Hola Cafe Tapas Cocktails and Wine Bar

Divinely creative tapas in this tiny Latin bar using molecular gastronomy techniques. Many vegetarian options as well and the owner, Cesar, is very attentive to allergies and dietary restrictions. Highlights include liquid olives and watermelon carpaccio. The main was «fake» risotto with unbelievably creamy rice foam and cauliflower.

What a wonderful experience. Caesar was gracious and accommodating, very personal and attentive. The entire team there worked together and I’m thrilled to an innovative spot on the east side, in my neighbourhood. Keep it up, we’ll be back

Arrived here on a Saturday night at 8pm for our dinner reservation. The place was empty but it seemed to fill up over the next 15 minutes. The server brought everyone to attention and asked that we do NOT look at the food menu. He insisted that it would be best to NOT look at the menu because «of the way it works» it can be very confusing. He recommended that HE order for us based on our dietary restrictions and tastes. (Sidenote: this is a tapas bar. Everyone is aware that the plates are to share. There are 8 – 10 small dishes and 3 – 4 larger dishes on the menu. It was not complicated). After this, he came by our table to take our drink order. Shortly after, our drinks arrived but he had gotten the order wrong (we were three people). He came back with the correct drink and asked us what we would like to eat. As per his instruction, we did not look at the menu… long story short, he said that if we let him order for us, he would be conservative in his order and we would not be looking at a huge bill of $ 300. He recommended a few dishes and from that, we gathered we should just order for ourselves.
We ordered 5 tapas dishes, 1 main and 1 dessert.
Warning: if you are hungry, do not come here. The food is literally ONE bite and each plate is designed for 2 people to share. He adjusted the plates to accommodate 3 people but of course, charged 1.5X the price. This restaurant is extremely overpriced for the portions and design. I’ve eaten at some wonderful restaurants that are meant to serve food designed to evoke different tastes and senses … this is not one of them. The server actually went on to tell us how «the chicken is not working these days».
Cesar came by towards the end of our meal to welcome us. He asked if we had tried the olives and we said that we hadn’t because we had decided against it. He insisted that we try the olives and «not to worry». We assumed that meant he was treating us to some olives because it was something he was proud to serve. The olives never made it to our table and our bill came shortly after that interaction… with olives included in the price.
Including a 15% tip (honestly, this was generous at this point — the server was EXTREMELY chatty and over-​complicated the experience) it came to $ 97 each.
We paid roughly $ 15 for each bite of food.
All was not lost, the new bartender made DELICIOUS cocktails. He was the highlight of the evening.

Dinner at Hola this evening was a fiasco that left us laughing about the completely amateurish attempt at haute-​cuisine tapas. We could not leave fast enough!
I have had better service in the food court of a shopping mall. It left us really wondered if the staff (who were all very friendly) were trying to be bad on purpose. A short list of transgressions include (1) Our drinks came 20 minutes after ordering. The waiter told us the cachaça based drink I had ordered was «extremely complex». To add insult to injury the waitress tried to take our drinks away before we had finished… I know the place is dimly lit but come on did you ask if we were done??? How oblivious can you be!!! (2) Three staff came to out table in the 40 minutes before one finally asked about our dinner order, (3) The waiter only noticed we had no utensils after our second course was served (we ate the first course with our fingers), (4) we requested water three times before finally being served a glass each with our final courses, and (5) the last two (from a total of five) tapas plates came to us well over 30 minutes after the prior plate.
There were fifteen patrons and three staff (including the owner) out front so there are no excuses for such poor service. If you are going to charge high prices and are attempting to pitch yourself as a fine dining restaurant you should at the very least ensure the level of service customers receive is professional.
In summary the food was creative but mediocre, prices were shamelessly expensive and service was clumsy and inattentive. Hola is like a parody of what fine dining should be.

I really had no idea what to expect when I booked Hola Café. I had made same-​day plans to meet a friend for dinner and did a quick look online for places in Leslieville with high ratings, and the first restaurant to pop up was Hola Café. (Note that the menu has changed recently so this review is based on what I understand is a more upscale menu compared to their earlier menu that included things like empanadas and other «snacks»).
To start, Cesar, the owner, called me to confirm the reservation that afternoon and checked on any food allergies. I thought it was a nice touch that he was the one to call and also that he introduced himself, so when I walked in, I felt like we were already old friends and Cesar was there to greet me when I arrived.
We started with yummy pisco sours, a nice memory for me of time I’ve spent in Peru and Ecuador. Both Cesar and our server gave us recommendations for our meal and we shared 5 small dishes plus the steak.
Each dish involved elaborate preparation based on science. I found the process very interesting but probably what matters here is to say that every bite was outstanding. The olives, which are not exactly olives but rather made of olives, were such a delightful surprise. The prosciutto-​wrapped dates were a wonderful combination of sweet and savory and the artichokes with brie were delicious but my favourite dish overall was the chicken boccadillo, which actually uses perfectly crisp chicken skin as the «bread». I was so distracted by how delicious it was, I can’t remember everything Cesar told me about it but I’m salivating thing about it! My friend also had the crab cakes which she said were fantastic.
This might sound like a lot of food but it’s not like the tapas you’ve had in Basque bars in Barcelona; chunks of bread with little morsels of food on top of them. Each tapas plate came with 2 or 3 bite-​sized items, so along with a the steak that we shared (which was also perfectly done), we had just enough to eat.
I don’t often order dessert but my friend ordered the crème brulé, which was more of a whip with broken up pieces of sugary crust. Of course, I had a taste and it was light and fluffy and delightful.
A note about the wine. There were a handful of wines available by the glass and these were all reasonably priced, for example, the Tempranillo was only $ 10 a glass.
PS — Don’t let the signage dissuade you. This restaurant will give you one of the most interesting dining experiences at a reasonable price.

Mrs. Pinky and I kind-​of-​sort-​of ended up here by accident. As tourists in Toronto we were off the beaten path, but it was a glorious mistake.
Caesar, the proprietor, was behind the bar. He took care of us. I had a couple of the best cocktails I’ve ever had — seriously well crafted mojitos and caipirinhas — and the food was OK. I wouldn’t say it was 5 star food, but we had, without a doubt, a 5 star experience.
I plan to return the next time I am in Toronto and would recommend anyone in the neighborhood to check out Caesar’s place.

My wife and I wandered in here one night really wanting to like it mainly because we live near by and there aren’t any lounge-​y cocktail bars. Based on the hight *‘s we thought this would be a gem.
Like other reviews mentioned, the owner is super friendly and welcoming. That’s all the good I can say about this place.
We ordered a couple of food items, most notably the potato bravas. It was about half a potato cubed and tasted like it was tossed in BBQ powder. All the portions are really tiny for the price and was nothing mind blowing taste wise.
The cocktails were also mediocre. When we received our drinks, my wife found her’s a bit watery but didn’t say anything. The bartender came by, asked her how her drink was and she just said it’s ok. He kept pushing her for her true opinion until she finally said that it’s actually quite watery. Surprisingly he started defending the watery drink saying it’s because the restaurant doesn’t have a proper ice machine and they only had bagged ice. We were left wondering why he was prodding so hard if he did not intend to comp. the drink, or remake it. It was quite strange.
So we left there a bit baffled at the pricing, the drinks situation and also all the 5 star reviews.
Over all, the owner is super friendly, the restaurant has cool vibe for just hanging out but is very overpriced for what you get.
Another note, the Unilocal $$ system is misleading in this case because while each item on the menu is in that price range, the portions are miniscule. The food quantity and quality to dollars paid ratio is extremely low.

Likely won’t «Hola back» here any time soon. Came here on a busy night based on the Unilocal reviews and spent the rest of the night trying to figure out how this place has so many 5 star reviews. The spot is cozy and the front staff (1 person) is nice. I would label this pace as a bar first with food to snack on vs a dinner spot. I want to love this place but can’t. I hope the restaurant will read this review and adjust. Or perhaps I came on an off night.
The menu consists of tapas ($ 7 – 9) and some larger tapas ($ 25 – 32). For a place on the east end of Leslieville, it’s creeping on the high end for a dinner. Drinks are aggressively priced at $ 12 – 14 which I would expect if they had full time bar staff vs the combo waiter/​barman/​host they have working the whole room. These are downtown prices for drinks vs east end (a few blocks from Greenwood.)
Portions here are small. The small tapas are cocktail sized at 2 servings and roughly $ 8 – 10. Large entrees are $ 25 – 32 and roughly medium sized plates. I’ve been to places where the portions are small but their flavour was huge to make up for it. This is not one of them. The food here seems authentic and decent but not overly special.
«A», for effort from the one staffer working the room. He worked hard but he needed help. «C», for overall execution. Like all graded things, I hope to see improvement here.

Made reservations for last night for a group of 7. We had Troy as our server and he was amazing. He helped us select from the tapas menu and actually made a special drink for my cousin.
Surprisingly it wasn’t packed, since the ambiance and the hospitality is above average.
We will definitely go back. Hope to have Troy again. He’s really great!!!

We drove in from Mississauga (how there was so much traffic I have no idea) on a Sunday night for a little adventure in a part of town that I spent a lot of time in many decades ago. I spotted the almost make shift, maybe it was hand painted, sign first. With a little trepidation we crossed Queen street and gazed inside at a completely empty (no staff even) space. I more than half hoped that the door wouldn’t open but it luckily did.
We were quickly greeted by owner Cesar. A whirlwind of good to great tapas dishes followed over the next couple of hours. Even the recommended desert of light pastry and seemingly home made ice cream was heavenly.
I now long for the days gone by when I could have walked to Hola many times a week and rolled home on the streetcar.

Great ambiance with a super casual trendy vibe. The owner Cesar was really friendly and welcoming. Definitely a great spot for wine, spirits and nibbles. I didn’t get a chance to do a meal so can’t speak for that, but the nibble portions had great flavor but were relatively small and would have liked them to be been served a bit warmer. Overall a great experience a promising start and I would go back for another taste.

Went with my girlfriend on a Friday night and had an amazing experience! The cozy atmosphere was perfect with only 4 other people inside and all of them at the bar. The owner was extremely welcoming, remembering my name and giving us free champagne to have with our dessert!
On to the food. The two us split the BBQ Chorizo sausages, fried queso, fish tacos and quesadillas which were all incredible, although I think I liked the quesdillas best. For dessert we had the dark chocolate fondue which was also delicious!
I would definitely recommend this place for a romantic night out!

Cute little tapa bar, with really appetizing food and a super friendly staff. We went there on a colder day and just the whole experience made us feel warm inside. You should definitely try it!

This is a lovely addition to the east end. Such a fun and lively décor, and cozy seating arrangements. There are comfortable sofas along the side side walls to have a a comfortable evening and nice conversations with friends etc. the food was quite good I enjoyed how it was tapas style. House wine for 5 dollars a glass is a great deal especially since it was a very nice flavour. The owner is very welcoming and conversational. He is very friendly and checkdd in on us regularly recommending other items and making sure we
Were enjoying our food and drinks. I had the beef empanadas which has great flavour and the cheese platter for dessert was a great assortment of all cheeses and styles to please every palate. I really liked the song selection here very mellow and relaxing! It’s a tad on the pricier side but all in all I had a wonderful evening and will come back for sure!

Looking for a nice place to get something to eat on our first evening in Toronto, we found Hola Café. It is a really cozy and stylish little bar.
We decided to take the house wine and for there were no other guests except of us we became a free upgrade to the best Chardonnay he had. While choosing the tapas we get some tips which would taste the best, but we didn’t take them at all. Even though the four tapas we take where also great. They tasted very aromatic and were enough for the two of us. This bar is a very good alternative, if you like something more than pizza or burger.

Food is excellent and the atmosphere is great! A quiet little spot in the middle of leslieville where u can enjoy great tapas food and a nice cocktail! The owner treats his guests like family and really makes u feel like you’re at his house! I recommend this spot to anyone that enjoys good quality food and is looking for a nice evening!

Caesar was a great host and the atmosphere was fantastic. Nice and chill. We had the fish tacos, empanadas, and the fried cheese (to just name a few) and they were really really tasty. A great addition to Leslieville and we’ll be back many times and hopefully it will be around for many years to come. Perfect for a casual night out and for a couple or group who want to share plates and have a great meal.

Atmosphere is everything. This place instantly transports you from the tranquil hip streets of Leslieville into the vibrancy of South America.
The bright colour palate on the interior is in sharp contrast to the ignorable walk-​by exterior. Perhaps that’s the thing that makes it so great. It’s like a hidden secret that once you find you want to tell everyone about.
It’s something that you can’t get elsewhere. Truly unique drinks. Warm conversation. Smiling faces. Even though it’s Venezuelan in heritage, you can’t help but feel like you’ve stumbled into a hip spot in Palermo Soho in Buenos Aires.
They’ve got what appears to be an awesome schedule of tasting events. And what appears to be a great menu with some cool multicultural variations on the tapas theme.
But all I know is that the chocolate old fashioned is to die for.

This is a spectacular spot to relax, unwind and enjoy some great company. Cesar and staff really know how to turn an ordinary evening into something extraordinary.
The tapas is fantastically original and is guaranteed to make you smile.
They’ve always got great events going on and an ever adapting menu so be sure to stop by! Can’t recommend enough!

Awesome ambience — Cesar is a great guy, oh and the coffee is phenomenal!
This place started recently (Dec 2013) but it already has a very comfy vibe.