Fireside Deli & Family Restaurant — Restaurant in Kitchener

Do yourself a favor and look at the 1-star reviews I only looked at some and the owner doesn't really reply to any, I saw one comment the owner made but that was out of many reviews but if you look at the 5-star reviews the owner responds, lol, the owner should be responding more to dissatisfied customers that's what good customer service is responding to complaints before you lose customers for good, not responding is a surefire way to have people not come back! Great customer service is an establishment taking ownership for where they maybe went wrong, what they could do better, trying to correct and make a situation better for a customer to hopefully bring them back in the doors. A dissatisfied customer who especially gets no response from the establishment word of mouth will get around and that can be very damaging to any business especially with social media nowadays. No response basically comes across like the establishment doesn't care. I have more respect for an establishment who goes out of their way to respond to every single review whether it's a 1-star or a 5-star. I realize an establishment can't make everyone happy but when it comes to food something like french toast for example what I had with barely any egg that's not acceptable so that's where they need to take ownership and do better, you can tell by my photo that the bread looks dry with barely any egg. That's not how you make proper french toast, proper french toast the bread needs to be soaked in the egg mixture not just quickly dipped so that's the one mistake this restaurant did so my thought is that if they don't know how to cook french toast properly what else do they not know how to cook properly, lol.

I ordered french toast, sausage, and home fries, the french toast was barely dipped in egg, it just tasted like dry bread, and they used bread that has very firm crusts which I don't particularly like that type bread for french toast, the sausage links were extremely greasy with not much taste, and the home fries I would not order again they're not I don't believe made fresh in the restaurant like you would get from Sunset Grill, they're probably some frozen type home fries, very bland, with not much of a potato taste if any, but definitely would not order those again. Overall I'm going to keep ordering from Sunset Grill, they use plain ordinary bread with softer crusts for french toast and it's dipped in a lot more egg! Their home fries are amazing, made fresh daily potatoes with the skins on. I definitely won't be getting food from this restaurant again nor will I...

I’ve been coming to Fireside Deli and Family Restaurant since I was a little girl, and now at 22, it’s still one of my all-time favorite local spots. It’s right near my house, and the consistency over the years has been amazing, especially when it comes to the service and portion sizes.

We had dinner here again today, and once again, it was a great experience. We accidentally arrived about 20 minutes before closing, but the staff were incredibly kind and welcoming. We were seated, served, and never felt rushed at all, even though the kitchen was about to close. Our waitress in particular was fantastic. I wish I had caught her name. She was relaxed, understanding, quick, and just genuinely good at her job.

The food came out super fast and was just as good as I remembered. The shrimp souvlaki is our go-to order. It’s around $23 and easily one of the best deals you’ll find for the portion: two perfectly grilled shrimp skewers, pillowy rice, crispy fries (or garlic mash), loaded Greek salad, and tzatziki. Today, our salad came out without dressing, but they fixed it right away, no problem. Their Greek salad is honestly one of my favourites. It’s fresh, super generous with the feta, and the dressing is so flavorful.

We also ordered bruschetta today, and it was insanely good. Probably the best I’ve had anywhere. Huge pieces loaded with fresh toppings and full of flavor.

One of the biggest highlights here is the virgin Caesar. It’s seriously the best one I’ve had in the city, and I try one almost everywhere I go. It comes perfectly spiced, with a tasty rim and these long pickled spicy snap peas on top. It’s refreshing and pairs perfectly with their meals. The pop is always super fizzy too, which is always a plus.

Other items we’ve tried and loved include the shrimp stir-fry and the quesadilla, both solid options. I can’t speak to their beef or chicken dishes since we usually go for seafood, but everything we’ve had has been delicious and consistent.

We always have food to take home because of the amount of food we are given.

The atmosphere is cozy and charming. There are often older couples or families dining in, and the firefighter-themed decor gives it a homey, nostalgic ambiance with little firetruck models and memorabilia scattered around. It’s always very clean and well cared for.

Overall, Fireside is a gem. The value is incredible, especially for the portion sizes and quality you get. It’s comforting, dependable, and has a lot of heart. I’ll definitely keep coming back for...

When we arrived it took a few minutes for someone to come to the front to greet us and seat us. I ordered a spinach dip that was very watery and had melted cheese on top but was separated from the dip since it was so watery. My friend ordered calamari which she said was ok, but could have had some seasoning or sauce for extra flavour. My main was a club sandwich with fries- the sandwich was fine but the fries were barely cooked and definitely not the usual standard I’ve had in the past here. My friend ordered a fish and chips and asked if she could substitute a salad (no tomatoes) for fries. Our server informed us she was the manager and could do that no problem. While eating our apps she returned and said her chef was ‘having a meltdown’ about switching the fries for salad so she would need to charge for the salad. My friend agreed to pay for the salad which came with tomatoes but wasn’t provided fries which she had paid for if she is now also paying for the salad on top of her original order. Her fish had an odd flavour to it and she didn’t end up eating it. Just after 8 we asked to clarify what time the restaurant was open til and were told they closed at 8. We had looked up the opening hours before we decided to come to this restaurant and it said open til 9. We were told that google is wrong and we could find the correct hours on their Facebook page. Before writing this review I again made sure I had my information correct and not only looked again on google, but on the Facebook page and as well as their own website and the hours state they are open til 9. If this is not the case, it would be in the best interest for employees and customers alike for this information to be told to someone when coming into the restaurant after 7:15pm and expecting to leave by 8. When our server came to give us the bill, she told us she had a long day and sore back and feet and asked us if we were ok with her sitting down to complete our payments. When she looked at the bills she informed us she had put the salad on the wrong bill and couldn’t change it and needed to figure it out on her cellphone. We were told the new amounts without even seeing our bills in the first place. Overall, the food was not good by any standard, even questionable for health standards with the fish. There is a lack of professionalism that has been shown on prior visits as well. We will not be returning here for any...