highlight indeed! * Fried chicken, three pieces with a mess of delicious collard greens and ham gravy... good but not great. Two pieces were succulent and finger-lickin'; one piece was smaller and overcooked, suggesting their fryer-timing is still being fine-tuned. The head chef, Peter, is apparently known for this dish and I'll guess it'll ultimately be a big win once the kitchen staff perfects it. * Taro chips. GET THE TARO CHIPS. * House Manhattan is an interesting take on the classic, though I found the cinnamon on the candied apricot garnish had permeated the drink too much for my traditionalist tastes -- no worries, it's easy enough to ask for a classic, dry Manhattan. * Some very interesting house-made ice creams, including one made with Hockley Stout and another with bourbon. "Sweet" indeed! At $4 a pop they're on the pricey side for two adorable little scoops, but they're a fine -- and novel -- way to close out a meal and definitely recommended at least once. * Service can be a bit slow, but it's exceedingly friendly. These are good people looking to establish a new neighbourhood institution -- it really shows through in the way they interact with patrons (and each other). Respect, friendliness, attentiveness, and appreciation. They're not taking anything for granted and I love that. Final curiosity: On our first visit we were graced by a sit down from a staff-member (who asks to remain anonymous!) as the night wound down. She cheerfully answered our questions, and relayed some very interesting stories... foremost being that The Ace is apparently haunted by the ghost of the previous proprietor of the Chinese joint... but the spirit is friendly, and happy to see the place jumping again. If you get a chance and they're not too busy, ask about the renovations, the ghost, and the general tale behind the place. The Ace boasts a good yarn, and it's worth a listen! (Not to mention repeat visits!) read more

This place is so lovely! If you want comfort food, this is the place. And it was restaurant number 8 crossed off my Restaurant resolutions list. http://wp.me/p1t9bx-k0 VIBE Yes, I have to say it. So hipster. It is a long, narrow diner with plenty of booths and stools at the bar. Really funky wallpaper adorns the walls and you can see the cooks working their magic in the back. It's dimlit in here and perfect on a grey or breezy night. Great for a casual date or catch up with a friend. WE ATE Warm bread and olives were comforting and I'm glad we got them because it took a while for our food to come. If you're in a rush, maybe this is not the place for you. I had the fried chicken. It's not Stockyards but I gobbled it up! It felt like my grandmother's recipe. Yum and YUM. I mistakenly thought Mac and Cheese was on the menu -- only the children's menu. Bring it for the adults! My dining partner had the mussels and fries. I had a fry and they were thick and fresh and lovely. He seemed to enjoy the mussels. It was quite the bowl. Portions are just the right size to fill you up but not leave you stuffed. After hearing that they had nutella perogies on the menu, we had to try them. What a creative dish! They were delish but they were not "wow" and a brown perogie may not be the most visually appealing. That said with some creme fraiche, lovely! OBLIGATORY CATCHY REMARK The Ace is ace. It seems like a lot of people are going here for brunch. Maybe I'll try it when the crowds die down? This place really does feel like the new Swan. read more

Loved the French toast and coffee! We went around 10 on a Sunday and there were plenty of seats . In lovely neighbourhood- perfect for an after breakfast walk ! The huevos rancheros could have been more flavourful . We were able to find parking for free on the side streets. read more

The Ace - Comfort Food Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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I'm on a mission to try all of the restos on the Roncy strip. Cue a visit to The Ace. I waited outside for my companion not realizing that there was actually a wait. Once I got my name down on the list we waited for about 20 minutes to be called. The only seats available were at the bar and barely that because one stool was basically behind the bar. We shifted over once some other diners left but it wasn't that much more comfortable. The service was prompt if not particularly friendly. The menu was also small and fairly pricey. If I'm going to pay $16 for a veggie burger I expect that it's not going to be served on a white Dempsters hamburger bun. What a disappointment. My dining companion got the Thanksgiving burger also served on the same type of bun. The food was nonetheless tasty, especially the fries that accompanied our meal. This was definitely a try once and don't bother returning kind of place. There are plenty of other places on the strip with food that is better value for money. read more

My friends took me to this place a couple of weeks ago. We're all students on a budget, but twice a month we treat ourselves to a meal at an trendy restaurant we haven't tried yet. When we got to The Ace at around 8 o'clock, we found it completely filled, but the host took our name and number and said that he would call when a table freed up allowing us to walk around lovely Roncy instead of blocking the door and waiting. My friends ordered the Christmas Burger, the Mac'n'Cheese Burger, I ordered the Fried Chicken with Collared Greens and we shared the Deep Fried Brussel Sprouts to start. The portions were perfect (even though at the end of the meal we all felt the urge to unbutton our pants) and we were all very happy with our meal. The service was pretty wonderful. Our waitress didn't even argue when we asked for our bill to be seperated into equal parts (which it seems is an insane request to most people in the food industry in Toronto). She answered all our questions about the dishes we had and had great advice when it came to the deserts (homemade ice cream). All in all everything was good, but it was by far not the best I've ever had which I expect for the 25 dollars I paid for fried chicken, the cheapest greens out there and cornbread. If your concept is "comfort food done right" as it seems to be, it needs to be done to perfection if you decide to charge that price for it. read more

We came to the Ace for dinner on a Wednesday night. Note, they only take reservations for groups of six or more for the front window table. The rest of the seating is first come, first served. This was not a problem when we arrived around 7pm. We were able to grab one of the last available booths near the back. Our friendly server dropped off menus and then came back for drink orders. We got 2 glasses of wine ($10/each) and once we heard the specials, we ordered the steak frites entree ($21) and the special trout appetizer ($11). One of the dinner specials was a burger topped with mac&cheese ($13) which I thought was intriguing. Atmosphere was old school diner, definitely kitchy and cute. A bustling dining room filled with lots of hungry patrons, just like the days of yore. Not too long of a wait for our meals. The steak frites was excellent. Steak done medium rare as requested and the fresh cut fries were good as well. The meaty gravy that coated the steak tasted great on the fries. The trout appetizer came on a bed of salad. Simple but good, my DC wished it came in an entree size. For dessert, we had to try some of the homemade ice creams ($4/each). We got the Mexican hot chocolate and the raspberry sorbet. The hot chocolate flavor had a hint of cinammon and the raspberry was tart but refreshing. Both great and the two tiny scoops of each didn't last too long. Ventilation in the Ace could be improved. We sat close to the open kitchen and when we left, we were wearing the scent of our dinners. It required a full body shower and airing of my coat outside to get rid of the smells. As soon as we payed our bill, we were requested by another server to vacate our table and finish up at the bar so that new customers could be seated. I understand the importance of turnover on a busy night and I respect it. We were on our way out and not intending to linger but give me a chance to put on my jacket. DC was not impressed, felt like we were being ushered out the door. Solid 3.5 stars for good food and kitchy atmosphere. Happy to see new places pop up on Ronccy now that the streetcar tracks are repaired. read more

Tucked away a midst the revitalization of Roncy, The Ace is another one of Toronto's little gems. From the food perspective, this place knows what it's doing. Dinner artichoke appetizer turns artichoke haters into lovers. Salad options are fresh, simple and not over dressed. Dinner entree's highlight new takes on traditional dishes, with a special shout out to the lamb shank and steak frites. When a restaurant makes its own homemade icecreams and desserts, you know the chef is in it from start to end. Everything we had was extremely good and for the pricing, you really can't go wrong. The atmosphere is perfectly Toronto. In a city where half the restaurants are focusing more and more on modern spaces with year half livs on ambience, The Ace does the opposite and supports the casual relaxed this-is-a-what-a-neighbourhood-restaurant-should-feel-like. I personally find myself drawn to places like this. The servers are attentive, informative and just down right cool. The place almost feels like an American dinner in a French city. Mismatched plates and kitchy little things makes you feel like you're at home. This would be a great place to catch up with friends, go out with family, go on a date, feel warm in the winter. Well done to the chef, servers and owners. read more

I was hoping for a neighborhood gem, especially after reading the Yelp reviews...but alas, the much-recommended chicken was a bit of a dud. It was heavily breaded and dry. The "gravy" was flavorless and spare as well. The spinach was fine, but not spectacular. The waitress offered dessert on the house due the palpable disappointment. This was a nice gesture, but the bourbon ice cream was a bit long in the tooth and had large ice crystals. Flavor good, shelf life bad. Service was excellent and this is a very cute place...but the food was unimpressive. read more

We checked out the Ace for brunch this weekend. When we arrived, there were a few couples/groups ahead of us, waiting for tables. The problem is, there's nowhere to wait. With the frigid temperatures we've been having, we were all trying to huddle by the door. A few couples took a seat at the counter while they waited for a booth, but this also caused quite a bit of confusion, as couples were then being seated out of order (they lost track of who was next, and who was sitting at the counter). There's one larger table in the front window, and every time the server needed to get to their table, everyone in the doorway had to shift and shuffle around to let her by. Anyway, we were able to get a table fairly quickly - I don't think we waited more than 10 minutes. We ordered a cappucino and latte right away, and when our server came back with water, we asked her if we could order - we hadn't received our drinks yet, but we already knew what we wanted, having stared at the menu while we waited for a table. As is customary for my hubby and I, he had the Eggs Benny, and I had the French Toast. It showed up oddly fast! That is not a complaint, but it was a bit bizarre how quickly our food arrived. In fact, we were still waiting for our coffee drinks. The French Toast with carmelized bananas and blueberries was enjoyable. I liked it more than I thought I would. The latte was satisfying. My husband enjoyed his Eggs Benny, but decided that he preferred the Eggs Benny at Barque's Smokehouse up the street better. But he did enjoy this one. He also commented that he homefries were good - he particularly liked how crispy they were, but also noted that nothing compares to our favourite homefries at Mitzi's Sister, where the mystery seasoning is magical. The homefries at The Ace were more plain, but still very well enjoyed. The atmosphere is interesting - I like the kitschy, vintage feel of the old diner/Chinese restaurant. But it also feels a bit stale. In fact, I can't say for sure, but the wallpaper seems to be leftover from the restaurant's previous lives, and I couldn't help but wonder how many years of deep fryer grease and cigarette smoke were buried in it. I enjoyed the experience, but it felt a bit claustrophobic and stuffy for breakfast. I'd be intrigued to see what it feels like with a late-night dinner vibe. One last note - we paid via credit card, and when our server brought us the credit card terminal to our table, I was quite surprised to see that the default tip % was set to 20%. Luckily it had the option of "other". While I may sometimes consider paying a 20% tip, I didn't feel that our breakfast experienced warranted that much. It seemed awfully presumptious. It's a bit of a put-off. While I always do tip, I'm of the school of thought that a tip should be earned, not expected. We'll return, but not in a rush. read more