Cluny Bistro

Happy three year anniversary to my husband! We were determined to have a lovely anniversary celebration and bring the baby with us, and we remembered that Cluny had a large space that could surely accommodate a stroller, so we gave them a call.

Restaurant: Cluny Bistro
Location: Distillery District
Meal: Dinner
Day: Wednesday
Son's Age: 8 weeks

We made a reservation for 5:45 (ah the "early bird special" dinner time - I guess I'm really not in my 20s anymore) and let them know there would be a stroller, since our son was not old enough to sit in a high chair. They told us not to worry and they would have a table for us. Of course, I am feeding my son on demand and his schedule required us to call and move our reservation to 6:15. Luckily, there was no problem in doing so. We found out on our ridiculously long drive home that Beyoncé's concert was the same night so I guess there weren't too many people having fancy dinners.

Accessibility: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
They weren't kidding about the table - we were seated in a quiet corner near the patio so we had a perfect view of both inside and outside the restaurant, and we parked our stroller easily beside us.

There was also plenty of room between tables for me to push the stroller through without interrupting any of the other patrons. The washroom was easy to get to, with one large stall that housed a change table.

From an accessibility standpoint, this was definitely the best experience I have had to date.

Service: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I already mentioned the change in reservation, which was much easier than I anticipated. Everyone was polite and seemed happy to accommodate the baby. This was our first nice dinner since the baby was born, and I had tons of questions about the menu and what to order. Our server was patient and thoroughly answered all my questions.

Food: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
This was definitely the perfect place to eat! We started with a fresh bread basket; Cluny has a beautiful display of fresh bread in the middle of the restaurant so you can see your server preparing the basket as soon as your order has been taken.

Okay, I also indulged in a glass of Pinot Grigio. I think I deserved it! It nicely complemented our meal, starting with the ginger chilli fried frogs' legs. 

This is probably a good time for me to mention that my photography skills are not the greatest. The frog legs were succulent with the perfect hint of heat. This was quickly followed by the lobster poutine!

I love the shishito peppers with the lobster. Of course a poutine isn't a poutine unless there are cheese curds, and this did not disappoint!  Even though these dishes were already amazing, the best part of the meal was the seafood tower. 

This consisted of east coast and west coast oysters, crab salad, shrimp, and salmon tartare. I had not eaten raw oysters since before I was pregnant, and let me tell you, these tasted like heaven! People always talk about how you'll miss sushi but no one ever mentions the oysters! The crab salad was really elevated by the mustard grains, and the salmon tartare was fresh. The shrimp was not particularly memorable, but never mind that because did I mention the oysters!

Overall: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

Based on this visit, I have to say that Cluny is an excellent restaurant to take your baby! The place is very accessible and stroller friendly, the service is impeccable, and the food is delicious - no need to sacrifice quality to find a family friendly restaurant! I would absolutely want to come back here with my son again.