Milestones — Restaurant in Ottawa

This review serves as a formal account of an incident at Milestones, Lansdowne, which, in my assessment, constituted not merely discourteous service, but a manifest dereliction of the obligations owed by hospitality establishments to their patrons under consumer protection law. I assert, unequivocally, that the treatment we received on the evening of our visit—by a waitress named Isabella—was antithetical to both the lawful expectations of service and the principles of commercial civility.

We entered the premises at precisely 18:00 hours, ordered drinks, and awaited the arrival of a family member for dinner. During this time, we were subject to incessant and unwelcome interruptions by the aforementioned server, who approached our table with imprudent frequency—approximately every two minutes—despite our express indication that we were content and merely taking a pause from further consumption.

Upon our fourth reiteration that we were momentarily refraining from ordering additional items, Isabella remarked, in an overtly dismissive and improper tone, “Then do you just want the bill?” This rhetorical question was both unsolicited and wholly unwarranted. The venue was not at capacity, there was no pending closure, and no legitimate basis existed to imply that we should terminate our presence. Such conduct can only be interpreted as a veiled attempt to precipitate our departure, through psychological coercion and undue pressure.

Legal Context and Violations

The server’s conduct engages several legal principles: Consumer Protection Act 2002 (Ontario), s. 8(1): It is an unfair practice for a supplier to exert undue pressure or influence on a consumer to induce a transaction. While we had already engaged the establishment in commerce, the persistent and coercive overtures toward settlement (i.e., issuing the bill) without request constituted an improper inducement to conclude a service prematurely. Occupier’s Liability Act 1990 (Ontario): While not traditionally invoked in this context, the Act imposes a duty upon occupiers to ensure that persons on the premises are treated with reasonable care. The persistent harassment by staff materially disrupted our ability to enjoy the premises safely and peacefully. Implied Terms under Common Law and Contractual Doctrine: Patrons of restaurants enter into an implied licence to occupy and enjoy services without unjustified intrusion. Prematurely pressuring patrons to settle a bill they did not request—absent cause—may constitute anticipatory repudiation of the service agreement.

Isabella’s actions, in my submission, amount to unsolicited solicitation of payment, absent the consumer’s request, in breach of the commonly accepted standard of deferred billing, wherein the customer is customarily the party to initiate closure of the service agreement. It is not, nor has it ever been, within the lawful discretion of a server to unilaterally declare a contract complete absent breach or reasonable notice.

Conclusion

We departed the premises feeling humiliated and deeply disrespected. The conduct in question was not merely inhospitable—it was systemically hostile, suggestive of either a lack of training or a misguided internal policy. If the latter, it raises significant concerns about Milestones’ treatment of clientele and warrants external...

Update to my review. I am impressed with how the organization has responded to my review and our experience during our visit. Being invited to return to show that they can offer better service I'm confident we will have a better experience on our next visit. My wife and I have been to other Milestones locations many times and have always had great service and food. Looking forward to getting the same from Lansdowne location, and meeting Vincent to thank him for the positive response and action. As for the wine being not available, that falls to the supplier, LCBO namely, not being able to provide it so I take back the comment that this was mismanaged.

Failed to impress! My wife and I went here on Saturday evening for dinner, with a reservation made. Since the place was virtually empty at 5:45 pm we asked if we could get a booth. We were told we could get a "half a booth", a table with a bench on one side and a chair on the other, hardly call that a booth of any sort. After getting seated at our "half a booth" table I noticed a couple sitting at one of the many empty booths. Thought oh well... Placing our drinks order I ordered a glass of red wine that's on the wine list, was told "sorry we're out of that wine". What??? It's on your wine list and there's an LCBO about 500 meters from you, walking distance. No reason you should be out of stock on any wine on a Saturday night with a store as your neighbor where you can get a few bottles. Smacks of mismanagement. So, now I order a glazed salmon dish, what a waste of $28. Salmon was over cooked and dried out, bock choy was undercooked and minimal portioned. Oh, remember the "can't seat you at a booth but can give you a half a booth..."? Other couples were showing up after us and getting seated in booths! When I questioned that the response was, guess they had a reservation. We had a reservation!!! Will say again, FAILED TO IMPRESS!!! Needless to say, we won't be going back there again. There are many other places to spend my hard earned money and it...

2.5 stars

On a Saturday night I expected Milestones Lansdowne to be fully prepared with stocked bathrooms, clean floors and good service. That was not the case.

The restaurant was about a quarter to half full but it still took 20 minutes and two tries just to get a beer. (We were not asked what size of beer we wanted when two size options are advertised on the menu) There were no utensils on the table and when the appetizer came out it was dropped off with no plates. It took another 15 to 20 minutes just to get water refilled.

When the mains came out they were disappointing. Garnishes were missing and there was no sauce and the dish looked nothing like what is advertised on their website. I eat with my eyes and it did not look appetizing. I think the kitchen staff would need to review the social media of milestones and try to replicate the food advertised because the dishes were … yuk. First photo was what we were served. Second photo is social media and third photo was when we had sauce and garnishes. On the photos alone you can’t fully grasp the experience however when you’ve had top service top food and top atmosphere at another location the question marks start popping up.

The overall atmosphere was also not great. Some of the chairs had peeling PU leather and the menus were sticky and dirty. That should be something the hostess checks before handing them out.

The server was great. She did the best she could to rectify the issues. 4 stars for the waitress.

We have been to other Milestones locations and were fans but this one did not meet expectations. The server did the best they could with what they had to work with but I would not go back to this location.

The bill for 2 with 18% tip: 111$ for calamari appetizer with very dry coconut flakes and a already squeezed out lime (that was very odd. It looked like they put a used lime on our plate) two butternut squash raviolis with 6 raviolis in a...