BlueBlood Steakhouse — Restaurant in Toronto

READ THIS VERY THOROUGH REVIEW

Went here for my birthday a couple days ago. The weather was amazing. On our way in, we noticed that they had beautiful outdoor seating. We had a reservation and the hostess escorted us to our seat. It was in a large, noisy room. There was an elevated booth area with three tables. The table to the right was occupied. She sat us in the middle table. Right next to the other table, as opposed to seating us in the table on the left. My bf asked if we could see the seating outside. She agreed and brought us out. We ended up getting a table with a direct full view of the CN Tower and the skyline. Why wouldn't she offer us outdoor seating in the first place?

Our waiter comes to our table. He's a tall, Black male with a butterscotch complexion. His hair is black and lowcut. One level above bald. (I am ONLY describing his appearance so that anyone reading this can know who to avoid if they choose to go to this restaurant.) He's not very personable. Not very pleasant. Not very welcoming. Blurts out that they have sparkling water, bottled water, or tap. When we can't hear him and ask him to repeat, he impatiently elevates his voice. Asks us if he want bread. We say yes. Asks if we would like it with butter on the side or on the bread. We ask him to repeat. He repeats and asks us if we want it on the side, on the bread, or not at all. The bread comes. It's not warm. And it's not fluffy. Felt very much like frozen reheated bread. We didn't eat it.

We ordered cocktails. Very inflated prices but tasted decent. We ordered Grilled Octopus. It was disgusting. Like rubber. Did not feel or taste like food. My bf informs waiter that we are unsatisfied. He shrugs and says "I mean...it is what it is." Not to mention, while we're waiting for the octopus, the waiter comes out of nowhere and pushes himself in between us and quickly wipes the table with a soaked cloth. My bf says "Hey that actually made it worse." He comes back with a dry cloth and passive aggressively wipes the table dry. When our octopus comes, he places it on the table and extends his hand holding a salad scooper, says "Or do you want me to serve it to you?' and sticks the scooper into the octopus. We tell him we'll do it. He puts it down and walks away.

During this time, another staff member brought an unsightly large salad cart and placed it directly into our view of the CN Tower. We reluctantly asked our waiter to move it over a bit. He grabbed the cart, loudly and clumsily pushed it to about 4 meters to the left. The noise was so loud and abrasive. It was actually embarrassing. He definitely could have quietly and slowly pushed to cart over a little bit. That's part of the nasty attitude that he exuded.

We order American Wagyu ribeye with crab legs, Australian wagyu sirloin with jumbo prawn, mashed potatoes and asparagus. His steak was extremely overcooked. His crab legs were completely bland. No flavour whatsoever. No butter on the side. Just a lemon wedge. My steak was great. So flavourful and moist and tender. It was melting in my mouth. I also enjoyed the asparagus and hollandaise sauce. The potatoes were cold and bland with a hint of garlic. They should tell you that the sides are enough for 4 people. We wasted half the potatoes and asparagus.

Our waiter's attitude made it so that we decided it was better not to voice our concerns. He was impatient, short, crude, and just downright unpleasant. He actually ruined the experience. I wanted to ask for them to replace him but I was worried he would find out and do something to our food. THAT'S the vibe he gave off. The people who brought out our steak and sides were pleasant and sociable. They were such a breath of fresh air! The waiter later came and said "I understand someone has a birthday" and placed an envelope on the table beside me. It read "Happy Birthday from the Blueblood team!"

$800 later, I'm giving this place 2 stars. The only saving grace was my delicious steak, the beautiful view, and the personalities of the two people who brought out our...

I brought my husband to BlueBlood for his 33rd birthday and, although I rarely leave reviews, felt compelled to write a lengthy review an entire week later due to our strange and unsettling experience.

Upon arriving for our 9:00 dinner reservation, we were told that our table wasn't ready because the party currently seated were "still finishing dessert". We were directed to the bar where we proceeded to order cocktails. I ordered the "Once Upon a Time" and the bartender paused before asking me if I like an old fashioned. I love them which is precisely why I ordered the drink, so I replied "yes". I considered that others may have ordered it simply because of the name without reading the description, but felt as though my drink choice was being questioned and can't help but wonder if my husband's taste preference would have been questioned had he ordered the same spirit-forward cocktail for himself. It took at least 20 minutes to get our drinks and and I believe we were finally seated at around 9:45 PM.

Upon being seated at our table, I had chosen the lobster bisque as my appetizer but before I had the chance to order my main course, the server interrupted me to provide an in-depth explanation of what lobster bisque is. I appreciate when servers take the time to provide a more detailed description of the menu items and how the chef prepares them but being that lobster bisque isn't an exotic dish by any means, it seemed as though he assumed I didn't know what I was ordering. I also speak French and certainly did not mispronounce "bisque" to give him that impression. I wanted to politely say "I am aware of what lobster bisque is, thank you", but couldn't get a word in and was too stunned to speak.

I adore fine dining and this is the first time in my life where I've had restaurant staff treat me as though I'm uneducated and incompetent... And this happened twice within the first hour of being there. A simple "yes, ma'am" without the preconceived commentary would have sufficed in both situations. Perhaps it was our age (we seemed to be quite a bit younger than other guests seated nearby) but I couldn't help but find the interactions to be rather insulting and condescending.

The ambiance was lovely and unique, the cocktails were fantastic (one of the best I've had), and the sea bass was delicious; However, the rest of the food was forgettable, the staff were unwelcoming, the service was slow, and we felt neglected as our server rarely came by our table. After setting down our main courses, the server immediately walked away before I had a chance to request a glass of wine. My husband was fortunate in that he had already requested that a glass of wine be brought alongside his main course when he ordered. I don't eat red meat but my husband said the steak was nothing special, and the lobster bisque was terribly bland. The establishment is aesthetically beautiful and our food consisted of high-quality ingredients, but the flavour and service are severely lacking.

I have been fortunate enough to dine at several Michelin Star establishments and the service here is atrocious by comparison. We expect good service at a "refined dining experience" and wanted to love BlueBlood, but we would not return. Unfortunately, I feel as though I paid to eat inside a castle and nothing more, and I'm sad that my husband's birthday dinner was so disappointing. I sincerely regret not just paying to visit the museum portion of Casa Loma and going to The Keg Mansion for comparable food and better hospitality.

I hate to see hard-working people waste their money, but businesses who take advantage of consumers by underdelivering on quality for what they charge are beyond offensive to me. I'll happily spend $20 on a fast food meal or $2,000 on a luxury dining experience if I feel the cost is justified; It's about matching your product to the price and this place is not it. (Tip: If you love an old fashioned AND great service, we recommend trying Canoe - their brown butter apple old fashioned is...

We had the absolute pleasure of dining at BlueBlood Steakhouse last weekend. The most unique thing about BlueBlood is the location. BlueBlood is located at Casa Loma with dining options inside and outside. Outside, they have glass domes which each accommodate one dining table for a private experience, on an elevated patio, overlooking the city. Indoor dining is located in the Oak Room with beautiful and comfortable tufted leather booths or tables with comfortable chairs. The decor blends the historic wood panelling with modern art and antler chandeliers. It feels like you are in an extravagant dining room, not in a restaurant.

We were greeted promptly and taken to our indoor booth where our server Sue introduced herself, and chatted with us about the restaurant. Sue was very professional, attentive and she made us feel like we were dining in someone’s home, as opposed to a restaurant.

While we were deciding on our orders, the first item that came to our table was a dish brimming with individual sized cheese “buns” (I forgot what they were called) and herbed, whipped butter. They were fresh baked, soft and absolutely delicious, with a sharp cheese flavour.

We decided to order apps to share: short rib ravioli and house made gravlax. There were 4 raviolis so we each got to try one and they were topped with short rib which was tender and full of flavour, they came in a delicious medium-thick sauce with peas. This dish was so good that we ordered a second one. The gravlax came with 2 pieces of salmon with cream cheese rolled in the centre, topped with fresh dill. The fish was fresh, with a light smoked taste, complimented by the velvety cream cheese and the dill which gave the dish a bright punch.

Next came our salads: chopped salad and table side Caesar. The chopped salad was enormous and would have easily served all 4 of us. It was filled with fresh chopped vegetables, arranged like a rainbow on the plate. The dressing was delicious and perfectly proportioned. The table side Caesar was an event. The server who made the salad showed us all the ingredients he was going to use and asked if there were any we wanted to omit. He then chatted with us while adding all the ingredients, one at a time, with the bowl tilted so that we could watch the dressing come together. He then mixed it all up and it was also delicious. The dressing was flavourful, house made croutons were excellent as was the bacon.

Next we had our main courses. We ordered several different steaks (filet, striploin and wagyu), they were beautifully seasoned, with perfect “crust”, all prepared exactly to our desired level of doneness. The highlight of the steaks was my son’s wagyu tasting plate with 4oz each of US wagyu, Japanese A5 and Australian wagyu. I ordered the filet which was perfectly cooked, absolutely delicious and very tender but I was blown away by the small bites of Wagyu my son gave me to try. It was velvety soft, almost melted in my mouth and had so much flavour.

For side dishes we ordered garlic mashed potatoes, polenta squares and Kennebeck fries fried in duck fat. The mashed potatoes were creamy smooth, with just enough butter and garlic. The polenta squares were crispy outside and soft inside with a tangy dip. The fries were chunky cut so that they could be crispy outside and soft but fluffy inside. The duck fat gives them incredible flavour.

For dessert we ordered table side baked Alaska, table side banana crepes, apple pie and cheesecake. The table side preparation of the baked Alaska and crepes were beautifully executed. The baked Alaska had the most silky smooth meringue with creamy delicious ice cream, tangy gelato and most cake inside. The banana crepes were delicate and sweet, with a delicious sauce.

The entire meal was spectacular! It surpassed similar meals we have had at Harbour 60 and Ruth’s Chris steakhouse. A big part of what made it so great was the staff and their attention to detail. We will definitely be...