Biff's Bistro — Restaurant in Toronto

The whole experience was great. Good Food. Great Ambiance. Excellent Service.

Let's start!

Service Reservation: It is always a good idea to make a reservation because you never know when a restaurant will get busy. You can either call or book a table thru their website. The person who took my phone call greeted me very well in French . He was polite and informative. He took time to explain about the restaurant's reservation policy such as how long the restaurant could hold the table for us and what we needed to do if we changed our mind or we couldn't make it on time. It was simple rules that many restaurants use, such as the reservation would be held only for 15 minutes and if there's any changes, the customer needs to call to inform them ahead of time for an hour in order to adjust the time and they will accommodate the customer at the best. However, it wasn't a problem for us. We arrived there before the reservation time about 10-15 minutes. Host: The hostess suggested to wait at the bar while she was having our table prepared. It didn't take longer than 5-10 minutes. My husband just ordered a double shot of whiskey and didn't even touch it yet. The hostess had to wait for us to make a payment for the drink. She waited there with us patiently and brought us to our table. Waiter: After sitting down for 5-10 minutes, our server "Allen F" came to introduce himself and greet us. He was polite, helpful and attentive.

Ambiance The restaurant is decorated in a modern way. They have a bar section on the right side which customers can use as a waiting room. The dinning room is on the left side of the hallway.

Food We got a prix fixe dinner menu of the Winterlicious 2017. It was $38 per person for 3 courses. You can also add wine pairings with your food. The price was very good. $25 for petit (11oz.) and $28 for grande (14oz.). I ordered only a glass of wine while my husband got wine pairings with his food.

Appetizer Lemon Parsley Cod Cake: It was juicy and not too greasy. It was pretty good. Spiced Chicken Pastilla Parcel: It was delicious . They just look like Thai Chicken Curry Puffs. The parcels were wrapped in a triangular shape and served with BARISSA YOGURT dip and SUMAC. The pastry was CRUNCHY and GOLDEN brown. The chicken filling was very FLAVOURFUL and SPICY! The Pastilla pastry is a bit thinner than Thai curry puff pastry however they both are crispy and perfect for SNACK and LUNCH! These Pastilla Parcels also went very well with the paring wine "2015 Grüner Veltliner, Loimer 'Langenlois', Kamptal, AT". My husband normally doesn't like white wine because they mostly are too sweet for him. However, this paring white wine was great and paired well with spicy pastillas.

Entree Pan Roasted Salmon: The salmon itself was cooked perfectly. Salmon skin was the best part. It was very crispy I normally don't like salmon skin but I couldn't deny it this time. Their CAULIFLOWER COUSCOUS was very good. It went well with BLACK TRUFFLE VINAIGRETTE. Really love ! . Steak: My husband chose STEAK for his main dish. I actually didn't touch it except potatoes on the dish . I don't eat beef. I can't explain how steak was . Based on his opinion, the steak was a bit tough to chew. It was an ok dish. The presentation was good . Potatoes were tasty. However, he said he was more interested in my salmon dish . He liked his paring wine though. It was "2012 Gabbiano 'Solatio', Toscana, IT ."

Dessert Camembert en croute: This was my first time to experience Camembert en croute. It was a remarkable dessert. It was soft and very rich in cheese . Must try it! We had it with the sparkling red wine, "N.V. Brachetto d Acqui, Viticoltori Acquesi Sparkling from Italy ." Chocolate cake: It was a bit hard. It seemed like it was sitting on a plate for a long time. It might be better if they could warm it up before serving. I'd prefer my cake to be soft and puffy~

Price:...

Would recommend restaurant to someone else. Would not visit again.

I found out about this restaurant through Instagram and reviews on Google. I had high expectations for this restaurant based on the reviews and was really looking forward to dining here. My experience was unfortunately poor and I would not visit again. With that said, other patrons thoroughly enjoyed their meal and received service in a timely manner. Those seated after us were served and able to leave before us. From what I could see, I was the only forgotten table.

Arrival - I arrived early for my reservation of 6:45PM around 6:10PM and the hosts said it was no problem and we were seated around 6:20PM in the dining area with menus.

First greeting - We were first greeted and served water at 6:40PM. I saw other tables were seated after us, had beverages, and appetizers already delivered to their table by the time we were greeted. For my table to be greeted, I had asked a host who was clearing a table next to us to see when a server will come by. She apologized and said she'll attend to it right away. A worker came by to greet us and serve water. He wasn't a server based on the suit he was wearing, perhaps a manager.

Server greeting - Our server came by at 6:45PM to take our order. Up to this point and onwards, the dining area was almost at capacity. By this time, the table that had already received their appetizers were receiving their second round of appetizers and drinks.

Appetizers - First arrived at 7:00PM and we ordered the French Onion Soup and oysters. I appreciated that the French Onion Soup wasn't very salty. Oysters were shucked well. Overall, it was fine. Appetizers were done 7:20PM.

Entrees - Arrived at 7:30PM. Boeuf Bourguignon was delicious. My partner was still hungry after this dish. I ordered the cote de porc grillee and the porkchop was perfection. Everything about it was wonderful. The cabbage was good on its own, but I didn't feel it complemented well with the porkchop because the flavours overwhelmed the porkchop. I consider the porkchop as the highlight of the dish. The same individual in the suit came by to ask how the food was when we were close to finishing the entrees. I had a displeased face and my partner said it was good. Once the person heard that, he walked away. Food was finished and plates were promptly taken away around 7:55PM. We told the server that we are having dessert.

Dessert - The dessert menu was brought at 8:07PM. By this time, I didn't want dessert because my experience had been poor through a majority of the night. We ended up ordering paris-brest. It arrived 8:40PM. The server apologized the delay and advised it was on the house. The dessert was extremely bitter, not enjoyed, and was not finished.

Bill - It didn't take too long to obtain the bill and we were out of the door by 9PM. We parked in the building and we asked the server to obtain the parking permits. This was obtained from the bar and they provided the blue tickets that we needed to give to the parking attendant.

Staff - all the staff were friendly and pleasant.

Atmosphere - the music wasn't very loud. I didn't think all the music they were playing were the most appropriate for this restaurant, but it was fine overall. It felt very loud during prime time and people would speak louder in attempts to make sure the other parties could hear them. If I spoke at a regular volume, my partner would not have been able to properly hear me. The decor and seating arrangement...

Fantastic food and service! My mom and I have been coming to Biffs for a few years. Lately we find ourselves there more often than usual and bringing friends or family with us. We love it so much that it has become our go-to place throughout the entire city.

Firstly, the food is consistently very good. It's not as rich or elaborate as some other French restaurants, which we prefer.

The oysters are very good and always fresh. The beef bourguignon is one of the best I've ever had outside Paris. It is tender and full of flavour. The chicken liver pate is at the top of our favourites list. It is made in house, as are the pickled accompaniments and mustard seeds with which it is served. The cheese and charcuterie board is an excellent arrangement.

Secondly, the service is always top notch. Our most recent visits have been particularly special. The bartender and servers are wonderful, being very attentive and accommodating.

We were there on Friday with some friends who had never been. Everyone loved the experience. The food was on point and the service was excellent, as usual.

My mom and I had such a good time that we went back within 48 hours, on Sunday! Our server, Elizabeth, was absolutely amazing and made the experience particularly special. She served our table only one previous time and it was months ago - somehow she remembered all of our preferences and requests! Equally impressive is her knowledge of and passion for the food. When we asked some questions about items on the menu, outside of our usual repertoire, she was able to tell us the ingredients in every dish AND also explained how it is prepared. It's obvious she takes pride in the food and service provided to customers. This is when you know a place is really good! We really appreciate this high level of service.

Finally, we also love the ambiance and decor. With the French music in the background and French art on the walls, you actually feel you might be in Paris. However, Parisienne restaurants never have such good service, so... it's even better than Paris! :D

We really do love everything about the restaurant and recommend it...