The Broadview Diner — Restaurant in Toronto

Finally, a simple breakfast diner that's open at 7am everyday in the Danforth Broadview area. How hard it is to find something with unchanging stable hours. You can always count on it being open. Sure 6am would be better but I'm happy with 7am. The fare is simple and good. The service is beyond excellent (Sue and Becca). Is it possible they actually like what they do? Yes. It is. No doubt it's hard for the owners - in the midst of high inflation and other global calamities, opening another restaurant is risky business. Is a restaurant really just a business though? Do you open restaurants to become rich and famous? Or are they more of a relationship with your community? And we know relationships take time. Just look at Allen's - same wooden floor, same bar, same booths, same tables, same good food for years and years. it's reliable. It's always there. What's there to change? Gimmicks and karaoke nights are not required. Relationship with community is all that's needed...which is created by having hard working, caring staff that create a really nice atmosphere (oh I'm sure someone will find faults and failures that's how humanity rolls), and early opening hours. Broadview Diner fills the bill on all counts. (yes espresso would be swell as well as sunday morning jazz piano mixes, some newspapes and interior design redo by Banksy...but all in good time)

If you put old black and white pictures of older street scenes on your menus and walls - are you not extolling the (perceived) virtues of the past? You know the ones that came with risk, hard work and long relationships, even when things were not so good?

If I had extra wealth I would, without a doubt, run an establishment like this, even if at a loss. Only because I know with time it will become a gain. it doesn't have to be perfect...it just has to be. We need some long-term commitments these days, to offset this cancel culture that seems so prevalent.

So, this is my first ever review of a restaurant on google. And surely my last. Yes, food is important...though good restaurants have a much higher calling and are worth every dime...

I used to live in this area, and remember the Broadview Diner from back in the day--though I didn't really frequent it. I recently moved back here about a year ago and decided to try it again and I was really impressed. I go during the quiet times (I don't like loudness) so it's very relaxed. The atmosphere has the feeling of an old style diner and the crowd feels like it's from that time, kinda hippie-ish and as friendly as that label implies. The last time I was here I struck up a long conversation with a woman sitting next to me and it was one of those experiences that help you forget that you're living in a city whose people tend to be stand-offish.

So I've been coming here quite a bit over the last couple of months and getting to know the staff a bit more, and they are really the jewel in the crown of this restaurant. It makes sense, it's the people who make or break your dining experience, and it's the waitstaff who you interact with.

I like to give shout-outs to people who stand out, and I'd like to give a big shout out to Monika. She's really friendly and makes you feel comfortable and never rushed (I'm a super slow eater and she's even offered to reheat my food after a while...which is quite extraordinary). She's also an excellent server: my coffee is never empty and if there's a problem she's on it before I bring it up. She can manage the door and a large number of tables efficiently and with friendliness.

The food is very good but the reason I only gave it 4 stars is because the portions are a bit small for the price. But the experience of...

I don’t enjoy leaving a bad review and this is after coming here a couple times. I can genuinely say this restaurant needs a complete staff overhaul. The pictures of the food we got looks like it was great. Except it wasn’t and here is why. On both occasions we came here the place was completely understaffed, the staff dressed inappropriately for work - the first time here the servers breasts were falling out of their top. None the staff following appropriate food handling and the service was trash. Some of the worst table service I have had anywhere. These are not servers these are people who are either learning or just don’t care. The sever on both occasions - three weeks apart brought us dirty silverware with food still on it. Sat us at a dirty table that clearly hadn’t been wiped down in between guests. The silverware was rolled so they clearly saw that it had dried up food on it and still gave it out. The food was mediocre and in the case of our second visit an entire half of an egg shell was in my partners Benny. Not a little bit, an entire half in a poached egg! How? Is beyond me. The server didn’t bring us any of the requested condiments on both occasions. We didn’t bother sending it back. The servers on both occasions were not nice and not even really responsive. Overall bad times times two and there won’t be a third. This is a really poorly run restaurant and it’s pretty expensive for such mediocre food and...