Lao Lao Bar — Restaurant in Toronto

First time here. This place was highly recommended to me to try. First impression, host seemed a bit stand-off-ish when asking if we had resos, like he was dying to say there were no spots available without a reso. A bit presumptuous. Next place is very nicely decorated but seating is a bit cramped. The pathway behind my chair and the table behind me was too small and every time someone walked in between I could feel them brushing up on my chair. The tales are also very small! maybe like 2' X 4'? Waiter was ok. He didn't write down what we wanted and got the salad mixed up. I ordered a mango salad and they bought out a papaya salad. Waiter also did not check up on us after the first few bites to see if everything tasted good. He also refilled our water without asking me if I wanted another beer. Lastly, I asked the Waiter which of the curries was the least spicy, he told me the green. It was actually the spiciest of all the curries they had, another miss. This place just seem really pretentious and everyone working there had a chip on their shoulder. I didn't get a chance to record it but even the bartender was giving exact amounts for the drinks, like exactly 1 oz or exactly 2 oz. Most places when they pour out a shot there's always a bit of over pour but not this bartender. The papaya salad wasn't really good. The papaya was really from and not sweet. They also used some fish sauce in the papaya salad that really overpowered the flavour. Green curry was way too hot (even asked for mild spice). I had the braised pork belly. Nice flavours a bit sweet though. Saw the table beside us order the spring rolls and fresh rolls and man we were shocked!! It's 2 tiny spring rolls cut diagonally in half. The entire size of the spring roll was like 4 inches? So each half is only like 2 inches long but it cost over $2 for the 2 inches? Total is $17 for 2 small tiny spring rolls!! Wow. Even the fresh rolls were the same! 2 tiny fish rolls for $16 or $17? Pricing here is just outrageous! Overall I won't be retuning. I don't find the price worth the food or experience here. I don't want to recommend this place to other as well. It's just too pricey for what you get and what you get isn't even that great. The ambiance and service doesn't justify the price they charge. There are literally TONS of other thai places you can go into the city that will blow this place out of the water in terms of flavour...

Faves: BBQ Pork Skewers (Moo Ping) $17 for 5 skewers: flavored perfectly on its own. The tamarind fish sauce wasn't necessary for me, though some might like that bit of added savoury-sourness. Fried Papaya Fritter with garlic tamarind sauce: crunchy, crispy, lightly battered, with that necessary sweetness from the sauce. Coconut pandan sorbet nam van (with fruits) $15: refreshing and creamy, with a wonderful water chestnut jelly that added interesting flavor and texture to the sorbet, along with the jackfruit and cantaloupe.

Good: BBQ Chicken (Ping Gai) with lemon-type sauce, mango salad, and cold noodles: the mango salad was tart, sweet, and seasoned perfectly. The chicken could be grilled a bit more for that smoky flavor. Tapioca dumplings (vegetarian): wrap in salad and herbs and sprinkle with the fried aromatics; flavorful and texturally unique and diverse. The filling is a bit on the sweet side.

Okay: Drunken noodles: nothing special, just stir-fried noodles with no wok hei. Mince meat salad (Laap): nice hints of galangal, but the pork was on the blander side. Needed the Moo Ping dipping sauce. Perhaps shrimp would have been the better protein choice.

Would like to come back for the lao sausages, beef jerky, satay chicken skewer, banana leaf steamed fish, crispy coconut rice salad, taro rolls, and green fish curry.

Lovely, warm service. Warm lighting with pretty decor.

2nd visit: Would rec: Taro rolls with its great sweet-tangy dipping sauce. Green fish curry: very aromatic and has a great depth of flavor. Lao sausage: served with sticky rice, mango salad, cucumber, and chili paste. The sausage was stuffed with aromatics. Thai iced milk tea: really good! Not too sweet, with a slight cacao-like taste.

Would not rec: Banana leaf steamed fish: the mixed flavor of the banana leaf and a steamed herb was sharp and overwhelming. The fish itself was bland.

Average dishes: Beef jerky: sweet-savoury and not bad at all for someone who likes sweeter jerky. Just not my style - I prefer some lemongrass and spiciness. Satay chicken skewer: the pickled fresh vegetables side was good though and goes well with the following dish. Grilled chicken wings: not enough char, a bit bland, needed a sweet-tangy sauce. Crispy coconut rice salad: interesting textures, a bit bland, needed a tart fish sauce...

I rarely write reviews, but after reading some of the other reviews about large group reservations, I wanted to share my experience.

I had a large group reservation for 16 guests in the semi-private dining room for a surprise birthday dinner on a Friday night. In the first email, it was clearly communicated to me that in order to host a large group, we had to do a family style set menu, minimum spend was $1200 before tax and tip, and we would only be able to split the charges evenly across the group (this is also outlined on their website).

Communication between me and the events coordinator/general manager was great. They were kind and tried their best to work with our needs (e.g. dietary concerns and the desire to get separate cheques for drinks). On the night of the event, half the party was 30-45 minutes late. LaoLao bar accommodated us and even allowed us to stay WAY past our 8:30pm cut off time (we ended up leaving around 9:30pm). Our entire party was SO impressed with the service, the food, and the cocktails. The flow of the food came so smoothly and the tasting menu was INCREDIBLE. We could not believe how awesome everything tasted. Must tries: everything. The server (I can't remember her name) was incredibly kind and thoughtful, making sure we got dishes that accommodated dietary needs. We were DEFINITELY a rowdy bunch that moved our seats around and she didn't mind at all. While the cocktails took a little time to arrive, it was COMPLETELY understandable as the restaurant was packed all night. Their front of house manager Esteban was always around to make sure we had everything we needed. Again, our entire party raved about how smoothly everything went, considering LaoLao Bar only opened relatively recently.

I would HIGHLY recommend Lao Lao bar for large group events. We ended up spending about $77 per person on food alone (a few people couldn't make it last minute, so a multiple course menu ended up being split between 13 people). That included tax and tip.

Thank you to Julia, Alyssa, Esteban and our server for the night and all of the staff and chefs at Lao Lao bar. It was a truly wonderful experience and it couldn't have...