Archeo Trattoria‎, Toronto: Reviews

4	Reviewed by Meghan (Age 26 - 39) on 2010-02-12 Dinner with a party of 2; waited 2 minute(s). 4 Food 3 Service 6 Atmosphere

My husband and I love the concept of the -licious events - a chance to try out some of Toronto's great restaurants at a cheaper price, and if it's a good experience, then go back another time! Well this is a case where the concept seems to have evaded the management at Archeo, because we will definitely not be going back. Service: One word - atrocious. We must have had 5 different servers bring us food, and they never knew which dish was for which of us. And an additional 3 times, a server tried to bring us food that was actually for another table near us. My water glass never got refilled. We sat with empty plates in front of us for a long time after each course. We weren't offered coffee or tea until after our dessert was cleared. Food: Starters were over-seasoned salads that felt like they came from a big tub stored in the kitchen. My main - "Roasted Bronzini - Chorizo and Hot House Tomato Risotto" was bizarre. Fish was plain old under-seasoned grilled fish, and the risotto tasted like mac & cheese made with rice. I don't eat a lot of dairy, so it would have been nice if the description had told me what I was getting. My husband's main - "Grilled Beef Sirloin Steak, Sweet Potato Mash, Seasonal Vegetables, Peppercorn Gastrique" would have been fine, except he ordered his steak medium-well and it was definitely rare. He didn't send it back because by that point the service had been so bad he didn't trust it would come back any better. Dessert: Both seemed pre-made from somewhere, nothing special. Overall, a disappointment. It seemed as though the staff were untrained and perhaps just brought in for Winterlicious, which reflects badly on the restaurant. We won't visit again.