After Seven — Restaurant in Toronto

Ok … I’d like Google to give us the ability to give half a star. After Seven was definitely funky and kind of cool, although I felt that with some of the cocktails, they were trying just a little too hard. They also lost a wee bit of a star for not having one of the only vegetarian things on the menu (the miso cheese dip) available, leaving only olives as an option.

So, where to start … the entry. A lot of places these days are doing the secret not-so-secret entry, offering an ode to speakeasies of yesteryear. After Seven does it well, with a cheeky entrance through a yoghurt making machine.

The interior of the bar is pretty cool with a quasi-minimalist industrial concrete approach, with simple and elegant finishings and accents, especially around the bar area.

On to the drinks. We chose the Curry Colada, the Ginza Glow, the Ghibli Elixir, the Strawberry Tetsu, the Burnt Yuzu and the Cloudy Oolong.

I have to say, to be fair to the bar, that I tend to like a pretty clean cocktail. I know a lot of people like sweet cocktails and trendy ones (like the ubiquitous espressotini, which is on the menu at After Seven too), but give me a straight up classic (or twist on it) any day. A boulevardier, negroni, old fashioned, Manhattan, etc.

So … with that in mind, I ranked the cocktails from the most favoured to my least liked ones: the Burnt Yuzu, the Cloudy Oolong, the Curry Colada, the Strawberry Tetsu, the Ginza Glow and the Ghibli Elixir.

Why? The Burnt Yuzu was the closest to a classic and had a clean and crisp finish with a smokey undertone. The Oolong had an interesting spin and wasn’t overly sweet. I really liked the Sochu nod and the layering was pretty and clever.

This is where it started to turn .. the colada was ok, but actually wasn’t that exciting, even though it was one of the cocktails that interested me the most from the description. A cocktail with curry spices? Interesting. Let me try it! Oh … it’s just … ok.

The strawberry Tetsu … if you like sweet, then it offers that. And the garnish on the glass and the small wafer add a nice touch. But it was a little too sweet for me for a whole drink. Two of those and I’d be close to sugar overdose.

The Ginza Glow … the oil and soy on the top float throughout the entire imbibing of the drink, only coming into play at the last moment. Sure, that last sip is a flash of ramen, but that’s a given with soy and sesame oil. The drink itself is a little too complicated and the combination of alcohols tend to just make it a boozy drink with no clear direction.

Finally, the Ghibli Elixir. Being a Ghibli fan, I was also excited by the prospect of this. It didn’t do the master justice. It was certainly spirited, but I was not Spirited Away. And the mash of salad on the top did nothing to the drink whatsoever, except make the whole affair look slightly wilted.

Overall, I liked the concept of After Seven and I will make a repeat visit, because there are other drinks I have yet to try. Based on this first visit, I’m not certain I’ll enjoy it, but I’m game to give it another go. The vibe is there, now I hope they have the miso cheese dip and the other cocktails hit it out of...

(This place seems to be SO FAMOUS for its awful customer service, such a perfect place to go if you would like to ruin your night or just bring someone there you don’t like!)

This was hands down the worst service experience I’ve ever had in Toronto, all because of Ayaka on October 8th.

After waiting almost an hour, she finally offered us a standing table. We noticed plenty of empty bar stools nearby and politely asked if we could take a few to sit down. Her response?

“You can, but you’ll have to return them when I need them back.”

I was speechless. Any normal human being with basic customer service sense would know that once guests have already waited that long and been seated inside, they should be the priority, not hypothetical future customers who might show up later. We were already inside, ready to order and spend money — yet she talked to us in a tone so cold and unwelcoming that it honestly felt like she didn’t even want us there. It was beyond rude — it felt personal, almost as if she just didn’t want to serve us at all. All I can say is that with such mindset and logic, the person is probably not educated at all.

And that attitude had been there from the start. She told us there’d be a 30-minute wait and that our group of four was first on the waitlist, yet she later seated a group of three who came after us — without any explanation. When we asked, she brushed us off saying the table “couldn’t fit another chair.” We saw later that it clearly could.

Once we were finally seated, she didn’t even bother to offer water or check in. Instead, she stood in the back rolling her eyes, gossiping with coworkers, and looking at us with open disdain.

We came all the way from London, and we’ve been to bars around the world — but we’ve never encountered service this arrogant, condescending, and unprofessional. The whole experience was insulting and ruined our night.

If this establishment truly cares about its reputation, management needs to seriously address this kind of behavior. Arrogance and exclusion have no place in hospitality — not in Toronto, and...

This is probably going to be a controversial review for some but I am writing it as a friendly suggestion to management/owners for future improvement that I hope will be taken into consideration.

I booked a reservation for a group of 3 at the counter in summer last year (2023) as my husband and friend both enjoy cocktails and bar-hopping around Toronto. I myself have an allergy to alcoholic drinks so I cannot drink. I know that it may seem silly to be going to a bar when I don't drink, but most bars are able to accommodate for designated drivers or at least have one option of something alcohol-free, besides water.

I never expect anything fancy, but I am always appreciative when there is an option (I'll even take sparkling water), but when I asked during my reservation if they make any drinks in their menu as a mocktail version, I was told very rudely that they do not make anything off-menu, and NEVER make any accommodations. I probably had a very put-off facial reaction, because only then did the bartender behind the counter offer that the most they could do is give me tap water.. In the end, the whole experience left a bad taste. I don't have complaints over price or quality of drinks since I didn't actually have anything, but it would have been nice to be able order something since I knew I was taking up a chair for my group reservation.

I've never had a problem paying for mocktails at other establishments, but I've never had a bar/speak-easy make me feel unwelcome as a customer because of my inability to ingest alcoholic drinks.

My husband and friend both had 2 drinks each, and commented that the pricepoint seemed high for quality/flavour that didn't wow them. Plus considering the poor customer service I received in our group, my husband and friend felt it was overpriced for the experience after adding the 20% auto-tip on top.

TLDR: Please add a zero-proof/mocktail option to the menu for designated drivers or people who cannot drink but also want to enjoy the experience at...