Earls Kitchen + Bar — Restaurant in Toronto

I decided to host my birthday party at Earl’s because I love the food and atmosphere. I had a reservation for 25 people, and we were given two tables next to each other in a more secluded area which we appreciated since we knew we couldn’t all fit at one table. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case. One of the two servers told everyone not to move seats throughout the night because it would complicate things. We’re all in the industry and understand that larger parties can be tricky, so we suggested taking our names down, giving us numbers, or splitting the bills ourselves to make things easier, but she rejected all of them. The service was very slow. Despite it being a Tuesday night and not busy, we were constantly waiting for a server to come over. We noticed the servers chatting behind the bar and felt ignored. We had to flag down the server several times for drinks, and when we placed orders, they took a long time to arrive, or arrived sporadically. When drinks were dropped off, the server didn’t check if anyone needed anything else; she’d just drop them off and leave, even though we had empty glasses. Some drinks never arrived, and a couple of them took up to 25 minutes. These weren’t complicated cocktails, just beers or mixed drinks. People even went to the bar to order drinks directly, but we were told we had to order through the server. When we tried to order two drinks at once, we were told it wasn’t allowed due to "smart serve rules." Once again, we’re all in the industry and smart serve certified. In the 4 hours we were there, we each had about 3-5 drinks, but we were still told we couldn’t order rounds of shots because of smart serve policy. If the slow service was intentional, it should’ve been communicated to us. No one at our table was drunk; we all ordered food and weren’t loud or disruptive. Nothing was spilled or broken, and multiple times we wished the water had been refilled, but it never was. Refusing to serve us didn’t make sense, and there was no reason to slow down the service. The food was delicious, which is why I chose Earl’s for my birthday. However, when the food arrived (all at once), it was clear that some of it had been sitting in the window for a while. The second waitress serving our table was sweet about it. When we told her my yam fries were cold and some plates were mixed up (two people’s tacos on the same plate), she quickly corrected it, which we appreciated. With a party of 25, we understood it could be tough to keep track of everything, but the food still tasted great. I also want to mention the man who served me my wine. He was friendly, smiled, made us laugh, and was very professional. He was the only one who seemed to clear the empty glasses and dirty plates off our table. He was a pleasure! Overall, it’s disappointing because I do like Earl’s, but many of my guests were unhappy with the service. Most of them got their bills early and left. We acknowledged that they didn’t add auto-gratuity, which we appreciated, but I still tipped 25% because I understand the tipping system with a large group. However, the service didn’t warrant that tip. Ultimately, we decided to go somewhere else where we felt our business would be...

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I will start by saying – I LOVE EARLS – it’s become a favourite spot for me to go. We normally frequent the Earls in Burlington and the Earls on King St in Toronto – probably 5-7 times a year. This past Saturday, we visited Earls Etobicoke because it was nearby to the Cirque show we were seeing.

It’s a shame because our food was delicious, most of the staff were lovely, but our server Milap was awful.

He came to our table, speaking incredibly fast, introduced himself, and asked us if we were ready to order before even asking if we wanted any drinks. He then wanted to take our drink and food order together, to which we said we would prefer our drinks first.

In every interaction he spoke INCREDIBLY FAST – like he was in a huge rush and trying to make this dinner go by as quickly as possible.

He was confused with the menu and whether the new taco entrée came with a side. At first he said it did & asked one of our party what side they wanted…then he confirmed that it was an additional cost to add a side.

He never cleared our drink glasses, so we had to stop another server to ask her to take our dirty glasswhere away.

When the food arrived, he was nowhere to be seen. Eventually after about 5-7 minutes he came by to see if everything had come out. We followed up on 1 item we were missing (tacos) and he then brought those. I asked for some soya sauce for the two of us that ordered sushi. A minute or two later he brought it. Then I had to ask for a ramakin to put the soya sauce in. A minute or two later he brought that – but only brought one, to which I asked for a 2nd one for the other guest in our group. But, it wasn’t a ramakin he brought, it was a small metal dip cup that you would put ketchup in for example. You couldn’t actually even fit the sushi in there. I had to tilt the entire metal cup just to be able to dip my sushi. The table across from me had sushi and they had a proper ramakin. I order this every time, so I know what it is supposed to come with.

When he brought the bills, he put one item on the wrong bill. We told him about it, but we were in a rush to catch our show so we told him it was fine, and we would just sort it out ourselves later.

All in all, we will not be back to this location! Not at the risk of having this same...

Last night’s dinner at Earls was nothing short of phenomenal—and I don’t say that lightly. From the moment we walked in, the place was stunning. Every inch of the space was thoughtfully designed, with an atmosphere that instantly made you feel like something special was about to happen.

We were a group of three—my girlfriend, my uncle visiting from Newfoundland (who knows the chef, Derek), and myself, celebrating my birthday. And let me tell you… it turned out to be one of the best meals I’ve ever had.

Let’s talk food first. • My girlfriend started with the buffalo wings and followed it up with the seafood platter—fresh oysters, shrimp, lobster tail, sushi rolls, and ahi tuna. She finished strong with the pecan pie, and every bite was a win. • My uncle went with the clam chowder to start, then a perfectly cooked steak dinner with crispy shoestring potatoes and buttery mushrooms. His dessert? Cheesecake, rich and balanced. • As for me, I decided to hand the reins over to our server—Rowan—and told him, “I’m a blue-collar guy, I like to eat, just no seafood ’cause I’m helping my girlfriend with hers.” I didn’t want to know what he picked until it hit the table.

What did he bring me? • A crab cake appetizer that was golden, crisp, and packed with flavor. • Then came fall-off-the-bone ribs and juicy chicken over a bed of creamy corn, bacon, and potato hash, with coleslaw on the side. • And for dessert? Chocolate caramel bread pudding with a birthday candle and all—hands down, the best dessert I’ve had in years.

But what made the night unforgettable wasn’t just the food—it was Rowan.

He was the best server I’ve ever had. Full stop. From the moment he greeted us, he wore a genuine smile, read the table perfectly, and absolutely nailed every suggestion and detail. He listened, delivered, and made the night feel personal and effortless. That’s rare.

And just when I thought they couldn’t top it… they walked around offering complimentary pizza while we waited. Are you kidding me?

⸻

Final verdict: If you’re looking for incredible food, a next-level dining experience, and service that makes you feel like royalty, go to Earls. Ask for Rowan. And if the kitchen’s lucky enough to have Derek cooking that night? You’re in for something special.

10/10....