Cafe 85 — Restaurant in Toronto

cafe 85 used to be one of my favorite spots downtown. i’ve been there 5 times since they opened. originally, their menu was really interesting, reasonably priced, the food was executed well, and the service staff were always super attentive and professional. the vibe of the restaurant was also really hip and it was in an incredibly populated location — it really had all the good things going for it!

things started to go downhill when 2-3 weeks after opening, i was surprised to see that cafe 85 had replaced their menu book with a single double-sided sheet with more than half the items gone. most of the food remaining was generic fare, and i could taste that there had been some corners cut in the ingredients. that being said, some of the menu items were still decent, but definitely a shadow of the former menu. the hours had also decreased to the point where it always felt like the restaurant was closing way too early.

fast forward to just a few weeks after that, on my fifth visit — i was told three times in a row that something i ordered was unavailable (and then its replacement, and then the replacement after that…). we asked about it and found that the menu was going to undergo yet another change. now cafe 85 is only serving brunch and the menu just doesn’t look interesting at all — all of the items seem like you can get them anywhere else. i feel bad for the staff and the chefs who were subject to these changes and have to sell this continuously subpar, more generic food.

i see this trend happening in some of the restaurants around town where it seems like restaurants are afraid of taking risks so they change what makes them special to fit what everyone else is doing…. for a restaurant that came out of the gate doing so many cool things, it’s sad to see these decisions being made that took away everything that made...

I’ve visited this place three times since it opened.

I went during a busy weekend morning, so the restaurant was quite crowded. Unfortunately, I felt that I may have made the wrong menu choice.

I ordered the seafood pasta, and while the texture of the noodles was good, the sauce was refined, and the plating was nicely done, the shrimp were very dry and shriveled, making the seafood portion feel quite small. It felt like I was mostly just eating noodles, which was disappointing considering the price. Also, I was a bit let down to find out that iced lemonade wasn’t available, and there were no kid-friendly menu options either.

My friend ordered a brunch dish (I believe it was the eggs benedict) and really enjoyed it.

We had one seafood pasta, one brunch menu, and two iced drinks. Including tip, the total came to about $80.

One male staff member stood out — he was basically managing the whole floor by himself, refilling water and providing attentive service. He was kind and really seemed to care about each customer, which left a positive impression.

On the other hand, the female staff member has, on every visit, appeared with messy hair and has consistently seemed less attentive and engaged with customers. This being my third visit, I found it a bit disappointing that there’s been no improvement in her...

I’ve been to this café a few times. The coffee is amazing, probably one of the best in the city, with high-quality beans. The atmosphere is beautiful, and they clearly put effort into presentation, which I appreciate.

However, the food and service are inconsistent. The first time I went there, I ordered the “tiramisu,” which tasted good but wasn’t actually tiramisu, it was more like white cake with cream in a cup and a shot of coffee. The idea isn’t bad, but it shouldn’t be labeled as tiramisu.

Another time, I had the avocado toast. The bread and egg were delicious, but for $18, it only came with one egg, two slices of toast, and a small salad. The guacamole had an overpowering herb (maybe parsley?) that threw off the flavor, and it left me feeling unwell afterward.

I also tried the croissant with eggs, house sauce, and fries. The fries were great. The croissant and eggs were good too, but the sauce had a seasoning that didn’t quite work for me.

Service varies. We’ve had both good and frustrating experiences. On one visit, I ordered a cortado and it came in an espresso cup, way too small. The server brought the food and then disappeared, and we had to stand up to ask for the bill.

Overall, this café has potential, but there’s room for improvement in food execution and service...