Bistro 990 Restaurant

Worth every penny, Bistro 990 is hot even outside of film fest season for good reason. The fantastic food and service are craveable commodities and when in the city you must check them out.

It was not long ago that news got out about the Real Jerk being evicted to make way for a condo development. And not a moment too soon, we heard that the same was happening to Bistro 990. The only difference is that the Real Jerk put up a fight, got an injunction and prolonged their business operations for another month. Bistro 990 has decided to go down with its ship.
I came here with @AS_Toronto and @WilliamThomas02 for a small and intimate Tweetup. AS had wanted to dine here at least once before the restaurant closed its doors. Its been known to be a hot spot for catching celebrities during the Toronto International Film Festival.
My favourite part of the restaurant is the front where the bar is, with its dark wood and paneled windows which give it a bistro feel. I wasn’t so fond of the tacky, retirement-​home-​like chairs in the back of the restaurant (which matched the demographic of their older dining crowd).
The food here is classic bistro fare. Its all the classics kickin’ it old school so don’t expect to see any culinary creativity here. The wine list is a few pages long for those of you who fancy a glass… or 2. Upon placing our orders, we were presented with 2 types of bread: a mixed walnut and fruit bread as well as a French baguette crusted with fleur de sel. Both were quite good and even came warm. Warm bread alone brings a smile to my face :)
I have been a very bad girl this week, and have eaten dinner out every single night. So for the sake of my health I decided to opt out of a three-​course meal. For my main I ordered Cassoulet. A leg of duck confit and Toulousse sausage was served atop a bed of Cannellini. The dish is named after its cooking vessel, a cassole, which is a deep and rounded earthenware pot with slanted sides. [1] The duck was perfectly crisp on the outside but I’ve had more tender confits before. I am not a sausage connoisseur (no pun intended) so all I can say about the sausage is that its marginally better and feels less fatty when you bite into it than the ones you’d find at Loblaws. The Cannellini had bread crumbs sprinkled on top, more so for texture than for adding flavour as the beans were quite bland.
Long before I actually bit into the Steak Frites I knew it would be tasty. The aroma of the frites was so inviting as our server set down the dishes. Two different types of aioli were brought, one spicy and the other not. Both were heavenly. The steak had a good fat to meat ratio, and the Bordelaise sauce was delicious. I still cannot get over the mountainous pile of frites that came with the steak.
And although I wanted to keep my caloric count from skyrocketing by foregoing the appetizer, I caved on dessert. Perhaps it was because the Cassoulet just didn’t do it for me and I thought dessert would remedy my melancholic disappointment. And just like a hit of ecstasy, the Gâteau Opéra lifted my spirits back to a new high. The presentation of the dessert was beautiful, and the dessert was decadent. With alternating layers of ganache, almond sponge cake and coffee buttercream, I was in dessert heaven. The slices of slivered almonds were also a nice touch. Quel bon goût!
Verdict:
Bistro 990 has been an establishment in Toronto but as John Travolta said in Face Off «I hate to see you leave, but I love to watch you go» — the city does not have a shortage of stellar restaurants to fill its shoes. The food, like I said was not an exciting discovery of innovation, and our server definitely showed us «French» hospitality and then some. I have only ever cleared tables at a Japanese buffet, but even I know better than to clear the table before asking whether or not the customer has finished. Poor AS was deprived of her frites before she had even finished them. The only time I remember our server being around was to tell us what the daily specials were. After that, not once did he come back to ask how the food was or to check up on us. This is exactly the type of service experience that impedes Toronto from measuring up to the likes of Chicago, Montréal or New York.
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[1] Wikipedia

««Meryl Streep, Johnny Depp, Denzel Washington …» are all among the long laundry list of celebrities that have been caught dining in this beautiful French Bistro.
The place felt exactly like an intimate little restaurant we fell in love with in Portugal. It’s in an old two story house with upper floor converted into a party room and a restaurant on the main floor with low ceilings, dim lighting and exquisite service.
The food, the food was impeccably french with simple fresh ingredients.
If this somewhere you’re considering checking out, do it soon. The property has been sold to condo developers and they will be closing their doors so stop by soon.

Hey since we are closing down soon let’s offer microwave food! And it wasn’t good microwave food either. Microwaving 101, when microwaving, seal it and add some liquid and microwave it for a long period of time to get the moisture in there.
We were told the Lamb shank was the best but it was really dry, overcooked, and flavourless. My girlfriend got the swordfish and it was the worst! It was room temperature and tasted like eating really bad chicken breast, you know the fluffy tasteless texture.
There has been bad reviews on the steak but our friend really loved hers and it wasn’t as fatty as others have said. Maybe because it’s a different batch?
The smoked salmon was really good, never tried a water chessnut leaves (?) salad but it was good. And the desserts were really good, we had the Crème brûlée, chocolate mousse was decadent, and the warm walnut cake with apple cider sorbet was really good too.
Too bad the mains were such a disappointment that I have to give it 2 stars.

I came to Bistro 990 for a Winterlicious meal with a group of eight. While I will only discuss the food that my girlfriend and I ate and cannot comment on the regular menu, I am certain from the post-​dinner talk that nobody was impressed.
The Winterlicious dinner is a three course fixed price menu for $ 35 which allows for a selection from three or four options per course. My girlfriend and I started with the kale & baby spinach salad, with feta, almonds, Bermuda onions, & pomegranate vinaigrette. It was an average salad, lacking in any real flavour. For the main course, we both had the 6 oz striploin medallion, with jumbo tiger shrimp, garlic mash, & pearl onion jus. This was the biggest disappointment of the meal. It consisted of a bland and fatty cut of meat, a single overcooked jumbo shrimp, lukewarm mash potatoes, unseasoned steamed brocoli and a pool of unappetizing sauce that covered the half the plate. For the desert, I had a crème brûlée that was gelatinous and grainy. My girlfriend’s chocolate mousse torte was passable but far from spectacular.
Given the price and the generally positive reviews, I was hoping for a far better meal. As this was our third consecutive mediocre Winterlicious experience, we have decided to stick to the regular menu from now on.

Took the prix fixe menu for $ 19.90 (either the app and main, or main and dessert) and enjoyed it thoroughly. The duck confit was cooked well, the broccolini was delicious and the cassis sauce was yummy with it. The dessert was an éclair with pistachio ice cream which was good.
I think it’s absolutely worth it, especially since it is difficult for me to find good food in Toronto without paying through the nose for it. This was an expensive meal, but it was good quality and well made. I’d pay about the same price for higher quantity but of a lower quality.

Was in Toronto for a tradeshow, and a colleague of mine and I decided to try this place (which came to my attention through Unilocal).
Our waitress was excellent, and I dined exclusively on her suggestions. She insisted that I start with fois gras (my first experience) and it was PHENOMENAL. Since it was my first, I can’t speak for how it compares versus others, but I was in French heaven.
For my entrée, I had the Magret de canard (duck breast — again at the server’s suggestion). This was delicious, but some of the breast slivers were extremely chewy (the only reason this review is 4-​stars).
For dessert, the eclairs would have been the star of the meal, but unfortunately, that spot had already been solidly claimed by the fois gras.
The ambiance was great, not too loud (a definite plus for me). Service was very attentive.
The next time I’m in Toronto, I definitely want to return and give this place and give this place the chance to earn it’s 5^th star.

Came twice for the summer-​licious lunch menu and left both times with a very happy tummy.
The complimentary bread is sprinkled with fleur de sel and is marvelously addicting.
The chilled canteloupe/​mint soup was lovely and refreshing.
The BC snapper tasted fresh and firm. The accompanying couscous was wonderful.
Both times, the dessert was a bit of a let down. The first time I had the lemon poppyseed cheesecake and it was a little on the sweet side — not quite tart enough. The second time, I tried the ice cream and cookies. I recevied two scoops of ice cream — vanilla and chocolate/​coffee. It was actually pretty good but I was hoping for a more exotic flavour like the blackberry sorbet that accompanied my lemon poppyseed cheesecake. The cookie was a chocolate chip cookie.
Now, for the service…
The first time I came, I was there with a bunch of non-​mommy friends. I was the only one who had an infant. The manager that day was so nice and talked to my little guy. She even said «we like babies here at Bistro 990» My little guy was also relatively well behaved that day.
The second time I came, I came with a mommy friend and her ¹⁷⁄₁₈ month old son. Well, two little boys together can be a recipe for disaster … and they were a bit rambunctious and messy but the manager that day never shot us dirty looks or made us feel unwelcome. In fact, the opposite was true. He helped us with our strollers and was incredibly warm and friendly.
This place is definitely not the most kid friendly restaurant but on the rare occassion that you would have no choice but to come in with your child, you won’t be made to feel like a leper. And I really enjoyed my meal — marvelously scrumptious :)

Went to Bistro 990 with a group of 5 other people for summerlicious. Going with a group of friends makes it a little harder to do a food review, but as I sit and think and reflect on the food I think its a can do.
Unfortunately i was underwhelmed by the food, service and atmosphere. To start I ordered the arugula and radish salad with citrus dressing. Admittedly I thought the citrus dressing was actually going to be citrus pieces in the salad itself to cut down on the pepperiness of the arugula and radishes, and ’twas as I feared, too peppery without anything to really balance the flavours on the palette.
Main course was the Mahi Mahi with Quinoa and pineapple chutney. The Mahi Mahi was cooked perfectly, however too salty for my liking. I am also unsure why Quinoa was used, it didn’t particularly impart any flavour or texture that complemented the rest of the dish… it seemed out of place. The pineapple salsa was delicious, the only issue i have with it is that the Jalapenos that were used we not chopped up fine enough so at times when you took a bite you would get an extreme heat, now I don’t have a problem with heat but i know others do. If you don’t have heat tolerance don’t have this dish.
Last up Lemon Poppyseed cheese cake… dun dun dun! The crust tasted a bit stale, like it was exposed to air for a little too long before serving. The filling was lacking the «lemon» part of the lemon poppyseed name. The cake itself wasn’t as velvety as I am used to, however not awful, I wonder perhaps if it was a ricotta mix which threw off the texture a wee bit.
The wine is also overpriced as compared to other restaurants. The wait staff was non attentive and the décor was not my cup of tea… it seemed rather dated in my opinion.
Overall, not a terrible place to eat, but in terms of what it’s «worth»…I would just spend my money elsewhere for better service and food.

Pros:
Good to excellent food
Excellent service before and during dinner
Excellent location
Good to excellent ambiance
Cons:
Expensive champagne to toast, but I did not ask for cheaper sparkling wine. Champagne was excellent to toast our 40 yrs reunion.
I reserved a reunion party there recently for a party of 12. I pre ordered appetizers, champagne, red and white wines through email. Susan there was great with excellent communication to our server.
Food was great, we voted the tuna tartar was the best appetizer, all entrees were good to excellent. The server offered a well decorated 40 yrs reunion dessert which was beautiful and was excellent as well.
It was a memorable evening event for all, I will be back if I am in town again. I would strongly recommend Bistro 990 if you enjoy fine dining.

My friend K lives near Bistro 990 and was anxious to try it. Her boyfriend was visiting Toronto for the weekend so she decided it would be a good excuse for a get-​together combined with our first visit here.
I had looked at a few Unilocal reviews before visiting so was a little worried that it might be stuffy or pretentious. It was anything but. We were greeted warmly by Victor and led to a table at the back. We had booked for 9 but only 6 eventually made it. They weren’t even slightly annoyed and we settled in happily.
The décor is a bit chintzy but actually works. It is cozy and homely. There’s almost a family feel and it feels lived in; not stuffy. Bathrooms downstairs are tiny but spotless.
Bread was plentiful, although it was cold. I had one that tasted herby and didn’t even require butter. Most of the others had starters and tucked into them with gusto. I tried the mussels and the snails as part of my continuing mission to eventually eat fish willingly. They were actually tasty!
For my main course, I had the filet mignon which was a perfect medium rare. I struggled to remove a chunk of fat-​the lack of steak knife and candlelight made it a challenge-​but once that was done I enjoyed it. It came with some vegetables and potatoes in a peppercorn jus. The portion was quite small for $ 32 but I suppose that’s to be expected in a proper restaurant! There were no complaints from any of the others. I didn’t actually get to taste any other dishes because they devoured them so quickly.
The dessert menu was full of things I wanted so I was staring at it with a somewhat panicked expression. Our waiter suggested the special which was a Belgian chocolate mousse with almond ice-​cream. It was a good choice. Dense, intensely chocolatey mousse which was offset by the freshness of the ice cream. Portion just right again. I got to taste the baked alaska too which was nice. We agreed it wasn’t really authentic-​not baked to brown, just done with the blowtorch.
Wine was good but expensive-​cheapest red was $ 55. We went through a few too many bottles at that price!
Service was superb. Victor was charming and our waiter was faultless. My glass was never empty and he was extremely pleasant without hovering. He even coped with my inability to choose a dessert with aplomb. We were allowed to feel comfortable and at home for the whole evening.
Will I be back? Hopefully. I have to work my way through more of the dessert menu. I think I’ll have to save my pennies first though… it’s a special occasion location!

Great food in the downtown area. I’m a big fan of French food and they hold true to the French cuisine and wine style. I had kangaroo that was brought in from Australia. It was frozen during transport yet was one of the greatest meats I have ever tasted. My GF had a fish dish that was melt in your mouth good.
One of the reasons that this place is so good is the freshness, knowledge of wine, friendliness and ambiance.
It isn’t the cheapest place in town but worth every dollar.

The service was good. But a lot of people were lining up, and some customers were rude to others, very unexpected. The environment was very tight, we were very close to other tables and quite noisy. Not a big fan.
The food was okay — I expected better. We went for the Summerlicious menu this year. For appetizer, I had the Watermelon-​Tomato Gazpacho, Basil Crème Fraiche which I did not like at all. Didn’t realize it was a chilled soup and the watermelon really is not that great. For the entrée, I had the Veal Striploin, Jumbo BT Shrimp, Roast Shallot and it was okay, nothing too great, I rather go to the Keg. My friend had the Opal Valley Lamb Rack, and she liked it a lot but too bad I’m not a lamb eater person. For desserts, my friend had the Vanilla Pavlova with Chocolate Cream and Mixed Berry Compote and it was crazy amount of cream on it. Not too great. But I had the Coconut and Lime Crème Caramel which was good but nothing too special either.

We followed a right-​pointing arrow on the front of the building clear into the parking lot; this, it would turn out, was way off base. Mustering our combined mental capacity, my dinner companion and I (both idiots apparently) eventually located the (not-​hard-​to-​find-​at-​all) entrance. We were greeted in a brick-​floored (herringbone!) foyer that was dim and deserted. This only made our journey into the dining room all the more dramatic; Bistro 990 is a warmly-​lit and vaulted space filled with the steady sound of happy conversation, and features fascinating hand-​painted walls and a convivial and very French atmosphere. Our waitress was even named «France,» if that gives you any indication.
I’m trying to enter the mind of a veg-​lover this month, so I ordered the Blue Cheese Salad ($ 10) with roasted hazelnuts. As someone that would cheerfully drive a salad truck into a canyon, I have to admit that I enjoyed this. The Vegetarian Fusilli, which was decked out with zucchini, mushroom, corn, asparagus, and feta ($ 17), was even better. This spot ain’t exactly cheap but the atmosphere and impeccable service more than make up for it. I will definteily return to check out their patio in the summertime.
Obligatory Title Pun: For a French food emergency ring 9−9−0.
Menu Readability: Bi-​lingual et serif.
Need to mention: Because of it’s proximity to the Sutton Place hotel, many celebs come to dine here during TIFF.
What this place teaches me about myself: Feta makes it better. I don’t care that it rhymes, it’s true.

The décor is really dated and tacky in a grandma’s-floral-couch kinda way. The pasta dishes didn’t look that interesting but the lamb special was decent. The lamb itself seemed overcooked and lacked flavour, but the rest of the dish (like the sweet potatoes with sage) was delicious. Cabernet Sauvignon by the glass was a bit of a disappointment even though I ordered one of the better ones ($ 12). Wouldn’t go back for dinner, maybe lunch if I’m ever in the area, but it was nice to try it out.

This restaurant is fantastic. The food is great, the atmosphere is cozy and romantic, and the service is good. In typical European style, the servers don’t hover over your table, and the food service is deliberately slow, allowing you to enjoy each course, your wine and your company.
I’m lucky to have this be a favorite of my parents’ and have never had to pick up the tab. It’s definitely upscale, so not inexpensive.
The frites are wonderful, and the steak tartare is out of this world — don’t leave without trying it! I also tried a lobster risotto dish (a special) which was phenomenal, with a nice amount of perfectly cooked, tender lobster in it. However, I’d recommend steering clear of the Caesar Salad, it’s nothing special and there are far better choices on the menu.
If you’re looking for a special occasion restaurant, try this place!

I lived a few blocks from Bistro 990 during summers when I was a student, and lucky for me so did my father who loves the restaurant. That means I’ve been fortunate enough to eat at Bistro 990 frequently, but I’ve never actually had to foot the bill (although I’ve seen some whopper bills arrive after several bottles of wine).
The service has always been fantastic; waitstaff are attentive and informed. The pace of a meal is fairly slow, to provide you lots of time to linger over the food and enjoy talking to your companions. If you’re expecting a quick meal you’ll probably find the pace frustrating, but you’ll never find yourself lacking for a drink refill or anything else, your waiter usually shows up with it about half a second before you realize you need something.
My brother’s go-​to meal here is the New York striploin, and every time he looks intensely satisfied with the decision. I usually opt for the game of the day — if it’s venison you absolutely owe it to yourself to get it. I once had a rack of caribou so delicious I lost all sense of propriety and high-​fived the waiter to express my delight. Every meal I’ve had, and every meal my companions have had, has been great, so you can safely opt for whatever looks tasty and be confident in your choice.
As other reviewers have mentioned, Bistro 990 is a celebrity hotspot during the Toronto International Film Festival (I believe in part because many celebrities stay at the Sutton Place hotel, directly across the street). That means if you have the foresight to make a reservation you can dine next to a very drunk Jackie Chan or watch your mother take 17 trips to the bathroom just to walk past Tom Sellek and his legendary moustache.

I went here for Winterlicious, and I was really excited. It’d really beautiful inside, a nice atmosphere. I feel that the food wasn’t as good as it could have been. The price was nice, $ 15 for a three course meal.
I started with the Leek & Potato Soup, Shaved Truffle Infused Pecorino Cheese, while my friend had the Bistro House Mixed Salad, Balsamic Vinaigrette. The soul was really good, with the exact amount of thickness and flavour. The Pecorino cheese was a tasty addition.
For my main, I had Black Angus Beef Burger, Aged White Cheddar, Garlic Toast and Frites. My friend had the Sole Filet à la Meunière. She thought it was wayyy too salty. I liked my beef burger, but it was not outstanding, merely good. The french fries were nice, but didn’t seem housemade, and the garlic bread was blackened to the point of almost being burned.
For dessert, I had Apple Crumble with a teeny scoop of ice cream. It was okay.
All in all, I wasn’t really impressed. It was a nice meal to eat, but if I had paid full price I would have probably been upset.

Great lil French place in Yorkville, a little on the fancy side so it would be great when you feel like special night out. Overall very nice. We were there on a warm night early this fall so even the patio was quite busy (mostly men in business suits coming from work). Inside is very cozy and has an old world feel, great lighting and decore.
We started with a seafood appetizer, a lil medley of different things to try and although foo foo, all was delicious. Service is of course impeccable and the wine list extensive. I had a delicious steak as did my friend and it was cooked perfectly. I only wish I had room for dessert as I’m sure it would have been excellent.
It was quite busy but still nice. Our table was a bit small and you definitely bump elbows with those around you if you sit at the lil 2-​top tables along the wall but it was still comfortble. And of course if you are into it, it is a celebrity spotting location from what I’ve heard. We didn’t see anyone that night but its a favorite and I understand why, I don’t think that anyone there would have paid much attention, just didn’t have that feel. Overall highly recommended. :)

***** 4.5 stars *****
This was just shy of a perfect rating, but mainly because of the slight disappointment with the main course that may have just been my own silly delusions of grandeur. Overall this is easily one of the best restaurants in Toronto, and certainly one of the most classy as well.
I decided to take a stroll one night in and around the University area, as well as a little bit of Bloor, and finish it up with a walk down through the government part of town, with a brief stop here for a pleasant bite to eat. I ended up staying for an entire dinner, because the menu looked a lot like heaven to me. It’s littered with many of my favorite French classics, but I decided to see how well they did with a few non-​traditional items.
My waitress was about 55, and had the most obviously fake French accent I had ever heard. So fake in fact, that it might have been real, nevertheless I found it amusing, and it certainly hinted towards the amount of swank this place implies. She started me off with some relatively worthless bread, which was luckily accompanied by a heap of warm, delicious butter and since I never trust the waitstaff’s recommendations, a bottle of pinot noir.
I couldn’t resist having some traditional French fare, so I went with the onion soup, which was probably the best decision of the night. You can see in the picture this thing is just overflowing with amazing cheesy goodness, but what you can’t see underneath is the perfect sized breadcrumbs and thinly sliced onions that were done exactly the way I like them for this dish. The broth was simply fantastic, I could have bathed in it.
Next up, I went for the crab cake, because I saw the table beside me had ordered one and it was big enough for them to split. Sold me right there. Add in some chipotle mayo and you almost convinced me to get two. It delivered as promised, and the spice kicked ass in a way remoulade could only dream of. Normally chipotle flavors are about as tame as peppers get, but this thing had some fire, props to the chef for taking this one up a notch.
I ended up finishing the night off with what was clearly a huge mistake on my part, passing up on the relatively inexpensive but glorious sounding New York strip topped with bleu cheese, and going for the special of the night, kangaroo with asparagus and mashed sweet potato, in a cabernet reduction. I didn’t ask the price at the time, but it ended up being double what the steak was, for equal or less enjoyment, and tack on a bottle of shiraz to go with the pinot noir from earlier and my waitress didn’t really care. It looked and tasted basically like beef medallions without all the fat, which for some people might be a bonus, but I LIKE THE FAT! Oh well, lesson learned. I wish the table of Australians who happened to be conveniently sitting right across from me had arrived just a few minutes earlier, as just after I ordered they were discussing how poor kangaroo meat actually was, and that they only served it to sucker tourists. Go me.