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Tomato cafe?


waylman

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Nice neihbourhood place - a modern take on a diner food with a focus on fresher and greener ingredients and homemade food. Service can be harried and prices can feel a little high - but it is worth checking out. The hazelnut shakes (well all their shakes) are hand mixed and start with italian syrups - delicous.

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This is one of my regular haunts but I will agree that the prices are a little steep but the sandwiches are very tasty.

Now that there is the new Capers in the 'hood I would also try their Deli!

"There are two things every chef needs in the kitchen: fish sauce and duck fat" - Tony Minichiello

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According to some, this is a very hit and miss place.

"Since when do you have to be hungry to eat?"

Give a man a fish and you’ll feed him for a day. Teach a man how to fish andhe’ll open up his own place right across the street from yours, steal your sous-chef, talk shit about you, haggle with suppliers, undercut your prices, kiss critics’ ass, steal your clients and you’ll eventually curse the day you taught him how to fish.

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According to some, this is a very hit and miss place.

I also have been a few times.

I really wanted to like it but it just failed a number of times. I did bring my concerns up to the Owner / Manager and he just blew me off with a dismissive wave of the hand. I did not get bent out of shape or anything, but just decided that it was not on my list of places to go.

I gave it a second and third chance as that is how I would like to be treated but was unlucky every time. It has won some awards so they must be doing something right, just not when I was there.

Neil Wyles

Hamilton Street Grill

www.hamiltonstreetgrill.com

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According to some, this is a very hit and miss place.

I also have been a few times.

I really wanted to like it but it just failed a number of times. I did bring my concerns up to the Owner / Manager and he just blew me off with a dismissive wave of the hand. I did not get bent out of shape or anything, but just decided that it was not on my list of places to go.

I gave it a second and third chance as that is how I would like to be treated but was unlucky every time. It has won some awards so they must be doing something right, just not when I was there.

Were the awards won when Diane Clement and her hubby owned it perhaps? :smile:

"If cookin' with tabasco makes me white trash, I don't wanna be recycled."

courtesy of jsolomon

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According to some, this is a very hit and miss place.

I also have been a few times.

I really wanted to like it but it just failed a number of times. I did bring my concerns up to the Owner / Manager and he just blew me off with a dismissive wave of the hand. I did not get bent out of shape or anything, but just decided that it was not on my list of places to go.

I gave it a second and third chance as that is how I would like to be treated but was unlucky every time. It has won some awards so they must be doing something right, just not when I was there.

Were the awards won when Diane Clement and her hubby owned it perhaps? :smile:

Some. but not all.

Neil Wyles

Hamilton Street Grill

www.hamiltonstreetgrill.com

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I have to agree with Neil - it is just OK in my experience. When there with others some would have a good meal but the majority of the meals were either under the mark in terms of either flavor (bland) and temperature (too long on the pass?). And the service can best be described as perfunctory. Nothing really wrong, but nothing that makes you forget that your omelette is devoid of flavor. On the plus side, my daughters like the smoothies.

As a local place, it is fine - just not a destination worth searching for a parking place.

Cheers,

Karole

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I work really close to Tomato so I've had more than just a few lunch's there over the past few years.

Personally, I prefer their ToGo menu. They've just added a really good Reuben sandwich, and the Coco Loco cookies are always good. I agree completely with the service issues, and the fact that it just feels over-priced ... in a "holy crap I can't believe lunch added up to $50!!" sort of way.

More often than not I walk by Tomato to Thai Away Home or some such place.

A.

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It's funny hearing the comments about service as the owner - Christian - is a very longtime front of house manager type with Umberto - Settebello, Al Porto etc. You would think that the one thing that would kick ass would be the service even if the kitchen is more like the old Alma St. Cafe.

He does seem to try hard with the local and organic produce though. One of the organic growers at Trout Lake was mentioning that Tomato Cafe buys 5 times the local, organic produce that the Pan Pacific does..... interesting.

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Funny that Tomato hasn't been discussed much on these boards. I used to live a couple of blocks from there, but I found it to be overpriced, overhyped, and usually overcooked. If they buy so much organic produce, it's a shame they don't take more care with the food. I have heard from friends that they have had more luck at dinner than I have had at lunchtime. I stopped going a few years ago.

"I used to be Snow White, but I drifted."

--Mae West

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