Via Vai Pizzeria & Wine Bar

Came here with my team at work. About 20 of us. Pizza was cold and meager toppings. Food took too long to come. Complete incompetence from the wait staff.
Our hour lunch turned into almost 3 hours… waiter didn’t inform us of the 18% automatic gratuity. Bills were mixed up.
Food was less than mediocre. The spot is cool looking but that’s where the positives stop. Would not recommend. Go to Tosto’s right around the corner.

Thoroughly disappointing.
It was between Via Vai or Tosto Quickfire down the street for a bite at lunch. Looks upscale and appealing, but it does not a reflect the poor service guests receive.
The moment I walked in with my company, servers/​hosts were on their phones or busy behind the counter. The restaurant only had 3 other tables seated. There was no reason to have ignored us. I was ready to walk out at this point to go down to Tosto.
The menu is decent, but not anything that would WOW you or set it apart from other Italian eateries in TO. I ordered the carbonara and the Margarita pizza. Least to say — my pizza came out doughy, and soggy in the middle. It was incredibly salty for a pizza which was the saving grace for that dish. The carbonara pasta was soft, the pasta did not come out al dente, the sauce was flavourless, the only good about that dish was the pancetta. Overall, the food is ²⁄₅.
Service 1.5÷5 — unattentive service. Servers are on their phones in public, I had to try for 10 minutes to wave a server down to get our orders in.
Would not return. Don’t let the look of the restaurant fool you.

One Word: EMBARASSING.
A restaurant that has so much potential, but unfortunately in the wrong location. A beautiful wall mural spanning what seems to be 50 ft high with vibrant colours, and would probably attract the business investors in the financial district, sipping a glass of expensive wine, talking up a business deal… However… I feel like this establishment is just going downhill.
Looking from the outside, the floor to ceiling glass windows will shOwcase the beautiful artwork, luring you in. You see that there are cocktail and wine deals from 4 –7, seeming attractive… Both the reasons that I had to try this place.
I get here around 6pm. The place is pretty much dead. We are seated and the waitor tells us that they are revamping the wine list so he is going to talk it out with us. We ask him what type of red wines there were and he starts describing them as «leathery» and «jammy»., I have no idea what the heck he is talking about nor do I have the slightest idea what type of wine it is. I tell him I’d like someone like a Malbec or a cab. He tells me I have two very different tastes yet cannot really compare it t the ones he listed earlier.
We get our wines. They are fine. We try a second glass and I ask him to name the wine for me. He starts to tell me about the sangiovese but stops halfway and apologizes that he cannot remember the full name… Sigh. He exclaims how bad everything is and that this is really embarrassing. No kidding,
We finally order food. Well attempted to… I wanted to go straight to dessert and not to my surprise, the dessert option I selected is not available… Not really sure what type of establishment this is. I order the Brussels sprout salad… It is absolutely tasteless… No flavour, no acidity, just plain greens on a plate that look pretty.
The manager came by a couple times to see how things were going but not sincere at all… What was I really supposed to say… What type of restaurant are you running?
The bill is stupid expensive. Each five ounce glass came to $ 13 each. So much for any wine deal, any service, anything to wow about.
I think the place should just be turned into an art gallery… Think there would be even more traffic and less expectations.
So wish I went somewhere else.

The Bad: House wine cost me $ 17.50 (tax in) for a GLASS! HOW? I was so disgusted and so were the poor bartenders who were serving me. Don’t go there for wine! Go to the LCBO and buy a decent bottle for the same price.
Otherwise was there for an event– food and apps were decent. Ambiance and location were good!
Best– the servers were very kind, friendly and understanding.

Order delivery through the app they promote: maegan
Ordered a marinara pizza with prosciuto and parmesan, got a pizza with anchovies and no cheese– called Via Vau to tell them about the error, was told by Marie that she knew the app had an old menu, that they could not give me a new pizza and that i should contact the app customer service for a refund… Wtf? If you promote your business and the app and there is an error, it is no the customer’s fault, really shameful and disrespectful.

Very artsy ambiance. Love the high ceilings and the super tall tower of wine shelves!
The service was so friendly and enthusiastic.
Squid Ink Risotto | Squid ink, shrimp, cuttlefish, octopus, duck egg and truffle salt
— I’ve only been seeing Squid Ink Pasta in Toronto. Luckily, I found a place that does Squid Ink Risotto finally! It’s a Secret though… sooo shhh! It’s not on their menu, but Chef Joe Friday will whip it up upon request.
The risotto was perfectly aldente. The seafood were cooked to perfection. The entire mix of it all with the duck egg was just unreal and takes me back to Italy.
Funghi Pizza | Oyster mushroom, fontina cream and sage
— Loved this pizza! Have always been a big fan of Neapolitan Pizza so I’m happy I found another amazing place aside from Libretto.
Garden of Eden | Sponge cake base, blueberry balsamic panna cotta, 72-​hr dehydrated chocolate, Apple purée, strawberry cream sauce, and lemon poppy seed chip
— Such a creative and artful dessert with very distinct mix of ingredients. Love that it reminds me of Molecular Gastronomy! On its own there’s nothing much but mix it all around and you get something delicious and unique. You get something sweet, sour, bitter, crunchy and chewy.

Via Vai is an upscale yet casual restaurant in the heart of downtown Toronto. It is one of the most beautiful venues I have seen in the city. With very large ceilings the restaurant has incredible art pieces all along the wall with hanging art installations & a beautiful tall wine rack which nears the ceiling top. The menu is Italian food which is delicious, well priced, and tasty! The venue is very clean, spacious, can hold large groups, and is a great place for business lunches/​dinners, events, or just for a classy dinner. The staff are great too! The Chef Joe Friday is especially good! Such a dedicated chef providing excellent food & a culinary experience.
A definite must!

A group of us recently came here on a Friday night to give this place a try in hopes that our dining experience would simply be different from what the customers. After reading the number of dismaying 3 star rated reviews for Via Vai I was really debating on whether to join our dining group and had to make ample research of their menu to see if the offerings could get my curiosity going. In the end it was actually the pictures of the interior which looked like a wing of the AGO had been converted into a restaurant, that got me sold and I went for a meal here.
Even walking up Bay St around 6:30pm when it is starting to get dim outside, that huge mural looming over the bar is not hard to miss.
The ambiance is rather cozy and relaxing that whether you’re here for an intimate (date) night out, just dining with friends or needing to unwind briefly after full day at work, you will probably feel re-​energized while having just a drink or sharing some appetizers with your companions.
However, the positive experience at Via Vai seems to just halt after the overwhelming absorption this artfully swished-​up ambiance.
The group of us learnt this the hard way when our food came to the table. Each of our meals were brought over in a timely fashion, however, the presentation and quality of workmanship of each dish varied, which was noticeable when more than one order of the same dish was brought. The very best example of this inconsistency was the Nudja which is composed of Tomato, Rapini, Spicy Sausage and Caciacovallo. Three of us ordered this pizza and the difference in doneness between all three plates would leave people who seem them speechless with irritation, such as my pizza…
So the first pizza Nudja that was brought to the table looks so well-​presented and appetizing, and so did the second one that was brought over. Then the third pizza came looking so unrecognizable that I thought it was a different pizza from the menu. After a a few seconds of denial about this actually being my Nudja pizza I came to the acceptance that the top had been so over-​cooked that it looked like the final stages of a solar flare on the sun. I decided not to make a complaint about it and because the pizza was thin enough that I folded each slice like a New York-​style Pizza, starting with the most charred part (depicted in the pic) and just devored it as quickly as I could. And have you ever seen a pizza pie base that has been cooked to perfection ever flake up and fall onto your plate with each bite??? I have, and that’s just what kept happening with my pizza.
And just when I thought I was the only one who was having this «slight» mishap did a few other members including the hostess for our dinner face similar issues with their pizzas. A Margarita pizza that was brought looked picture perfect on top; the tomato sauce and mozzarella cheese looked balanced in color with the basil leaves holding their raw form. But when the person tried it, he felt the dough was undercooked and had it returned. The person beside him also had her Margarita pizza brought over only find that it was just more baked than the first Margarita pizza. All around the edge of the pizza were splotches of charred spots that one would find on a naan or flat bread and the basil leaves on top were also cooked that they seemed to have shrunk from their original size.
The discord over the varying differences in which the pizzas were cooked spread through-​out our table to the point where I could notice the people who had the well-​made pizzas looking uncomfortable and embarrassed over the complaints made by those who had the fluke-​out pizzas. I felt quite bad for the embarrassed members of the table because I also usually don’t want to make a huge fuss over a dish if it doesn’t look reasonably prepared. However, what occurred at our table the food was such an unnecessary mishap that could have been carefully prevented by the staff in the kitchen that it was unavoidable to hold one’s disappointment in the quality of the meals.
Our server was really apologetic and tried her best to compensate by offering to ask the cooks to make something different that might positively change the appetites of the disappointed members of our table. I could really hear the sincerity in her voice when she was trying her best to lift the already settled discord among our group, and even when we made our way to the door after paying our bills she delivered the same sincere tone about the mishap over our dining experience.
The concept and formula at Via Vai makes for a very soothing fine-​dining ambiance and I would not like to see that eye catching restaurant front disappear so suddenly if the reviews continue to be negative. Yes, 2.5 stars for the appealing interior design but I can’t eat the walls or the wine bottle tower. Please get the quality of your dishes resolved and hopefully the current group of Unilocalers will have a change of heart and give Via Vai favorable chance

Another pretender restaurant in the big smoke. What do I mean? Beautiful décor and attention to the artistic detail but fail on food.
I have been to too many good pizzerias in Europe and across North America to eat under cooked doughy pizza. Time to fire the pizza chef! Wait, wait, wait… Rewind!
Let’s start from the beginning. I walked in about an hour early ahead of my dinner group. I was greeted by a very nice bartender who took my order for a glass of Chianti. I realized something was ‘off’ on the taste, I have been to too many wineries and lessons to not notice. I did not think about it any further… I simply thought why bother? I just won’t have it again. After all it is a wine bar there will be other wines. After all it is what they do best, right? When my group arrived I settled my bill at the bar thinking I had ordered the 3 ounce, but the bartender served me a 5 ounce. No big deal. I paid the $ 10 and gave her a nice $ 2 tip for her trouble. Of course somebody should change the price in the computer because the amount was $ 11 on the menu. Lax processes on the management side.
I joined my friends at their table and we ordered for ourselves and were dismayed that they would sit a table of 10 in the corner next to the giant wine shelf. Poor planning because when this was decided there was ample space available where the whole bench would not have to get up should someone needed to get in or out.
As we began to order the waitress did not know her product as she had to go back to the kitchen for her answer to which type of pasta came with one of the FOUR pasta dishes. When another friend ordered wine they did not have two of her choices in stock. This is supposed to be a wine bar right?
Now to the one food items. When your specialty is pizza and you have invested in a brick oven and a beautiful restaurant location, your pizza better be good… I really wanted this to be good. When my Margarita pizza arrived I was happy to see it was not overcooked like the others at the table.
Unfortunately, it was all too evident that my pizza was undercooked as the dough itself was not cooked through. The dough was chewy and doughy with a wet dough consistency. I immediately asked for the waitress and returned the pizza. Three other pizzas at the table were also inedible. One was overcooked and burnt but the dough as well was undercooked.
The manager came by to apologize and asked the pizza chef to make her a pizza to test. She also took the affected items off the bill. That is good management. However, better management would be to rectify the issues before they sink the restaurant.
How is it that a pizzeria and wine bar serves inedible pizza and has questionable wine management issues like lack of stock and freshness issues. I hope for their sake it was just a Gremlin day; a fluke. Probably not.
After six months open the kinks better be worked out. Time to take steps toward a higher level or sink fast.
As for myself and the dining club, we will not be returning.
Overall rating: ¹⁄₅
Food: ¹⁄₅
Wine: ¹⁄₅
Service: ³⁄₅ (as a courtesy to the hapless staff — they did try)

Food: 6.5÷10
Atmosphere: ⁸⁄₁₀
Service: ⁷⁄₁₀
Overall experience: ⁷⁄₁₀
I had a really fantastic experience with Via Vai. I celebrated my birthday at the venue this past summer, and the team was amazingly accommodating. We went in a couple of times to taste the food and put together a custom cocktail for the event, really going above and beyond what other places would do (aka just taking your reservation and charging you a minimum of $ 50 a head!)
The day of the event ran really smoothly. Food came out promptly, and they were so kind as to provide a round of champagne on the house for a birthday toast.
I would tend to agree with other reviewers that the food is not the BEST (if you’re looking to truly amazing Italian food, hit up Enoteca Sociale), however it is still generally good food and priced fairly. For me and my birthday experience, what they lacked in flavour, they more than made up for in service and overall experience.
THE BOTTOM LINE: though the food falls short of other very popular Italian spots, had a birthday experience that will keep me coming back!

This little restaurant is hidden away on Bay surrounded by condos. You’d never imagine there would be a good restaurant tucked away here. This place has opened my eyes to other areas of Toronto that can offer great foods.
This place perfect for a date night, its high glass walls and intimate setting is the perfect place to take someone out on a date for drinks. They have a wide selection of cocktails and of course an extensive wine list. I’d recommend the Italiano Gardino, a gin based cocktail with cucumbers and crushed black peppers.
The staff were very kind and helpful if we ever needed anything and are quick to rectify any issues that we had. A friend of mine had ordered a pasta dish and had found a hair in her food. She told our waiter would quickly apologized and quickly got a new meal out for her. As an apology they offered her a dessert on the house.
Now, with that being said its time to turn to the big negative the food and prices.
After eating here, I would have to say the prices for the food doesn’t match up with the quality of the food. The value for money is the pizza. They have a good array of different pizzas for standard price, but I wouldn’t say the food was spectacular. It was satisfying but I’ve had better pizza in Toronto.
That pasta was the worst value for money. My friend had ordered the gnoochi to share with her date, but when the meal came it was only FOUR (Literally four because we counted) gnoochi for the whole dish. I mean for $ 17 that is terrible. There is no way the restaurant could justify the prices, even if they were just made and the potatoes were imported for Ireland!
Overall, this is a great place to get a drink and go on a date ⁵⁄₅.
For food on the other hand, severely overpriced and for the quality of food not worth the money.

3.5÷5.
*The restaurant is gorgeous and perfect for a date night.
*Some of the dishes really needed some final touches to make them perfect.
*A bit expensive for the portion that we received.
*Our server was friendly however she was pretty much overworked. The host was there just to look pretty and didn’t bother to even check for our desserts when we asked (it arrived 45 minutes late!!!).
–Pappardelle Pasta (Lamb ragu, sweet peas, tomatoes, mint) — $ 16:
The pappardelle was slightly under-​cooked for both of us and I wished there was more sauce as the lamb ragu was just perfect! Very hearty with melted-​in-​your-​mouth lamb pieces and seasoned perfectly, my favorite!
–Bavette (?) nero scoglio (Scallop, squid, clams, mussels) — $ 26:
On the menu this dish was actually made with fettucine pasta, however it was sold out that day so the server offered me a different type of pasta.
For $ 26 the portion was quite small, however the pasta was al dente and you can tell Via Vai make their own pasta in house! There were a decent amount of seafood for $ 26 and they were cooked perfectly. However the tomato sauce was lacking in flavor and the whole dish was bland, so it was quite disappointing as I was really looking forward to this dish :(.
–Honey Panna Cotta — $ 7:
It was pretty good. The panna cotta had the right texture and the tangy fruits helped to cut down the sweetness from the honey.
–Tiramisu — $ 7:
I didn’t like the biscotti as it was dry and tough to eat. The tiramisu had a strong espresso and chocolate flavor and the taste was just pure heaven. Surprisingly the base of the tiramisu was a sponge cake instead of lady fingers, which I didn’t mind as I found the tiramisu still held up really well. I also liked how there wasn’t too much mascarpone so the dessert wasn’t too rich nor sweet, and I didn’t think the raspberry sauce was needed

4 thumbs up for ambiance, décor and lighting! Great place to meet with friends and socializing. Food is great but the service was a bit slow granted I went with 15 other gals for a birthday celebration. And the place was packed!
Nice staff and friendly bartenders.
We all tried a bit of everything and we all shared. Appis were good. I highly recommend their pizzas!!! And oh my, the wine list is awesome!!! I’d go back again…

I’ve been meaning to try out this place but was a bit discouraged to as a lot of the reviews on Unilocal said the food is horrible unlike its beautiful décor. I decided to give it a shot anyway and was prepared to be disappointed.
I visited on a Friday afternoon (around 3pm) and it wasn’t too packed. I got squid ink fettuccine ($ 13) and my friend got duck ragu pappardelle ($ 15). Long story short, we really enjoyed our food. The portion wasn’t small at all as a lot of the reviews here said and it was delicious.
The waitresses serving us were so friendly, and the manager dropped by twice to check up on us and seemed genuinely attentive to any concerns we might have had.
The ambiance was great — very bright with glass walls and I do recommend going during the day so you can soak up the sun! Will be a great alternative to patio sitting.
Overall I had a great time and will definitely return.

Thoroughly disappointing.
It is almost as if the owners placed so much time and devotion into the décor that they completely forgot about the food. Hello, this is a restaurant, not an art gallery.
We ordered the Tortellini (braised beef cheek, porcini, heirloom tomatoes, bone marrow, reduction), Fettuccine (squid, ink and olive oil) and the Marinara (Tomato, prosciutto, argula and parmigiano). On the menu, it looked quite promising. I was a bit excited as I had been waiting for the restaurant to open since the construction started months back.
The server took extremely long to take our order, even though the restaurant was hardly half full. He did seem apologetic though.
Boy, was it anti-​climatic when the server pulled up a Tortellini dish with under 10 pieces of pasta. Even the Fettucine was extremely small. Despite being a girl that cannot finish a full serving at any restaurant, the pasta felt barely like a bite.
The pizza turned out surprisingly acceptable, thin crusted, crisp and freshly baked, but still not good enough for me not to vow to never return again.
For all you Bay St. residents, Tosto next door it is.

The brunch is horrible. The Eggs Benedict was dreadful. Firstly its served in a bowl, so everything is sitting in the water that the eggs were poached in. Mmmmm… tepid egg water, just gross. The potatoes were cold, eggs were cold. It was a brown bland dish. There was only one other table dining for brunch so not sure why the food was cold. Considering how empty it was, the service wasn’t great either. Won’t return for brunch.
Unfortunate really because the look of this place is just great.

I had such high hopes for Via Vai. I work across the street from Via Vai and when I heard that they were offering a $ 15 lunch menu, my first thought was, «yeh! I don’t have to make the trek to Pizzeria Libretto.» Sure, I did not expect the pizza to be nearly as good as PL, but I was hopeful. When I asked my colleagues to check it out with me, they all told me — I am not exaggerating — all 6 that I had asked — told me that they had heard horrible things about this restaurant. So rather than listen to them, I figured that a new establishment should be given the opportunity to iron out their kinks.
This week I met a friend here for lunch, and the first thing we noticed when we sat down was how cold it was. Approximately 5 minutes later our waitress came by (btw, we were the only people in the restaurant at 11:30am). My friend does not drink coffee, so she asked for tea. She was told that they did not have any tea. So my friend asked for something else — can’t remember what it was — and the waitress said, we only have what is in our menu. Hmmm… tea IS on your menu! Any other service-​oriented establishment would have gotten someone to run over to Sobey’s located a block away to pick up some tea! In the end I ordered a cappuccino and my friend ordered a decaf coffee. I then asked about the $ 15 lunch special and she looked at me like I had three heads. I then explained to her what the $ 15 lunch special was, and she admitted to not knowing what I was talking about. So I suggested that she ask her manager. She came back a few minutes later and told us that this special was only for when they first opened. Hmmm, odd, I have the menu and nowhere in the menu does it have an expiry date (I am attaching the menu). My friend did not want to make a fuss, so we ordered a pizza.
20 minutes later our pizza came out but still no sign of our coffees. We inquired about our coffee and we were told that they were fixing the machine — the bartender was not there and he was the only one that knew how to use the espresso machine. And you call yourself an Italian restaurant!!! WOW! Every person on your payroll should know how to make espressos in their sleep! Then we wondered why they did not tell us about the delay 15 minutes before while we sat there wondering what the hell was going on! Almost 45 minutes after we made our drink order, our coffees came out, and my coffee tasted rancid. Worst coffee I have ever had. Something must have gone terribly wrong when they were learning how to use the machine.
So, as much as I hate admitting it; my colleagues were 100% right. I should have stuck to PL. If the service had been good, all the hiccups would have dramatically changed our experience. Though the pizza was tasty, when you put everything that happened together, this was a disastrous experience. So take it from me and my colleagues, you are better off making the trek to Pizzeria Libretto, or even give Tosto a try (keep in mind that Tosto gets insanely loud).
Two stars were given only because the pizza was decent.

First of all, this place is GORGEOUS. The other reviewers are absolutely right in saying its a beautiful place — high ceilings, clean white space and a looming wine tower. The service is great, had absolutely no problems with the service here but the food.
The portions are tiny. Like really tiny. Especially the pasta. The pappardelle is a decent size (but definitely not for a hungry man!) but still on the smaller side. It was the tortellini that was absolutely tiny. It was around 6 pieces — barely even covering the bottom of the dish. Would definitely NOT recommend getting pasta here.
Instead, get the pizza which is a decent size for the price and is crispy thin. You can tell its very fresh and I love the charred bits from their stone oven. I liked it but didn’t LOVE it enough to come back here… would choose Libretto over Via Vai any day!
We also got the charcuterie board ($ 25 for the salumi/​fromaggi mixed board) which was really good but not enough to make me go back. The board itself had a variety of cheeses and cured meats, some apple, beets, fig slices, pickled vegetables and purees. Heads up because the apple butter and the crostini at the top are freaking delicious!

Since seeing this GORGEOUS restaurant featured in Toronto Life, I had to try.
First off, Via Vai is a lovely designed restaurant: tall ceilings featuring glass walls all around and modern artwork. I kind of wish the cuisine matched the décor as Via Vai is listed as a pizzeria and the atmosphere, despite its expensive-​looking interior, is casual.
I had made reservations on Open Table for 3 at 6:45, but my parents and I happened to be in the area for 5:50. We decided to go in and see if they had space.
WARNING!
Try and avoid the communal-​like tables to the right of the restaurant (when you enter) with the back-​less seats. First of all, the space between each seat and other tables are minimal, which means it would get very uncomfortable having people/​waiters push behind you. We were initially brought to these tables, but my mom said her back wouldn’t allow it and we got a table with regular chairs instead.
The menu is simple and we of course got the pizza’s. Verdict is a-​ok. Nothing to cry about, but certainly a notch up or two than Pizza Pizza. My Tortellini was so, so disappointing: the pasta skin was dry and hard. The waitress indicated to me that because of the complaints, all the pasta dishes (except the Tortellini which had 5 or 6 pieces) had been made bigger. We also ordered the fish which is brought whole to you; it can be deboned for you (but as a Chinese person, I know how to debone my own fish!). Fish was great — but again, it was simply steamed and at $ 22, I thought it was priced very reasonable.
Desserts again are few and simple: One Tiramisu (good), one dense chocolate cake of some sort (ok, but too heavy and rich for me), and the third item I forgot.
The Wine list is what you would expect for an Italian restaurant — our table ordered a lovely Valpolicella and because I was loving my wines so much, I ordered two glasses of other various Reds.
Service was great — by the time we left the restaurant, 7:30−8ish, the restaurant was full so reservations are recommended. I am glad we came to the restaurant early because no «regular» tables were available.
Overall, I am glad I tried this place out. I don’t think I would necessarily make it a point to come back here for dinner: the food was really average. But, this is a great drinks place and the bar is lovely. Would definitely come here with my girls for a glass (or botella) di vino.

We came here for dinner after hearing that it had opened. The environment is very nice, with a modern art gallery vibe and a ceiling so high that I wondered if it was expensive to keep the place air conditioned. The highlight by far, though, is the curving tower of wine bottles complete with a rolling ladder. The service was friendly and quick. We ordered pizzas (I got the Diavolo, which I recommend!) which were tasty with a chewy crust (in a good way). All in all a great dining experience!
The one caveat is the price. With a drink, your meal can quickly go over $ 30 per person, making this place less accessible on a student budget. Nevertheless, worth checking out if you’re looking to spend a bit more on dinner for a cool and novel environment: P