Ciao Wine Bar

Went here on a first date.
Food is terrible. Nothing I liked especially not for the price.
Staff was okay but a bit snooty given the location.
Lost my scarf. Tried to contact management but no one ever got back to me.

Although I do like most of Liberty’s restaurants this one falls just a bit short. The venue is amazing like other Liberty venues but I really did have quite the bad experience when dining here.
Occasion one: After waiting a regular 10 – 15 minutes for a 2 top table in the lounge area it took about another 10 – 15 minutes for the server to initially greet us. This was the single only time I have thought about walking out of a restaurant. My partner was also ready to leave but just as we were set to leave the server finally came by and we decided to stay. However, the food was just not that stellar. Pasta and chicken were nothing to rave about.
A couple months later I decided to give it a second try, as I had a friend in from Montréal and was showing him around Yorkville and Ciao caught his eye. It was patio season now, so we took a seat on the patio. Service was volumes better (it was a lot less busy) but yet again the food was just not that great.
All in all I recommend Ciao if you are looking to enjoy some drinks with a date in a well designed venue but I’ll pass on the food.

I literally despise this place.
I’m a vegetarian and each time I come with my partner (who loves carb-​y Italian goodness) I think I’ll have a better experience… but it always gets progressively worse.
The last time I went to Ciao my purse was stolen. The staff were completely unappreciative, unwilling to help, and said they «can’t do anything about it.» The manager advised he would call me the next morning… but he didn’t. Of course.
DO NOT GO HERE.

By Yorkville standards, Ciao is stadium sized and reasonably priced. The food is good and atmosphere/​service very good. I randomly stopped in for dinner on a Tuesday recently — I always like how they have decent fish options — and was happily surprised to find they have a lobster special that night. You can get a whole grilled for $ 22! It was awesome.

The first couple times I came here were in small parties of two to three for lunch, I remember the fusili with chicken being creamy and flavourful. Sitting on the patio during summer and eating good Italian food in Yorkville was a nice scene :)
The most recent time I came here was this winter for a work dinner. Lots of drinks and food were ordered, but our experience was dampened a little bit by the waitress who gave us sass for no apparent reason, errr
Onto the fooooood.
Polenta fries — (basically cornmeal fries) pretty good with the goronzola dip, very appetizing starter that’s a decent size. Each fry is like two of my fingers…
Grilled portebello, oyster + cremini mushrooms with extra virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar — it’s just mushroom. But it’s very tasty mushroom. Time to try making some with VOO and balsamic…
Bruschetta with seasonal tomatoes, basil, black olives, and mozzarella — MUCH YUMS. Crispy and flavourful with the perfect combination of ingredients, and I had a piece too many…
Proscuitto, hot salami, Italiann cheeses, etc — Standard charcuterie, not much to comment except it was good :)
For my actual starter. I had an arugula salad with prosciutto and shaved parmesan and red wine vinegar. It was alright. I liked the proscuitto a lot, arugula is just another green to me, and the parmesan didn’t stand out. Meh, save your money on this one.
…At this point, I was ready to go home. two drinks and all those starters later, my main of the chianti braised short ribs really weren’t looking good. When it finally came, I was hoping there would be an explosion of flavour that would miraculously give me a new stomach to devour this dish with. Unfortunately, the flavour just wasn’t there. The texture was great; tender, falls off the bones,. the mash on the side tasted great. but the meat itself. Blandness. One of the pricier items among the mains as well. not very impressed, finished ½ of the meat only.
However, this could very well be due to the overload of drinks and food we had during our starters. But I should’ve stuck to pasta or the thin-​crust pizza instead of the ribs at an Italian restaurant.
For dessert, we shared the nutella pizza. It was my diabetes dream coming true, carbs with nutella. Even with how full I was at that point and the impending food coma, I still had one full slice. It was absolutely delicious with the banana bits and nutella generously slathered over the slice of thin-​crust pizza dough. Definitely to be shared with a party of 5+, however… you don’t actually want your blood sugar to spike after a meal at this resto
All in all, good ambiance, good food, and a waitress with sass to spare. I would come back again

You know those places where the waitress thinks she’s too pretty to be serving you??? yeah, that kind of place.
And the food is not that good either… I went for their home-​made pasta and it was disappointing.

Went there 3 times. First time was not a good experience. They seated us by the kitchen so it was very loud. Couldn’t have a conversation.
Second time: Went there with one of my girlfriends. Again, we were seated by the kitchen. The restaurant was not very busy. When I asked to be moved, we weren’t moved. Their reasoning was that tables were reserved for others. Ok. Sure.
Third time: Well I wanted to give it a fair chance so I went there for the third time. Same seat. I’m wondering if they just did that to me or others as well.
All three times service was slow. Food was not that great. For an Italian restaurant, food was very Americanized. If that is a word.
Not very happy. Will not go back. But at least I gave it a shot. Three times.

Fantastic food, romantic atmosphere, friendly and accommodating staff…
Their wine selection is amazing and food menue is very Italian!
Would definitely go back for more!

Went here for friend’s birthday.
Design and atmosphere lived up to Toronto standards. Though the waiters attire (casual) didn’t match the rest of the place. Seemed like they should have been working at Jack Astor’s.
Food was mediocre. Ordered the ravioli. It was good, though not a fan of the rose sauce.
The worst part though was they didn’t do anything for birthdays. The hostess looked at me funny when I asked. That was odd. Not sure if this is a Toronto thing or just this restaurant.

Ciao is a fantastic restaurant both in the summer on their patio and indoors during the winter. They have great appetizers and mains. We ordered the lobster ravioli, tuna carpaccio, deep fried zuccini and artichoke which was our favorite app, and the fried polenta. For mains, I ordered the Crispy trout — delicious although huge! They had a great Chianti on the menu for $ 51 that I’d recommend (see photo for winery name).
I’ve taken clients here and dined with friends for birthday parties and reunions. It is located right across from ONE Restaurant so if you want to grab drinks after, their bar will be open although Ciao has a great bar as well located to the right of the entrance.

The resto owns up to its name with a wine list as long and extensive as the song book at Sunday Sermons.
What you need to watch out for:
Their pasta fresca (fresh pasta)
Burrata from Italy
and Thursday socials from 4 – 7. Unilocalers. This means ½ OFF WINE. Go thirsty.

Went here over the weekend for a large party. The location and atmosphere is great. Too bad the food was just ok. They had arranged a prix fix menu for us which had options for the veggies (aka ME!).
App: Eggplant parm (I forget what they called it, but essentially eggplant parm). This was quite delicious… and LARGE The serving size was what I would expect for a main. I decided to eat the whole thing. Read on and you’ll know why I was glad I did :/​
Main: Fettuccini primavera… I literally only took one bite of my food. It was awful!!! The noodles were undercooked, there was like zero sauce and three (yes, 3) peas in my primavera which was described as cooked with tomato sauce and garden vegetables… I guess if you get technical about it, then 3 peas does count as vegetableS :/​The server brought out a plate full of sauce and veggies, but that doesn’t exactly cook up the undercooked pasta noodles. Suffice to say, I’m glad I filled up on the eggplant parm. My sister ate a little more than I did and ended up with a stomach ache…
I ordered a cappuccino while waiting for the main to arrive because I can’t really go out late at night any more… the server forgot about it and ended up asking me while I was picking at my main: «Oh you ordered a cappuccino didn’t you»… why yes I did… 30 mins ago… Thank goodness I didn’t fall asleep on the table.
Dessert: Tiramisu (my husband ordered) and some kind of chocolate bomba thing…
OK so the tiramisu was the worst I’ve ever had. It was dry… Who has ever heard of a tiramisu being dry? we only took a bite because it was so gross. The bomba thing was passable…
Overall, I would never ever come back here… The food was way over priced considering that the only edible thing was the appetizer. We weren’t even offered to be comped for the pasta… so disappointing. The service was just ok and the food was terrible. The only good thing about this place is that it looks good… which doesn’t go a long way on an empty stomach. Find another place… there are so many near by.

THE. WORST. The worst! Worst restaurant I’ve been to in Toronto as a native. Absolutely terrible. Why?
The food is bad. I could get better food at any of the big chains (Moxie’s, The Keg, Alice Fazooli’s, Milestones, etc.) for a similar price. But some of the dishes are absolutely terrible. I ordered a penne alla vodka that tasted like canned tomato soup. Terrible. Another time (I didn’t want to come back but a friend had their birthday dinner here) I ordered a pesto linguini that was very heavy, greasy, and bland. Their polenta fries were also mushy, greasy, and bland. The pizza was a salty, soggy, burnt mess. Just no.
But what brings their place from bad to terrible is the awful, awful service. It is consistently horrible. Every single time — I’ve been here 3 times (ETA: twice because of birthday parties and only once voluntarily). The servers are always inattentive, they don’t take your order down properly, they get them wrong, they are unapologetic, it takes 15+ minutes to flag them down if you need something, and they just don’t care about giving you a good experience.
On my first visit, we asked for parmesan cheese for our pasta and they were utterly bemused, as if our table invented putting shaved parm on pasta. «You want what? For the pasta?! Really??? *looks at you like you have 4 breasts* Um… ok. We’ll see what we can do.» Then they came back with a plate of three long slices of parm on a plate — not what we wanted and not enough to share. I wondered if we were on the same planet.
The next two times I went, I saw that they had bottles of «parmesan cheese» on the tables… but it’s the cardboard-​tasting crap you should not get from Kraft at the supermarket. Seriously. Italian restaurants should offer freshly-​shaved parmiggiano-​reggiano for your food as an absolutely basic item!
The last time I went (meaning the previous AND the last time I will visit this place), we asked to split the bill. They absolutely refused. Just will not do it. They had the manager come out to tell us off and to insist under no uncertain terms they absolutely refuse to. Plus they tacked on a mandatory gratuity that, while I understand is standard for parties of 6+ in most restaurants, I felt was absolutely undeserved.
Spend your money elsewhere!!!

Been here a couple times. Overpriced but decent food. ATROCIOUS service. Too slow for anyone on their lunch hour or with an average lifespan. Shame because the space is so large and lovely — with better staff, it could be great.
Our group was seated at noon, right next to the kitchen (spoiler alert: this has no effect on the length of time anything takes getting from the kitchen to our table). We didn’t get any water until 12:30 and our food didn’t arrive until 12:50, at which point our appetizers (salads) and mains all showed up at once. Why?
We had maybe 4 different servers and only one of them I would go so far as to call «pleasant». The rest I can only assume are working here to support their nighttime careers as magicians, based on how long they would disappear for.
Waitresses never checked on us, never asked if we wanted dessert or not (we didn’t) after the tables were cleared, just tossed some dessert menus on the table and vanished. Naturally it was another 10 minutes before we could flag someone down again to ask for the bill and she was unnecessarily curt. We left just before 1:45.
1.5 stars (the extra half star is for the warm bread and spicy olives, which the nice male server refilled and without which we would have perished before our meals came). For me, «Ciao» here means goodbye.

Service was horrible, we had 3 different people that came to us and weren’t attentive as they only showed up once. We asked for bread but the waiter did not return, after paying and giving an undeserved tip, waitress threw the receipt on the table and stormed off without saying anything! You’re welcome!
Food was extremely salty and oily and our table was still hungry afterwards. Was excited to try this place in yorkville but we would never come back here again. Could have gotten better food and service at Tim Hortons.

I came here with high hopes for the Summerlicious menu. We started with the orecchiette though I should have ordered salad. It was a very generous portion for an appetizer and, along with the bread, filled us up quite substantially before we got to the ravioli. The ravioli was hearty, but also a bit heavy. The sauce and cheese filling made for a really filling meal. By the time we got dessert, I was stuffed and could barely finish it. The espresso tart was very rich, though it lacked a particular delicacy.
The restaurant was quite full when we arrived and they initially seated us on the corner near the stairs, which was not at all a pleasant spot, but before we got settled in, the waiter found us a better table. I really enjoyed the ambiance — enough lighting to see the food but not too bright. The food was served gradually, allowing us ample time to talk and catch up. The one catch was probably that splitting the bill at the end of the meal was weird, as the waitress rounded up from half of the total, which isn’t good practice.
Overall I would say that the ambiance outdid the food. I was expecting something a little more delicate and less like what I can make for myself at home. It was worth a try though as I’d gotten a really good impression from the website and other reviews. I would probably not return unless something on the regular menu caught my eye.

Came back today for my 2014 Mother’s Day Brunch.
I’m saying bye to Ciao. I think there are better place in the area to try and the service at this place is barely pleasant.
A waitress came by and introduced herself and explained you could choose from the brunch or the a la carte menu.
Afterwards the creepy manager came to take our orders. He asked if we were ready and before I could say ‘yes‘ and let my mom order first he flung his hand in my face and told me to Shhhh, leaned into my mom and said “it‘s all about the moms today…“. my mom felt VERY uncomfortable. Second of all you don’t tell me to shhh when I‘m a grown adult and I‘m paying the bill.
The appetizers came and literally 4 min later our entrees came. I told the waiter we were not ready because we just got the appetizers. He went back to the kitchen. Then Mr Creep came back with the entrees and said there was enough room on the table. Uhhh now my entrée is getting cold. During the meal a fight broke out between the manager and a customer. Apparently the manager didn‘t want to man up and was hiding from the customer. The customer ran into the kitchen to find him.
What was suppose to be a lovely brunch was a nightmare.
THE MANAGER IS COMPLETELY UNPROFESSIONAL, HE CAN BARELY MANAGE A RESTAURANT, LET ALONE BE A SERVER.
Customer appreciation lacks — telling people to shhh is beyond unprofessional and comprehendible.
I will never come back here.

I knew going in to this the service at Ciao wine bar is not the greatest. I tried to pre-​order my appetizers and offered to give my credit card over the phone, but they wouldn’t let me. Darn.
I arrived at 9:30 on friday and was seated at a table for ten and waited ten minutes but nobody came to take my order. I didn’t want my guests to wait to eat, so I tracked down a server on the stairs and ordered a bunch of appetizers and platters.
We had:
The bruschetta — good sized portion. A bit on the garlicky side.
The Buffalo mozzarella and tomato — This was great! Huge hunk of cheese.
The cheese platter — excellent mix of sweet and savoury.
the Salumi platter — really spicy salami, which I like. I’ve had better prociutto.
Our server took forever to bring us water. He finally came over with a tray of glasses of water, instead of a pitcher, which to me felt like a waste of time.
One friend ordered a martini and it took like 15 minutes to arrive. The server blamed this on a «frustrating bar tender.»
We had a few bottles of a fabulous Barolo.
The atmosphere at Ciao is perfect, the wine list is amazing, the food is okay, the service is sub par. I suggest coming here for drinks, not dinner, and know what you’re getting in to.

Went here for Winterlicious with 2 friends. Ordered the garlic shrimp appetizer, the pizza main, and the panna cotta dessert.
I wasn’t looking forward to this place in a huge way because the food looked a bit plain, but the original menu looked amazing, so it made me feel like they were simply putting out their cheapest dishes for Winterlicious.
Regardless. We were also served fresh rosemary bread with olives, which was yummy, fresh and warm.
The appetizer of the garlic shrimp was nice and spicy, but the tomato sauce tasted a little too much like somebody heated up simple, canned tomato sauce from a can.
The main dish, the pizza, was thin crust with cherry tomatoes and cheese & basil. Simple, but pretty good. Nothing spectacular. I know my friends really enjoyed their Penne alla Vodka with panchetta. There seemed to be a lot of vegetarian choices for the mains, which on one hand is great, but for a carnivore like myself, limited my desire to pick something.
Finally, the dessert. That is the true reason I gave this place 3 stars. The panna cotta was so beautifully set and so delicious. Not oversweet, and it had a tiny smudge of some fruit compote on the side. It’s why I agreed to come to this place in the first place. Cream desserts are a simple way to my heart.
All in all, good experience. Servers were quick, friendly and accurate. Food came out quickly. I just wish I didn’t feel a little cheated out of the variety of their full menu.

This place is a great little discovery in the heart of Yorkville, has a lovely little patio outside and the décor inside is quite pleasant. Came here recently because my girlfriend had her rehearsal wedding dinner at this location and I was very glad we came.
Definitely try their Penne a la vodka for your main and chocolate bombe for dessert! We did a family sharing type of serving since there were three booths full of us, approximately 30 persons, so they came around with big plate servings of each thing and it was alot of food — so much that there was plenty for many of us to take home for leftovers. The staff was pretty friendly and accommodating too, would definitely stop by again!