Toronto has it all: arts and entertainment, culture and commerce, fashion and cuisine. Canada’s business hub is also its largest city, with a population of 2.5 million—twice that, if you include the greater metropolitan area.
And as more people flock to T.O., its diversity and offerings have only increased.
What’s true of Toronto as a whole is doubly so when it comes to the city’s vibrant gay community. This nexus of queer Canadian culture and history is the place to be, not only for the hometown gays but for the millions of visitors who flock here annually.
We swung through some of Toronto’s hottest neighborhoods, with a special focus on the West Queen Street West and the Gay Village. West Queen West (or just Queen West) is Toronto’s hipster mecca, trendy and upcoming yet still somewhat seedy, with an impressive mix of shops and galleries. Here are the highlights:
1. The Drake Hotel
Queen West’s crown jewel, this magnificently restored boutique hotel has 19 eclectic rooms from cheapo “crash pads” to more deluxe accomodations. But The Drake isn’t just a great place to sleep—the building also boasts a stellar restaurant; the rooftop Sky Yard and the Drake Underground, a notable performance venue that’s hosted Grizzly Bear, Beck and La Roux.
2. Queen West Shopping
Queen West is chock full of coffee shops, thrift shops and galleries. It’s known as the Art and Design District, and you won’t escape its clutches without at least a few shopping bags in hand. For design aficionados who want a carefully curated experience, Inabstracto is a must, as is Verso, its store-within-a-store, while BYOB Cocktail Emporium features a mind-blowing array of alcohol-related accessories.
As for clothing, we loved Philistine for both new and vintage items, as well as Oliver Spencer and The Future of Frances Watson. If you’re in the mood for literary fare, stop into The River Trading Company down the street: It’s an impressive vintage bookstore that’s also the perfect spot for a rom-com-style meet-cute.
3. The Melody Bar at the Gladstone
Nightlife in Toronto runs the gamut from clubs and dive bars to live music venues. For our money, though, you won’t have more fun than drinking late into the night at the Melody Bar at the Gladstone Hotel.
The Gladstone was one of the first outposts of hipsterdom on the West Side: The lovingly restored hotel on West Queen West features 37 differently themed rooms where the party never ends. (Don’t believe me? Each room also comes with earplugs.) The Melody Bar boasts award-wining bartenders, a legendary Saturday karaoke night and an artsy but welcoming décor.
4. Tour the Gay Village
Church and Wellesley is Toronto’s LGBT enclave, roughly bordered by Gerrard Street to the south, Yonge Street to the west, Charles Street to the north, and Jarvis Street to the east. The main commercial drag (pun intended is along Church Street from Wellesley to Alexander.
We had the privilege of touring the Church-Wellesley Village with Liz Devine of Rainbow Travel, who showed us the ins and outs of this historic neighborhood. The streets are lined with an assortment of gay-owned-and-operated restaurants, stores and bars like Woody’s, Sky Yard at the Drake, Pegasus and Zipperz/Cellblock. (If the area starts to look familiar, that’s because the American version of Queer As Folk filmed here).
The Village is also peppered with noteworthy landmarks like the Alexander Wood statue (left), honoring the city’s queer pioneer, and an AIDS memorial dedicated in 1993.
5. The 519 Center
The 519 Church Street Community Centre is the beating heart of the Village. With dozens of programs aimed at the complete extent of LGBT life– meet-ups for teens, seniors and everyone in between, queer parenting resources, 12-step programs, support groups, various arts and entertainment options– there’s something for everyone at the center. They even run the Fabernak, a full-scale restaurant that also serves as a training ground for employees (queer and otherwise) to gain both work experience and on-the-job training. If only every city had a 519 Center!
6. Glad Day Book Shop
Billed as the world’s oldest LBGT bookstore, the Glad Day Book Shop might also be the world’s best. Up a long flight of stairs, the small shop boasts an impressive collection, from queer classics to modern gay YA. Though in recent years the store was threatened with closure, a consortium of concerned patrons banded together to buy the store and have kept it running in style. More than 40 years since it first opened, the shop still manages to proudly chug along.
7. Places to Eat
There’s no more shame in Toronto’s game, as the city has truly become a dining destination in recent years for foodies of all stripes. For lunch in the Ossington Strip, we opted for Cubano food at Delux, where the empanadas were particularly delicious. For dinner, try Sassafraz in Yorkville. This old favorite didn’t disappoint, serving elegant and savory seasonal fare that left us wanting everything on the menu.
Another great option is The Black Hoof, where it’s all about the charcuterie platter and, for the more adventurous, the bone marrow or sweetbreads.
8. Kensington Market
Kensington Market and its surrounding area charm both tourists and locals with a full range of epicurean and aesthetic delights. Tucked in behind a sprawling Chinatown in the center of the city, Kensington makes for a great side trip, post dim sum. (Try Lai Wah Heen on Chestnut).
The neighborhood was formerly the epicenter of Jewish culture, but today it’s a perfect reflection of the many cultures that make up the melting pot that is Toronto, with over 30 different cultures living shoulder-to-shoulder there. So many little hidden gems await: Cheese Magic, My Market Bakery, Chocolate Addict, House of Spice, and Sanagan’s Meat Locker, just to name a few.
Go on Sundays when several streets are blocked off to traffic; in good weather, stores move their wares out front alongside curated cultural events and installations.
9. AGO
A visit to Toronto is not complete without spending a few hours at the Art Gallery of Ontario, known locally as the AGO. Beyond the extensive collection of Canadian art, works in the permanent collection span from the Renaissance to today—plus the Thomson Family’s incredible Ship Model Collection.
The exhibits are consistently top-notch—we enjoyed a Frida Kahlo retrospective when we were there, as well as the wonderfully spare works of local sculptor Michael Snow. There are also extensive children’s programs at the AGO, down on the basement level.
The building is a wonder in and of itself: The 2008 Frank Gehry-led renovation features a Douglas-fir-and-glass wrap around the ffacade, and an 11-story sculptural “Baroque Stair” that connects the museum’s two buildings. Gehry described the narrow, winding staircase as “the kind of place you might meet your future wife.” If that’s the kind of thing you’re looking for…
Tags:church wellesley village|gay travel|Toronto|travel
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