Marilyn’s Bistro & Lounge

Went to Marilyn’s Bistro over Valentine’s weekend. Had a great dinner, a very good musician in the background, a wonderful night time view of the Falls… and got engaged to the woman I love! Highly recommend it for a memorable evening!

Service was mixed. Moved our seat to a better view when someone else cancelled, which was nice of the staff. Forgot to bring out salad, but charged us anyway. Charged Destination Market Fee (DMF). Didn’t refill water or offer bread. Service was slow for salad and soup. Crème Brûlée was burnt and warm from the inside. View was quite good. Menu did not reflect Mediterranean cuisine, was mostly traditional American fare.

We ordered the calimari to start, nothing spectacular but it was plated well. We ordered a Cesar salad to share and were presented with one bowl, no extra plate. The salad dressing and contents were delicious. My husband ordered the seafood pasta and said it was just OK. I ordered the rosemary pizza and thought the flavor combinations were fantastic but the crust was boring and unflavorful. The martinis were horrible, no noticeable alcohol and they were out of ingredients for two kinds on the very limited menu. I would suggest sticking to wine or water here. The waitress was pretty bad but the view is incredible. With an appetizer, two martinis, a salad and two main courses, we came out to a little over $ 100. You aren’t paying for the food here so much as the view. There were three other couples seated when we came in. If this was an amazing place to eat, it would have been busier, which should have been our first clue.

Only went for drinks. The view is incredible. Staff is really friendly and nice. Rickards beer is not Canadian but Irish but still good. I would love to come back for dinner and sit by the window.

My wife and I visited niagara falls for one night from the US. Select this spot to have our one dinner for that stay
It certainly was not a mistake. Menu was really good, service was great and staff friendly and helpful.
We ordered lamb and salmon with tiger shrimp as a starter. Well prepared, no rushing the service so we were able to enjoy some great food and really nice views.
The only funny part was that we like turning up a 45 min. before our reservation to have a cocktail.
The bar just didn’t look like they had sat anybody there in a long time. But we still enjoyed a drink /​view and chat with the staff as they were coming and going.
Generally a really good experience and would go back if we visit again.

My wife and I were in Niagara falls for the labor day weekend. We were looking for something different and unique for dinner. After some research found this restaurant. I am so glad I picked this restaurant over other ones. Server was extremely nice and very knowledgeable. For appetizers we had tiger shrimp and the fried calamaries. Both were really good. I had lamb rack and my wife had the chicken. I will definitely return to this restaurant if I am in Niagara falls again. I highly recommend this restaurant.

The view from this place is amazing! We had a great table right next to the window overlooking the falls. You find yourself constantly watching the falls and the boats coming in and out. It’s a great way to eat and drink with your family/​friends and also see the falls!
The food was really good. I would recommend ordering a bunch of appetizers and giving them a try. They are pricey ($ 12 – 15) and the portions are not huge, but hey… you are on vacation and would just blow that cash at the casino anyway. The chef (Tin Tin) even came out multiple times to check on our table and see how the food was.
We ended up spending about 3 hours here just eating, drinking, and watching the falls. I definitely recommend it if you are visiting Niagara Falls on vacation and want to have a nice dinner.

My family came here for my sister’s birthday and I didn’t have a whole lotta expectations for Marilyn’s. I feel like restaurants that boast amazing views usually fall short when it comes to food, like, por que no los dos? But I’m so glad that this wasn’t the case!
Love the retro vibe of this place, and the view of the Falls of course! Not all the tables are by the window so I would definitely recommend making a reservation and asking for a table with a view. Although we were seated by the window, we were all the way at the back so even though we didn’t have a bad view, it wasn’t the best. But the delicious food and warm service more than made up for that.
We started off with the calamari which was not too great — rubbery and didn’t taste fresh. Thankfully, everything else that came afterwards was excellent. We ordered Marilyn’s linguine (salmon, lobster, spinach and tarragon cream sauce YUM), New York strip loin, rack of lamb, the grilled tuna loin and a side of mac and cheese. Everything was delicious, and presented beautifully. Portion sizes are pretty good too! (I couldn’t finish my linguine and got it boxed up… and I’m so, so sad that I left it behind because I was busy taking photos of Niagara Falls and got distracted! Wahhh.) Even though we were stuffed, we made room for dessert… we were celebrating a birthday, after all. We got some kind of chocolate cheesecake that was really rich and decadent. Mmm.
Good food and good service with a lovely view. If I ever visit Niagara Falls again, you will probably find me here!

The view and deco are amazing bur the food can improve in my opinion. For the price I paid I expected the food to be mich better. The Marilyn’s linguine was too salty, the mushroom risotto was raw in the middle and the Ontario pork chop was overcooked. We didn’t dare to waste more money on dessert…

1. Mixed drinks are badly made– no garnishes, martini was watered down, nothing special
2. We wanted both mussels and oysters which they’re both out of, also, out of the 3 different types of vodka they were out of the premium one
3. Service is just so-​so, same as you would get at any other restaurant
On the other hand, view is absolutely amazing, ask for a table next to the window and that should make the visit worth while!

I’m giving this place 2 stars for the sake that they tried, given the circumstances that they lost power that night. The food was a 2 and the service was a 1 as well. But the view is amazing of the falls. The restaurant seems to be leaning inward to the center of the tower and that made me nauseous, the drinks are watered down and food was presented well but was so so. I recommend going to another city outside of Niagara Falls, its nothing but a giant tourist trap.

Everytime I go to Niagara, I always come here! Amazing food and views. Staff are so friendly. It’s a great restaurant with prices that are great for what you get. I believe it’s a hidden get from the skylon and way cheaper with better quality food. The maple salmon is my favourite dish. It’s best to make reservations at 8:00pm so that you can catch the fireworks at 9:00pm. Check Niagara’s website to see when they have fireworks. Usually Friday nights in the summer. Top spot for dates. Amaze your significant other with this romantic experience ;) haha

We enjoyed a wonderful dinner last night at Marilyn’s.
My husband and I are staying at the Tower Hotel on Fallsview blvd. and this restaurant is located on the 26^th floor. It was pretty cold outside yesterday, so we didn’t want to venture too far from the hotel for dinner. We decided to give Marilyn’s a try because it meant we wouldn’t have to bundle up and go outside.
We were greeted immediately when entering the restaurant by an extremely friendly server. She showed us to our table and told us she was also going to be our server for the evening.
We each ordered a glass of wine and the oysters on the half shell to start. The wine was delicious and reasonably priced. The oysters were as fresh as can be and were served with both a house mignonette and a sweeter chipotle sauce.
For our entrées, my husband ordered the rack of lamb with a pistachio crust and I ordered the fillet mignon special with shrimp. Both were well-​cooked and tasted great. The only criticism I had was that the shrimp were a little overcooked, but that was a minor mistake.
The view of the Falls was absolutely breathtaking and only served to make the whole experience even more special.
Having said all that, the best part of our evening (other than the obvious good company) was the interaction with our server (Tammy). She was extremely friendly and attentive. She gave us tips on places to visit during our stay engaged us in conversation each time she passed our table without being at all obtrusive.
All in all, this was a fabulous meal and we look forward to a future visit.

Service was not good at all. We sat at the table while others around us were served water and had their drink orders taken. Multiple servers walked by and did not even acknowledge us. Eventfully when our waitress did come we had enough time to decide our drink and dinner option; only to find out most menu items were not available. I had red snapper it was very good which was the only saving grace.

I was staying in the Tower Hotel and searched for some good restaurants near the area and found Marilyn’s. It was perfect because it was in the same hotel and it had pretty good reviews. One of the things that I was looking forward to was the view while eating. The restaurant has windows surrounding it but unfortunately it was kinda foggy — not sure if they needed to clean the windows or it was just a foggy night haha. It was still a romantic dinner though so I wouldn’t skip going here. I think it also depends where you are seated. As for the food, it was good, I had a salmon entrée with veggies. There’s also the complimentary bread basket with oil and vinegar. The drinks were good — we had wine and baileys on the rocks. Also, the staff was really friendly. Overall, it was a good dining experience.

We stayed at the Towel hotel and had dinner here our first night of our visit. The views from our table were amazing and a perfect setting for dinner. They have a wide variety of choices on their menu. Our server was very nice, but when my fiancé ordered an old fashioned, she had no idea what it was and said she has never heard of it before. For a drink that is so common, we were very surprised. After the bartender came by our table to discuss, the drink was alright. We had calamari for an app and it was awful. It was cold and tasted like rubber. We ordered Marilyn’s pasta and the pork shank and the food was average… nothing spectacular but it was okay. Would we go back if we were in the area… possibly mostly because it is one of the few non chain restaurants around.

I am still undecided about this place but unfortunately we were only able to give it a try once while visiting Niagara Falls. It was pretty easy to get a reservation and the restaurant was in a hotel right next to our hotel. The hotel is a little creepy and not well staffed so we had to find our own way up to the restaurant. Once you take the rattly elevator you come out to an amazing view of the falls. Just for the view we were happy to have decided to come here to eat. The menu had great options for appetizers, soups and entrees. They also had option for gluten free for all the pastas which is nice to have.
Our waitress was very helpful and was attentive to our needs all through dinner.
The big con for us was our appetizer– the charcuterie board. The cold cuts tasted like they were bought from Shoprite and then cramped on a small plate with a few pieces of bread, cheese and a mix of cold canned veggies.
However our entrees were much better. The bf had salmon which was pretty well cooked, just a little dry, but good flavor. I got tuna which was perfectly cooked but with not enough flavor.
Overall I think I would come back because for this price and this view I think it is a much better option then most other restaurants in the area.

My wife and I are always looking for trendy hotels so staying at the tower hotel was a perfect fit. We stayed in room 2709 which had a perfect view of both the Canada and American side of the falls.
When I was hunting for places to go eat we always missed out on this cause it didn’t pop up in my Unilocal feed.
Marilyn’s bistro is a perfect spot for dinner. Great modern lush décor and the food is absolutely tremendous.
Sure you can get a better view of the falls from skylon tower but the food there is mediocre and the décor is very dated. If you are after a lovely meal with a nice view and great ambience them Marilyn’s bistro & lounge is the place for you.
I had the encrusted lamb and my wife had a lovely pasta dish.
It doesn’t just stop there. We were there for my wife’s birthday and she had a terrible headache, I asked the server if they happened to have any aspirin and the owner was kind enough to personally handle this himself. This is the kind of service that changes an entire evening for someone.
Enjoy!

My boyfriend and I came here for our one fancy dinner we always do while on vacation. We were told that this is nicer than the Skylon dinner, and boy am I glad we listened. First of all, we made a reservation and they reserved what I felt was by far the best seat in the house. That’s just great customer service. The view was romantic and beautiful. Our waitress was so pleasant and sweet, we loved her! I got a strawberry daiquiri and my boyfriend got a gin and tonic and we were both very pleased. I ordered the Marilyn’s linguini (I think that’s what it’s called. it has lobster and asparagus in it) and my boyfriend ordered a pizza. The food was DELICIOUS. Be warned with the pasta though… it’s a LOT of food. If you’re vacationing and want a nice night out, this was great. They had a live band as well and I was absolutely shocked at just how good they were.

Ate here on the 4^th of July during the fireworks show. Probably the best I have ever seen. As far as food goes, the food was very good although the service was spotty. However, it was reasonably priced and I would return. The managment needs to beef up the service. But again, the views were spectacular!