Milestones — Restaurant in Toronto

I’m using my wife’s account . When we arrived yesterday evening, we asked for a table for eight. We were four adults, and advised that the other four were arriving soon. I pointed out that two of the four were young children. The waitress showed us to a high table with tall stools. We declined this table (two adults are short and have great difficulty with high stools - no idea how two small children could cope). The waitress went to check tables, and returned to advise that a booth was available, and led us to that. We had the impression that the waitress was disgruntled at the work we gave her having refused the high table. Someone came and took our orders for drinks. Subsequently another waitress came to take our food orders. Gradually different waitresses brought the food out. Evidently, unlike other restaurants we have been to, the orders were not taken with reference to which person ordered which dish - as the food was brought out, they had to ask who the dishes were for. The six members all had their food; my wife and I were left waiting - so we told the others not to wait, and eat while their food was still hot. One adult and one child ordered mushroom soup and were surprised and disappointed to find that it had some spice in it - neither could eat much of it. A bottle of vinegar was delivered; there was a minuscule amount of vinegar in it (and the bottle actually looked grubby). We requested for a useable vinegar bottle, indicating that it was almost empty. The waitress did not bother apologising that we had been given this one, simply stating that she would get more. It was quite several minutes before our food was finally delivered. My wife was surprised that her order for blackened chicken looked like it was just grilled. She found the chicken was tasteless, like it had been boiled (the grill marks were only one side of the chicken - surely grilled chicken would have the cross-hatched grill marks on both sides). She gave me a piece to try, and I confirmed it was tasteless. Eventually another waitress came to ask how the food is. I asked why the chicken was not blackened - she pointed out that this was Mediterranean chicken. I asked again why it was not blackened and she again reiterated why this dish is not blackened. Realising that she did not understand, I pointed out that she ordered blackened chicken. The waitress was surprised, and asked if she should change it. Since my wife had eaten almost half of it - and did not wish to wait another many minutes for it to be delivered - she declined. One of the group asked for soy sauce, which never arrived; so had to ask again. Another asked for ginger ale; she had to ask three times before she finally received it. We were not impressed with the lack of service - no single waitress or waiter looked after us. The spicy mushroom soup went largely uneaten and wasted, neither the adult nor the child can eat spicy food. Incredibly they were given teaspoons to eat their soup with! Worse was my wife being given the wrong dish, especially given that the chicken was tasteless and without pasta. We felt that a tip was not really appropriate for the disappointment (put mildly) of our visit, though we did pay it. At least the cost of my wife’s wrong dish was removed from the bill. It is very unlikely that we will return - there are many other restaurants that...

Food: 1 Stars Service: 4 Stars Ambience: 3 Stars Sanitary: 4 Stars Overall: 3 Stars

Note: Complimentary Invite

I was recently invited to try Milestones’ Holiday Creations menu, and overall, it was a bit of a mixed experience.

To start, the appetizers weren’t bad, but they didn’t quite impress either. We had the Sweet Chili Chicken Bites, which had good flavouring, but the chicken was overwhelmed by dough—there was just too much batter, and not enough chicken. The Creamy Lobster and Prawn Dip was decent; it was cheesy and enjoyable, though I’d say it lacked a bit of lobster flavour. The chips it came with, however, were far too salty for our liking, which kind of ruined the balance of the dish.

For the main courses, we had the Crispy Peking Style Duck Breast and the Holiday Seafood Sirloin. Unfortunately, both were disappointing. The duck breast had a poor presentation—it didn’t look very appetizing at all. The lentils and salad it came with didn’t enhance the flavours, and the duck was really tough with not much juiciness to it. It just didn’t hit the mark in terms of texture or taste. As for the Holiday Seafood Sirloin, it was another miss. We ordered it medium, but the steak came out undercooked. The lobster portion was minimal, and the croquettes had an odd aftertaste and an unusual texture. The carrots were also undercooked, which made the whole dish feel unfinished.

On a more positive note, the drinks were good. We don’t drink alcohol, so we had cocktails instead, and the Miami Ice was our favourite. It had a nice, refreshing flavour, almost like an elevated store-bought iced tea, which was pleasant and easy to drink.

The desserts were a bit of a letdown as well. We tried both the carrot cake and the chocolate cake, and unfortunately, they both had a store-bought vibe. The chocolate cake, in particular, reminded me of McCain chocolate cake—nothing special and definitely lacking that homemade touch. The carrot cake was better, but still, it wasn’t anything to write home about.

That being said, the service was incredible. The staff were really friendly and accommodating, even offering to have one of our dishes remade when we expressed our disappointment. Unfortunately, by that point, we had already lost our appetite and didn’t want to wait for another round of food.

The atmosphere at Milestones was nice overall. It felt warm and inviting, though it did get a bit chilly where we were seated due to the doors opening and closing constantly. On the plus side, the furniture was well-maintained and added a nice touch to the space.

In the end, while the service and drinks were great, the food didn’t live up to expectations. The dishes were underwhelming, and there were clear areas for improvement. If you’re looking for a place with good drinks and service, Milestones is still worth considering.

xx...

Went here for dinner on a whim with my partner just for its closeness to the eaton centre. Ended up being a really sucky experience.

The bar was popping off but the dinning room was kinda empty, we were fast to be seated and everything was super clean and neat. Every table had candles but they weren’t lit. Would’ve been kinda cool if they were.

We ordered some drinks and the artichoke spinach dip to start which was decent, but nothing to write home about.

Here’s where things went down hill.

I ordered the bone-in ribeye steak and my partner ordered the blue burger.

Our server didn’t ask me how I wanted my steak cooked so I had to clarify before he left that I wanted it rare with some butter. Simple enough, right?

Our food came decently quick but to my surprise my steak came cooked incorrectly and inconsistently. It was half medium half medium rare. The butter wasn’t served on top but on the side melted in a little metal cup. I called our server over to point out the mistake to which after he said “It’s cooked medium rare. Oh you want rare? Okay let me go talk to the chef.”

Our server came back fast and told us that the chef is adamant that the steak IS rare. I had to pull out my phone and show him a picture of a rare steak compared to a medium rare steak. He offered to cook it rarer and took it back.

It came back raw on the inside. Seriously, blue style. The top was seared but when cut open it was just pure dark red and bright white. Some parts actually rare, most of it blue. No butter either. I was a little annoyed now because I was hungry and my partner was pretty much done her meal. I called our server over and showed him how it was cooked.

Bro looked at me dead in the eyes and said to my face “Rare is raw”

Rare is NOT raw.

In all honesty, this was embarrassing. I’ve been to lots of restaurants and I’ve never had such a hard time ordering a rare steak. Especially for a restaurant like this not knowing the difference in rarities and how to cook them.

Our server apologized profusely and said he would get the manager, but at this point we really just wanted to leave. After about 10 minutes she came out, we explained the situation and she said “We were under the impression you wanted blue!”

I just asked to cut the steak off the bill and to pay ASAP so we could leave. The manager was really sweet about everything and offered a new meal or for the steak to be cooked more but I declined. That was the one nice thing I guess. Took forever to get the bill after that though.

On top of all of this, my partners burger patty was bone-dry and super...