Ruelo Bakehouse — Restaurant in Toronto

This place completely failed to deliver a good afternoon tea experience. Despite booking a week in advance, the front-of-house staff member claimed they didn’t realize we had a reservation because we “didn’t write it in the comments we were doing afternoon tea.” Why else would we make a reservation? Very few people would make a reservation for just sitting down to drink a coffee, it's obvious it would be for afternoon tea. Instead of taking responsibility, she insinuated it was our mistake, which already set a bad tone. We had to wait over half an hour for everything to be prepared and were essentially told to just sit there and wait, even though we were the only customers there. She suggested we could order from their menu while waiting—but at full price, nothing to make up for the mistake. They could have easily informed us when they called two minutes before our appointment asking if we were doing afternoon tea, to delay our arrival or offered something complimentary during the wait. Portions for jam and clotted cream were insufficient for more than two people, and she told us we’d be charged extra if we wanted more. Complete lack of understanding of customer service. It took more convincing for us to get extra.

A friend mentioned this place once scolded her family for being late to the reservation, yet for our case, they weren’t prepared even when we arrived on time. To top it off, the tea itself was tasteless, which is ironic for a place focused on afternoon tea. I used to enjoy Ruelo’s cakes especially over a decade ago it was my favourite bakery and I liked the owner, but the service at this location needs serious improvement. I guess they've given up on customer service or understanding the customers perspective. Don't blame the customers for your mistake. It feels like they've given up, at least the service is...

Their service needs improvement. I had ordered a cake well in advance to be ready for a specific time. As soon as I enter the store Im made to wait for 10mins. No one has noticed that Im inside. Even after calling out to someone in the back they do not notice. I then have to call the store while Im in the store for someone to notice that Im here. When I tell the lady Im here to pick up my cake she rushes to the back. After another 5 minutes of waiting she tells me they need another 5 minutes. I can now see them in the back getting the mirror glaze ready. In other words my cake is clearly not ready! 10mins later another lady comes out with my cake. The decoration and writing on my cake is sloppy! She tells me that they forgot about my cake. The cake hasnt even been given enough time to set. I paid 45 dollars for something that looked terrible. I understand that it tastes good but when you are gifting a cake to someone you also expect it to be presented decently! In the end all she could say was sorry. They wasted my time and didnt even bother compensating for the...

Came across Ruelo Patisserie on Google Maps while searching for a good looking (photogenic) cake for Mother's Day. I purchased a 5 inch Wreath (Pistachio/Sakura/Strawberry). The online ordering process was easy and picking up was smooth at McNicoll location. Unfortunately, other than the appearance, the cake is awful.

Same as many other Chinese bakeries, they put too much effort into perfecting the appearance of their cakes, but zero effort on the taste, which is supposed to be the soul of a cake. This cake has a very confusing taste. It's a blend of many vague and unidentified aromas. Even when we picked only a single layer to eat, we couldn't figure out what it's supposed to be. Pistachio? Sakura? Strawberry? Nothing! It has no depth at all and we tasted nothing but the plain sweetness from sugar. Good thing, the cake is small. We're able to finish it fast enough and leave this unpleasant...