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RATINGS
Food
Service
Value

Details

This property has identified as Women-owned.
PRICE RANGE
US$5 - US$18
CUISINES
Canadian, Healthy, Dining bars
Special Diets
Vegetarian Friendly, Vegan Options, Gluten Free Options
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meals, features, about
Reviews (81)
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29
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LanguageEnglish
Traveller rating
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13
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Reviewed October 19, 2023 via mobile

Read these reviews and save your money! So 8 of on a Wednesday evening, the place was empty. Waited 25 mins for a flat tasteless beer. Placed food orders, after 40 mins they came out they did not have any ribs left. 20 mins later...(still no entrees insight) out and said we could not give us the naked wings we ordered as they had breaded all the wings by mistake ! Eventually the Entrees came out (over 1 hr & 10 min). The plates of food sat in the window not been delivered for for 10 to 15 mins. To say the food was tastelessis a massive understatement. I saw 3 people working in the kitchen, 1 server AND THE PLACE WAS EMPTY! Seriously unimpressive place. Bathrooms were clean but had numerous flies & smelled bad. The 'icing on the cake' was when they started cleaning the floors nearby with very very strong bleach - while we were till eating 🙄. Never again, absolutely do not bother!More

Date of visit: October 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed January 21, 2023

My friend and I went to the Symposium in Barrie on Cundles. The first we went was for lunch and it was the best service we had. We then went on January 21 and had a server name Troy. We waited a long time for...someone to come get our drink and waited almost the exact same time to get our drinks delivered. Once he did Troy asked if we were ready to order and I said yes then he walked away from us. My friend has a glass that had a big crack in it so we asked a different server for a different cup because it is a physical contamination issue. Troy was standing and talking instead of bringing my friend back a drink .and when he did he brought no napkins or straw for her and the you could see lip marks on the cup which is another contamination. She didn't want to complain again about the cup because she was going to use a straw so we waited for the appetizer and asked for napkins and a straw. Troy only brought a napkins and we had to ask again when he came back. He continued to talk with other servers before bringing us the straw. Once he brought us our food he walked away quickly so I was unable to ask for another drink. He then went to the table beside us and I watched as he took off his shoe and pulled up his sock and continued to watch him to see if he would wash his hands. He visited other tables, touched counters, touched screen, and delivered drinks and not once did he wash his hands. My friend and I got the butter chicken and my friend can not have too much spice for medical reasons so we asked for another drink when he came back to ask how everything was. I watched him visit other tables after us and deliver them their drinks and we waited for over 20 minutes before he came back to ask how it was without drinks. He talked more with servers before finally bringing us our drinks. Troy then again took off his shoe in front of my friend and I and at this point I wanted to leave and felt sick to think that I ate at a place where a server will touch his feet and not wash his hands. My friend felt sick to her stomach due to the spiciness of the food without a drink that we asked for and I could not finish my meal after watching him touch his feet and wash his hands. I then asked another server to speak to the manager that night. When the manager came we explained everything and gave him compliments because we knew he was new and the manager was very respectful and apologetic. But once he came back to ask us if we wanted anything else he was rude and told us that he gave us a discount and explained how he did not realize that he was doing it and told us he washes his hands all the time in the back and we just did not see it. I watched him each time and he never went to the back and instead delivered other foods. We also got dessert because the meal was too spicy for my friend and we waited over 20 minutes for the dessert. Once again Troy was starring at us and talking instead of bringing us dessert. My friend went up to cancel and Troy stopped talking and quickly grabbed the desserts and brought it us. He brought the bill and took almost 8 minutes to bring back the machine. We were at that restaurant for almost an hour and 30 minutes and most of it was waiting for the server to pay us attention. My friend and I have never been treated like this before and she goes there all the time and she was very angry about the service there. I hope you enforce Troy to retake the food safety training that you need to serve because if he continues this way many people will become sick which can lead to lawsuits. We got $5 off of our $86 bill to watch a server with no regard to safety and no respect when we complained about him contaminating food and other surfaces. Cross-contamination will occur if he continues to do so. He forgot almost everything, ignored us, was contaminating things. This is unacceptable and I personal will not go back but if I do and Troy touches anything on my table I will walk out.More

Date of visit: January 2023
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed April 7, 2022

The worst mojito ever! Meals are so small for the price you pay and also we didn’t like the taste of chicken so don’t waste your money … yes the place and decorations are nice and it seems you pay for it and not for...actual food so next time I’ll take my family to Cora’s place on MapleviewMore

Date of visit: April 2022
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed September 4, 2021

This was the first time I had been to one of the Symposium locations and it absolutely lived up to my expectations! This is where we had our engagement party and we were completely taken care of with everything we needed! They were so accommodating...for a party of 17 and were amazing! Highly recommend for a big or small function! Also amazing food!!More

Date of visit: September 2021
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Reviewed July 25, 2021 via mobile

We had another couple visit from Ottawa and decided to go for dinner here as we had been previously. We were excited to be able to dine indoors. The decor is lovely and the waitress attentive, albeit a little hyper. We first ordered drinks and...they did not have one of the beers on the menu available. Two mojitos were ordered and was pretty bitter. The waitress told us she didn't know how to make it and needed help from someone else. I guess there isn't a proper bartender on staff. We ordered 3 french onion soups which were underwhelming. One of them didn't have any bread and very little cheese. We ordered 2 bruschetta flatbread. These came cold and the bread was barely toasted. We also had a Symposium burger. This was tasteless a mushy. We asked for the desert menu and were surprised by the exorbitant prices of the items! $16.95 for a Signature desert!! Needless to say we left without desert. $70 for 2 meals (hamburger and flatbread) and 2 drinks is a little much. Won't be back.More

Date of visit: July 2021
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Reviewed June 8, 2021

The atmosphere and décor are very nice however unfortunately that is the only positive things I can mention. The food I ordered was over cooked (burnt) and after I cut out the burnt spots I was left with very little to eat. Although the staff...and manager were clearly able to observe this there was nothing done about it. I know times are tough so I didn't pursue it further however I did let them know I was disappointed and wouldn't be back-they didn't seem to care too much about this or try to correct this impression.More

Date of visit: July 2020
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Reviewed February 7, 2020

I went there for an early dinner before a movie on February 5, 2020. The staff were very friendly and attentive. The menu is large, but I don’t think this is always a good thing. My husband and I shared Florentine Mussels as an appetizer....The mussels were small and didn’t taste especially fresh. The sauce was too thick. The dish came with 4 small pieces of toasted baguette. They charged an extra $1.25 for extra toast. Our mains were fish tacos which were ok though not stellar. The waitress asked what we wanted for sides and we chose onion rings. These were good but we were charged extra for them, unbeknownst to us. I ordered a Moscow Mule which was a disaster- all lemon juice no ginger beer which I had to send back. They made me a fresh one which was better. All in all it was only fair and at a total of $70, not great value. Probably wouldn’t go back again.More

Date of visit: February 2020
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Reviewed December 24, 2019 via mobile

Celebrating our anniversary I took my husband here for dinner. When I was there last it was my first visit as a group and it was great with lots of choices for all diets. Thinking of the great options I took my husband and we...ended up having the Friday special and was pleasantly surprised at how good it was with decent portions. We will be back.More

Date of visit: November 2019
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed December 20, 2019 via mobile

We came for dessert after a movie date and we were not disappointed! The server was very helpful and explained what each dessert in the case was, then seated promptly. Our service was excellent and so were the desserts! Thank you Symposium!

Date of visit: December 2019
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed December 9, 2019

As take out, I ordered a western and a mocha at 10am on a cold rainy day. I picked up my order and when I got back to the office found that the western was burnt (and soggy) and the mocha was a cold drink...with fancy cream and chocolate... not a hot drink. I order mocha's all over the place and have never received a cold drink. Now it's too late to go back to fix the order and I'm back at work. I came to this restaurant when it first opened and had terrible service... and with all the choices in the same plaza had no need to ever return. Too bad the experience hasn't improved. It seems to have potential and the location for great business. Lovely staff... just not happy with the food. Cook's tip: if the food is meant to be crunchy (toast, deep fried foods, etc.) cutting off the corners of the styrofoam will make sure it doesn't end up soggy when it gets to where it's going.More

Date of visit: December 2019
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed November 6, 2019

Warm friendly atmosphere to compliment the delicious breakfast served by helpful staff. Our visit was with son and his wife along with our two young grandchildren. The staff were especially friendly and attentive to our family (especially our active grandchildren) The food was very good...and our experience was most enjoyableMore

Date of visit: October 2019
Helpful?1  
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed October 5, 2019 via mobile

I ordered chicken souvlaki meal. First I was told I couldn't order it as it was just past 5:30pm. Then as I looked for another item, the waiter said he could order it from another part of the menu...same meal $5 extra. Strange??? The chicken...kabobs were a very poor quality...cold,slimy texture inside,very processed chicken. I skipped the rice and instead doubled up on the salad...glad I did as the the original salad was very small. Would not recommend this restaurant as its quality is poor and it isnt enough food for a dinner. Also had to remind the waiter twice for my pitas bread order...which arrived half way thru dinner very soggy.More

Date of visit: October 2019
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This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Reviewed September 28, 2019

This is one of my favourite restaurants and I have always enjoyed whatever I have had. I like the fact that you can order gluten free and love their gluten free hamburger. The food and service is always great. Had the best meal ever the...last time we were there...everything was delicious!More

Date of visit: September 2019
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Reviewed September 26, 2019

Great service and good selection of menu items.Have been to The one in barrie and one in Mississauga,both great.

Date of visit: September 2019
Helpful?
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Reviewed July 22, 2019

I eat here every Sunday with a colleague always great food and service. Usually get the eggs Florentine with bacon. Mimosa's are great, bourbon sours are too. Love the waitresses they are great. Nice cake selection and they are for one on Sundays. Steak and...eggs is really tough so avoid. Other breakfast items are all great.More

Date of visit: July 2019
Helpful?
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
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SYMPOSIUM CAFE RESTAURANT BARRIE - Updated 2023 Restaurant Reviews, Menu, Prices & Restaurant Reviews - Food Delivery & Takeaway - Tripadvisor

Frequently Asked Questions about Symposium Cafe Restaurant Barrie

Yes, Symposium Cafe Restaurant Barrie offers takeaway services.

Symposium Cafe Restaurant Barrie is rated accordingly in the following categories by Tripadvisor travellers:
  • Food: 3.5
  • Service: 4
  • Value: 3.5