Versus Coffee — Restaurant in Toronto

Coffee scene in Toronto is pretty fierce and plentiful... So how do you make yourself stand out? Lots of people can do wonderful latte art and make it Insta pretty. There are some really good local roasters to get very good beans and make a great tasting cup. Most people can reno and paint their way to a cute spot. So what's the difference between a 4 and 5 star place? The owner and baristas. Anthony, owner of Versus, brought that forward and put Versus in one of my top spots in Toronto for me.

Sitting pretty with a patio at the base of a new(er) build condo, Versus is a cute and modern small cafe that serves up espresso based drinks and also buddha bowls and simple breakfast fares. It's a calm atmosphere with its white washed walls and lots of bright sunlight flowing in. On a Sunday morning, lots of locals filled the tables with their drinks and laptops. It was nicely quiet even if every table was taken.

Quick note ... for all those who want to get your Instagram pretty drinks. Just tell them ahead of time and for a few dimes, they can make your drink look like a rainbow. Also they have this crazy sounding one where they use maple syrup and roasted marshmallow for their campfire latte.

Flat white - rich, smooth, and balanced. This was very nice and the darker notes made me appreciate it even more since a few recent places were quite light. I liked how there wasn't too much acidity but there was a touch bitterness that gave it a pleasant bite. It's definitely not your starter espresso drink but it's still very approachable. 5/5

Caramel Latte - I love the latte art on this one as I know almond milk doesn't froth as densely as cows milk. The taste to this was mildly sweet with a touch of caramel. It did balance with the lighter coffee note as it didn't overwhelm it. Perhaps I was expecting a bolder note for both the coffee or caramel. Either way, a nice drink to start the day. I think I'll grab the flat white next time. 4/5

As I mentioned, 5 stars are not common for me but I feel the passion from Anthony was really great. We had an amazing conversation about the coffee scene in Toronto. His personal take on how Toronto's taste buds are with coffee and how he specifically chosen his coffee beans to suit his clientele. I definitely want to return and perhaps try more...

UPDATED REVIEW: I do not recommend this place. This places quality has significantly dropped since when it opened way back in 2016. Especially for the month of November in 2019. Every time I'd order a café item along with a latte or just Avocado toast with poached egg the baristas/server's have given myself and friends negative attitude. It seems in 2022 this attitude is still present, and much worse. If you are working in the food industry, shouldn't you want to see your customers have a good day? I guess not at this place...

Thus these are one of the reasons the 5 stars went to 1 stars which is highly unacceptable. Next thing that made this review drop is the physical food.

The Avocado toast with poached egg. I ordered this in November 2019 before the pandemic... The egg was uncooked, there was wayyyy too much SALT, it made my friend and I throw up afterwards, plus the toast had mold growing on it (bread shouldn't be blue, and green). I ended up in hospital with severe food poisoning, and salmonella.

This as food can shut a place down with one public health and safety inspection. Thus the last straw. There's so many better cafés out there. I'd go to another place...

Good cafe spot in the St Lawrence neighborhood. I like their iced drinks and their matcha latte. I order here maybe 1x a week since I live nearby! I really enjoy their patio on the warm months and appreciate they put big yellow sun umbrellas out. The staff (guys) are pretty friendly but I find the girl a little passive aggressive sometimes. The other day I went by to do some reading where I ordered a San Pallegrino then finished it. I had planned to meet a friend there later the same afternoon but they hadn’t arrived yet. I didn’t order anything new because I was waiting for my friend. So anyways, I was sitting and reading. The girl server came over and said “Just so you know, at cafes, you need to order something… you can’t just sit here for free…” The tone of voice was very passive aggressive and condescending. It was almost like a microaggression … just because I’d finished my drink doesn’t mean I was freeloading/sitting at the cafe for free. I was planning on ordering more beverages with my friend when she got here. Anyways, I found the whole situation quite off-putting and weird. My friend and I ended up going to...