Annabelle Pasta Bar — Restaurant in Toronto

We've had dinner dozens of times at Annabelle, as we used to live in the neighbourhood. We've dined as a couple and with our good friends, who also live in the neighbourhood. I am disgusted at the behaviour of one of the servers this evening when my friend arrived ahead of the reservation to ask if there was air conditioning.

There's currently a massive heatwave in the city -- the temperature feels like it's in the 40s with this humidity, and we are all concerned about heat stroke. We also want to have a pleasant dining experience. We remembered that Annabelle likes to keep its windows/doors open in the summer (which is usually lovely), but that on a day like today, no A/C is not advisable or preferable. I made the reservation, so I tried to call several times to get information -- nobody ever picked up the phone after several attempts. My friend, who lives in the neighbourhood, went by to suss out the situation. When she arrived, she found the doors and windows wide open, so she asked if they have A/C. The hostess/server said they do upstairs. My friend asked if she could see if the temperature was manageable by going up to check. The hostess said she couldn't because they are "fully booked" tonight. My friend said: yes, we have a reservation. The server was rude and irritated at the request, but my friend was able to go upstairs and check -- they do have a small A/C unit, but it was VERY hot and humid upstairs. When she came back down, the server asked for the name of the reservation -- my friend told her, but asked if she could please wait until she double checked with me and my partner to see how we feel about dining in the heat. She agreed. Next thing I know, I'm receiving a text that my reservation is cancelled -- before my friend even made it home to text me to check in! This staff member totally disregarded my friend's request.

This is atrocious on every level -- to never answer your phone, to treat a potential guest rudely for caring about her experience in your restaurant, to pre-emptively cancel a reservation out of spite, or incompetence (I can't tell which it was, frankly) -- it's just ridiculous. We were loyal customers, but we will not return to this establishment after this nonsense. There's a heat wave -- people could get heat stroke in your restaurant -- I'd like to think your management would be concerned about that. At the very least you should be kind and accommodating in these sorts of conditions. And respect your guests.

Oh well, there's plenty of amazing pasta in this city, and the burrata ball dish here as been the victim of some serious shrinkflation lately, so I'm happy to support a different restaurant in this city with my cash and my presence. Buh...

had the pleasure of visiting here last night after following Annabelle Pasta Bar on instagram for quite some time and they absolutely did not disappoint :’) ! after my first bite, i was already planning my next visit! i made the mistake of coming here for my first time SOLO—there were so many shareables id have loved to try, i’ll have to come back with a group next time! i am sure everything on the menu is delicious! the three pastas offered are made fresh each day and they change daily! the staples on the menu stay the same (marinated olives, bread, spicy meatball, kale caesar, etc.) but the daily pastas are always rotating! when visited, the offerings were gnocchi, fusilli and ravioli! i opted for the mushroom fusilli, as per the servers recommendation, and wow was it amazing! each bite full of freshness and flavour! the pasta was cooked to perfection and everything was balanced perfectly. i also ordered the po bianco bread to accompany my pasta and i’m glad i did! got to soak up any goodness leftover from my pasta. the bread is also made fresh, right in front of you! i watched the chef roll out the dough and pop it into the oven, and before i knew it, i was being served fresh bread! what’s better? not much! super divine! i of course had to end my meal with dessert! i am suuuuper picky when it comes to tiramisu and i can honestly and confidently say, this was THE BEST tiramisu i’ve ever had! absolutely delicious, perfect amount of everything, not overly sweet, not too mushy, it was perfection! every single thing about this little pasta spot is 10/10! the staff are so kind, so friendly, so thoughtful, the chefs are so skilled and take every detail into consideration, the flavours of the food were amazing, overall a 10/10 dining experience and i truly cannot wait to come back!! if you’re looking for a wonderful evening with great hospitality and some fantastic pasta, look no further!! located in the cutest area at christie & davenport, your new favorite fresh pasta spot is waiting for you! thank you to everyone at Annabelle, you made my evening fantastic & i can’t wait to come back and impress my family and friends!! keep up the amazing work, keep doing what you’re...

Very nice spot, with some superb fare, a constantly changing menu. Was pleased with the food service.

Two things that could be improved. Wait staff attention to detail and friendliness is extremely important, especially in a small neighbourhood spot like this. Honestly didn’t really get the kind of friendly socially advanced service I would expect. This is especially important in a neighbourhood establishment as it sets the tone for the whole area.

Second, although the food is good and ever-changing, the quality of ingredients really needs some due attention paid. When one is browning that much butter, the oily texture of industrially produced butter comes out much more. The butter used is standard costco organic, which is perhaps the lowest quality organic butter one can purchase in Canada. A grass-fed option would much better compliment the home-made pasta feel. Fresher ingredients including most vegetables would really bring this up to another level. Herbs were not local and also tasted if they had been picked a few days ago. More use of seasonal local ingredients including freshly picked vegetables from a farmers market would be great.

Having a chef who smokes right outside the restaurant, is right in front of customers and whose negative stressed energy can be felt in the food is not an attractive aspect either. This can be easily remedied.

Overall this place has significant potential, and just needs a bit more attention to detail to put it right to the top of a...