Ferro Bar & Cafe — Restaurant in Toronto

Ferro – A Disappointing Decline in the Heart of a Food-Loving City

As a local who's visited Ferro multiple times over the years, I can say with confidence that the experience has gone steadily downhill — and this most recent visit was by far the worst.

We started the evening with a simple drink order: a tequila soda and a glass of red wine. It took far too long to arrive considering the restaurant wasn’t busy. When the drink finally came, my tequila soda was missing its lime. I couldn’t flag down our server, so I had to go up to the bar myself to get one. Not a huge deal in isolation, but it definitely set the tone — and unfortunately, things only went downhill from there.

Throughout the evening, it felt like we were being served by an entire staff rotation — no exaggeration, at least ten different people approached our table at various points, none of whom seemed to know what we had ordered or who was responsible for our service. It took nearly 30 minutes just to place our order. We asked for our pizza first, followed by a pasta dish and lasagna. The pizza came out relatively quickly and was actually quite good — probably the one bright spot of the night.

But from that point on, we were basically forgotten. No one came to check on us. No drink refills. No updates. We were the only table left in our area, and I had to repeatedly get up from my seat to track someone down. After waiting nearly 50 minutes for the rest of our food, and being asked multiple times by different staff members what we had ordered, we were just about ready to walk out.

When our food finally arrived, it was underwhelming at best. My lasagna was lukewarm with a crusty top like it had been left under a heat lamp. My partner’s pasta was overcooked and mushy. We each took a few bites and stopped there. Even more frustrating, we sat for another 20 minutes with full plates virtually untouched, and still no one checked in. Our server, who seated another table right beside us, didn’t even glance our way.

Eventually, I had to get up again to ask who our actual server was and if they could come to the table. When she finally did, I asked for the bill and was met with what felt like irritation, as if I was the problem for expecting basic service. The bill came to $130 — with tip, $155 — and I had to ask for our food to be packed up. That took 10 more minutes, and it still came with no bags to carry it in. After another wait, I just walked up and grabbed one myself.

In a city like Toronto — Canada’s largest and one of North America’s best food scenes — there’s simply no excuse for this. With so many incredible restaurants to choose from, especially Italian ones (there are three or four on this very block), Ferro needs to do a lot better to compete. When you’re charging $155 for a night out, it’s not just about the food — it’s about the overall experience.

This review may come off as harsh, but the intent is honest: I took the time to share this feedback because I believe in giving places a chance to improve. That said, I also wasted even more of my...

Great experience at Ferro despite a few hiccups. Our reservation was never confirmed/entered properly so we had to wait for a table, calling for a reso was the only thing that felt off...the staff didn't feel confident on the phone, like they didn't really know what they had available for the evening, which led to me thinking I had a reservation when really I didn't....but honestly that was my only negative of the entire evening. The moment we walked in...drinks at the bar, extremely friendly bartender...sampled wines, was seated in the back/given table selection which is a great sign of care to detail....he took our order ASAP, and the place was packed. Food came quite quickly, great portion size vs menu selling price, really good food at a 'informal, casual fine dining level'. You're not gonna be wowed by the service, it's just not that type of place, it's high capacity, fast paced, you can see how hard the servers are working...so wine/water service isn't gonna be a thing the same way it would be at $$$$ place. But it's non pretentious, high energy....it's like a Italian restaurant that also kinda feels like a club, it's an experience. But it's loud, it's definitely not a place for quiet conversation (at least not on a Saturday night) but if you're looking for a fun night out/dining experience it'll be a bonus, you'll love the atmosphere and energy...It's got a brass/metal '20,000 leagues under the sea' vibe to the decor, it's really cool. They played early 2000s pop music, Gang Starr, Wu-Tang...it was a real melting pot of influence. 2 apps, 2 mains, bottle of wine, dessert, coffees...$167.00 Super reasonable. I was really impressed. Burrata, Gorg/Pear Salad were incredible. Fusilli cream very good, Spaghetti Marinara was pretty good, they don't clean the membrane off their scallops which is the one thing I noticed. Tiramisu was outstanding. Overall really happy with the food, and the staff are very polite, and super hard-working. It's not an easy place to work. I didn't see more than two servers and one busboy, so they are running! You gotta tip 20 percent at a place like this. And then....funny story.....$450 parking ticket on St Clair. BE CAREFUL! There's a sign for "Loading Zone/persons with disability" right outside the restaurant on St Clair...it's super high up and not that noticeable....goes without saying, do not park there! Street parking on weekends is limited so factor that in when you're driving there....oh and encourage your partner to tackle 75% of the bottle if you're driving...naturally. Anyway, fantastic spot, can't really go wrong once you're inside....just confirm your reservation and...

We visited Ferro bar cafe during Salsa Festival, on July 6. We were a group of 6. We left very angry from our experience.

Our blonde female waitress was rude right from the very start, and even lied to us just to get rid of us.

The main issue was, we had asked for separate bills, but she said that they could not do it. She said, " One bill was the Salsa Festival rules" which we immediately knew that was a lie. She only wanted to get rid of us quickly. She said that they were very busy. I replied, well maybe the restaurant should have hired more staff.

We asked to speak to the manager, and another female presented herself. Personally, I think she was not the manager. She was unfriendly. We persisted, and they finally relented. We were finally given our requested separate bills.

The restaurant obviously doesn't realize that not every customer is rich, and may not be able to cover the $300 bill for the entire group. Very few people carry cash these days. They put us in a very uncomfortable situation.

In this situation, there should have been NO challenge from the restaurant. If the customer requests separate bills, then it should be honoured, NO QUESTIONS ASKED ! This is where your staff failed miserably.

They have definietly, not only lost our business permanently, but our word of mouth to our friends will also prevent future customers from trying this restaurant. Very bad customer service.

Just to confirm the waitresse's lie, I called and confirmed with a Salsa Festival co-ordinator, who said that "one bill only", is NOT a Salsa Festival rule. End of story.

In addition, Ferro automatically added a 20% gratuity to our bill, which added more anger to the situation. I would have definitely chosen NOT to give ANY tip because of the entire horrible situation. They absolutely did NOT deserve a tip, especially because the waitress lied to us. She couldn't even look us in the eye.

In all fairness, the young male server to our table was very pleasant and efficient.

I feel thzt I am owed a refund of my gratuity, $8.40. It's not huge, but it's the principal of the matter.

I called on July 22, 2025, @ 5:25 pm. Spoke to Isabel. She will have Dominic, manager, call me. Today is July 28. Not a surprise that nobody called me back. I do not recomnend this restaurant under any circumstances. Customer service is " NOT ON...