Paradiso

Nice ambiance. Food was very good. The food portions are small for what they are charging. We ordered the feta salad (salty) and tuna tartare. Entré was ravioli and roasted vegetables spanakopita. Overall good but expensive dining experience The beef and pasta dishes looked better.

I guess some places think that they are too cool to be questioned. Went there with a few friends for drinks and appetizers and have a nice time on the patio. We ordered drinks I had a guiness (in the can) my friends ordered a Cesar. When he Cesar arrived, it looked like it was just tomato juice in a glass. No celery, no string bean no, tobasco, it was plain. My friend told he waiter (Alex) that it didn’t taste right and only tasted like calmato juice. The waiter then proceed to say that this was the proper way for the cesar to be made and my friend didn’t know what she was talking about. So she sent it back and asked the waiters opinion on a gin cocktail, he then preceded to lecture us on cocktail tastes and suggested that we were not sophisticated enough and stick to vodka. Needless to say, we left right away and will never go back. I usually give places a 2^nd chance but not his time. By the way Alex, you don’t talk down to your customers.

I came for a large gathering. They had assorted antipasto which was all quite good. Very nice and attentive staff.
For the mains, I had the crab ravioli and my wife had the braised beef short rib. We both tried each others’ food, and mutually we felt the food was solid, but not much beyond that. The ravioli was supposed to have some spice in the sauce, but I didn’t really catch it. It ended up being a bit too rich between the cheese in the ravioli, the cream sauce and the crab. Again, pretty good, but I felt it needed more balance. The beef was good, but nothing special either. I will say however that it had a terrific compote served with it, which would almost bring the dish up to a ‘4’. I’ll readily admit to enjoying bolder flavors, so other may find differently.
Not really a critique, but a heads up that as a ‘finer’ establishment, the portions are quite small. I know that’s a healthier and likely more authentic way to eat Italian, but roughly a dozen moderate-​sized ravioli doesn’t fill this prototypical 6’3″ North American up very well.
4 on antipasto/4.5 on service and ambiance/​3 on the mains
Still, I’m open to trying again and it seems that they have a good lunch menu.

Service was prompt and friendly. We shared the Greek salad and chicken and penne. Both were flavourful without being overpowered by feta and spices.

I may be partial since I had my first date with my fiancé here and we have returned many times.
Wow…just wow!
First off: they have Hendrick’s gin. As a fan of having a nice pre-​meal martini and a gin drinker, I’m very happy with any place that has options beyond the ‘industrial’ Bombay & Tanqueray.
Appetizers we had most recently:
Seared Pork Belly
The Greek (pan fried feta, warm olives, etc)
Seared Ahi
All were incredibly tasty and I still have dreams of having them over and over.
Meals: Their steaks are awesome, but our group had:
— Burger (which includes chorizo — it was awesome)
— Moroccan Chicken (one of their standards and absolutely awesome)
— the 12 hour braised beef gnocchi (Okay, hands down one of my top 5 fave entrees here… yeah…top 5 entrees! This place is that good)
— Spaghettini, which was good, but fairly standard sauce-​wise
Dessert we had the salted caramel pecan torte thing and the olive oil cake. Both were great, but the pecan torte? *drool*
Service is always perfect: you dont’ notice them until you need them, and when you need them they are courteous, VERY personable, knowledgeable, and awesome.

As others have mentioned the olive oil is outstanding. Pluses are the location, value and friendly attentive staff. Food is pretty okay, no real «wow» factor but okay all the same. The burger is a lump of meat in an egg bun … no contrast in textures within (ie no crunch), and the spanakopita is good enough albeit uninspired. 2 ½ /​5

Great place to meet up with friends for dinner and drinks. Tried the braised beef gnocchi. It was good but not great. I was expecting more flavour after 12 hours of braising. The gnocchi was well prepared. Service was outstanding and they were very accommodating to our needs. 3 stars for this particular visit but I’ve been before and have tried other dishes that were outstanding. Maybe I just picked the wrong dish this time.

When I am in downtown Oakville and want to get a quick lunch. I usually drop into Paradiso. They have great sandwiches (do not misinterpret — this is NOT a sandwich shop) and mix up the menu regularly with specials, in lauding seasonal cocktails. I had steak a few times in the past week and a half so I opted for the braised leek quiche. It was served as an individual round quiche instead of a slice which means more crust… but the crust was vet nice so I didn’t mind. It was served with a mixed greens salad with a balsamic vinaigrette. Overall this really hit the spot and was light, so I was pleased. While I kept myself contained on the food side, I ordered a cocktail; a classic… a Queen’s Park Swizzle. This was a disappointment. Way too much lime juice. It was insanely sour. I should have returned it, but have been here many times and the drinks have been good so I let it slide. For a prime example — try it at Middle Branch in NYC!

My husband and I went there for our anniversary among many other occasions. I can’t say enough good things about this place. The food is amazing, the ambience is great, and the wine selection is wonderful!

As the olive oil goes it gets a 5+. I’m led to believe they make it on premises, and you can buy a bottle of it to take home.
I usually go with a large group (20+) and they are l always accommodating. Foods is very good, service is good and friendly. Haven’t tried the whole menu, but have enjoyed what I’ve eaten.

I’ve been back to Paradiso a couple times of late and have been impressed. The wine list is great, servers are attentive, and management are flexible and conscientious. I’ve taken my wine group back a couple times and they have been very accommodating. I love the Antipasto tray yumm!

I went to the downtown Oakville location a while ago with my husband and his friend who was visiting us from the UK. It was a late Sunday afternoon and we brought our 8 month old daughter. We were greeted very rudely and the restaurant hostess (who we think might’ve been the manager) did nothing to accommodate our baby. We asked to sit in the other room away from other diners and were told there was a party coming in and couldn’t sit there (there was no such party) and we had to beg said hostess for a high chair. We felt shunned because of the baby even though she didn’t make a peep the entire time we were there (patrons were coming up to us saying how well behaved she was). When it came time to selecting a restaurant to host the party after our daughter’s christening in December, we quickly ruled out Paradiso and won’t return to this restaurant again.

The restaurant is bigger than it looks with twists and turns and different settings in each room. We were sat in a cozy corner, but it was a loud restaurant. The calamari was delicious, with 2 different types of dipping sauces. I had the Morroccan Chicken Supreme – the flavours were amazing. And my hubby had Spaghettini Bolognese with veal. He doesn’t like ‘funky’ foods or new foods – but he enjoyed his meal. It was not very filling, which was fine. Didn’t want to be stuffed on a weekend alone with the kids. :)

Excellent choice on a Saturday night and even with the Jazz fest going on the service was great. Yes it was slow but the place was packed due to the festival. Alex (?) the bartender was very good and was doing a great job with the drinks. My food arrived (crab ravioli) it was delicious with a mountain of crab on top.

I am not a fan. The food is great, but the prices are crazy.

I love this place. I’ve been to the Oakville location about 4 times over the past 8 years and have always been very impressed. The food is very tasty and they have excellent service and atmosphere. The Burlington is equally good. I love them both.
Tip: Their bread is simply delicious, we always buy extra to bring home.

I’ve been to Paradiso a number of times and for a variety of reasons. I probably go at least a dozen times a year, that’s how much I like it. It’s my most recent visit this week that has me puzzled. I was there for lunch with a friend, and we both surprised to see that the menu had changed again, but that some of our go-​to dishes were still there. We also noticed that none of the regular servers who greet us by name were there either. No matter: We placed our order and received our fresh made Roasted Tomato Foccacia Bread. If I was only reviewing it and the olive oil it’s paired with alone, this review would be 5 stars!
Our Roasted Sweet Potato and Pumpkin Soup with spiced pumpkin seed crème fraiche arrived, and we were warned by our server that the bowls were really hot. They were, but the soup wasn’t much beyond lukewarm. My fish burger and my friend’s Basil Scented Arancini arrived shortly after we finished with the soup, and again, neither were warm — you couldn’t even see steam rising off of either dish! After a few bites, I realized that I had actually been served the chickpea burger and not the Mediterranean Fish Burger. When I brought it to the attention of the server, instead of apologizing, he asked me if I had liked it. Not really the point, but at least he had the decency to change the price to what I ate — a whole dollar less! The initial error was just weird…
I don’t know what has changed at Paradiso, and I will give them another try, but it wasn’t up to their usual standards and service this time. Needless to say, I won’t be buying my usual gift certificates here for fear that other friends would run into a similar experience!

Amazing restaurant. Its the perfect hybrid for those looking for a smart casual lunch and for those looking for a trendy formal dinner. The restaurant’s décor is very inviting and the entrees are delicious. I’ve eaten here on several occasions and have always enjoyed both the food and the atmosphere.
Bottom line: if you’re on lakeshore, eat here.

My parents lived around the corner from this place for five years and I never once went in. I’m not sure why it took until lunch today for me to finally give it a whirl. Both the food and service were great.
We were greeted immediately, seated in a nice booth, and the host kindly took our coats to a hidden coat room in the back. The fresh bread they bring out at the start of the meal is delicious; moist and unlike any other bread I’ve seen served at a restaurant. I wouldn’t wish a gluten-​allergy on anyone, but I wasn’t complaining that my lunch date had to leave all the bread for me. The only disappointment was that they were out of my first choice (pork penne), but my back-​up (a pizza special) was darn tasty. The price point is pretty typical for downtown Oakville, but the place lacked a lot of the pretension that accompanies some of the other options. I would go back.

Great place, and great downtown oakville location. I heard the service could be lacking for large groups of 10 or more. But its a nice spot for a date. The food and prices are on par with most other restaurants of this type. The interior is nice, dark and elegant.
Derek