Eataly Sherway Gardens — Restaurant in Toronto

A Fresh and Authentic Experience!

Eataly in Sherway Gardens is a fantastic destination for anyone who loves fresh, authentic Italian cuisine and enjoys a vibrant, bustling atmosphere. From the moment you step inside, you're greeted with an incredible variety of Italian food options, from fresh pasta and pizza to an assortment of cheeses, meats, and desserts. The sheer selection available is one of Eataly’s greatest strengths, catering to everything from a quick snack to a full sit-down meal.

Food Quality The quality of the food is exceptional, and you can immediately tell that everything is made from fresh, high-quality ingredients. Whether you’re trying one of their delicious wood-fired pizzas or a fresh pasta dish, the flavors are authentic and rich. They offer a great range of traditional Italian recipes, often with a modern twist, and they don't skimp on freshness. It's the kind of place where you can truly taste the quality in every bite.

Service The service at Eataly is another highlight. The staff are knowledgeable about the menu and always ready to help with recommendations. Most of the employees are friendly and engaging, contributing to an overall positive dining experience. It’s clear that many of the staff take pride in the food and the culture they’re presenting, which adds to the authenticity of the experience. On occasion, there can be a wait during peak hours, but for the most part, service is prompt and efficient.

Variety One of the things that sets Eataly apart is the vast variety of options available. Whether you're looking to dine in, grab something from the market, or take some fresh pasta and sauces home to cook yourself, they’ve got you covered. The marketplace setup, with different counters and stations for various food types, allows you to explore and find something new each time you visit. There’s something for everyone, including a great selection of wine and Italian groceries if you want to bring a bit of Italy home with you.

Atmosphere The atmosphere is lively and inviting, with a blend of a high-end food market and a bustling Italian trattoria. It’s a great place for a casual meal with friends or a more special outing. The layout of Eataly makes it feel like a marketplace in Italy, with different sections devoted to different types of food, which adds to the experience. The open kitchen concept in some parts lets you see the chefs at work, which adds a fun and dynamic element to the dining experience.

Price While Eataly does lean toward the pricier side, for the most part, it’s worth it. The cost reflects the quality of the ingredients and the authenticity of the food. It’s not an everyday dining spot for most, but for a special treat or a unique experience, it delivers value for the price. That said, some items are on the higher end, which may be a consideration if you’re dining on a budget, but the overall experience tends to justify the cost.

Final Thoughts Overall, Eataly at Sherway Gardens is a must-visit for food lovers. The combination of fresh, high-quality food, a wide variety of options, friendly service, and a vibrant atmosphere makes it a standout dining destination in Toronto. While the prices may be a bit on the higher side, the quality of the experience more than makes up for it. Whether you're grabbing a quick bite, doing some grocery shopping, or settling in for a full meal, Eataly offers a little slice of Italy in the heart of...

What a major disappointment. Arrived at 7 pm Sunday night and it was slow which is great since we like to have a quiet conversation with my guest. But they made use wait at the hostess area for over 10 minutes for some unknown reason. Again it was empty but maybe they wanted the club vibe of making us wait to give a great image of fine dinning experience.

In a empty restaurant the hostest decided to place four tables right next to each other, but we each had a different server.There was more servers then occupied tables and it is a large open concepts restaurant. So they started on the wrong foot. The sever seamed polite but she never came back to check in until we asked for the bill. She sighed when we did not order more wine and only one glass. Guess she expected us to buy a whole bottle of way overpriced average tasting wine. Halfway through the apps our mains arrived but it was already cool. They must have been a rush to go home at 7:45 pm, but they close 11 pm. And we could not finish either main since it was so poorly executed and tasted awful. Thought is was unlucky but both tables to the right and left of us had their main courses arrive very quickly and they both barely finished.

Bruschetta 10/10 excellent bread that was light and fluffy. Crust was firm and cripsy. Perfect balance of taste, seasoning and toppings.

Insalata di Cabolo Nero 7/10 kale was nice but everything else was average.

Spaghetti All' arrabbiata as stated above was served cool and it was not busy so there was no need to make it in advance to beat the bottle neck of other orders. It was completely inedible and we did not even take it home. 0/ 10 Premade pasta in a jar with Roa sauce would have tasted better.

Tagliolini Al limone e gameri. Again it was made a 5 minutes ealry and it does not look like they have a salamander oven to keep it warm with the open concept kitchen. Pasta 0/10

Wild pink shrimp was cooked to perfection, tasted amazing and was seasoned perfectly. Shrimp 10/10 the medium size ONE AND A HALF shrimp was worth the $10 surcharge.

Overall a very poor and sad overall dining experience. Eating in a high school cafeteria would have been more enjoyable. I have visited the Yorkville location and it was just a little better.

Wine was average and did not pair well with our food which was a set menu with wines that were chosen in advance to match the food. Suggestions would have been nice, but so would have been edible pasta but that would have been too much to ask. Again it was not busy and there was twice as many Kitchen staff as customers.

MINI desert bought from the store was excellent 9/10 not too sweet but not as light as what i expected.

Repeat. Never, it felt a like a tourist trap in my home city. I loved how the security guard was giving me a personalized tour when he followed for five minutes in the grocery area after we dined in. Shoplifting must be rampant at that location and it must have been my two piece suit that he did not approve of. Or my suit can hide more baguettes than just me wearing t-shirt and a pair of jeans.

**Notice the recent great 5 star reviews are from people that post less than 2 to 10 reviews. Those reviews have minimal details and no photographs - that makes me think about...

Eataly Ristorante’s menu focuses on Italian classics with an extensive array of appetizers, pasta, pizza, and main dishes. The cavolo nero salad ($17) uses a base of Tuscan kale that’s mixed with shaved Brussel sprouts for crunch. While I would have liked a bit more of the pecorino dressing on the leaves, at least it was well incorporated and went nicely with the golden raisins. The addition of crushed garlic breadcrumbs added texture that augments an otherwise common kale salad.

I was glad to see their tagliatelle alla Bolognese ($29) was heavy on the meat and light on tomato. It was just disappointingly tasteless. Having had the same dish at their Yorkville location, Sherway’s portion size was smaller and stingy on the sauce.

The Prosciutto e rucoloa pizza ($28) incorporated too much mozzarella. I know what you’re thinking: can there ever be too much cheese?! Yes, if starts to congeal into a globe than there’s too much cheese. The timing of when the arugula was added to the pizza also was poorly chosen, causing the leaves to be bound into the mozzarella. And even though there wasn’t too much tomato sauce, somehow the crust was still soft and soggy at the centre.

Something also seemed off about the Prosciutto… it didn’t taste fresh. Don’t get me wrong, it was likely fine as I had no stomach issues after the meal, but there was a slight odour or taste that just didn’t resemble the typical 18-month cured ham.

With the glowing review our waitress gave the tiramisu di Eataly ($15), I was excited for the dessert as it incorporates a special mascarpone cream not found at the bakery version. And I’ll admit, as the cream is poured tableside, and the plastic barrier is removed so it oozes over the cake, there’s a showmanship to the presentation… whether it really added that much to the cake? I can’t tell.

Firstly, the tiramisu was extremely sweet - possibly because of the additional crème sauce - and lacked espresso flavours. The lady fingers hardly seemed “soaked” in espresso as noted on the menu. Still, it wasn’t a terrible dessert. I liked the cake to crème ratio. If only they decreased the sugar and increased the caffeine.

I’m not a fan of chocolate, especially not chocolate pudding, but must admit that if I did like that dessert Eataly’s budino al cioccolato ($12) would be wonderful. Thick, creamy, and rich the budino satisfies like a truffle by the spoonful. The layer of crumbled Devil’s food cake on the bottom was great for texture and they should consider incorporating more of it. And the sticky chocolate glaze on top not only helped with presentation but gave a fudgy swirl to the dessert. Alas, it was cloyingly sweet so that a teaspoon was all I could handle.

Eataly contains tons of tables so you wouldn’t think it’d be difficult to score a spot for a weekday lunch. Yet, with only two hostesses expect a wait just to be shown to an empty table. The time to placing an order and getting our food improves, but when it comes to paying trying to find someone is like...