Choose Your Dining Companions
The huge variety of cuisine available during Summerlicious is wonderful, but it also means there's a lot of room for disagreement. You should decide early who you want to Summerlicious with, so you have plenty of time to find a restaurant (or restaurants) that will suit all of your party's tastes.Decide on a Day and Time to Dine
In 2009, Summerlicious runs from July 3rd to July 19th. The hours of each restaurant will vary.Pick Your Prix Fixe
There are three price categories for Summerlicious lunch and dinner menus:Lunch $15, $20 or $30
Dinner $25, $35 or $45Those prices include a starter, entrée and dessert, but do not include beverages, taxes or tips. Be prepared - many restaurants will include the tip as a gratuity charge right on your bill, and the percentage they calculate it at will vary. You may want to ask the restaurant about their gratuity policy when you call.
Select Your Restaurant(s)
Now that you know how much you and your dining companions are planning to spend, you can all visit the City of Toronto Summerlicious website where the Summerlicious Prix Fixe menus are posted online. Note that many restaurants won't be able to do any substitutions during Summerlicious, so it's important everyone agrees on an appealing menu.There are helpful icons on the site to let you know which restaurants have vegetarian options and which are wheelchair accessible.
Make the Call
Call the restaurant you're interested in directly, using the number provided with the online menu. Be sure to specifically mention that you want to make a "Summerlicious reservation", and don't forget to double-check any details that are important to your group such as the gratuity policy, allergy information or dress code.Show Up
If you won't be able to make it to the restaurant, you should try to give at least 48 hours notice to cancel. This will allow another group of diners to enjoy the Summerlicious experience.Enjoy!
- Summerlicious is presented by American Express, so if you have an AmEx card you can use front-of-the-line privileges to start making your reservations a few days earlier than everyone else.
- Create a restaurant "short-list" when you're looking over the menus with your dining companions. That way if the first one you call isn't able to give you the time you'd like or accommodate other needs, you won't feel pressured to make a reservation you're not happy with.
- Once you've made the reservation, print out the online menu and bring it with you. Sometimes these have more detail on your choices than the restaurant's menus.
- If you really enjoy your meal, you can always recommend it to others on the About Toronto forum.
- Internet Access to Browse the Menus
- A Phone to Reserve your Spot
- A Summerlicious-Ready Appetite
