Come enjoy a delightful meal at Hoito Restaurant. They are open at night all week. You can get there not only by public transit but also by bicycle. They are found in an area packed with restaurants, merchants and parks.
Sadly, I'm not a fan of fin pancakes. Which is obviously what the Hoito is famous for.
I went for lunch, and waited over 30 minutes to find a table. Which wasn't cleaned very well, might I add.
I ordered an omelet with cheese, mushrooms and red peppers. It was gross, never again will I eat there! I couldn't even finish it. The mushrooms were canned, the cheese was processed, and it was overwhelming how many peppers it had. I always ordered toast, which came to me cold.
Only go to the Hoito for the pancakes.
The wait was not too bad and the food was pretty good.We pretty much all ordered breakfast,except me,I ordered Finnish sausages that was very good.The pancakes and other foods that I saw being served pretty much was what I was raised on as a child and looked authentic for sure!Yes it was in the basement of a Finnish hall ,it was crowded and had a few flies buzzing around ,but by no means was the food stale with that turn over and it was very good and plenty!
What happened? My family used to take me to the Hoito during our summer visits when I was little, it has been over 30 years now. The wait was not long, the food was fantastic and the service was always good. Each year we visit the prices go up, the wait times get worse and service seems to also get worse. I was there this week at 11 am and waited for 25 minutes to be seated. We then waited another 40 minutes after we placed our order for our meals. The restaurant was hot and uncomfortable. I like the pancakes but they are not worth over an hour of my family’s time. It’s a shame the restaurant has changed this much. .
Year's ago this was pretty much one of the only places for good finn pancakes and a hearty breakfast. Since then, I have come across a few others that are cheaper and the food much better (in fact I have found much better made pancakes), and no ridiculous wait times.
I think that people still go here because it's what everyone suggests when asked where to go for breakfast, but honestly, check the restaurant reviews here for other places and you'll find a much more enjoyable dining experience.
Other than a few of the unique finn dishes that are not available anywhere else like Mojakka...so very good and priced well, the breakfast and lunch items are adequate, but pricing is higher for the quality received. Coffee is not that impressive. Wait service can be improved!
Very slow, poor service and awful food.
Super hot and stuffy while waiting in a very long line.
FOR WHAT?
I must have rocks in my head.
They could not pay me to go back.
What is with the dudes outside asking for money and cigarettes?
I was first introduced to the Hoito almost 30 years ago when I first moved to T.Bay. It's been almost 20 years since I left, but return to visit often. My visits always include at least one breakfast at the Hoito - - it's just not a trip to T.Bay without those Finnish pancakes. On my last visit the service was so good we left the waitress a 50% plus tip. I"m already looking forward to my next visit. yum yum.
I went at 9:00 a.m. on a Monday -- after the morning rush. The restaurant was half full.
I waited over 15 minutes just for a menu and another 15 minutes for three Finnish pancakes and four sausages.
The pancakes were good, but the sausages had been left in a holding pan for some time and were dried and shrivelled up.
When the waitress refilled my tea pot, she brought the wrong pot back to my table and I could see her bringing my teapot to another table (I had put the tea bag and a used napkin on the side of the saucer and could see that with the tea she took to the other table.)
I also witnessed the waitress take a fork from a place setting where another person was sitting and give it to a person at another table. Who knows if the person had touched the fork. :-(
I go to the Hoito when Im really hungry and dont...
I go to the Hoito when Im really hungry and dont feel like making breakfast...or if I feel like breakfast later in the day. If you order the usual fare, ie. eggs + bacon, it is like any other breakfast place. Go for the specialty Finnish food...pancakes, rice pudding, makkara etc. It is very good with cheap prices. The coffee isnt all that great at the moment, the waitresses can be a bit rushed, but the Finnish food is good.
When I first moved to Thunder Bay the big thing to do was to go to The Hoito. So a group of us went one morning. Let me say that the food was nothing out of this world. The service was painlfully slow. When we got the food I was confused at the fact that what lay before me was the same old breakfast (and hard homefries) you can get at about 67 other greasy spoons in Ontario. Are Thunder Bay residents really this sheltered from good dining experiences???????
I first went to the Hoito when I was about 4 years old and then when I was in my teens, then I visited when I was in my thirties and now 25 years later I returned to eat there! The food was good back then and continues to be good. It is not an elaborate, high-end restaurant, it is good old homestyle cooking! Hopefully it will not be another 25 years before I return!
It's not the cheap price that attracts us to the...
It's not the cheap price that attracts us to the Hoito, although that certainly is a bonus; it's the authentic Finnish food like my mother-in-law used to make. I love the unpretentious friendly atmosphere! I try to go there whenever my travels bring me to Thunder Bay
From arrival, you know that you're at a very different restaurant, since you must seat yourself. The atmosphere is very cafeteria-like and is definitely dated.
The food was average, nothing interesting going on there.. People make a big deal about their pancakes, but I don't really see what makes them special. They're more like a cross between a crepe and a regular pancake.
The service was pretty friendly, which is the only thing above average in this restaurant. They need to improve their menu with some more interesting choices, along with a full restaurant makeover.
The food is nothing fancy but tastes good and prices are very reasonable. My omelet was little on the greasy side but my Mom's pancakes were very tasty. Our server was very nice and friendly and the atmosphere is extremely informal and laid back.
Overall, a very nice, inexpensive place to eat. Comes in handy when you're a starving student! The pancakes I had were excellent, and very filling. The atmosphere seemed quite friendly and had that 'back home' type feel to it. My only complaints are the sizing of the drink glasses (even for a large) are somewhat small, and the fact we had to wait and keep a lookout for a table in a crowded restaurant didn't appeal to me very much. Overall however, I would go back for great food at such a low cost!
I don't understand the appeal of the Hoito, I know I certainly hate this place!
It's always crowded and stuffy, and the menu is mostly generic things I can make at home just as easily (and just as good!). I'll give it points for being cheap, but being cheap describes the restaurant as a whole.
Absolutely no cruelty-free/vegan options! Even steakhouses have veggie burgers, vegan stir-fries, and other vegan options! With more and more of the population going vegan/vegetarian so quickly, it's really suprising to find a restaurant that still doesn't have options and just has to stick dead animals, their eggs, and their breastmilk into EVERYTHING!
I'm not paying them $6 for a bowl of lettuce because they don't welcome animal-friendly customers.
