Reviews of 12 Tables (Restaurant)

Gastro W.

Despite 12 Tables’ informal atmosphere, dinners start with an amuse bouche and end with a lemon sorbet to cleanse the palette between the mains and dessert. The amuse bouche changes, on one visit a tasty bite of roasted beet with a creamy avocado mascarpone dressing and another a piece of seared beef. Both arrive with warm soft bread that they bake daily in-house. All this makes for a labour intensive day, no wonder they’re only opened for dinner! l Save some bread if you order the beef tartare ($19) as it doesn’t arrive with crostini. Even with the bread, the dish takes getting used to as the soft tartare against soft bread isn’t the greatest combination (even with a slight crunch from the raw onions). Aside from having something crunchy to spread it on, I’d also prefer the beef cut into bigger pieces so it doesn’t resemble pulverized meat. Regardless, the flavours were spot on and the onions a great addition. For a crowd, the signature antipasto for two ($27) is a good option with a changing assortment of cured meats, cheeses, and vegetables. The salty cured meat and cheeses are good, but what really stood out were the hunks of grilled eggplant slathered in a garlic dill sauce, juicy sticks of marinated beets, and the large pieces of pickled artichoke. In fact, I wish they offered a vegetarian version of the antipasto platter as the vegetables were definitely the highlight. 12 Tables calls out on their menu, the fact the carbonara ($19) contains no cream. I can understand why, with all the aged cheese, bacon, and parmesan, it tastes like a really rich creamy pasta. Personally, I would have liked more black pepper to help balance the flavours and a splash of stock to thin out the sauce. But, I guess most people who order carbonara craves a dish that’s sinful and hearty, this definitely fits the bill. On the other hand, the arrabiata ($19) is the complete opposite. The dish is filled with al dente penne tossed with a thick tomato sauce that has such a delicious angry bite. Given it’s a smaller portion and lighter, you’ll want to add on a heartier appetizer if you get this as a main. The baked eggplant ($16) is a great choice. Two big thick slices of grilled eggplant sandwiching gorgonzola cheese studded with grape tomatoes and smothered with tomato sauce. All together it’s a creamy combination and the lighter blue cheese, which normally isn’t an ingredient I enjoy, pairs well with the earthy eggplant and tangy sauce. Although, if I had the option to substitute the gorgonzola for mozzarella or ricotta, I’d still make the switch.

eddie hong

Food was incredibly delicious. Every fork/spoon was full of flavour. I would recommend this place for any occasion. Owners were very kind, informative and overall just great people. If your in the area, make time to try this place.

Jeff R

Always great.

Kamran Sharifi

Hands down the best restaurant in the area. Perfectly cooked pasta, great service. Everything on the menu was exceptional. We were a party of 7 and everyone LOVED it. Had to write my first review.

Josh Wallace

Fantastic food and service! The tartare is lovely and the carbonara was very authentic. Delicious!

Omar Seraj Kazi

Nice atmosphere. Food was ok although not exceptional.

Dan Palmer

Couldn't be better I

Joanne Gore

Did not enjoy food. Meat was dry and tasteless, vegetables generic. Service was attentive.

Miri Hadas Koller

I have nothing negative to say about this restaurant. Servers are friendly, food is fresh and delicious. I recommend the Gnocchi gorgonzola, truffle pasta and pavlova meringue for dessert is so delicious

Michael Kranitz

Pretty awesome Italian restaurant. Would recommend! Super friendly and accommodating staff.

Raluca M

Great place. Food was delicious and came out fast. Service was excellent from start to finish. Will definitely come again.

Andrea (LabyrinthOnVHS)

The food is amazing and the embience is both classic and cozy. I am not just saying.. seriously you want to check this place out for your special days!

Larry Singer

The service, food quality, and staff attitude have made this our go to restaurant!

Wendy Smith-Dewdney

Polish vodka tastes really good. I ordered lamb chops and my friend ordered the duck plate. Both amazing. Also recommend mussel cooked with tomato sauce and fillopa.

Sabrina Chan

Service was impeccable, the food tasted great. I also liked that the restaurant was fairly bright inside so it's easy to read the menu and the noise level is perfect to have conversation. This is a great option for dinner with friends

Donna Shen

If you are dairy free and gluten free this is not a good restaurant for you. They do have gluten free pasta but not bread. Mostly an Italian menu so wine and cheese are in food. They are very good about substitutions but it's a small restaurant there is only so much you can do to the basic menu. For an expensive restaurant the food was average. I had the gnocchi I can make this dish better myself. Simple tomato sauce and gnocchi Rating would be lower except for the serving staff and hostess. All were very accommodating and very polite and very nice. Would I return to this restaurant? No.

Sherine Thompson

Service

Andy

Only there for take but look forward to going back in person. Try the Carbonara.

Frances Auerbach

Cozy restaurant with fantastic service and amazing food. We tried the beets salad, duck and carbonara- all amazing.

Andrei Tsl

We ordered New Year eve dinner here and it was absolutely awesome. So happy we found this place.

Julia Chang

Food was exceptional. Carbonara was ridiculously savoury, black cod special was cooked exactly right, and the dressing on the beets salad was perfectly tangy. They offer an amuse, palate cleaner sorbet, and an aperitif, which is a great touch, but you'll sure pay for it. Service is over bearing - they are constantly around, and made me feel like turning over the table is what their priority was.

Henna Sethi

I loved it! When it's full the service is slightly slow. But the food is fantastic and the staff are great.

Taylor I

Very poor service- from omitting cutlery, not bringing 1 of 4 appetizers, spilling wine on our bread and then not replacing spoiled bread to bringing 2 bites of cake to celebrate 4 birthdays abd increasing volume of music near 10pm (like on academy awards) to signal that they want people to leave. Food just average.

Joe Longpre

EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT! EXCELLENT! Food was amazing and the service was great. Will be back for sure.

Andrew Lindzon

From the appetizer to the dessert. Delicious food!

Kristine Parker

Food, services and environment is great. Definitely recommended for great Italian food and cozy atmosphere.

S. sam

Great service. Attentive.. fast to respond and very flexible for any allergies in the party. Will go again without hesitation. In fact.... Looking forward to it..

Alex Leigh

Just went to this new restaurant and the food was wow. Daily soup, leeks, was crazy good. Had the ribeye steak and it was perfect. My wife had the seafood pasta and it looked even better. The place is quaint and the ambiance is very comfortable. We are definitely going back.

Matthew Young Im

It's good. It's exactly how you think it'd taste. There wasn't any particular WOW factor. I'd go again. There were a lot of things on the menu I wanted to try.

Frank Perrelli

Nice, but somewhat overpriced and understaffed.

Hyojin Cho

Fantastic food and service. Cozy European-style ambiance. Staff very attentive and friendly.

Coleen X

Food is of good quality. Gnocchi cloukd have been a bit softer

Irit Marian

Everything was perfect

Hashir Hamza

Excellent local restaurant with fusion foods .

Sally Chung

Boyfriend ordered us Valentines day takeout special- it was so impressive. They were generous with their portions, taste was delicious, the ingredients were fresh in terms of the seafood pasta, and they also added two roses to the package. Such a thoughtful gesture! Definitely going back/ordering again. Thank you!

Skinprovement Medi Spa & Laser Clinic

My husband and I had a great time at this restaurant yesterday. We happened to drive by it and decided to park and give it a try. The staff was very kind and accommodating, the atmosphere was nice and pleasant, and the food was absolutely delicious. Their signature duck entree was amazing, and the lemongrass salmon was very tasty. I highly recommend this place.

C.B.

An absolute treasure. The food was delicious. The wait staff was very attentive. Small and intimate dining. Beautiful setting with an exquisite ambiance.

David Panneton

My wife and I had a great time with friends at 12 Tables. The service was great and the food was spot on. Great menu to choose from. Good selection of wines as well. Great experience all around, I highly recommend this place.

Sun Yoon

Amazing food though they are insistent on not being Italian but rather a fusion of with polish and Asian flavors

Faith Sherman

(Translated) Food on a very good level, courteous service (Original) אוכלברמה טובה מאד, שירות אדיב

Rachel Yumin Gwak

Quaint little Italian restaurant with exquisite dishes. Nice to go on a romantic date or an evening out with great friends.

Frank Chiarotto

As usual the food did not disappoint. We had the mussels, the fig and prosciutto salad and we shared a duck breast as appetizer. We ordered the organic salmon and cod as mains and for dessert we enjoyed the pavlova. All courses were outstanding and freshly prepared. Our friends were very impressed and thanked us for introducing them to 12 Tables.

won cheol cho

It's was best. Food was very perfect. And service is wonderful. I want to visit again

M Siskind

Some of the best food in Toronto. This little treasure serves a wonderful mix of Italian and French treasures. Every item on the menu is perfectly cooked, seasoned and presented. The Caesar salad is legendary, along with the shrimp appetizer. The duck L’orange is amazing. Pastas are full of flavour. The chef has a magic touch. With a super friendly staff and perfectly cooked food, I highly recommend you visit this owner operated bistro.

Gr Pa

Great dessert nice staff parking was annoying but cute little place

Jenny Lam

Relatively okay

Simon Szeto

Unprofessional wait staff. Missed several items that we ordered and did not take off bill. The food was basic nothing special.

Geoff Glave

We're new to the neighbourhood, so this was our first time here. Food was delicious (Covid-takeout on a rainy Friday). We had a spaghetti carbonara, a spaghetti alfredo, a caesar salad and prosciutto and figs. Lots of rich flavours and good presentation. We'll be back.

BBTINO KIDS

The food and service were amazing! I had a delicious potato and leak soup to start, and the best bowl of carbonara I've ever had. I highly recommend checking them out.

Antonios Xanthis

Always enjoy coming here, they have a good menu and the service has always been amazing

Stan Saltzman

A wonderful experience with wonderful food. Very warm interior and kind friendly service. One of the most relaxing restaurants I've ever been too. If you're in the area it's a must go to.

Seth Etkin-Silver

Dinner

Mango Mango

Dine in

Brian Reid

Good good great service a little overpriced

Claire Colle

Spring 2017:A new gem on Avenue Road. This little restaurant is warm and charming. The duck specialty is amazing. With their delicious food and reasonable prices this place is sure to be a hit! Fall 2017 : I just returned for another visit to 12 Tables and was happy with my delicious meal. However the service has dropped a notch - although kind and attentive, our waiter seemed inexperienced and hesitant. I will leave my rating at 5 stars and hope that service picks back up.

Moops lol

Amazing fresh pasta perfectly flavoured. To die for tiramisu and very attentive servers. So happy we dined here!

Tanya G

Glowing reviews are very misleading and over exaggerated. I will say that the service at 12 Tables was excellent and staff were friendly, the restaurant has a peculiar ambiance with a homey feel. The antipasto board was overly strong, selection of servings seemed mismatched, and the fatty cuts of meat tasted as though they had been sitting out for too long. Goat cheese and beet salad was good, nothing spectacular. The chicken was well cooked, but drizzled over top was a microwaved sauce that was visibly coagulated, potatoes and vegetables as a side were bland. Tagliatelle with truffle sauce was over cooked and was simply not done right. At least the washrooms were very clean. Mediocre at best, it is in your best interest to not waste your money here.

가연김

I have been to many upscale restaurants in Toronto (financial district area, Yorkville, etc.). Considering the price of the restaurant's special Christmas course menu ($99), the quality of the food that I received today (December 24, 2019) was one of the worst. Overall, the portion was small even though the food was not exceptional or specially creative. As an appetizer, I received three prawn, which tasted like previously frozen not fresh. Seafood risotto was a bit undercooked and cold. The main dish (slow roasted duck) was very dry and bland. The duck itself was dried out of juice, so it needed sauce. However, there was not enough sauce on the plate. Lastly, the dessert part was a disaster. I almost could feel raw sugar particles inside some of the desserts and they felt like desserts from Chinese all-you-can-eat place. Well...when you pay $99 for course/tasting menu, you usually have a certain amount of expectation. However, this place failed that expectation very devastating way. I have not tried their regular menu, so I would not comment on their regular menu, but I would not recommend their Christmas course menu to anyone. Do not waste your money. Go somewhere else that would give you either higher quality of food that is more creative or better portion of food with lower price.

Taekyeong Lee

FANTASTIC FOOD!!!!

Felicia Stren

Excellent food and service. Everything we had was top notch.

Nick Cina

interesting restaurant....This is one of the places we frequent often. The menu is great and the food actually tastes like it is home made. What we really like is how the staff is warm and attentive.

Jaden Kim

Loved their professional service and beautiful dishes!!

neil s

sad service and disappointing food. Used their online order feature and when I went to pick up they had nothing ready. Told me to wait 10 minutes. It looked like they threw it together in 5. The roasted beet and goat cheese salad is made with pickled beets, not roasted. Literally Bick's pickled beets. Not sure they know the difference.

Dana Lowe

It was absolutely amazing!!! Food was so delicious. My husband said he had best pasta ever! Service was very good, too. I highly recommend this place.

Beth Colle

A wonderful experience in this new restaurant. The service is exceptional - we were very impressed with the staff. Two of us had pasta which was perfectly cooked and two of us had duck which was crispy and flavorful. I hope this restaurant does very well as they deserve to.

Alina salazar

Really good food

Alex Himell

Great service with beautiful settings and delicious food!

REM

Meal type

Thomas Kim

Excellent service. Great food. Great wine list.

f papad

Always great!

Richard W

What a lovely gem! Fantastic, warm friendly service. Delicious food and Gluten free Celiac safe options. I highly recommend this restaurant.

Elizabeth

Try the 'Duck' as your main dish. Best in the city. Also the Service was absolutely amazinnn

u jay

Great food. Fantastic service and a good atmosphere.

Philip Seebalack

Little gem of a place. The owner recommended we try the black cod. It was amazing! Could easily tell ingredients used in the dishes were fresh.

Gary Friedlander

Really good food and even better service

Bernard Roach

Lovely meal. Great service. Perfect night.

Steven Fishman

An amazing cozy little restaurant with charm and great food

Louise Urbas

Loved it. Great food, excellent service

Peter Larsen

The duck was so tender and delicious. The gnocchi was absolutely amazing and unlike anything I had anything tastes. The service was kind, genuine and unpretentious, but very knowledgeable. They really care about just providing good food in a calm, enjoyable atmosphere. Will definitely come again and would recommend to anyone.

Rob Mc MILLAN

Octopus was good. Chicken was good. Staff was nice.

Daniel Yoon

Interesting owners. Great food. Nice atmosphere and service

Ellen Turkienicz

Great meal with friends!

dana kim

Everything was perfect! Gonna visit here again for sure!

Vincent Shah

Had a wonderful meal at 12 Tables last night with my wife and a number of friends. The soup was fantastic (I ordered two servings - I don't usually do that) and the main course and dessert were delightful. If you are looking for a great place to spend the evening and enjoy wonderful food, this is the place to be.

Larry Klopot

Dined at 12 Tables for the first time last night. The experience was great. Staff could not have been nicer. Excellent wine recommendation. Everyone I was with really enjoyed the food. We will definately be back.

Nicole Dougherty

12 Tables turned our stay-at-home family dinner into a tasty and delicious event. Everything we took out was impeccably flavourful.

C Gordon

Excellent food, perfect atmosphere!

Ian Edgar

Just wasted 160 dollars here. Staff are very friendly and helpful. Vibe is good. For lack of a better way to put it, food was garbage. Very unimpressed. Will not be dining here again. Save your money and go to Terroni instead.

Ruth Burshtein

Went on a date night with my darling. Food was amazing and even better than the first time. I had the duck...melted in my mouth. Service was excellent and I plan on going back. Visit if you can. You will not regret it.

Rita Lombardi

An amazing experience. From the warm and friendly service to the different little extras the fresh bread, the sorbet between courses and the complementary Limoncello. And then there was the food! Highly recommended.

Niall Leonard

Possibly the finest beef tartar I've ever tasted... and who knew I'd find it in Toronto? The ambience, service and food at 12 Tables was on a supreme level and as an overall experience my family and I thoroughly enjoyed ourselves. Will be returning on our next trip to Toronto for sure!

sun kyoung kim

This place was a hidden gem! Delicious food small menu so everything they do is good! The owner was there and went around to greet all the tables. Will definitely be back with friends.

Leslie Mezei

Awsome

Alicia Taylor

Thank you for wonderful takeout tonight for my husband’s birthday dinner. We enjoyed everything and look forward to ordering again. The food came home fresh and hot and portions were generous! Key lime pie was delicious!