Alright, we’re in it. 2014, that is. Sure, technically last weekend was the first of the New Year, but you were most likely still pretending to partake in resolutions and too partied out from the holidays to fully appreciate all that our beloved city has to offer. And we’re here to make sure you shake off any ideas of hibernation you might still be secretly harbouring. So kiss the polar vortex goodbye (it’s supposed to reach +7°C by Saturday!) and step up your game this weekend, ‘cause these are all the Notable things happening in Toronto that you need to know about.
THURSDAY
Twist Gallery on Queen W. is having an exhibition opening entitled New Order: Contemporary Action Photography. Check out how current photogs are capturing our fast-paced modern world. We assume that unlike most people, it does not involve Instagram.
Hit up Nota Bene for dinner and enjoy a warm break from the January ‘blahs’ with their Las Americas prix-fixe featuring four courses from the likes of Ecuador, Peru, Argentina, and Mexico. Es perfecto, no?
Clinton’s will be launching its #ThrowbackThursdays dance party in the back room. If you ever put your pants on backwards just ‘cause Kris Kross did, this is exactly where you want to be.
Fidel Gastro’s (Voted #1 Food Truck in Canada by Canadian Living) Queen W. restaurant, Lisa Marie, will be hosting a Tap That event featuring up-and-coming Toronto brewmasters Sweetgrass. (And we’ll be there, too!)
FRIDAY
The Niagara Ice Wine Festival kicks off its two-week run celebrating our favourite Canadian frozen alcohol. This could be either the perfect day trip or the best full weekend sojourn depending on your palate’s penchant for sweet things.
If you’re into hoppy beer, look no further than the Amsterdam Brewhouse this Friday. They’re having a Hop Tap Takeover and serving 12 of their absolute hoppiest brews. So go ahead and get all hopped up (sorry, we had to).
Nova Scotia’s Scratch Bastid will be mixing the roof off the Hoxton, likely busting beats from his 2013 collaboration with Shad, The Spring Up EP. We’re nodding our heads already.
Toronto Poetry Slam will be speaking spoken words all over the Drake Hotel Underground during a competition that’ll feature Kitchener/Waterloo alum Janice Lee. Roses are red, violets are blue, poets battle with words, what kind of weekend warrior are you?
Finally, Long Winter continues its concert series with Year Two – Volume Three at The Great Hall. There’ll be music, art, dance, food, and more. Sounds like everything we’ve ever wanted in a date if the more happens to cover members of the opposite sex…
SATURDAY
Ya, ya, we know it’s January, but that doesn’t mean people who love boats pay attention to things like the weather or, you know, ice. The Toronto International Boat Show will be in town towing along every accessory you could ever want for your cottage ship. They’re also continuing the tradition of bringing the world’s largest indoor lake along with them. We say, too bad it’s not a hot tub.
The opening for Toronto artist Adam David Brown’s third solo show at MKG127 will kick off at 2pm, focusing on the expression of ‘multiple perspectives on the abstract nature of time’. Don’t be late.
RuPaul’s Drag Race: Battle of the Seasons, the popular reality show turned live event, will be stopping by The Danforth Music Hall for what we assume will be an unforgettable night. Shante you stay!
It’s Drake Night at the ACC this Saturday. Which means that when the Raptors suit up against the Brooklyn Nets they’ll be in their black alternate unis. It also means Drizzy will be in attendance, they’re be a Drake Night Edition Tee, and Future The Prince will perform a halftime DJ set. But we’re all just really hoping that Drake will demand to put on a jersey and step on the court though, right?
SUNDAY
Hogtown Pub and Oysters will be holding a hands-on, three-hour oyster seminar that’ll teach you everything from how to buy, store, cook, dress, and shuck your favourite mollusks. Besides leaving with the confidence that you’ll be the best shucker in any room you walk into from now on (a boost akin to knowing you’re a highly skilled parallel parker), you’ll also walk out with your very own shucker and a recipe book to boot.
Neil Young and guest Diana Krall are putting on a benefit concert at Massey Hall in support of Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation Legal Defense. We imagine this will be as amazing as it sounds, though we suspect that in order to still get tickets you’re probably going to have to know God. Or just get real lucky on Craigslist. Ya, that second one sounds a lot more likely.
What better way to finish your weekend than by talking to some experts about how you can meet all your 2014 health and fitness goals (that you may or may not have just spent a weekend ignoring…)? Passport for Change at Wychwood Barns will give you the chance to speed date with said experts to learn about how best to reach the level of wellness in your life that you’ve always been looking for. So unlike regular speed dating, you’ll actually get something out of this.
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Top photo: Lisa Maria