Canyon Bistro in Topanga

Adorable, cozy place at the intersection of winding roads. Also, the best Nicoise Salad I’ve ever had. I’ve seriously never had a better salad than this one.
Let me tell you about this salad. I’ve never been to France, but I’ve had plenty of vegetables fresh out of a garden and I’ve had a lot of canned-​tuna Nicoise’s. The salad here is an example of letting the freshness and flavors of ingredients do all the talking. There’s no overpowering dressing. With each forkful, you can imagine looking out into the garden where each leaf, herb, olive, potato was picked from, and picture hens with their fresh eggs and fishermen with their fresh catch. I swear… it’s really this good.
Seared rare ahi tuna, perfectly hard boiled egg, green beans, herbs, tomato… a little cracked pepper. It’s perfect.
The outdoor patio is also wonderful. Dog-​friendly, lots of shade with happy bistro lights. Lovely.

We were looking for a relaxed, upbeat atmosphere with delicious food and we found it here at The Canyon Bistro! We had a tomato and basil soup and warm goats cheese salad followed by the vegan burger with truffle fries and truffle mac n cheese. All of the above were excellent. The food arrived immediately. Our waiter was super attentive and guided us in the right direction for the best ever meal. There was great live music just soft enough to enjoy while continuing our conversation. The entire dinner experience way exceeded our expectations and we will definitely go back, time and time again!

In gist: Extremely bland food in a casual/​generic environment, fine service.
We had to stop for a meal at the odd hour of 3pm. Not a lot of opts at that hour. I had the carnitas tacos with a side of chipotle mayo. The meat was ok, nothing special, but edible. Topped with a couple strips of pickled onion and small dollop of guacamole. The combo was so lacking flavor or texture it was work eating my meal. The mayo tasted like Hines or some other type of ‘food product’ type industrial mayo. We ordered the ‘chai’ lattes. They tasted like a big cup of watered down milk.

I had the best brunch I’ve had in a long time. The spinach and ham Benedict was superb and the gluten free blueberry pancakes were so so delicious. Even the scrambled eggs melted in my mouth.
Our servers, Janelle, Dawn and Polly are all efficient and very personable. I would recommend the Canyon Bistro 100%. Thank you for a wonderful New Year experience. MJC

Just left the Bistro… it was fabulous… satisfying and scrumptious food, personable servers, efficient sevice… a 10!!!
Eggs Benedict and gluten free blueberry pancakes… yummm!

TRULY AWFUL.
I have Celiac Disease and absolutely understand Canyon Bistro is not an allergy free establishment, nor am I asking any server to jump through fiery hoops to help me.
All I hope for is the slightest bit of compassion and accurate information.
I know this review is so long, but the ignorance of the owner of Canyon Bistro was so mind boggling, I feel it warrants explaining the nuances of his obtuseness.
Actually living with Celiac Disease brings extreme challenges, but the hardest part isn’t that I can’t eat 95% of what I did all my life or that restaurants are all but gone from my life or even the worry of future diseases and cancers that Celiac Disease –even if I’m extremely vigilant of not eating Gluten– can bring.
The hardest part is dealing with people like the owner of Canyon Bistro whose ignorance allows a lack of compassion that can be more hurtful than I’m sure he thinks about.
Here’s what happened:
I’d been a customer at Canyon Bistro, prior to my diagnosis, for many years, since they opened. I’ve met the owner and am friendly with many of the servers.
So, I’m the same person, the same customer and yet after learning of my disability (and yes, it’s a disability, not a trend) I was shocked to experience such a lack of compassion and even worse, food that made me seriously ill because of inaccurate information I received.
On my first visit post diagnosis, I explained to the server that I had Celiac. I didn’t make a big long deal out of it. I just asked what would be safe to eat and ate the food that was recommended.
The next time I came in, suddenly though nothing had changed in the food prep or ingredients, I was told I should never have eaten that dish because no matter what it always has gluten.
Unbelievably — this happened twice.
FAR WORSE, on my last visit I was actually told THE OWNER had instructed to the chef to tell anyone who could not eat gluten that «they would accommodate me this once, but not the next time if they were busy.» How ignorant, poor and just plain stupid. Let me get this straight, you’ll help me with my disability this once but for next time I’m supposed to know how busy you’re going to be?
If you’re wondering why it is that I actually patronized this place again after my first bad experience, I’ll explain…
Not everyone with Celiac experiences outwards signs they’ve been glutened. I’m someone who doesn’t. Instead I experience inwards signs like destroyed villi, leading to iron deficiency, which means I can no longer make hemoglobin which, for starters means I have no oxygen transporting through my body. That leads to even worse consequences, for one example, cancer. I don’t have a peanut allergy and I won’t die in hours. I will die, just a bit longer after I’ve eaten your food and I will have no way of knowing what made me sick.
So now if you’re thinking, «Hm, that’s so tough for a restaurant and someone with Celiac shouldn’t eat in ANY restaurant» maybe take a moment to consider what that really means and how impossible it actually is. On days you’re out for your job and can’t get home and for any reason couldn’t cook something, pack it, bring it and eat it in your car– you don’t eat. Birthday dinners for your friends from now until you die? Thanksgiving with the family? Oh you have to travel for your job and stay in a hotel? Impossible to eat if you can’t eat in a restaurant. This is just the beginning. Try it for a month– REALLY eating gluten free, checking every ingredient and every surface. Then, stop yourself from the fear that despite your turning everything you knew about the ritual of eating upside down, you still might die. You might even pass this on to a child, oh that’s if you can even become pregnant because yes, that’s another fun thing Celiac brings.
By the way, roughly 730 MILLION people worldwide have Celiac. For Americans alone, it’s 3 MILLION.
Once again, to be clear, I understand NO restaurant is entirely Gluten Free. But I actually could eat at Canyon Bistro very safely if the owner had a little bit of COMPASSION and more importantly, simply made sure his staff were capable of giving ACCURATE INFORMATION.
Of course I’m not in a wheelchair, and we all have challenges, but yes, Celiac Disease is it’s own invisible impairment. You’re impaired in ways that nobody knows and consequently are extremely hurtful about. If I came into Canyon Bistro in a wheelchair I’m positive they’d have some compassion and wouldn’t fear me suing them if their ramp failed. So, why is compassion reserved for VISIBLE impairments?
Obviously I’m happy to become a longtime customer elsewhere and tell everyone I know in Topanga about my experiences at the Bistro.
I hope the owner of Canyon Bistro considers even some of these thoughts before he tells another longtime customer, that he’ll have some compassion but only if he’s not too busy.

I stopped by here for lunch after hiking nearby, it was the only place I could find in the canyon that was open past brunch. The patio was so calm and peaceful. The drinks were great, the food was delicious but the cherry on top of this great experience was the amazing waitress! It’s a shame I didn’t get her name but she was a friendly blonde lady! If I ever find myself in Topanga again this bistro would be my first stop! :)

The restrooms are on the other side of the building and it’s not a short walk…
Food– The first time I tried the risotto and it was watery and over salted. I felt disrespected to be honest being served the dish. The second time I ate from here I got food to go. I ordered the veggie burger and it had no mayo or sauce on it, just dry and basic, it was not even handmade, yep the patty was store bought. No pickles, no onion. Urgh…
Service– Rude, they always seem too busy to really give you an experience with their service. They charge 4 star prices and have 2 star service. It’s a joke really. Get over yourselves Topanga is cool but calm down your food is not worth what you charge. Calling yourself a bistro does not make you an actual bistro… I saw the prices and expected top notch service and stellar food. Such a disapointment.

Came here on a Thursday eve to see Dree Patterson perform and we were so glad we finally stopped in. We had no idea what we were missing! Tucked inside this little jewelbox of a restaurant we had some of the tastiest «mussels to share» ever with a wonderful caprese salad (on the bar menu)… Paired with a flight of local Topanga wines. We finished the meal off with the berry crumble with vanilla bean ice cream and it was simply divine.
The ambiance was warm, the lighting dim and romantic and the music was excellent!
We sat inside for the music, but the outdoor patio was oh so inviting as well. Definitely a place with a very local feel to it… We can’t wait to go back on a Friday evening and listen to the owner’s band play while trying more of the restaurants wonderful dishes.

Lost its charm, had to wait a long time before they got me food. also didn’t did not bring any bread and olive oil, looks like that is complimentary only after u ask!!!
The burger was made very well done and in the process lost all the juiciness and was chewy even after the host took the note for it to be made medium rare.
Bottomline — That would not be my choice for restaurant. I would rather advice all to come down to the valley or try others in Topanga.

I was bordering between three and four stars. We’ve made numerous trips past this location but never stopped by. Finally saw that one of our favorite singers was performing here, so we decided to make an evening out of it. Called to get reservations, the hostess had a hard time hearing me, so I called to re-​verify. Yep, all set. Checked in with the hostess, our reserved table was on the patio, by the stage. Got ambushed by an assortment of friends before we settled down to our menus. So far, great. Waited, chatted, waited for about a half hour before asking about service. Apparently we were in the void between staff. Each server thought the other one ‘had us’. Not too troublesome. By that time we decided to ditch the appetizer, and order only the wine and entrée. Chicken with brussel sprouts and the New Zealand lamb. Both those entrees and the wines were excellent. Also got dessert, a chocolate soufflé style dish and a berry cobbler. We stayed for the complete performance, almost three hours. So, if you are in a rush, no. But if you have the time for a leisurely meal, this is a nice spot.

This one was whatever. But, not in the sense of food. See, I’ve given this place 3 visits thus far and truly enjoyed all of the food options. Being a vegetarian, it’s rare you’ll find more than one option at a French place, so I quite like having multiple things to choose from.
But, the issue I have is with the inconsistent service. The visit on ¹⁰⁄₁₅ took the cake. Or croissant, if you will. Despite having arrived 15 minutes prior to my reservation, it took the blond-​haired, blue-​eyed waiter (who worked the back end of the restaurant) a fill 25 minutes to come back and ask for my drink option. Despite the fact, I told him I had a few q’s after he dropped off some water. Whatevs.
After my gal pal arrived, it again took us another 15 minutes to get her wine option. Whatevs.
The food? Well, how about getting a salad without HALF the ingredients! Yes, you read right — our Roasted Beet Salad arrived sans goat cheese, dressing and sans green beans. The kicker — when we asked for the cheese, the waiter slid a teensy plate onto the table with two mediocre slabs of herb goat cheese and rushed off without noting how the abovementioned ingredients were also missing. Whatevs.
Thank you to the generous bus boy who went in the back and grabbed us a fully prepped salad, which had the GREEN BEANS, GOAT CHEESE, and DRESSING! I mean how hard is it not to make your own dish correctly? Whatevs.
We decided to split the veggie burger and asked the chef to cut it half. His response: can you do it yourself as I don’t want to ruin the presentation. In a colossal WTF, we just stared blankly at the waiter who relayed this pretentious message as in my world, can you decorate two halves of a veg patty when cut? I know I can. Whatevs.
The tipping point: when the check arrived 15 minutes long after we grubbed and…
…
…
Wasn’t even our check. The waiter actually said: Well it is $ 5 less than yours. Whatevs.
Take your shot at mediocre service as the food was well made and delicious. When it was made correctly. If you’re not sure… whatevs.

A girlfriend recommended this place so I decided to finally check it out. Service wasn’t the best — our beet salad came without half of the ingredients (both goat cheese and green beans were missing, and I swear there was no dressing on the salad) — but I’m still giving this place 3 stars as the veggie burger was really good. We ordered the veggie burger with caramelized onions, Swiss cheese, and avocado, each which had an add-​on charge of $ 1, but it was worth it. We also upgraded to truffle fries with our burger ($ 3 add-​on), which were good but a little cold upon arrival.
I would normally give this place only 2.5 stars for the poor service (how could you not notice that 2 of the 3 salad ingredients, not counting lettuce, were missing?!), but I’m upgrading it only because the veggie burger was that good and my friend swears the service is usually great. I’ll give this place one more shot in the hopes that tonight was a fluke. I’ll be ordering the veggie burger again next time — why mess with a good thing ;)?

They’ve lost my business.
I order take out frequently from this place. Tonight I ordered 2 bistro burgers. One with lettuce and tomato, bacon and cheddar. Lettuce and tomato on the side. The other with bacon and cheddar only. No pickles on either.
You would think that was easy. But no. I got home to open the box and one burger with bacon and cheddar had tomato on top and no bun. NO BUN??? The first burger was correct but the lettuce and tomato wasn’t on the side. Sigh I thought and decided to call them and get my $ 25.00 burgers fixed correctly.
I also ordered a salad and asked them to hold the blue cheese. But there was blue cheese on it.
I tried calling the restaurant to tell them the order was incorrect. But the phone was busy for 20 minutes. So I just drove back.
At this point I’m severely irritated. I’ve worked in the restaurant business before. For over 15 years. Never was the phone occupied for that long. I think they just keep the phone off the hook.
Anyway… I get back to the restaurant and explain my frustration about the phone never being clear and always having a busy signal. Not even voice mail which means it was just off the hook. Ever hear of call waiting? That would have saved me an hour. Literally. Read on!
So there went 30 minutes of back and forth from the restaurant to my house. And 15 minutes of waiting the first time. And now for the second time I waited for my food for 20 minutes. 20 minutes to recook an order that wasn’t correct. Turns out my food had been sitting there for 10 minutes. I had to ask if it was ready and the cook told the manager/​server that it had been sitting there for 10 minutes. So I wait another 5 minutes for it to be boxed up.
So this just gets on a level of comedy I can’t even believe. Incompetence is an under statement. Since I asked for the lettuce and tomato on the side I’m sure the manager/​server told the cook to put everything on the side. And he took it literally. Each piece of burger was placed in a separate box. Two boxes each had buns. Two boxes each had one piece of ½ melted cheese inside. Seriously. Two boxes each had lettuce and tomato. Two boxes each had a burger meat. Two boxes each had bacon. I am not kidding. I just wanted a cheeseburger.
I didn’t check to see if they got the salad right at that point. I was in awe of the incompetence at a restaurant that is «high scale» (in price only). So I allowed my inner Gordon Ramsay to come out. Yes. I raised my voice and asked why this was happening.
I started out to fetch dinner at 6pm. It was now 7:30.
What a shame that I will never eat here again. Not once was an apology offered. The manager/​server even said «well you checked the boxes before you left.» I checked one box to make sure there weren’t pickles. And plus, two burgers that cost $ 60.00 you damn sure better not make the customer check to see that their order is correct. That’s YOUR job. I order from here once a week. And after tonight I will never order again.
You lost a local. Bye bye.

Iced coffee — it was a necessity.
Grass fed burger with bacon and fries — good, but nothing special. The fries were nice and crispy.
For my toddler —
Scrambled eggs, but couldn’t get any fruit on the side. Weak.
Croque Monsieur — delicious!!!
Our friends loved these:
3 egg omelette
Granola with fruit
Overall, a really nice and relaxing little place. Lots of people bring their dogs. Some dogs do not like other dogs. Angry barking ensues.
Very nice service. This was our first time in Topanga, and we very much enjoyed our meal here.

We really love this place. Larry and his staff are top notch. The entertainment on Fridays is just amazing and Sunday brunch, two words «bottomless Mimosas». This has to be your first stop every weekend.

The Atmosphere = Great
The Aroma = Great
Service a HUGE Disappointment. Went with 2 others last night. We only ordered Salads & Everyone and I mean everyone who came in after us was served before us! Had to ask for bread. One of the girls knew the owner. They offered us desert, but of course why would we do that when we are eating salads? So we said a round of drinks would be sufficient.
The owner was such a D**k that when we go the bill, he took off 1 Glass of Wine! Who does that???

Not worth your stop!!! Keep driving! I can’t believe this place even has 1 good review?
Agreed to all the reviews about service! When we walked up, we were looked at like Martians! The service was not friendly or fast or with a smile!
My son was given extremely small portions for our money! He liked it, just wanted more of it… 9 fries??? Really?
Our food came very very very slow… Very slow!!!
But credit where credit due, the food was good…

I don’t think I’ve ever been so shocked and appalled by a restaurant like I was yesterday at The Canyon Bistro.
I joined my friends family for Mother’s Day brunch at this place, and having never been there before, thought the place was pretty nice. That pretty quickly took a turn for the worse. The food was bland and overpriced, and the service was a bit slow. Atleast the mimosa’s were good.
The high point of the meal however was when my friend’s credit card was misplaced by the staff and we were not only accused of wrong doing ourselves, but no once apologized to. The owner even went on to mock my pseudo-​mother for having an unpleasant reaction to the fact that her daughter’s credit card was lost by the restaurant. On mother’s day none the less!
My friend was then told to «f*** off» and to ‘f*** himself’ when he decided to stand up for his mother.
Real stand up place in Topanga!

Eh… standard fare… But they make a BANGIN’ Croque Madame! Whew! Toasted cheesy, eggy, hammy sandwich goodness with a buttery bechamel sauce right there. Has to be one of the best I’ve had thus far in LA. In the Top 3! Keep doing it and don’t hold back.
Nice to people watch. For some reason, lots of Europeans flock here. Is Topanga L.A.‘s European hood?
Service can be spotty if it’s packed, and the servers don’t bother hiding their frustration. It shows all on their faces, and you can totally hear it in their tones when speaking. Ugh.
May I suggest something?
Hire more people.

A perfect setting with amazing food and great entertainment, perfect for a special night out or a romantic lunch in the Canyon. Also a fabulous wine selection.
The staff is friendly and very accommodating.
BRAVO CANYON BISTRO
SHARI LYN

Muy buenas empanadas de cangrejo, rápida atención, muy amigables, rica comida, perfecto para lunch