Dandylion Restaurant

This is a cool place.
In offering a wine choice for our meal, the server noted that the wines were quite bright and skinny as their food «was not very masculine.» It was an interesting expression but perfectly characterizes the tastes at Dandylion. The food was clean and lean; tart, distinct, light tastes — lovely grilled octopus offset beautifully with fennel. It’s creative, and very good. not like the food you’re eating everywhere else.

I was looking forward to eating at Dandylion, having heard a lot about the restaurant and the experience. I understood that we would be getting a slim menu, no cocktails, and a paired down, almost Scandinavian preparation of food.
After having eaten there last night though, I wasn’t overwhelmed. Wasn’t really underwhelmed either. Basically, I’m just «whelmed».
The positives are that the service was very friendly, with a casual «you’re eating at my house» feel. We were poured a complimentary snifter of a cider to sip when we expressed an interest in the ciders on the menu, which was a nice touch. The ambiance is also nice, with your fairly typical Toronto narrow restaurant setup, but the tables are unforgivably close to one another (again, Toronto typical)
The «meh» portion of the evening really focused around the food itself. The menu clearly changes extremely often (I believe daily?) and you never know what you are going to get. That’s usually a bonus for me, as I like trying new things and I’m happy to have the chef mix it up in order to stay local or in season. But from first glance at the offerings, I was a little disappointed. Nevertheless, we both enjoyed the very fresh wholewheat bread and cheese spread (probably the best part of the meal). We both decided on the squid starter (squid, onions, mushrooms) which arrived looking very soupy. The squid was tender and tasty, but the whole dish came off as poorly put together. A bunch of stuff in a bowl, basically. The squid, mushrooms and onions were topped with dill (hello Scandinavia) and drenched in a balsamic and oil dressing. It was good-​ish, but for the price and the buzz I expected a lot more.
The main course was problematic because I didn’t really feel like any of the three options (no lamb or beef or pork as main choices, only chicken, salmon or veggie). But I settled on the roast chicken, onion, squash. My dining companion asked to increase the size of one of the starters (pork, hazelnut, cabbage), which was accepted.
The chicken came, and I was just… whelmed. Thoroughly whelmed. Half a chicken breast, thin layer of skin. An onion. A purée (apple?). A piece of squash. Quarter inch of soup. All in, everything was just so… wet. My dining companion’s main was a small amount of pork tenderloin, a truck load of hazelnuts, and soggy cabbage, in a quarter inch of broth. I couldn’t imagine eating all of those hazelnuts but he worked through it. Clearly, there needed to be more fat in the broth or the meat, as it came off a little worthy and pious. But maybe that’s the Scandinavian in it. My chicken was very tender, but very small. The squash was excellent. The currents were odd. The onion was an onion. All in, a very strange dish. It definitely left me feeling as if I had just had lunch at a spa or health club, rather than dinner at a restaurant.
We skipped dessert and went straight to coffee. All in, with a bottle of wine, a glass of bubbles, and a cider, the meal came to $ 215 before tax, so not a cheap endeavour, especially when I was hungry quite soon afterwards. Probably won’t return.

Had a great meal here last night as an Anniversary dinner. The portions weren’t huge, so don’t come here so hungry you want to eat your arm.
We had the pumpkin risotto (amazing), steak that was a bit fatty but really flavourful, and the beet salad and lobster dish as appetizers. We were sufficiently full to be happy and didnt need dessert.
Definitely a hot spot and would recommend to others!

Excellent! Wonderful service, Basque cider, amazing food.
The aged beef appetizer was quite large — great greens and artichoke chips too — slightest fault for the turnips being a little underdone but still incredible
The cod with fancy mushrooms and eggplant purée was just perfect.
I tried the mussel appetizer with sea asparagus and cabbage — possibly the best mussels ever. Shucked too, which is nice.
Portion sizes varies a bit — beef app was big but mussels were smaller. Not cheap but good value, and you need at least 2 things — main and app or main and dessert. I maybe shouldn’t have eaten so much bread with fresh cheese, but it was so good. .
Will be back. Must have an open mind and be willing to try new things with such a small menu, but one of the best meals I’ve had in Toronto.
And also — Basque cider.

After the good reviews about restaurant, we decided to go. My husband and I dine out every Friday. Was really dissapointed. The food was bland, small portions for the price and not much to choose from on the menu. Wish we chose a different restaurant. Spent 200 for two people and was not impressed and still hungry! Ordered pizza later. Wouldnt go back.

Went to Dandylion about a week ago with a visiting friend. We had a great experience. Warmly greeted on arrival we were promptly sat. We were near the open kitchen where we could see the Chef and his team working. He also welcomed us which was nice. Apparently some people don’t like being sat there, but we loved it. It felt like a small chef’s table. Overall, service was top notch.
Now for the food — that bread! Oven-​fresh with shallot and black pepper cheese spread. So good. Salivating now. Want more.
It’s a limited menu which we appreciated. You can’t beat a well composed and thoughtful, seasonal menu. Starting with a glass of sparkling white, we had pork jowls and duck confit for starters, both delicious. Moving on, we had the steak and salmon for mains — perfect portion sizes. The salmon was a touch salty for us, but perfectly cooked. As an aside, I don’t get how other reviewers are complaining about portion sizes. You don’t need massive amounts of protein.
I usually opt for spirits as my dessert of choice, but the caramel ice cream was supremely good. We also got the cheese plate because we were in pure glutton mode. It was good but we were way too full to properly enjoy it.
Basically just order everything and enjoy.

We went to celebrate my boyfriend’s birthday. I mentioned this when I made the reservation, along with our allergies. The first thing that impressed me here was that they acknowledged the birthday warmly, but didn’t say anything about the allergies until necessary when they explained the menu, and offered to accommodate them by modifying the dishes. The fact that they had thought of it beforehand was very appreciated and made us feel so welcome. The service was perfectly professional throughout the night, but very down to earth and sincere as well — our server looked beautifully understated in professional black clothing, but with low cut white chucks.
The food was fantastic, and we both had trouble picking our favourite. Actually that’s not true — if they have the caramel ice cream when you go, do not leave that place without ordering it.
My only teeny tiny complaint is that it wasn’t reeeeally romantic. It’s a beautiful warm industrial space but I would rather go with a small group — which I will be doing as soon as I get the opportunity to come back.

The positives about this place for me were a beautiful room and friendly service. The menu selection and food left a lot to be desired. There are three appetizers to choose from ($ 18 each) and three entrees to choose from ($ 24-​$ 26). Almost like you are on a plane. I found the potions very small and left hungry. The tiny sirloin steak I got was served with some beans and cabbage. It was all really salty. You’d think with only three items they’d know how to make them well.
I wouldn’t return and I think you’d be better off forgetting this hipster place and get a shawarma across the street.

Best meal I’ve had in Toronto. Jay’s food is thoughtful, creative and balanced so ingredients and dishes speak for themselves. His style is clear and unique. I thought about flavours in new ways after eating here, and that’s the number one goal when I pay for good food and dining experiences. The service was warm and attentive, and the space is comfortable and visually interesting. I’m looking forward to going back.

Dandylion was fantastic. We ordered the whole menu and everything was good. I didn’t like every dish equally but overall the food was great.
The portions were generally good and for 3 people we were full when we left, also having ordered 2 desserts. One of the desserts was sour cream, brown sugar with a mixture of different wild berries and was so lovely and refreshing. I believe Edulis does something similar with wild Ontario berries.
The only thing that is a bit questionable in terms of price is ravioli. It’s 1 ravioli and I think it was around 25 dollars. That’s a little ridiculous.
The tuna ceviche was amazing and the raw beef was incredible as well, the portions being quite generous for an appetizer. For the main, the lamb was my favorite, with the ravioli being the least favorite dish of the night.
The atmosphere is lovely and service was very good as well. It was obvious that the dishes were done with a lot of care. It’s definitely on the pricey side, but not more expensive than most fine dining in Toronto. Would recommend.

Great. Beautiful plates /​delicious food/​great choices /​fantastic wine and beer list /​service was personal, attentive, informed and friendly. This is a special gem and we will be going back often.

Dandylion is a fun spot for a date or dinner with friends. I had a fun night with a group of friends. Here are a few notes from my experience to help my fellow Unilocalers:
1. There are three appetizer options, three main options, and three dessert options. They also serve wine and beer, but no cocktails.
2. Prices are above average. Expect to pay close to 100 $ per person if you do all three with a glass of wine.
3. I had a yogurt, grapefruit and beet appetizer that featured different types of grapefruit and beets. It was extremely delicious. For the main, I had the strip loin (28 $), which was served with a sweet corn and vegetable base. It was less creative, but no less delicious. For dessert I had the dark chocolate cake and avocado ice cream, which definitely hit the «sweet spot» between creativity and comfort.
4. The space is casual, complete with exposed brick and open kitchen. It is charming.
5. Service is very good. While they may still be working out some kinks, my service experience was as good as any other similar place in town.
Dandylion is on its way. I look forward to eating here again.

When my friends told me about a new restaurant that had opened in Toronto I was excited to try it. The location was fantastic and the restaurant set up was great. However, the food and the service left something to be desired.
The ambiance was very unsettling, my friends and I came to have a good meal and decided to have less to drink. We felt the server had judged use on our drink choices and we noticed our service slowly declined through out the night.
The individually the dishes were alright, not the best food I’ve had in Toronto. There was nothing to tie each dish together nor did the dishes have anything that was a wow factor. For the price point they were asking for, i had high expectations but the food was underwhelming, service was subpar and there was nothing special about this dining experience.
There are many restaurants to try near by, I would recommend coming here.

Looking at the other reviews, I’m amazed at how many we’re not impressed. I must say that I am going to come down on the «impressed» side of the scale, but I like to experiment with flavours and textures and do eat a dish with my eyes before my mouth. Yes the portions are small and yes it isn’t cheap, but those are not reasons to downgrade the quality of this establishment.
The four of us enjoyed everything we ate. My only criticism is that I found the soup to be a little overpowered by the dill. The cheese plate was one of the better ones I’ve had in Canada.
Very busy. Excellent service with a style that one usually sees only in much fancier establishments.

I found the place truly a disappointment. It has all the making of what appears to be a good, fresh, unique restaurant but it really failed to deliver. I was part of a party of four that went here for dinner on a saturday night.
Some positives, the beer list is inventive and phenomenal. The wine we had was fantastic, especially for an Ontario pinot which I tend not to be a huge fan of. The bread and the cheese/​cream spread they give you is delicious! Had the rest of the meal been anywhere close to as delicious as the bread and spread then this place would be a winner, unfortunately that was not the case.
There are very limited items on the menu which is something I generally like and in this case there seemed to be a very good variety available even if there were only three options in each of the dining stages to choose from. To start I had the Pomelo salad and it just wasn’t good. I was very disappointed and so were the other member of the party who had chosen this dish as their appetizer. As my main I had the bavette. It was okay but nothing I couldn’t have made myself at home and the accompaniments were very well… borring. The dessert I chose was good but apparently not good enough that I can recall what it was.
Basically it was a supremely lacklustre experience and an overly priced one at that. I would not recommend this place and I wont be returning.

I’ve never felt less special at a restaurant.
Sure, when they made a point to mention that they’d be charging us for the extra bread I felt weird.
If four of you are spending $ 300+ on a meal shouldn’t you be able to get an extra loaf on the house?
It just got stranger from there.
We arranged to split the bill with our friends. We covered more of the total, and they covered the tip… with a much much more generous amount than was customary. Nonetheless, when the server saw that we did not add a tip to our part of the bill, he returned to loudly ask us about gratuity. Made everyone at the table feel really awkward.
All of this silliness and stinginess would have been totally fine had the food been memorable.
It truly wasn’t. Which is a shame, because the location is great and the beer selection is stellar.
Instead though, you get a mediocre meal in a staid environment. Nothing shocking. Nothing special.
If you are dead-​set on eating at every restaurant creatively named after a flower in the city, you should run here as fast as you can. Because in a highly competitive foodie market like Toronto, I can’t imagine this place lasting a year.

Visited Dandylion for dinner with three fellow diners, and all hailed our experience as an extremely enjoyable and memorable dining experience — the food and service were excellent. In addition to superb food and service, Dandylion has an extensive beer selection that boasts some labels you typically don’t find in many restaurants in Toronto. It’s important to note that Dandylion changes its menu often (hence why it’s missing from their website) so a subsequent visit will likely be met with a completely different offering of food. Also — the kitchen is practically in the restaurant and it is amazing to see the efficient orchestration of its operation.
Service was stellar; professional, courteous, and attentive. (¹⁰⁄₁₀)
After ordering our drinks, we were served complimentary homemade sourdough bread with a light and delicious cheese spread with shallots — it was absolutely delicious. (¹⁰⁄₁₀)
Between the four of us we ordered 3 types of appetizers:
— Golden Beets: served with pomegranate, and pomelo — fresh and delicious (⁹⁄₁₀)
— Scallops: served with leafy greens and capers and a light vinaigrette (⁸⁄₁₀)
— Thai Lamb Salad: served with julienned vegetables and nuts (⁹⁄₁₀)
For our mains we ordered 2 varieties:
— Braised Pork — fellow diner remarked that it was extremely tender and flavourful
— Trout with Root Vegetables in Butter Sauce — light and powerful flavour combination – absolutely delicious (⁹⁄₁₀)
Desert:
— Raspberry and White Chocolate with Semolina paste — simple but incredible (⁹⁄₁₀)
— Poached Pear & Ginger Cake — very strong taste of ginger but paired nicely with the other ingredients on the plate (⁸⁄₁₀)
Overall a great experience and looking forward to coming back to a similar or different menu. Highly recommend.

Our Dandylion experience started off amazingly.
The server recommended the pig jowl which was not on the menu. He said it was an «amuse Bouche» sized dish so we could still order two appetizers and two mains for the two of us.
The pig jowl was incredible. It wasn’t however, small. It was almost main dish sized.
Our appetizers were also incredible– chicken confit and white fish.
This is when things started to go downhill… The restaurant started to fill up, and our server basically disappeared for the rest of the night other than to serve our main dishes which were average. The trout was very saucy and had a fishy taste to it, and the Bavette, while tender was boring.
I would still recommend this place. But I wouldn’t go back.

PARTIAL REVIEW
Sourdough Bread with Fromage Blanc and Shallots
[5]
Lordy-​lord, this was some of the best bread I’ve had since I was in Paris– and I never eat from the bread basket before dinner. Crusty and satisfying on the outside, and warm and satiny within, made even more irresistible with the tangy fromage blanc and sharp crisp shallot.
Persimmon, Sprouted Black Lentil, Spinach ($ 13)
[7]
With sweet, jammy persimmons, earthy sprouts and an abundance of crunchy toasty almonds, this is the epitome of feel good food– food that is inherently both healthy and hedonistically satisfying for all the senses at once.
Confit Chicken, Celery Root, Rye ($ 16)
[8]
Talk about comfort food. This tasted like the most flavourful Sunday roast chicken you’re grandma never made. Blessedly juicy meat, sweet nutty celeriac, hearty broth and aromatic crunchy rye crumbs on top. Man, you have a bowl of this and a plate of that persimmon salad, and you’ve undoubtedly outsmarted the cold and flu.
Snow Crab, Golden Beets, Fennel, Saffron
[9]
An off menu dish brought to us by the chef comprised of delicate, sweet, refreshing flavours. From the luxurious snow crab, fruity beets, and aromatic crisp fennel, it was a perfect light late Fall dish to contrast the typical hearty cool-​weather fare.
Seared Bavette, Caramelized Shallots, Black Pepper ($ 22)
[11]
Perfectly seasoned meat, prepared simply and paired beautifully with a bed of sweet onion jam.
Egg, Mushroom, Savoury Granola ($ 19)
[10]
This was probably my faourite dish of the night. I absolutely fell in love with the meaty supple mushroom medley, made even more luxurious by the unctuous egg and addictively crunchy granola. I want to put that granola on everything.
Dark Chocolate Ganache, Caramel, Milk Ice Cream ($ 8)
[13]
I’m not usually a chocolate girl, but this dessert was so perfectly balanced, I nearly licked the plate. The generous portion of luscious bitter-​sweet ganache was coated with crispy light cookie crumb, and paired with a sticky sweet caramel, a bright tangy sour cream and buttermilk ice cream and a sprinkling of candied cacao nibs. Holy, yes. After this, I wanted to do the whole meal again.

First thing I have to say is that the service was outstanding. The server was extremely knowledgable and she was truly gifted.
There is a limited selection of wine and some craft beers, no mixed drinks so expect variety.
While the food was good it wasn’t great particularly in light of what they charge. You’re looking at almost $ 100 per person with wine and the portion size was modest at best and the presentation was «artsy» We didn’t leave fulfilled and the four of us unanimously agreed we would not go back.