Jack Astor's Bar & Grill Yonge & Bloor — Restaurant in Toronto

I attended the Toronto (Yonge & Bloor) Jack Astor's location on Tuesday, October 8, 2024. I have been to many Jack Astor's locations in the GTA and all the locations in Toronto. The Yonge & Bloor location I have been to before, but the experience I had on Tuesday was extremely disappointing and I want an explanation from the owner why this occurred.

A little after 4pm, I showed up to the restaurant. No staff was at the front entrance, so I seated myself at the bar. While at the bar, I waited a few minutes. Then a gentleman in a hoodie approached me and asked if I have been served as yet to which I replied no. He apologized for it, began my drink order, and served me my beverage. Minutes go by and nobody checks in with me, I wasn't presented with a menu, or asked if I will be ordering any food. I eventually stopped one female employee who was occupied at the bar and asked her when she has a moment if I can place a food order. She said okay and walked away continuing doing what she was doing.

Minutes go by and I stopped a male employee working at the bar and asked him if I can place a food order to which he promptly started working on that for me. I got served my Nachos. No plates or napkins were served to me to which I had to request from him to provide. No check-ins were provided by employees to see how I am doing or enjoying the food.

The female employee who I did initially ask when she has a moment, can I place a food order returned and was doing some work in front of me. I asked her if I can ask her a question to which she replied sure. I asked her any particular reason why you forget to take my food order? She began to give a reason something about the shift she is on, but I replied back that she could have communicated with her co-worker to take my order instead of me chasing him down for food because I was hungry. She apologized and the male co-worker hearing the conversation began to do check-ins with me and served me another beverage. I later asked for the bill once I was done and left the restaurant unhappy with my experience.

There were moments when I felt like leaving the restaurant, but I said I came all this way let me stay and was craving your Nachos. I do not know if the staff was new, they were disorganized, or this is the new standard at Jack Astor's, but I was extremely disappointed and this was the worse experience ever at Jack Astor's. Please have a manager contact me. I am sure the surveillance system can...

I am compelled to share my alarming experience, which I can only describe as one of the worst establishments in Toronto. My visit, initially meant to be an enjoyable evening, quickly devolved into a troubling confrontation that raised serious questions about their customer service and ethical standards.

Upon trying to settle my bill, I was confronted by a male staff member who insisted that I could only pay in cash. Bewildered, I explained that I only had my debit card. This is where the situation escalated unreasonably. The staff member claimed that the bartender had "explicitly" informed me upon entry that the bar only accepted cash, a statement that was patently false. No such information was conveyed to me by any staff member during my visit.

When I insisted that no one had informed me of this policy, the staff member resorted to calling me a liar. At this juncture, my concern shifted from the monetary issue to the principles of honesty and accountability. I made it clear that I could easily pay in cash if given proper notice, but he refused to acknowledge the lack of communication.

As I noted the presence of surveillance cameras, I informed him that the footage would corroborate my account. Ultimately, security intervened, and I was relieved of the obligation to pay the bill. However, the situation did not end there. The manager, Andrea Carter, attempted to de-escalate the matter but ultimately refused to offer any form of compensation for the embarrassment I endured.

In light of this distressing experience, I have consulted with legal counsel and will be pursuing civil legal action against them for emotional distress caused by their staff's unprofessional conduct. Going forward I will urge my friends and family members to think twice before visiting this Jack Astor's location, as the lack of transparency and respect for customers is...

OMG! What started out as a promising quick lunch turned out to be a drawn out almost torturous affair in the hot sun! In a nutshell, the food at Jack Astor's near Yonge-Bloor was good but the service was slooow and not so great.

Stopping in for what was supposed to be a quick lunch on my way back to the office from the bank, I discovered some good food but surprisingly slow service.

Let's start with the food. I had a burger with fries and it was really good! It came with bacon and cheese and lots of thin cut crispy fries. The burger patty was juicy and tender and the whole burger was put together quite well. This was a good meal!

What kinda spoiled it for me though, was the speed of service. Ughhh! I was there for over an hour! And it really wasn't that busy!

Only three tables were occupied on the patio when I arrived and a gentleman took the table in front of me shortly after. That left about eight tables empty. The entire patio was shaded and cool and it was a lovely day. Was!

After around forty five minutes of waiting in the shade, the sun came around the building across the street and it was HOT! The food finally arrived and I just wanted to eat quickly and get out of there. It was getting HOTTER and I was now sweating buckets!

So now I was finished and waiting for my bill. Where were all the staff? The fellow at the table in front of me must have been feeling the same way because he got up to go and look for our server. He finally showed up (it must have been too hot for him out there), we paid and left.

How long did it take to have lunch? Long enough for the customer that arrived after me to have almost three whole beers. Lunch took over an hour. Please don't tell my boss...

PS - The patio was really noisy, from a nearby...