Symposium Cafe Restaurant Milton

Beware of choosing this restaurant. They are extremely unprofessional! Servers refuse to even acknowledge their customers despite staring at them for several minutes. If you order for pick up, the food is left sitting on the counter with servers going about their way while youre standing their waiting to be attended to. At 9 something pm on Tuesday, 30th of June, I witnessed a delivery driver working for a courier company just stand there with the food sitting on the counter, and server watches.

This is a well run Cafe Lounge, that has helpful and nice staff. The food is prepared fast and is well worth the cost. Lots of free parking is available.

I went in for dinner today with the kids and the food quality was very poor. Surprised, I told my waitress and the manager came to speak with me. I will not go into details, however the young manager did tell me this was the third complaint he had and that the last time they found a piece of plastic in with the salad. Really? Was that supposed to make me feel better, let alone rectify the issue? Basically, I gather what he was trying to tell me was sorry for your luck as could have been worse?

Birthday Disappointment

For my 23rd birthday we decided to visit Symposium for desert as we have had it before and really liked it. Last couple times we went the service had been alright but nothing to brag about. This time however, the service was the worst service I have ever experienced. Our waitress, as soon as we sat down, came around asking if we wanted drinks. We asked for a couple of minutes as we just wanted to decide what to eat. Half an hour later and she had still not returned. We watched her as she would stand around the bar and wipe tables. She even served a couple who came in ten minutes after us who received their drinks and food before we even got to order. This is for my birthday as well which she was informed about and we were a small group of people. This may have been my last time ever going there for anything other than drinks. The atmosphere of the cafe is different and interesting and the food isn’t half bad either. I recommend going to this place if you have a large crowd so you are noticed by your waiter or waitress or just hitting up the bar as the bartenders are very friendly.

Never Returning

Went there for the 1st time yesterday for dinner. The restaurant was nice and big. After we ordered dinner, we waited over an hour for our food. Once it came out the sweet potato fries were luke warm and so was the burgers after I took a bite out of it. We called the waitress and told her, she took it back and asked if we wanted it warmed up, I stated no I wanted fresh ones and new fries. I kept the salad. Not even few minutes later, the burgers and fries were brought to us......how can you cook a burger in 3 minutes????? I asked the waitress if it was fresh and she said yes, when I checked, I noticed the chunk was still taken out of it from the bite I had earlier. The fries were at least fresh and we kept that portion and sent the burgers back. Finally 10-15minutes later the burgers were brought and now they were freshly cooked.....yet the buns were still the same ones as earlier and they were soggy by now......I didn't care, I was hungry so I ate what I could.burger was OK, not great but ok. The waitress cleared the table and brought the bill......no discounts at all which I believe I deserved. I called the Manager and spoke to her about the situation. She denied everything and said that each time the order came out, it was fresh.....she actually argued with me about it. After much argument, she finally game me a discount. I eat at a lot of different restaurants, some great, some good and some not so good but I have never been treated like this in any restaurant. This manager needs to take classes on how to deal with their customers.......I will never return to this restaurant again or any other Symposium as she has put a bad taste in my mouth from this awful experience.

Symposium Service and Quality you can count on

I have had the pleasure of going to the Symposium many times in the last year. Although there has been the odd hick up. The manager Manny stepped up and made it right and then some. Consistency and a nice relaxing atmosphere, at a good price. What more can you ask for. Always a pleasure and will frequent more.

I love this place! Or do I?

I've been here a couple of times. Their pizzas great, waffles pretty good...cheesecakesto die for, and tea fruit smoothies excellent. Although those items are good, it would have been better if they were at least served up warm (waffle and pizza). The service is extremely slow. I understand it may take a while to cook the food, but at least have it served to my table when it's ready. I went a few days ago and had the chicken pesto sandwich with a vinagarette salad side. The salad was delicious as always, beautiful dressing and just enough of everything. I was expecting the sandwich to be warm, full of flavour, maybe some garlic..? Or melted cheese? Possibly a nice bun or panini bread. What I got was something like a pre cooked subway chicken breast (barely warm) on what seemed like a very very light wide hot dog bun with tasteless pesto (ironic) and the tiniest amount of goat cheese (was it even there?). I have to say I was very dissapointed. Gorgeous place, I just was not satisfied.

Food was good, but i agree with everyone else, service is too slow. I have gone to symposium a couple of times. Our server kept going to the bar with the other servers and would stand there. I had to get up to get her attention. Atmosphere is nice, and the drink specials are not bad, but with soo many other places in milton now, this is not the only option anymore!

Without great customer service at any restaurant, you run the risk of losing repeat customers. I went to Symposium this past weekend for the third time. The first two times were not enjoyable, but I thought I would give it another try, considering that there are not many places to eat in Milton. The food, although a bit over-priced, is good. I have no compliants there. The service however, is horrible. We hadn't been here for a while, so it took us a few minutes to choose what we wanted. Our server kept coming around a lot asking if we had ordered yet - even though he saw our menus were still open. Once we ordered the food, our server kept coming to our table. You don't need to come ask us if "everything is ok" or "if we need anything" every 2 minutes - if everything was ok 2 minutes ago, it probably will be ok two minutes later. It seemed that he was trying to rush us, and that was not appreciated. We weren't in a booth - just sitting at a table, and it was not packed - so why the rush?

The service was great - people were friendly and attentive. I ordered the salmon and it was relatively bland, definitely subpar to anything I could've made at home, and a further disappointment given the price. One of the things people seem to like about Symposium is the atmosphere. To me, it looks like they're trying way too hard. The fake cracked murals make the restaurant seem less authentic and give it the typical look of a chain restaurant. I'd take paintings by local artists over blown-up fake Raphael paintings any day.

My first time in for dinner...Appetizers were...

My first time in for dinner...Appetizers were great!...Crab cake sandwich was not...mostly filler...and dry...Bun was toasted so hard it wasn't edible...Other family members enjoyed their meals....Very disappointed for my first time...but it was just my meal...May go back...won't have the crab cake,..that's for sure!

This is a very warm and cozy place to visit and...

This is a very warm and cozy place to visit and eat at. We have been there many times in both the morning and evening. never had an issue with service, food quality. I would recommend this place to anyone looking for quality and a fair price. Manni hats off to you! Manni makes Symposium our place of choice when heading out for a meal or drinks.

We have eaten here many times since it opened...

We have eaten here many times since it opened, the food is always great, service can sometimes be so-so, depends who you get. I do not like the seating at all but we sit at the fire place table and it is nice and cozy. Go for the specials they are always great and cheap. Enjoy!

great

great experience.. friends recomened this place to us after they said they had a great breakfast.They must be doing something right because they had a line up for breakfast and I made reservations for dinner(recomended) by my friend thx for a great evening you will see us again best place in milton for casual dining

2 strikes then a home run

previous visits would have given similar reviews to above but the ambience drew us back and we were delighted to find the growing pains and kinks seemed to have been worked out: staff was attentive and never had to be chased down (thanks Skylar); food was hot and delicious and sensitively seasoned; fish was cooked to perfection and cappucinos were as good as european. Chocolate desserts were still a bit too saccharin for our tastes, so will have to try the fruit tortes next time.

Excellent Hospitality!!

Thursday night after work I had s strong craving for mash potatoes so I decided to try out the symposium cafe. I was amazed with hospitality, everyone welcomed me treated me with superior service especially from Manny. I felt right at home!!! I loved the cool relaxing feel of the cafe and the food was excellent.I'm looking forward to my next visit. Thank you!

A little understanding

I went to Symposium for dinner on Saturday night for dinner and enjoyed myself with another couple.This place has to be the most popular place in town. How like anywhere in milton this restaurant is trying its best! And is not let me down yet. I hope they keep up the hard work and I know there trying hard! I can see that and like everyone in milton we appreciate it! Trust me go for dinner and you will enjoy it!

Good Food - if you have awhile

2nd Experience at the Symposium, first time we were seated on the patio and were not served for 20 mins, at that point we walked out. After a few months we decided to give it another try, the food & atmosphere were good - slow service would be an understatement. 20 mins for our drinks to be served, 15 mins to get the bill after asking twice. Frustrating. Not going to make it 3 for 3.

Lovely Staff, excellent food, great ambiance

I had the pleasure of visiting my kids in Milton recently and they suggested The Symposium Cafe. The servers, Christine and Susan were great, attentive and on the ball. The food was out of this world and the atmosphere of the place was lovely. I love the 20 foot ceilings and the warm Italian look of the place. I visit Italy a lot and this was just like home!

best breakfast

My family and I recently went to Symposium because it was recommended by a friend. We went for breakfast and wow...what a great deal. The eggs were done exactly the way I asked. The bacon was crispy. The atmosphere and the service was great. What I really liked was the complimentary coffee. I had a cappacino that was delicious. My daughter had a fresh fruit freezy that she loved. I will definitely come back for dinner to try their "famous" burger.