I was visiting Toronto from New York and decided to try La Fenice, hoping for a great Italian meal in the heart of the city. While I’ll say the service was excellent-the staff were attentive, polite, and professional—the food was a major letdown, especially given the high price point.
I ordered the Fettuccine Mushroom which was overcooked and too salty. You could tell the Parmesan was low quality- it had a gritty texture and didn’t melt like authentic parmigiano reggiano which I expected when paying $33 for a vegetarian pasta! Also, they don’t make their own fresh pasta which again was disappointing for the price.
Sadly, La Fenice just didn’t deliver. Between the uninspired, low quality food and inflated prices, I wouldn’t return and understand why it was so empty on a Saturday night.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 5
Fábio Dutra Sarti
I went to the restaurant to enjoy a good meal and have the chance to talk to my wife. However, I was constantly interrupted by the staff from the moment I arrived with questions like if I was going to stay for long, if I was in a hurry, among other similar inquiries. I felt like he didn’t want me there, perhaps because I chose to eat a salad as a main dish and not one of the other more expensive options. With a treatment like this, it’s not a surprise to see the restaurant so empty on a Thursday evening. Big deception. Don’t waste your time, there are certainly more welcoming options.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
Alice Xu
The pasta here was on the saltier side, compared to other places I’ve been food quality was below average especially for the price.
Service was quick but that was also because the place was otherwise empty.
Tiramisu was also below average.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 3
Daniel Egli
My wife and me (From Switzerland) stayed 1 night in Toronto. Dinner and next day Lunch in La Fenice Tuscan Grill. Food excellent - Frish Fish and Pasta Wine List 👍 Our waiter Roberto took care of us - like in Italy - ask for him if you choose La Fenice For sure we will come back to this place if once coming back Ariane & Daniel
Type ZERO
Place was great, food was fantastic and service was great. Place wasn't very busy on a Tuesday. If you're looking for a good spot, worth checking out.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Irina Abbasova
We paid $100 for two salads and two glasses of wine at 6oz each. The salad had a few croutons, lettuce leaves, and a crumb of Parmesan. It's funny and sad. I reserved a table by the window for a birthday celebration and mentioned it when we arrived, but both tables by the window were occupied. The ambiance is nice, but it's a far cry from an Italian restaurant. We've been to several competitors in Toronto, and they're much better, much cheaper, and have a more atmospheric atmosphere. We won't be going back to this place again.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 2
Brandon Calvert
My Wife, Son & I ate here Saturday night before catching a show at Roy Thompson Hall. We were all very happy with our meals & the service. We had the bolognese, mushroom fettuccine & linguini spicy shrimp. The Italian pinot grigio by the glass was lovely as well. We recommend this place. Excellent spot to grab dinner & pricing was reasonable considering the Neighbourhood.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 4
Sara sh
Had an amazing experience at La fenice the service was so great. I ordered mix grilled seafood and my partner ordered the steak we both loved our food.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Marie Godoy
A very quiet and private place, perfect for a date with delicious food and excellent cocktails. We ordered a Milanese risotto and a mushroom fettuccine, both very creamy and intensely flavored. The signature cocktails are very refreshing. And not to mention the service, very helpful and courteous.
We had a delicious meal here. The risotto was also very tasty, although it had quite a lot of pepper. The service was friendly as well. We truly felt like we were in Italy.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
Lindsay Nichols
The food was DELICIOUS. It’s a small place and the servers were busting their butts but it took a long time to order and then get our food. (Not the servers fault!) It was also very loud and somewhat difficult to hear my table mates. Still, the food made it all worth it. I recommend.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 4
Marie-Anne David
This restaurant is the best we ever been before. It was delicious, fabulous, amazing... Everything was extremely excellent. From the beginning to the end or our evening. We recommend it ! A must in Toronto 👌🏼
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
darren elkin
A really nice quaint place on King Street W. Food was excellent, service excellent and not rushy. Just a lovely place to go and have a relaxing, excellent meal.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A.J.
Went here for a Friday night dinner reservation, though it turned out the place was pretty empty. We probably didn’t need to book in advance. After being seated, we were only given the regular menus and had to specifically ask for the Summerlicious dinner menu, even though they confirmed they were offering it. That felt a bit off. You’d expect them to promote it upfront.
They started us off with warm-ish bread and butter. Bread is one of those small but telling details. It’s your first impression of the meal, yet so many places seem to treat it as an afterthought. This one didn’t stand out.
For the appetizer, I had the Bouillabaisse. It was okay, but it barely had any actual broth — and Bouillabaisse is a soup, after all. The calamari in it was also bland and needed more seasoning overall.
For the main course, I went with the Surf and Turf. It was fine. I asked for the steak rare and it was cooked properly, which I appreciated. The scallops, however, were unusually small - not sure why they chose that type. They also placed a sprig of thyme on top as a garnish, which felt a bit unrefined since it wasn’t integrated into the dish and didn’t add much.
For dessert, I had the chocolate raspberry tartufo. It was just okay. Nothing memorable, more like something to check the dessert box. I also tried the sorbet, which tasted a lot like a basic popsicle.
All in all, the food didn’t leave much of an impression. I wouldn’t come back for the food alone. I don’t think the cost is appropriate for what I got.
Very tasty authentic Italian food
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
I was visiting Toronto from New York and decided to try La Fenice, hoping for a great Italian meal in the heart of the city. While I’ll say the service was excellent-the staff were attentive, polite, and professional—the food was a major letdown, especially given the high price point.
I ordered the Fettuccine Mushroom which was overcooked and too salty. You could tell the Parmesan was low quality- it had a gritty texture and didn’t melt like authentic parmigiano reggiano which I expected when paying $33 for a vegetarian pasta! Also, they don’t make their own fresh pasta which again was disappointing for the price.
Sadly, La Fenice just didn’t deliver. Between the uninspired, low quality food and inflated prices, I wouldn’t return and understand why it was so empty on a Saturday night.
Atmosphere: 2
Food: 1
Service: 5
I went to the restaurant to enjoy a good meal and have the chance to talk to my wife. However, I was constantly interrupted by the staff from the moment I arrived with questions like if I was going to stay for long, if I was in a hurry, among other similar inquiries. I felt like he didn’t want me there, perhaps because I chose to eat a salad as a main dish and not one of the other more expensive options. With a treatment like this, it’s not a surprise to see the restaurant so empty on a Thursday evening. Big deception. Don’t waste your time, there are certainly more welcoming options.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 1
The pasta here was on the saltier side, compared to other places I’ve been food quality was below average especially for the price.
Service was quick but that was also because the place was otherwise empty.
Tiramisu was also below average.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 3
My wife and me (From Switzerland) stayed 1 night in Toronto.
Dinner and next day Lunch in La Fenice Tuscan Grill.
Food excellent - Frish Fish and Pasta
Wine List 👍
Our waiter Roberto took care of us - like in Italy - ask for him if you choose La Fenice
For sure we will come back to this place if once coming back
Ariane & Daniel
Place was great, food was fantastic and service was great. Place wasn't very busy on a Tuesday.
If you're looking for a good spot, worth checking out.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
We paid $100 for two salads and two glasses of wine at 6oz each. The salad had a few croutons, lettuce leaves, and a crumb of Parmesan. It's funny and sad. I reserved a table by the window for a birthday celebration and mentioned it when we arrived, but both tables by the window were occupied. The ambiance is nice, but it's a far cry from an Italian restaurant. We've been to several competitors in Toronto, and they're much better, much cheaper, and have a more atmospheric atmosphere. We won't be going back to this place again.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 2
My Wife, Son & I ate here Saturday night before catching a show at Roy Thompson Hall. We were all very happy with our meals & the service. We had the bolognese, mushroom fettuccine & linguini spicy shrimp. The Italian pinot grigio by the glass was lovely as well. We recommend this place. Excellent spot to grab dinner & pricing was reasonable considering the Neighbourhood.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 4
Service: 4
Had an amazing experience at La fenice the service was so great. I ordered mix grilled seafood and my partner ordered the steak we both loved our food.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A very quiet and private place, perfect for a date with delicious food and excellent cocktails. We ordered a Milanese risotto and a mushroom fettuccine, both very creamy and intensely flavored. The signature cocktails are very refreshing. And not to mention the service, very helpful and courteous.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 5
Service: 5
Restaurantji Recommends
We had a delicious meal here. The risotto was also very tasty, although it had quite a lot of pepper. The service was friendly as well. We truly felt like we were in Italy.
Atmosphere: 4
Food: 4
Service: 4
The food was DELICIOUS. It’s a small place and the servers were busting their butts but it took a long time to order and then get our food. (Not the servers fault!) It was also very loud and somewhat difficult to hear my table mates. Still, the food made it all worth it. I recommend.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 5
Service: 4
This restaurant is the best we ever been before. It was delicious, fabulous, amazing... Everything was extremely excellent. From the beginning to the end or our evening.
We recommend it ! A must in Toronto 👌🏼
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
A really nice quaint place on King Street W. Food was excellent, service excellent and not rushy. Just a lovely place to go and have a relaxing, excellent meal.
Atmosphere: 5
Food: 5
Service: 5
Went here for a Friday night dinner reservation, though it turned out the place was pretty empty. We probably didn’t need to book in advance. After being seated, we were only given the regular menus and had to specifically ask for the Summerlicious dinner menu, even though they confirmed they were offering it. That felt a bit off. You’d expect them to promote it upfront.
They started us off with warm-ish bread and butter. Bread is one of those small but telling details. It’s your first impression of the meal, yet so many places seem to treat it as an afterthought. This one didn’t stand out.
For the appetizer, I had the Bouillabaisse. It was okay, but it barely had any actual broth — and Bouillabaisse is a soup, after all. The calamari in it was also bland and needed more seasoning overall.
For the main course, I went with the Surf and Turf. It was fine. I asked for the steak rare and it was cooked properly, which I appreciated. The scallops, however, were unusually small - not sure why they chose that type. They also placed a sprig of thyme on top as a garnish, which felt a bit unrefined since it wasn’t integrated into the dish and didn’t add much.
For dessert, I had the chocolate raspberry tartufo. It was just okay. Nothing memorable, more like something to check the dessert box. I also tried the sorbet, which tasted a lot like a basic popsicle.
All in all, the food didn’t leave much of an impression. I wouldn’t come back for the food alone. I don’t think the cost is appropriate for what I got.
Atmosphere: 3
Food: 2
Service: 4
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