Balzac's Market Street — Restaurant in Toronto

Went with my family and they took some time making the coffee, my mom went up to ask the barista for the coffee and the instructions were unclear to her and he asked to see her receipt, when she went to get the coffee, another cashier said it was given to someone else. After this interaction the barista was apparently annoyed with my mom and one family member told the barista to relax, then the barista said something back then my family member raised his voice. I stepped up to ask him where is the coffee and the barista directed us to the back and I apologized for my family member raising their voice. We finally get the coffee and I speak with staff members and apologize on our behalf for the argument to which the worker comes into the conversation and redirects his frustration towards me and my mom. I’ve apologized to the him already before and he said he was not angry at us but at the one family member, I said it’s okay and left because it was unnecessary drama. My family left shortly after and said the worker made them feel uncomfortable once I left.

Even as I tried to defuse the situation and sympathize with the worker, it was upsetting how much it escalated when all my mom was trying to do was...

This is the place all the tourism websites will tell ya to go, but take it from me, there are many many MANY better cafes and bakeries in toronto. It isn't that Balzac's is bad. On the contrary their food is fine, their coffee is good too. But the experience just isn't at all what it's cooked up to be. For starters, you'll pay an arm and a leg for whatever you get here. Because this is a "trendy" spot, you'll wait in a huge line, and you'll almost never find a place to sit. So in winter, you'll pay over 20 bucks at a cafe for what most cafes would charge half as much, and you'll still end up sitting outside in the cold. Instead, explore the bakeries and cafes in Corso Italia or Spadina, Bathurst, Harbord, Little Portugal, Chinatown areas (I'm sure there are more places, but I'm not a local so). You'll find many great local businesses with better baked goods and better coffee, and you'll be able to sit 😉

Plus, it's where the locals actually go. I doubt many Torontonians are choosing Balzac's as their goto...

I used walk pass and wanted to try this coffee place. 1st impression was already uplifting by its deco and atmosphere. It’s located right by St. Lawrence Market along with some other cool restaurants.

I ordered a cup of de-cafe coffee since it’s done by the Swiss water technique, so it won’t remove much of the original core of notes. Also it’s one of my favourites columbian roasted beans that I found has a creamier, bolder nutty note. The lovely staff was very kind to offer me an Americano instead of regular drip coffee cuz they ran out of decafe brew. But she charged me for a regular drip coffee price with a great smile. For that, I think they deserve a great review. They also offer all types of complimentary non-dairy milk options ( Soy, almond, oat ) on the side of the counter. Now that’s real rare to find.

Of course, the coffee is as smooth as I expected. I love to support local roasters, the coffee beans are way earthier and less synthetic coated as compare to normal chained coffee...