Union Kitchen + Cocktails — Restaurant in Ontario

EDIT EFFECTIVE MAY 2024 - We came back to try Union again and our experience was much better this time!

Our server was fantastic and very friendly. We got an assortment of food with our favourite being the macaroni and cheese. I got the peach margarita again and it was perfection.

I would highly recommend the Union for their cocktails alone. My partner and I dream about the macaroni and cheese though because it was that good.

PREVIOUS REVIEW (Spring 2023):

My partner had been wanting to go to the Union for a very long time because he had an excellent experience in Spring 2023.

I ordered a peach margarita which was absolutely amazing. Beautiful presentation and excellent taste.

He ordered the smash burger (which he enjoyed but mentioned it wasn't nearly as good as before) and I ordered the cream based mussels. I was super disappointed... I love mussels but these were room temperature when I got them, extremely watery sauce with little flavour, every bite of mussel had an off putting crunch, and some of the mussels tasted really off (like a swampy taste). Unfortunately, our server never checked on us while we were eating and I hate making a fuss so I just paid for them. I barely finished the dish so I'm surprised she didn't question it (I was in the washroom when she came to clear our plates). We ordered fries with our mains, however, had to ask for aoili (which as per the menu is supposed to come with the fries I believe).

We did order dessert which was much better. My partner ordered their chocolate cheesecake which was amazing! Dark chocolate with what appeared to be flaky salt on top. Absolutely amazing. I had the creme brulee which was very tasty. A little sweet for my taste but that's just a personal preference. I would highly recommend either with a nice bitter espresso.

We ordered coffee (which was room temperature and she didn't bring cream for) and a latte which was very tasty.

Overall I was a little disappointed. I'd definitely go back for the dessert and cocktails though.

Edit - I have since been in contact with the restaurant staff and they have been amazing! We look forward to trying The...

ive been to union a couple of times, the food was always decent enough for me to return. but the focal point of my experience, and the one who merited this 1 star review, is our server Kamryn. unfortunately the service we received was so subpar, and the very last part of our experience upset me so much i had to write this review

here is a run down:

-brought us alcoholic drinks without asking for a friend's birthday. this was kind, but my partner and i are both sober. we gave our limoncello shot to the birthday girl. but it would have been nice to be given a heads up. this could be dangerous to some people

-took my friend's food without asking before she was done with her food

-neglected to tell us the kitchen was closing/closed before we finished ordering food. no dessert for the birthday girl

but the worst part is when kamryn made us pay for food we didnt eat! and refused to take it off the bill!

2 of our friends ordered an appetizer to share. when the bill came around, kamryn did not give us the receipt to double check. instead, she input the total in the machine and handed the receipt with the machine. i was quick enough to notice that she has charged us for the appetizer and called her out for it. she said "the machine splits it weirdly" and there is "nothing she can do". so unprofessional and disappointing. my partner is kind enough to not make a fuss about it AND he still tipped her. but ultimatly kamryn's unprofessional, dismissive, and careless attitude ruined the experience for me.

its safe to say, i wont be coming back to union kitchen. ill stay at KBC. way better vibes, and...

Was really looking forward to this spot but unfortunately had a poor experience. Came for a Sunday brunch which is obviously a busy time, but our experience couldn't be excused to business alone. Wait time for 3 breakfast dishes was 50 minutes. When we asked our server for an update, we were met with hostility and attitude from the waitress, who said "oh nobody told you? our kitchen is backed up and it'll be another 20 minutes, this is normal for a Sunday morning". That is totally fine if this is what we can expect, but there was no need for the way she spoke to us and the attitude she had. A table of three next to us who sat down 15 minutes after us got their food before us. Once our food finally arrived, my eggs were cooked hard (asked for over easy) and my friend's eggs were lightly poached with a lot of runny egg white (asked for poached soft). We decided at this point to speak to a manager but didn't want to send the plates back as we already waited so long for the food. Manager was very nice and reasonable and provided some discounts on our meals which we appreciated. Also, not exactly sure if related but my friends and I all experienced 2-3 days of sickness after this meal and it was the only thing we ate that day so we think its related. We had vomiting, fatigue, weakness, aches and fever :(

TLDR: Overall nice, busy atmosphere but with the issues we had, I wouldn't recommend. Manager was helpful and kind but the reality is we could have had a better breakfast experience at an old diner for...