My sister (and yelper extraordinaire) will be very disappointed with this review (see her glowing 5-star review below), but I think Messis has gone downhill. Either that or I've become snobbier - which is, I admit, a possibility.
I remember Messis as being one of the tastier mid-range restaurants in the Annex/Harbord area, but it just can't compete with far better 93 Harbord next door.
We were a table of four. Bread came right away (we were grateful since we were hungry and waiting for the second pair to arrive) but it was a little stale - as though it had been cut for service a hour earlier and then sat in the bread basket. Everything was pretty good. Appetizers: a perfectly cooked - but stingy - 3 scallops, an avocado and sprout salad with unfortunately too much heavy dressing. Mains were also decent: over-salted (according to my friend) but rich and tasty lamb shank, a solid vegetarian quiche and beautifully cooked fish with beurre blanc and steamed veggies. Service was a little forgetful and slow. We waited a long time for our food, but it was a busy Saturday night so that's pretty common.
The problem was...nothing shone. None of the food was as good as its description on the menu. It's not a bad place for a decent plate of food and some good conversation, but I'd rather spend a little more and get wowed next door. Too expensive for what you get at Messis.
Vegetarian score = 6.5/10. Interesting choices, better than the average pasta or roasted veggies.