While the new latest and greatest restaurant or boutique opens its doors every week in Toronto, there are a few places we kind of wish never closed.
Whether you grew up here, or live in Toronto now, these are 15 things we wish we could still call our own.
Lobby
About a decade ago, the place to go was Lobby (if you could get in). With a very all-white, exclusive, intimate New York lounge feel, Toronto had never seen anything like Lobby. Naturally, the celebs took notice, both when in town filming or performing, and during some of the most coveted TIFF parties and after parties. Many have since tried to replicate, but none have succeeded… yet.
The Shallow Groove
Without The Shallow Groove, heading to the once-booming College Street strip of bars is a lot less enticing. Why? If all the other bars sucked, you knew you could at least end up there. The cool basement club was big enough for large groups of partiers at your birthday, the music was amazing, it didn’t break the bank, and you could dress unapologetically casual on a Saturday night.
Adventure Playground
If you’re old enough and have a stellar memory, you may just recall a place that would never fly today called Adventure Playground. Picture a magical junkyard playland at the foot of Bathurst where kids (and adults) of all ages could run free with nails, hammers, saws, scrap wood, paint and other materials and build communities of tree houses and forts all day. Who needs Burning Man?
F/X Boutique
The neon, the tutus, the look-at-me dresses, colourful wigs, and unique, often over-the-top, accessories – it was all found in the treasure chest of Queen West’s F/X Boutique. A prom time, Halloween, and drag queen staple, this store was a place where every fashion-loving person could spend hours on a Sunday. A far, fun cry from Kleinfeld’s, it even offered wedding dresses for the free-spirited type.
The Olive Garden
For years, it was simple: if the craving for cheap and cheerful pasta struck, you’d hit The Olive Garden. The Italian chain was made even more enticing by the commercials (we know you can still visualize that slow motion pasta serving right now). Sadly, we now have to time our Olive Garden craving to coincide with outlet shopping in Buffalo.
Shark City
If you lived uptown, Yonge and Eglinton’s Shark City meant you could party properly close to home without setting foot in one of the over-saturated neighbourhood pubs. Though most of us hit the Thursday night staple when we were barely legal, if it was still open you’d find us there tonight, sitting at that central bar with a martini.
The original Four Seasons Hotel
While we still obviously like the new(ish) Four Seasons Hotel, the former will always hold a nostalgic place in our hearts. We mean, at one point (before the arrival of all the luxury hotels) it was the only option for visiting celebs and a New York hotel bar experience. If the walls in that place could talk…
Ontario Place
Remember when Ontario Place promised “more fun every day?” Well, now the once beloved swans have met their final resting place in a dump somewhere. The good news is that it will reopen years from now (2017) so your future kids can enjoy it. The bad? There goes your convenient outing idea when your niece and nephew visit.
Cotton Ginny
Just like the iconic Club Monaco logo sweatshirts that have reappeared in recent years, we think it could (note: could) be kind of cool to have a classic Cotton Ginny Club sweatshirt for the cottage this summer (though that could just be us). Or for that 80s/90s Halloween costume… no? Anyone? Bueller?
South of Temperance
Though its stint was short-lived, the demolition of South of Temperance last fall is still a fresh wound. Right on the subway line, the massive patio was a Thursday after-work staple for a mixed bag of young professionals (as opposed to the typical happy hour segregated by industry). And that’s what made it such an agreed upon destination among groups of friends – in both finance and fashion.
Chi-Chi’s
With a beckoning smell that reached the block surrounding its Eaton Centre location (which is now a JOEY restaurant), Chi-Chi’s was a go-to for cheap and quality Mexican food before it became an overdone “thing” in Toronto. And it was damn good. We can taste that deep-fried ice cream (complete with a birthday song) right now…
The McLaughlin Planetarium
Anyone who grew up in Toronto (or Ontario, for that matter) will recall a field trip to the once state-of-the-art planetarium, located right next to the ROM. Though it currently remains office and storage space for the museum, if it existed today it would make a pretty sweet date night option (and the only chance we get to see any stars).
Ginsberg & Wong
Once located near the AGO in the Village by the Grange, Ginsberg and Wong was a Toronto staple for both kids (thanks to things like their gourmet foot-long hot dog) and groups of adults alike. While every restaurant seems to jump on the fusion bandwagon, Ginsberg and Wong once paved the way with their unlikely fusion of Jewish and Chinese cuisine.
Sam the Record Man
Sam the Record Man was at one time the country’s leading record store chain… and somewhere you could spend hours. Often featured in films, the iconic, massive store and its neon record sign was the Yonge-Dundas landmark before the bigger and brighter lights and noise of Dundas Square happened. Sigh.
Of course, there are countless others from our childhood (R.I.P. The Mad Hatter, Lime Rickey’s, and The Organ Grinder) to our YP years (The Black Hoof, Pastis, and Levack Block) that we probably should have had a funeral for. Or at least pour one out for…
Nonetheless, like dearly departed grandparents, all of the above will remain alive in our hearts (and in the history of the Toronto).
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