Laissez Faire — Restaurant in Toronto

Overall: The experience made it seem like the staff is insensitive to anyone wanting to host a special occasion. I am disappointed because their poor management affected the birthday dinner i planned, and I expected at the very least they’d offer to change my bill for their mistake. Instead they gave our table 1 drink split into 4 small drinks, which was embarrassing. I came during the week, and the restaurant was understaffed. We had to wait at least 20 minutes to be acknowledged, and our server was curt with us all night. I emailed the restaurant the day before asking if they’d bring out dessert, to which they said yes and would add a note to my reservation. Night of the dinner, we have to go ask our server what happened, and we’re told the hostess who responded to me hadn’t informed anyone else of this request, and the kitchen was closed (basically they didn’t have it prepared in advance). And what was sad was that another table had received dessert earlier, so that stung!

I understand that it may have been the inexperience of the hostess, but there needs to be better communication and management of such situations (I even added the dessert request on Open Table, why was that not acknowledged!?). If I had known that the staff would be unprepared I would’ve brought my own cake!! Or gone somewhere else!! Ridiculous.

This place is good if you care about aesthetics and need a strong drink. It was very noisy and the space is tight. Food was delicious, but small portion for the price. We finished eating so quickly.

It was a disappointing and dissatisfying end to the night and I...

I had a wonderful dining experience at Laissez Faire, a French-inspired restaurant on King Street. The ambiance was cozy and elegant, with floral wallpaper, antique mirrors, and a tiled bar. The service was attentive and friendly, and the food was delicious and beautifully presented.

We started with the oysters, which were fresh and briny, served with a tangy mignonette sauce. They were a perfect appetizer for the seafood feast that followed. For the main course, we ordered the gnocchi pasta and the squid ink pasta, both of which were cooked to perfection. The gnocchi were light and fluffy, tossed with roasted mushrooms, spinach, and parmesan cheese. The squid ink pasta was a stunning black color, with a subtle salty flavor that complemented the shrimp, clams, and squid in the sauce. The pasta dishes were generous in portion and rich in taste, but not too heavy or greasy.

Overall, I was very impressed by Laissez Faire and would highly recommend it to anyone looking for a sophisticated and satisfying meal. The restaurant offers a laid-back approach to upscale-casual fine dining, with an attention to service and experience. It is definitely one of the best places to go...

Their menu strays from their French name and also offers Italian dishes for good measure.

It’s not always done well, the porcini truffle arancini ($13) are the worst I’ve ever had: the risotto so dry that the ball starts to crumble and the mixture bland so everything relies heavily on the marinara (thankfully, fresh and delicious). As a plus, since it is deep fried rice, even being the worst it’s still edible, but certainly not one you’d want to serve a true Italian.

The squid ink tagliatelli ($21) is 100% better. Dark ribbons of pasta encompasses a seafood flavour but not in a fishy way. It’s covered in a sauce that’s not overly thick but salty enough to really give it a briny sea essence. Plump sweet clams and crunchy bread crumb provide a nice contrast to the pasta, while there’s just enough dill fronds to add a hint of freshness without morphing the dish’s earthiness.

Safer sharing plates are some of the cold seafood options. While we weren’t advised what the oysters were that evening (only that they were from PEI), the dozen ($32) tasted clean and fresh, accompanied with the traditional vinegary onion mignonette and grated...