Paradiso — Restaurant in Oakville

My wife and I were there the other day for our anniversary dinner. I had dinner there once before and wasn't really impressed but the night was beautiful and I wanted to also enjoy the evening in downtown Oakville.

As I remembered, the service and ambiance were good. For starters we each had a red sangria which was ok, not a drink I would re-order. We also had the bruschetta was ok but not served on flatbread as per the menu. I would have ordered a different entre if I had known this.

For our main course we had a veal chop (a featured dish). The portion was good and it was cooked to medium as requested. Unfortunately it was served on top of the mashed potatoes (not my preference and it shows a lack of creativity) and the veal itself was simply bland. The other dish was the 12 hour braised beef gnocchi. It was somewhat more flavourful however the beef was mostly shredded. There couldn't have been more than two or three actual pieces of beef. The gnocchi were also a bit mushy. The gnocchi to beef ratio was quite poor.

For dessert we ordered my wife's favourite, creme brulee. They served three types. While all three were good, my peeve was with the chocolate version because instead of using shaved chocolate on top they served it with chocolate chips. To me this showed a lack of creativity and effort. Anyone can use chocolate chips, if it was shaved chocolate curls I at least could have assumed it was good quality chocolate no matter what was used. After tip, the final tally was $150. Personally, if I am going to go out for dinner in that price range OK isn't good enough. I would rather drive to Toronto to dine in that price range. The quality, flavours and creativity are by...

Paradiso has always been a favourite of many. Many years ago i had a couple of company parties but I am now retired. With all the good reviews, it is almost impossible to write any negative but I will share MY OWN experience taking into consideration that they have just re-opened.

As I glanced at the menu while I was there last week, I was taken back to observe that it looked more like a dinner menu with the prices matching that. (a real meal started at 24) I asked if there was a different menu for lunch.... what a mistake. Immediately I felt the energy from my Server as if I shouldnt be there. Too embarrass to leave, I waited. I then waited more than 20 mins to be served. Of course, her excuse was reasonable that they were busy but I dont think that was the only reason. Most of the waitresses seem to have their favourite clientele but that friendliness does not spread across the board. We left immediately after the waitress grab my plate as I was finishing the very last morsel while my friend paid the bill. Wasn't a very good experience for us and my friend felt the same way. I would like to mention that after living 40 yrs in Oakville, I moved to Florida after retirement and it was my first experience after many many years to eat in Oakville again (even prior to the lockdown) and I chose Paradiso when there are many many other patios along Lakeshore . Very disappointed with the experience. For me, not only the food but the service has to also match the prices. (The Owner of this Restaurant is a Wonderful Individual) More training for the staff...

This restaurant is definitely beautiful and has a warm atmosphere. We were served our appetizer, the grilled calamari before our water and drinks were even brought to the table. The calamari itself was grilled perfectly but the underneath was drenched in the sauce it came with which was unappetizing.

Our entrees were the gnocchi which I was told was homemade and it was underwhelming as once again the amount of oil used was extreme and rendered it a sloppy mess. The flavour profile was okay but not outstanding, very little tomatoes as well which were needed to balance out the acidity in the dish. ( picture shows the excess oil) My daughter had the lamb pasta dish minus the feta and capers. Once again it was underwhelming, it barely had any lamb and it was just warm when served. It looked like it came out of a can. The flourless chocolate cake with salted caramel was the best part of the meal. Our server was nice until she saw we had a WagJag and her attitude completely changed towards us, she became curt and almost agressive with her tone. In hindsight, tipping her 18% on the totality of the bill prior to the applied wag jag seems like it was undeserved after that attitude.

I’ll revert back to my ‘if there are groupons or wagjags’ for a restaurant, stay away as there is a reason for it.

All in all, the experience did not meet our expectations at all. Very disappointing.

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