SYRUP - Algonquin — Restaurant in Algonquin

$$$ This place is very open and inviting. Although it is part of a small-chain, it doesn't have that "chain" feel, which is nice. We went for breakfast on a Sunday morning before 9am and although very busy, we were seated within 5 minutes. (Note they are only open for breakfast and lunch hours weekly 7am-2:30pm.)

Check in is all electronic as they take your cell number and text you when table is ready, allowing you to wait outside on weather permitting days. With that said, they should consider putting in some bench seating out front along the sidewalk.

We sat indoors but they have tented outdoor seating as well. When we left after about an hour, it appeared more people waiting around host stand and out front.

Staff was pleasant and got us started with coffee right away. Syrup has a very robust menu and appears something for everyone's tastes. After ordering, and given how busy it was, our food was out in about 5 minutes. So between the time seated to the time eating, it was less than 10 minutes.

The food is a bit pricier than some "international" restaurant places, but the portions are large and the food is prepared well and very tasty, so well worth it. There aren't any "build your own" options but as mentioned prior they are all electronic, it is very easy for the waitstaff to customize an existing menu item to your liking. This electronic system also allows them to send the receipt to you electronically so no more thermal paper receipts to deal with!

Parking is adequate around the building plus it appears a portion of the parking is shared with the Holiday Inn Express next door. (And for reference, Syrup is in the old Colonial Cafe restaurant.)

Getting to the restaurant is quite easy now the construction on Randall Road is wrapping up.

They also have an online ordering system for pick-up, so if you need to get food to go, that's an option too. However, adding a professional opinion, they should look into expanding the online ordering through the dinner hours and possibly late night. Keep the restaurant eat in current hours but turn it into a curbside pick-up restaurant for dinner and possibly late night hours. I'd look at the restaurant demographics in surrounding area for feasibility.

Anyway, this is on our list of restaurants where we will definitely eat again.

5/8/22 Update. It appears they are now adequately staffed and food comes out in a very...

Exceptional. As a gluten free diner I had a ton of choices ( more than were marked on the menu tbh). I enjoyed the omelette w goat cheese and veggies for three meals! The potatoes were phenomenal and I added the bacon and cheese for the loaded option. Gluten free pancake as the side- which I didn’t ever eat because I got so full and the omelet lasted so many days (next time!) Service was very very good. Wait was a bit long but worth it. Tables were turned quickly and servers were attentive. Reports were that the Bloody Mary wasn’t very spicy and lacked horseradish- so if you like mild this could be your spot. Gluten free items are marked on the menu but there is so much more available than marked which was a little baffling. For example the omelette and potatoes were totally gluten free but they didn’t have a GF next to the menu item because they are normally served with toast as a side and that isn’t Gluten Free. I appreciate the diligence but it did take more time and investigation with a knowledgeable waitress to ensure we knew our options fully. If I were the menu designer I would keep the GF for the funky gluten free options and add a GFO to the dishes that can be easily made gluten free (by subbing the gf pancakes for the toast for example) but since our wait staff was so knowledgeable and kind it was not an issue at all this...

I really wanted to love this place - Food was AMAZING but the service was awful. I was super disappointed after hearing so many good things - we were sat pretty quickly but waited 10-15 minutes just for someone to come by with water. Our server finally arrived and took our order. We kept waiting, and the food came out to our table before our drinks (which were super simple, just a coffee and a Sprite). I'd understand a longer wait if the drinks were something more complicated - but I was just hoping to get to sip on some coffee while waiting for my food, as you can do at most restaurants. Then, after finishing our meal and just wanting to get out of there at that point, it was a struggle just to pay our bill, as we had to wait even more for our server who was difficult to find (gave us the check & seemingly disappeared) - we even tried paying at the front but we were told to pay directly with the server. The chicken & waffle tasted SO good though and the portion size was way more than I expected (a good thing!). I would only consider going back because the food was excellent (and it could have been an off day), but am hesitant.

EDIT: Came back and loved it. Server was great and we got everything we ordered in a timely manner. Loved it so much I went back a 3rd time and I'm so glad I gave this place another chance. I'm...