I would have considered giving this place 3.5 stars but since that isn't possible I have to settle on 3. I came here on Saturday night for an event at 7pm. I walked right in the and all the way up several flights questionable looking stairs to be greeted with a lovely, large patio with a great view of the CN Tower.
I was somewhat concerned about coming here given that so many reviews mentioned bad service. As it turns out this didn't impact me at all because we didn't see any servers and just ordered drinks at the bar. I didn't order food however some of my friends said that it took a very long time to come.
Given that I was at an event I stayed here all evening until almost 1am. The place stayed a comfortable amount of full until around 11:30pm or midnight when an influx of drunk, 19yo 905ers started to flood the joint. That definitely changed the vibe significantly and I bounced soon afterwards only to encounter a very long line up on my way out.
Pros
- nice spacious patio with great CN tower view
- quick service at the bar
- plenty of seating/standing space and even some couches
- nice downtown location
- they serve Grapefruit Radler
- large frozen margaritas that are served in a plastic beach pail with a big slice of watermelon (novelty factor)
- they placed decent, current music that was at a good volume - added to the ambience without being too loud
- stylish overhead lights once it got dark
- casual dress is fine during the day and early evening
Cons
- very expensive drink prices. A margarona/solarita (margarita with upturned beer) is $16.50 and it wasn't even a Corona it was a Sol. All of the other cocktails aside from the regular margaritas were also very exxy. Given that they don't use glassware paying megabucks for a fancy cocktail in a plastic cup kind of cheapens the experience.
- no draft beer, only cans (and a generic selection at that). I know they don't use glass but they could still serve draft in plastic cups given that they consider them adequate for cocktails
- inconsistent drink sizes when it came to the beach pail margarita. Some bartenders made them half full and others the whole way. I was drinking these because they seemed better value for money.
- cover charge. At 7pm I got in for free but my friends who came later paid anywhere between $10 and $14, not sure if it went up further later on.
- I didn't use the washrooms but I was told by several others that this was a horrifying experience
Would I come back again?
Yes. I think this place would be great for afterwork drinks, day drinking or earlier in the evening. Also good for out-of-town visitors who would appreciate the nice views. I would not be willing to pay a cover charge to get in given that the drinks are so expensive and the late night drunk people kind of kill the laidback yet sophisticated vibe.