Last month, Rosedale’s Terroni Bar Centrale pulled horsemeat from its menu. The move — prompted solely by poor sales, apparently — wasn’t a complete surprise, since selling horsemeat is extra risqué for a chain restaurant. But what does it mean when, after over a decade, La Palette stops serving horsemeat, as it did over the weekend?
On any evening in pretty much any neighborhood in the city there are dozens musicians sitting in bars strumming on acoustic guitars. And while Toronto’s Hamilton Trading Co. does, in fact, revolve around Keith Hamilton and his acoustic guitar, there is one element that makes the experience stand out: surrounding him is a soulful choir belting out harmonies and stomping out the rhythm of the songs.
Wolf Parade alumni Dan Boeckner and wife Alexei Perry are Handsome Furs (August 2 @ Horseshoe Tavern), maybe my favourite live act going. I’ve seen them blow the doors off at least three Toronto venues with their manic, crisp, minimal indie-pop.
It’s been a bit of a roller coaster ride for fans of The Black Hoof lately: first, The Hoof Café closed to make way for Black Hoof and Company, originally set to open this spring. That opening was delayed, of course — for an entire year — leaving us to wonder what would happen with the space until then. The answer is a somewhat unsurprising (though wholly welcome) cocktail bar.
I’m not usually a fan of wine that bears the name of a celebrity, sporting or otherwise. But this one won the gold medal at this year’s Ontario Wine Awards in the off-dry Riesling category. It has flavours of honeyed lime and cantaloupe,with refreshing acidity. It will make you think twice about Riesling. Food match: aperitif wine, smoked fish (Vintages # 229286).
Coming soon (they hope) to a radio station near you is FIRExFIRE, a muscular, synth-heavy, power pop band by former members of Toronto’s well-received (and now defunct) The Framework. They’re determined, they’re ready, and they’ve got plenty of experience cramming songs with hooks until they piñata-burst. And they namedrop T.S. Eliot in interviews. Not too shabby. Fans of reverb and glisten can check them out at Lee’s Palace, tomorrow.
Wayne Johnston has a thing for outsiders. They seem to populate the award-winning novelist’s books, from his debut The Story of Bobby O’Malley to his best-sellers The Colony of Unrequited Dreams and The Navigator of New York. His latest, A World Elsewhere, is no exception.
New York City: the concrete jungle where fashion dreams are made. Though Torontonians are no slouches when it comes to style, New Yorkers tend to be a step or two ahead of us when it comes to the trend-setting curve. With this week’s sales roundup, we tell you what’s hot in Manhattan this summer and where you can get your hands on some cool New York-flavour swag just in time for the long weekend.
Avid online shoppers may have noticed a recent influx of Canadian-based e-boutiques that specialize in low-priced luxury goods and flash sales. Thanks to shipping complications, these sales were, in the past, usually reserved for our Yankee cousins. Now, The Peacock Parade has entered the scene. Launched last week, the new shopping site aims to change how Canadians shop online by promising shopping equality for all.
Toronto city dwellers are always making excuses to head up north, and now, Orangeville’s Hockley Valley Resort is giving them a new one. The golf and ski getaway, located about an hour outside of the city, will be introducing a luxurious fourth restaurant to it’s current trio of eateries this winter.
Local residents protesting a Toronto City Council–approved midtown condo have rejected a $100,000 offer to walk away from an Ontario Municipal Board (OMB) appeal.
Hoorah, the long weekend is here! Whether you’re staying in the city or heading out of town, what better way to spruce up your mid-summer wardrobe than with a new bather? Maybe you’re sick of what you’ve been wearing thus far, or maybe you’re slipping into one for the first time this summer; either way, new swimwear can be hard to come by at this point in the fashion season. We were ecstatic to find this eye-popping, multi-print onesie by Aussie label One Teaspoon. Try it with a wide-brim hat by the water, or pair it with high-waist bottoms in the city – it doubles as a very chic bustier!
