Inventory: City sketchbook / Toronto
Rising in the east
With a waterside development taking shape and a slew of new places to dine, shop, listen to music or simply kick back, the east end of Canada’s biggest city now has a buzz to rival that of its more celebrated districts.
Despite its size and vast footprint along the shore of Lake Ontario, Toronto tends to think of itself in more intimate terms as a city of neighbourhoods. And while its districts downtown and in the West End are the go-to for visitors – thanks to their many restaurants, watering holes and independent retailers – Toronto’s East End is reimagining itself and beginning to dream a little too.
It is here that one of North America’s largest urban projects is currently under way – a transformative redevelopment of former docks into homes and business hubs that will continue to take shape in the years ahead. But there is already much to savour in the city’s east, particularly in two of its prettier residential neighbourhoods: Leslieville, which kept its handsome red-brick Victorian architecture; and The Beaches, an intuitively named neighbourhood on the mainland shoreline that includes the peerless Woodbine Beach.
The Fox Theatre has been screening films in this part of town since 1914 and newer openings – including dining rooms, magazine shops and music venues – are enlivening proceedings further. There’s also an array of recording studios dotted around the area where Toronto-born rapper Drake opened his concert hall, History, in late 2021.
Yet it’s the neighbourly qualities that define Leslieville and The Beaches, particularly in their public parks, which host some great summer farmers’ markets. Here’s our guide to a small corner of Canada’s largest city. —
1. Read: ‘Serviette’ magazine
A stylish food and drink quarterly launched in 2022 by restaurateur Max Meighen, founder of Leslieville’s Avling Kitchen & Brewery. Pick up a copy from nearby Issues Outpost, Toronto’s newest magazine retailer, and leaf through it over an espresso at Rooster Coffee House.
serviettemag.com; roostercoffeehouse.com; issuesmagshop.com
2. Stay: The Broadview Hotel
Housed in a red-brick corner plot, which played cameos in the Hollywood films Cinderella Man and A History of Violence, The Broadview Hotel reopened in 2017 after a restoration, shaking off some of its notoriety in the process (it was home to Jilly’s, a well-known adult venue, for 34 years). The cosy, brick-walled private space attached to the King Terrace Room makes it the suite to plump for.
thebroadviewhotel.ca
3. See: Leslie Lookout Park
Toronto’s newest public park, which opened in September 2024, is one of its most unusual. Nestled in a nook in the industrial waterfront where cargo ships turn around in port, the space has been transformed into a charming public beach by Montréal-based architects Claude Cormier and Associates.
createto.ca
4. Eat: Maha’s Egyptian Brunch
Try celebrated Egyptian-Canadian chef Maha Barsoom’s novel takes on the African country’s staples. The grilled cheese sandwich, studded with caramelised dates, is a treat. A second location, shared with Toronto-based Egyptian-cotton clothing brand Kotn, opened last year.
mahasbrunch.com; kotn.com
5. Shop: Good Neighbour
Opened in a pretty converted home in Leslieville, Good Neighbour stocks jumpers and shirts by brands including Portuguese Flannel and Les Deux, plus sunglasses by Le Specs and Izipizi. Its third branch opened in the affluent Summerhill neighbourhood this year.
goodnbr.com
6. Drink: A daiquiri at Goods & Provisions
This lively neighbourhood tavern is known for its excellent natural-wine list (try a chilled glass of Foradori teroldego Lezèr) but it mixes a mean daiquiri too. The Wagyu carpaccio, served with fresh chive dressing, is a dish to savour.
1124 Queen Street East
7. Buy: Guff mid-century furniture
Guff is one of the best suppliers in a city that does mid-century furniture very well. Its inventory changes frequently but dining tables by Denmark’s Hans Olsen and Gudme Møbelfabrik make paying a visit to its showroom well worth it.
gufffurniture.com
8. Visit: Fox Theatre
Toronto’s oldest continuously operating neighbourhood cinema opened its doors in 1914. Its single unfussy screening room is an institution, showing blockbusters, indies and documentaries, as well as playing host to public screenings during the annual Toronto International Film Festival. For a pre-film tipple and snack, head down the street to Mira Mira Diner to enjoy a martini and the signature deviled eggs.
foxtheatre.ca; eatmiramira.com
9. Order: Ontario striploin at Wynona
Served with spring-onion chimichurri, soubise (oniony bechamel) and pickled mushrooms, the striploin is a staple dish at one of Leslieville’s most highly regarded dining rooms. The venue’s more casual sister cocktail bar, The Comrade, is also a neighbourhood favourite.
wynonatoronto.com; comradetoronto.com
10. Don’t miss: Woodbine Beach
If you’re visiting Toronto in summer, pick up a read at Queen Books before wandering along the boardwalk to take your place on the sand at Woodbine Beach. In the chillier months of winter, when the annual Winter Stations design competition takes place here, architects transform the beach’s lifeguard stations into eye-catching – and warm – huts.
queenbooks.ca; winterstations.com
