Restaurants
Toucan Taco Bar
Toucan Taco Bar hasn't been getting a lot of positive buzz since it opened at the end of February. The Riverside restaurant is the product of Richard Henry who owns Le Canard Mort down the street. In a bit of an odd development, he decided to transform his previous restaurant in this space, Le Rossignol, into something that's I suppose more on trend than French cuisine; and offer the Le Rossignol menu at Le Canard Mort instead.
While French bistros (and Mexican cantinas for that matter) are know for their ambiance, Toucan Taco Bar has nothing of the sort. The decor is bland and "un-Mexican", there's no music and, I hate to say it, almost no hospitality.
We started with what turned out to be the highlight of the meal, a pair of stiff lime margaritas ($9). Served on the rocks, the cocktails had a hint of lime, a lightly salted rim and potent tequila that went straight to my head. The lime (or mix) was definitely on the light side as the drink tasted almost like a straight up shot.
To balance the tequila we ordered Mexico's favourite appetizer - guacamole and chips ($5). The tortilla chips were standard but delectable and the guacamole had a smooth texture full of flavour with hints of cilantro and onion that did not overpower.
Next came the mains - pulled pork tacos ($10) and a blackened catfish burrito ($11). Two tacos came gently wrapped in soft corn tortillas and stuffed with ancho (chili) and raw cactus. The cactus had a sweet taste (when cooked it turns sour) and was a nice foil to the spicy ancho. The pork, unfortunately, was on the skimpy side and fatty as well. The side dishes didn't offer much respite. Salad was basically plain iceberg lettuce with a dash of unidentifiable dressing and the black beans resembled mushy cardboard pellets slopped on top of sticky white rice.
The blackened catfish burrito was even more of a let down. Served cold, it was wrapped in a standard soft white flour tortilla and offered up Mission style - but without any of the nice grill marks that are the hallmarks of Toronto-style burritos. The fish, while cold, was seared to juicy perfection but there wasn't much of it. By my third bite I was basically just eating bland rice, salsa and guac. The yellow mole promised on the menu was almost nowhere to be found.
The cold food and skimpy portions could almost be chalked up to an off night for the kitchen but there was nothing redeeming about the poor service. The table next to ours made the mistake of asking what the daily specials were to which the waitress curly replied "I don't know about the specials - read the board."
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It was better then I had hoped for, spiced just enough to feel it but not too crazy. My boy got the pulled pork and loved it too. Our waitress was also amazing. She got excited when we asked her about the food, made me a delicious sangria, and was just overall a sweet girl.
This place has a home like feel and a good atmosphere. A few more decorations would be nice, maybe more art on the walls would just give it something a little extra special. I fully recommend that you check this little joint out, but there aren't many tables, so don't all go at once.
Far over priced, $70 for 2 to eat and was hungry after.
Every resto that has occupied this space has failed which is too bad as there is not really a Mexican or Latin American resto in this neighbourhood... If it closes which I give it 6 months then El Trompo should open a second location here and they would do well... The first pic of the pulled pork taco sure looks skimpy...
The only real Mexican resto on the east side.
Avoid this place.
the owner has a few other restos downtown that are a lot better than Toucan.
edit*
who are you to be bitchy and think you're better than everyone while you make minimum wage + tips? *******
A lot of their stuff if under $5! A great deal, if you ask me.
I have been to Toucan Taco Bar, and I can honestly say that this is the best restaurant in Toronto! The service is warm and friendly, and the ambience is so good. Savour every scent and flavour, because you'll be wanting more!
Toucan is my favourite place to get some fresh eats. Visit them today. You'll be so glad you did!
"Sooooo bad!"
Please, don't listen to Ricecakes. I was there when Ricecakes was eating. Personally, I thought she and her husband were very rude and picky. You could tell both of them had a bone to pick the moment they walked in.
I stand by this place. It's the best place for very authentic tacos. Try them today, and I know you won't be disappointed!
if you're going to change ur name change ur writing style
you're way too liberal with exclamation marks.
and to the owner: look into getting some washroom ads for your restaurants. when im having a shitty meal, with shitty service, the one thing i look forward to is amusing myself with i go to the washroom.
The truth must lie somewhere in between.
The chips and guacamole were tasty... but other than that the portions were small, cold and just didn't seem to be good combinations of flavors.
The atmosphere suffered from the soft rock satellite radio...and the beige-ness of the decor...it's a taco bar--it wouldn't be so out there to use some colour?
The server was warning customers about the impending kitchen closure at 830pm... really? on a Thursday? and repeatedly said the most hostile "cheers!" I've ever heard.
This place would need a complete revamp to go back. Fail on food, service, atmosphere and price.
The lady asked me what I thought, and I said it was "okay." She asked me what could have been done to make it better, and I told her to heat up her food. A huge take-out order was taken back to our office for those who couldn't make it. Everyone said the same thing... they hated it.
Even though they don't have tacos across the street at Coyote Willie's, I'll choose them over Toucan every time.
Too bad, too. With 1,000+ people moving into the area with all the condo development, it would be great to have a good taco bar. The owners here are obviously banking on this demand... but they should really supply something half-decent.
We were allowed to be seated when we returned just before 12, and I have to say everything was fantastic! My margarita was perfect. I ordered the softshell fish taco and the chicken taco on a platter, so it came with salad and beans on rice. Definitely hotter than what would typically be medium heat on the spice scale, but I didn't mind. It had plenty of flavour.
My friend ordered the shrimp burrito and he loved it.
All in all pretty good value for $40, the service was attentive and helpful and I would definitely order the chicken taco (or two) on a platter again. I wasn't so sold on the fish taco, but hey you can't have everything.