Terra Restaurant - Vaughan

I am so pleased to see Terra survive the pandemic and the many shut downs. They have invested in their business and expanded and beautified their patio (the side and the back). I was happy to see some of the former wait staff still working at Terra! Now let's talk about the food beautifully presented as always, fresh and generously portioned. We enjoyed the savory octopus appetizer (fresh and tender) and the prawn tacos. The entrees were served really hot (nice as patio dining tends to cool food faster). I recommend both of these entrees the branzino (substantial meaty white fish) and the seafood angel hair pasta. The seafood included large prawns. Everything was fresh.

I’ve been to Terra many times and it’s one of my favourite restaurants so I arranged to have the Chef’s Table for myself and six other family and friends on a Saturday night. Terra has always been a beautiful place and although the Chef’s Table is a cozy, private room it would’ve nice if it was a little less “cozy.” By that I mean the distance of the chairs to the walls is pretty small so you are constantly having to move your chair inwards to allow staff to get past you to serve water…wine…food etc. Not a deal breaker but a little annoying to always be shuffling your chair positions. Service was very good and most of the food got rave reviews. The raw oysters…calamari…squash soup…bone marrow…Shrimp Diablo and Caesar salad were all delicious as were the mains of Portobello mushrooms…Arctic Char…Assorted seafood…Ostrich and the New York strip with the calamari and strip steak being standouts. There were a couple of misses…ironically on the easiest entrée to prepare and the most expensive item on the menu. My friend ordered the Seafood Spaghettini but asked to sub Rigatoni pasta instead. Unfortunately the pasta was under cooked and crunchy. Not el dente'...el crunche'. Poorly cooked pasta should not happen at a restaurant of Terra’s quality. On the other end of the spectrum I ordered 4 oz. of the Wagyu beef medium rare and most of it was inedible. There was so much gristle…not fat…hard, rubbery gristle…on the slices that I’m shocked whoever prepared and sliced the beef would serve it because the gristle was very tough to cut and impossible to chew. I informed our waitress and she was very apologetic and informed the manager who came and apologized as well. Everything was handled properly and the Wagyu was removed from the bill but again, a high end protein at a high end restaurant shouldn’t be treated like that. For my appetizers I ordered the Caviar and the Oysters Rockefeller. I was told the Rockefeller was not available so I subbed in 6 raw oysters. As I finished the caviar our server returned and said that Oysters Rockefeller WAS available so she brought me my original order. I found the oysters very dry…the topping was firm and crispy…not the usual moist flavour bomb of butter and spinach. It was OK…I know chefs like to add their own twist to traditional recipes…but I prefer the taste of the original. The cocktails were very good and so were the desserts. Overall everyone really enjoyed their experience at Terra and I know I’ll be back in the future.

We had our office Christmas dinner at Terra and we would not have been more pleased. The ambiance is extraordinary and the service exceeded our expectations. Thank you to our server Iris who was the star of the night.

Perfect restaurant with friendly staff, valet parking, lovely ambience, excellent food and drink selection. Food was made to perfection and the staff service was impeccable. The price of this experience is expensive. However, you get what you pay for. Nowadays, all too often, restaurants charge a top tier price for a substandard experience.

We wanted a private party during pandemic without distractions. The chef’s room was dark but perfect for 8 up to 12). The best thing about Terra is the service. Iris took care of every detail. The food was good—better than Sarpa’s surpassed their customer care too). We enjoyed her recommendations: 2 appetizers buffalo cheese went well with the bread calamari); 1 Caesar salad; 2 famous seafood spaghetti; 1 tender roast chicken; 2 small steaks; 2 x$45 char fish; and a gnocchi. With three cocktails and a plating fee $5 each for sliced birthday cake) the total including 20% gratuity was $735. All of the staff wore masks, although guests weren’t expected to wear one. Until the patio opens, the chef’s room is a solution to party planning with seniors for pandemic peace-of-mind. Servings are rather small yet not salty. One thing though: the place is not wheelchair/accessible, and getting in/out of the restaurant or washroom stalls can be tricky due to heavy doors. There’s no view, but parking is free outside beside Philoxenia Greek restaurant. The address is listed wrong, as the entrance is on the Markham not Vaughan) side of Thornhill. I would book early as there’s one chef’s room, and look for the red Christmas lights under a dentist sign; Terra’s easy to miss but the entrees spot on!