For a few years I've been eyeing this restaurant. The place looks cute in photos, the menu sounds delicious. Finally being in the area one day, I popped in for a late lunch (luckily there was space, it's a fairly small restaurant) and I'm glad I tried it out. I kept it simple as I was dining solo, so went with the Chicken Levant plate, with rice/lemtils and hummus. If you think you know what hummus tastes like bc you picked up a tub at your grocery store, think again. This hummus had a deep rich flavour that just oozed deliciously good food. The chicken was nice and juicy, the rice/lentils were cooked to perfection. I honestly don't know what more to say then simply, it tasted lovely. A small salad accompanied it. Feel free to add sauce (extra $2, I chose the hot honey one). Definitely want to come back To try their other dishes, brunch, mint tea etc. read more

The Haifa Room - Levant Chicken plate, with rice - Middle Eastern Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

I can't even tell you how many times I've walked by The Haifa Room and been like, I really need to go there sometime. So when the opportunity to pop in arose on a recent night out, I was thrilled to finally stop inside. I was very intrigued by all the cocktails, but I eventually decided to try the Siti Zainab ("dill infused gin + aquavit + dry vermouth + dill olive oil"). I chose correctly because it's terrific. The unusual flavors all work really well together, and I can safely say it's one of the better cocktails I've had recently. Even though we'd just eaten dinner, we figured we should grab some food, so we wound up ordering the 2pc Beef Kofta ("harissa tahini") and it promptly blew my mind. I've had plenty of kofta in my time, but this was perhaps the best of the bunch. It's so flavorful and super tender. Honestly I could've eaten about a hundred of those things. For dessert, we got the Labneh Cheesecake ("pistachio + hazelnut + baharat strawberry preserve") and it's just as good and so, so satisfying. Yeah, The Haifa Room is a top-notch little place. We'll definitely be back. read more

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I'm so glad my friends and I checked this place out. The food was delicious, service was friendly but not over-attentive, and it's quite cozy in there. I'll definitely go back. read more

The Haifa Room - Middle Eastern Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

It's a small and cozy restaurant, serving Middle Eastern cuisine. They have about 10 small tables, and for larger groups, they accommodate by putting the tables together. The staff are young and friendly. You can either use public transportation to get here or park your car on the street. We ordered "House Hummus" that was served with a pita bread. We also ordered "Lamb Tartare" and "Loaded Eggplant". This was our first time trying Lamb Tartare and we really liked it. The Loaded Eggplant was very delicious and I really recommend it. We also tried "Knafe" for dessert. We liked that it was warm and a great combination of sweet and salty. read more

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We randomly stopped by this place because we had some time to kill, and luckily they had a table open for an hour. I was meaning to visit their Vancouver branch but never got a chance so I was very happy that I stumbled upon their Toronto location. We initially wanted to try their peach hummus with pita (which I was very skeptical about but my friends recommended it), but they were out so we tried their mushroom hummus with pita. As someone from the middle-east, I'm very particular about hummus but this one was surprisingly good! The mushrooms went really well with the hummus and the chilli powder they added blended well. I wouldn't say this was authentic hummus, but a twist to it and I quite enjoyed it! For drinks, my friends got their Cafe Douma which apparently is a fan favourite. It had cold brew coffee + bourbon + Campari, pretty good if you are a fan of coffee! I got one of their specials which had rose petals and citrus flavouring. The space itself is not super big, but it has cool paintings on the wall that depict a middle-eastern vibe. read more

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Came by for brunch, it's located right in the heart of Ossington, inside, there is limited seating or either book online or be prepared to wait some time. The brunch menu consists of hummus, garish, shakshuka, breaks sandwiches, flared etc. We tried a few items, we enjoyed the breaky pita which comes with eggs, latke, and potatoes. The hot beverage menu just offers turkish coffee, which was strong and flavourful. The service was fine, food arrived in a timely manner. read more

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SO GOOD! We were recommended this place by a local and it did not disappoint. We tried a bunch of their cocktails and they were all amazing, the one with egg white was probably our favorite. The hummus was also incredible as were the potatoes and meat dish. The ambiance was also very nice and the servers were so kind and welcoming. Definitely recommend! read more

The Haifa Room - Middle Eastern Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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My overall rating is 3.5. I came in expecting middle eastern food with a twist perhaps but it was what I would describe as standard American food. We got the hot Nazareth chicken - deep fried battered chicken with some beet sauce underneath and a drizzle of hot sauce. It was really good deep fried chicken but not spicy as they had warned us. We got the potatoes which were very good and accompanied with toum (garlic sauce - the only middle eastern thing in our meal). We also got the scallops which were raw hors d'oeuvres and had too much maldon sea salt sprinkled on top. The service was not great and they also forgot to bring out the pita we had ordered. read more

Can't visit Toronto with indulging in Haifa! Simply amazing food, amazing staff in the best location! There isn't one thing I have loved and craved from Haifa !!! Wish Ottawa had an Haifa Room! read more

Tasty, but significantly overpriced even by Ossington standards. And as covered by several others, the service is lacklustre as well. Upon arrival the staff were busy attending to what seemed like a group of their friends - we waited nearly 15 minutes to even be acknowledged. The kofta was good, but pathetically small. The potatoes were good, but lacking an appropriate amount of toum. The lamb shoulder was a standout, though the rest of the plate - some root veg and 3 dips - were pretty thoughtless, the latter watery from the lamb juices. Countless other Middle Eastern places across the city, including Azhar just down the street, are better options. read more

The Haifa Room - Middle Eastern Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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Amazing dishes bursting with favours. A great place for brunch. Share with your friends and enjoy the whole menu. The service was spot on, caring and friendly. Can't wait to go back. read more

blew our expectations. Food is excellent, atmosphere is perfect for dining with friends over shareables. Well priced for such a wonderful restaurant. Music was great and not too overwhelming read more

One of the best Middle Eastern places I've ever been to! This place is on the chill end of the Ossington strip, and the food is well-priced and super tasty. The fried chicken -- crispy, juicy, perfection The hummus -- we had the one with a bit of honey and it blew my mind! The only thing is it was so yummy that I needed more pita! The eggplant -- you have to try this. Look how gorgeous it is! The smelts -- my fave! I used to eat these as a kid and these brought me right back to my happy place. Will definitely be back! read more

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Upon arrival, the server who brought us to our table seemed very occupied even though we were the only customers there. The restaurant is very nice with great natural lighting and the food was pretty good. I can't say much about the food (it's my first time having this cuisine). But I found it was very tasty! I had the falafel plate - the fries were very good and seasoned well! However, near the end of our meal, the service was better! The server came to check on us a few times and made sure we were doing okay and enjoying our food. read more

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Food was great! It's an adorable little spot. Great spot for a quiet evening. Wish I tried more dishes, will have to come back! Also have a great wine selection. read more

The Haifa Room is a modern, trendy Israeli-inspired restaurant with brick-lined walls and an open kitchen, and they offer both table service and a takeout window for pita sandwiches. To start, we ordered the Hancock's Hummus, a plate of super creamy, smooth hummus topped with fried Brussels sprouts, pine nuts, preserved orange, and chili olive salt, served with grilled pita on the side. For our main course, the Boneless Lamb Shoulder came with super tender braised hunks of lamb in shawarma spice, served over roasted onions and turnips, all plated artistically with three colorful sauces: pink sumac yogurt, white toum, and green herbed tahini. Both of the dishes were flavorful, delicious, and beautifully presented, but the service was excruciatingly slow and less than attentive. read more

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This place is so cute and has great food! My friend had heard good things so we decided to check it out and I'm so happy we did. Every bit of food we tried was fantastic! We got the peach hummus, the charred cabbage, the hot chicken and potatoes, and I would get it all again. I think the chicken was my favourite overall, but I would recommend it all. They also had very good cocktails and service to boot. So if you are in the area - definitely check this place out! read more

The Haifa Room - Middle Eastern Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

A great little spot on the Ossington strip. The food was all delicious, highly recommend the classic hummus & pita to start. The service was friendly and prices were reasonable. Most items on the menu are sharable, we enjoyed everything we ordered. It is quite small so definitely make a reservation in advance. Already excited to go back! read more

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I passed by this place while walking around the area and decided to check it out! When my friend I walked in, it was so lively and busy and the place smelled amazing. We ended up sitting at the bar which had a view of the open kitchen and was honestly very cool to watch -- we saw the chefs preparing all the food and you could tell they were putting a lot of effort into each dish they made! The main menu is pretty limited, but the plates are super tasty! I opted for the kebab plate which had a large portion of everything -- I was originally only given 2 kebabs but our waitress let me know they were making 2 more fresh which was great! I would definitely recommend trying this place out, but seating is very limited read more

The Haifa Room - Palestinian Chicken - Middle Eastern Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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What was Waltman's Drug Store, and then Schmaltz's, is now now The Haifa Room. This tidbit of history is important, because both businesses since Waltman's have kept remnants of the drug store. Haifa Room is currently doing a soft opening - get your falafel at the window on Dundas, either on its own, as a plate, or else choose from sabich (eggplant) or assorted veggie. This is proper falafel. Unlike the kind you get at less involved spots, this falafel is made fresh so that it retains its texture, moisture, flavour, and colour. Instead of a pale yellow interior with flecks of green, you get a robust, consolidated mixture which is fried to crunchy perfection. I got the plate, which is honestly just a deconstructed falafel sandwich. While some more exciting sides would've been great, the restaurant literally opened today. Also, the hummus is genuinely really delicious, and getting a proper serving of it to enjoy with my pita was worth it. Excited to see how they expand their menu and what they do with the interior! read more

The Haifa Room - Middle Eastern Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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Server was very nice and even gave my two kids a small glass of juice for free. The food was well presented and the portions were ample. Atmosphere was casual and friendly. I would recommend coming back in the future. read more

The Haifa Room - Falafel sandwich - Middle Eastern Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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If I could give negative starts I would me and my family dined hear on Thursday February 29th I ordered the falafels the inside was hard as could Be and un edible and then I also ordered there Nazareth hot chicken and the chicken was very undercooked I gave back 2 times and it still came out pink on the inside! Also as I was dining I seen what appeared to be a cockroach on the wall I brought it to a employees attention and they brushed me off and acted like as if that was a normal thing that happens often the staff was very rude to me and my family vert unfair considering are situation read more

Tried the falafel it was fresh and delicious for takeout. Just taking a peek of their interior it was absolutely stunning. I might revise my review when i take a proper time to go to their dine in. read more

Visited Sunday around 11 ish. Food was amazing, portion sizes were ok, ambience was great too! We shared 4 dishes for two person and the service was friendly, informative and fast. Will go back for sure!! Hemi's Hummus, roasted potatoes, Latkeh & lox, Knafe. All complex and super delicious. With plenty of coffee too read more

our night did not start off well. our reservation was originally for 4 people and we added 3. when we called they were very accommodating when we got there we were met by a very unhappy staff member who basically snarled at us, sat us at our table short a chair and threw down a price fix menu stating we had the option of menu 1 or 2. we were not told we had to have a price fixed menu. we were celebrating a bday and were suddenly faced with a miserable waitress and off to a terrible start. we tried to see if we could get in somewhere else where perhaps we would be treated decently. the host of the group spoke to another staff member and our server was changed out and so was the requirement of the price fixed menu. alternate server did her best to undo the damage of the original person. we were squished 4 on a bench with space for three until a chair became available to put at the end of the table. the food saved the night. everything we ate was delicious. the miserable staff member stayed miserable all night greeting people with attitude. while the food was outstanding not sure a return visit is on the horizon. guests should be treated respectfully and while the new server tried to make up for the poor start it put a damper on a bday celebration. knowing it was a bday not even the replacement server wished the bday girl a happy bday. There are so many good restaurants in our city and on Ossington, you may as well try one where staff are appreciative of your patronage. food would get 5 stars the rest of the experience not so much! read more

Had a really great server, he was a vibe. He kindly let us switch seats when I asked after another group left. Would return

It was great experience all around from the wine selection and the suggested dishes to try making the four of us. Many thx for an enjoyable experience. Cheers read more

Skip it. Grabbed lunch here today and the guy at the pick up window was extraordinarily rude. I ordered off of Ritual, waited 45 minutes to go pick it up and when I arrived (when the app said it was ready) the guy at the window barked at me "don't listen to the app it has no idea what's going on!" and then walked away. I stood there and waited another almost 15 minutes for my order. I get they're busy and likely very understaffed because of Covid and that they might have issues with the app but there's no reason for that type of treatment of customers. All he had to do was apologetically explain it wasn't ready and they would have had my sympathy. Sandwich was fine. Nothing special. Personally I'd go somewhere else. There are lots of authentic falafels around the city that cost less, have better flavour and have staff that aren't as rude. read more

We visited for dinner on a Tuesday. Great, bright space on the corner of Dundas and Ossington. Very fresh ingredients. Our server wasn't overly friendly, mainly business. Our food came relatively quick, but I had to remind them about my glass of wine. My favourite part or the whole meal was the Knafe. Best I've ever had. Unfortunately didnt take a picture. I enjoyed it so much. read more

The Haifa Room - Labneh with olive oil, fresh pita, warm olives - Middle Eastern Near Me - Toronto, Ontario

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Amazing and delicious fare. Perfect options and done in Israeli/Palestinian fashion. A must try if you like middle Eastern food, and even if you don't read more

Tried this spot with my friend for Sunday brunch as recommended by her. When we arrived at 11h30 ish, it was almost empty. We had Shashuka which came with pita bread. It was decent but expensive ($18) for such a small portion. Service was ok, not that pleasant. It was a bit disappointing to be honest. read more

Yea gonna have to mirror the review on poor customer service. Falafel is good but not overtly special.. but what i saw : -staff working with masks down often , and the use of bare hands to handle food on the first soft launch days which then switched to gloves -Rude staff experience twice , once the dude just huffed at me unimpressed that im ordering , he didnt seem to want to be there .. it was a strange experience.. the 2nd time i offered to pay with Cash which most small businesses want, and he just shrugged dismissively and goes "i guess cash is ok." .. when its clear the register had tons of cash.. yea we get youve got a trendy spot and great marketing but you keep treating people this way - you wont last too long.. EDIT : - changed review from 2 to 1 star went in yesterday with my partner to try to give this place another chance with an indoor experience.. we were there on a saturday night early evening with the place not packed to the brim at all.. Our experience was very very disheartening and can be summarized in the following points -food was delicious without a doubt - but portions were the absolute smallest ive ever seen from an eating establishment anywhere - especially with their price points.. this is cheap arabic finger foods.. yet they price them as if they were truffle infused foi gras bits.. its a bit ridiculous. -for 2 people we ordered 4 dishes - which came with a tiny single piece of pita for 2 people.. a piece the size of half your hand , it was the tiniest pitta piece ever.. and to be shared between to people.. all 4 bites of it.. for 4 dishes.. ? -service was horrible - we were tended to by a woman who basically rushed us out in 25 min.. She cleared the dishes, then brings us the bill pretty quick without us asking.. Then 2 minutes after paying as my partner motions to grab the water bottle to fill her glass , she swoops in and grabs it before she does and never brings it back.. We complain about this aspect to her and she laughs it off saying she filled it and forgot to bring it back - without any apology offered.. the wine was also served torwards the end of the meal.. ? We left feeling hungry enough to get a slice of pizza after.. spending nearly 100$ on an evening where we were rushed out in 25 minutes... Its an appalling standard, and pathetic to bring the name middle eastern around such an establishment. Middle eastern restaurants pride themselves on hospitality.. Yesterday we felt unwanted and unwelcome... I will never be coming back here again.. read more

Full of flavor and quality food. Very nice atmosphere and ambiance. Good service and friendly staff. Location is great.

Been meaning to check this place out for a while. First off the atmosphere and interior is beautiful. Secondly the food was delicious and everything was really flavourful with cascading flavours with different notes. Had the falafel which was good and the tahini and spiced zhug was dynamite. The hot sauce is really special (has butter tho which makes it non vegan)... the smothered eggplant with pine nuts was kinda salty but not quite too salty but still very delicious. Good pita too. Would definitely recommend for elevated Middle Eastern food and great location. Thank you we had a nice time. Will defiantly want to go back to try other dishes. read more

Damn that was delicious. These folks take pride in what they are doing. Bravo! My new regular falafel joint.

I don't know why I have given this place a few tries. It's over 17$ for the falafel wrap when I upgraded to add fries inside the sandwich. I paid $2.50 for 3 fries total. This hummus has no flavour. The falafel is pretty dry. Stick to the mom and pop shops, this place isn't going to last long. read more

Great light food - service was great. Very attentive and the service was well paced. The interior has a lot of natural light - would recommend! read more