Harlem Underground

Went to this place with a group during winterlicious. It was one of the first places I tried chicken and waffles in the city. I recommend. Others at the table tried the fish and gumbo. Warm and inviting place.

For my first time here I would not return by choice! The service was horrible and the food was as good as the service!

We had the bloody jerk and the chicken and waffle. It’s a nice place to cine chill with friends and east good food and drink. The stalker and the décor is very nice and low key. They have a patio on the back. It was good to see that the restaurant featured local artists art on the walls.

Served room temperature water in 85 degree weather. Some of the servers or helpers had no friendly customer service manners nor did they give us any suggested items to drink, eat, etc… Sangria was pretty refreshing (white) though.

My motto is, if you serve me food, you deserve a minimum of 2 stars. Well even that didn’t happen here at Harlem Underground. If Unilocal had the option of zero stars, I’d give them that.
It wasn’t even that busy to begin with and since they had Chicken & Waffles, we thought we’d give that a try. To begin with, it took them about 10 mins to even bring menus. Another 5 minutes to bring water but since service was slow, we decided to put our orders in when they brought the water. Or so we thought we put our orders in. Close to 30 minutes later, we asked what the status was on our order and turns out she didn’t even put our order in. In the mean time, our waters weren’t even filled up once. To top things off, our server didn’t even apologize for the mistake and didn’t seem to care that we were walking out.
Worst place I’ve been to. Definitely not going back here.

After having a really positive experience at Harlem on Richmond Street, I came here with 5 other friends for a get-​together dinner on a weekday evening. The food was comparable to the Harlem on Richmond, although it seemed smaller in portion, the authentic Creole and Southern flavor was there; however, the service a huge let-​down.
First of all, our water took forever to arrive, without any ice, on a hot early summer day. The waitress was nowhere to be seen throughout the entire dinner, although there was only one other table at the restaurant. A few times we saw her, she was eating her own dinner and pouring herself a drink behind the bar. Service was non-​existent, no water re-​fills, no small talks, and it took her 15 minutes to bring the bill when we eventually got her attention.
When we received the bill, there was a mandatory 15% tip given our party’s size, fair. But this is where it gets even more interesting with the waitress, one of my friends gave a $ 40 bill for her $ 26 dinner, only to receive $ 11 back with a shrug from the waitress claiming there was no more change at the registry. We were shocked but also rushing to leave for our next appointment, so we let it go. Needless to say, it left a bad taste in our mouths (not because of the $ 2 my friend never got back, but because of her lack of service and her sense of entitlement that she would get tipped on top of the 15% on our bills).
Will I ever want to pay for $ 30 for a small dish of blackened catfish, and receive next to no service? Probably not.

Went there for brunch Had the vegi omelette, home fries, and sangria the food was good. they also had a DJ playing music which was a nice touch to Sunday brunch

We went to Harlem for a goodbye dinner for one of the attorneys at my firm. This is not an atmosphere that a bunch of Bay Street lawyers would usually go too, but we all loved it. From the service, to the food and music. We ordered a pitcher of sangria and boy was it amazing. It had the right amount of wine, juice and fruit. The rest of the table had other drinks that they were very pleased with. We ordered the platter that came with a bit of everything, my favourite were the corn break and jerk quesadillas. For the main course I had friend chicken and you get to chose your side, coconut rice and peas or Mac and cheese. I also got to try the short rib, and it was mouth watering. Everyone enjoyed their meals.
Will definitely be back!

Went here for my friend’s birthday and I had the Southern Fried Chicken and Waffles. It was really good!!! I recommend it if you are eating here. One thing that takes away from my review is that service was really slow, but It was probably because there was only one waitress who doubled as a bartender, and one cook. Also, some things seem a little over priced. Other than that it was great! My friends and I really enjoyed it. The waitress even brought out my friends birthday cake, and packed it up for us in the end.

I came here for a special event, a dark and stormy hip hop colouring night.
The ambience is nice, it’s a very cozy space so perfect for tables of 4 or less. The DJ played some amazing tunes and it was a very nostalgic feel for the evening. The colouring supplies provided were mediocre and i would highly recommend bringing your own art supplies.
I was very disappointed with the food. For the prices they charge, i was expecting a higher quality meal. The jerk chicken still had the skin on it and was drowned in a store bought sauce. The mac and cheese was definitely made with a cheese-​based powder and just topped with grated cheese. Dessert was delicious probably because it was purchased from Costco.
The service was also terrible. Given that it’s not a large venue, very surprised how little I saw of the wait staff and our bills had to be redone multiple times.
The colouring idea is unique and it’s refreshing. However, it’s unlikely I would go back until they improve the food and service.

I came here with my friends and absolutely loved the atmosphere! I got the bbq jerk chicken and the Mac and cheese and an appetizer I can’t remember the name of. I really enjoyed everything I got. Not sure if the food was really good or I was just really hungry
Anyways I thought it was a bit pricey for their menu but I’ll probably return because I found out you can add bacon to the Mac and cheese

Possibly the worst restaurant experience I’ve had. Music was so loud I couldn’t hear myself or my friend, food (spring rolls and crisps) was essentially tasteless, was severely understaffed for a Saturday night and the staff that was there seemed off. I didn’t enjoy myself whatsoever, left with a massive headache and sort of sad. I guess the best part about this experience was the Ah Caramel I had immediately after. Would give no stars if I could. Do not recommend.

I still remember the first bite of the fried chicken I had here. The exterior was very crispy and well-​seasoned while the interior was juicy. Waffles were good too but nothing special about them. Food was good overall, but I was not a fan of plastic containers for syrup and chili sauce. The presentation of the plate could have been much better if they served them in different containers.
My one complaint for this place was that the music was really loud. We were directed to the bar area upstairs because it was full in the dining area. If you are just eating there, I do not recommend going upstairs.

So just finished an early dinner at Harlem. I tried to go there for Winterlicious but they were always booked so I figured the food must be amazing and I would make it a point to go another time. The restaurant was empty. After 30 minutes the waitress realized they forgot to put our order in. Food was Luke warm when it arrived. No explanation, just sorry for the delay.
Had the chicken and waffles, was decent but again not hot. Friend had the meat loaf which was a tad disappointing.

Went to a friends celebration to this restaurant last night. We decided to check this place out for a coloring event.
a) The place was severely understaffed. They had two waiters (who were also bartenders) that looked after 50 tables. Took an hour to get the bill.
b) The coloring event was basically them giving you a box of crayons and some pages to color in. Honestly, you could have done so much more with this concept.
c) The food was ok. I am pretty sure their Mac & Cheese is just the Kraft dinner. The fettuccine was ok. The chicken and waffles didn’t use the best chicken. The crips were terrible.
d) The website advertised different prices than what was at the restaurant. Luckily the waiter honored the website prices.
e) They had a live DJ but we were all pretty sure it was just an itunes playlist
So we won’t be coming back.

Good hearty meal. You can order some of the classics like jerk chicken, short ribs and rice, etc, just like your mom your grandmother used to make. It’s nice to be able to order some of the other stuff too like Chicken and Waffles. The cocktail specials are also not bad.
Pricing is okay. The review I’m going to give overall is like a 3.5÷5.0. It’s not super amazing but if this is the type of food you want, they have it. Went here before going out for the night and it’s good «like momma, grandma, auntie» would cook and it’s perfect for a pre-​drinking meal.
Happy to visit here and happy to try it.

Walked in because of the interesting restaurant name and most people inside were eating chicken and waffles.
Like the others, I ordered the same thing. My waffles were not fresh, but really soggy and dry — almost tasted like it was pre made and just reheated. The chicken was pretty decent however, not meaty enough, I might have gotten a better deal at KFC.
Service was on the slow side although they were not super busy. The interior is pretty dark, not that great for pictures. The kitchen staff came out pretty often to chit chat, which was frustrating when our server took forever to get us the bill.
I don’t see myself coming back here, but other items on their menu may be worth a try.

Harlem chef’s plate was just enough for the two of us.
Cornbread, Catfish Lafayette, Candied Plantain, Harlem Crisps, Deep Fried Pickles and Jerk Chicken Quesadilla. $ 35
Slightly steep but the ambiance was warm, cool crowd, and great music made up for it.
Not to mention the cocktails. Soooo good and didn’t skimp on the booze ;)
Wait staff pleasant and friendly.
We left early just as the night started to pick up.
Definitely will be back!

I haven’t tried any of the food, as I was on a liquid diet that night ;-)
The Jazz was absolutely great. It was a fusion of lounge jazz, with Indian sitar. What a treat to live in a city like Toronto and enjoy quality fusion Jazz on a Monday night!
They have a different house drink every night of the week. That night it was a refreshing mix of rum and ginger beer. It came with complimentary house chips. Single open bar items were reasonable at $ 5.
The atmosphere is very nice. The menu seemed quite reasonable, price wise.

Awesome, awesome, AWESOME!
I’ve been wanting to try their chicken and waffles this whole summer and I finally got the chance to today! Went with my girl and we both had it and it was deeeeeeelicious! I don’t know who came up with the idea of combining chicken and waffles but they’ve got some unique taste buds! It was definitely worth the wait.
When we walked in, it was mid afternoon and completely empty except for one occupied table. We chose to sit out on the patio cause the weather permitted it. Menus are written out in the style of vinyl records and they serve breakfast/​lunch till 3pm. The chicken and waffles is on the dinner menu as well but for almost $ 3 more.
Our waitress was very friendly and the food came quick! Chicken was fried to crispy perfection and the waffles were SO fluffy! Served with syrup, a coriander and lime sauce, a sweet and spicy sauce. Served on the side was an orange slice and some greens.
Delicious. Definitely recommend!