beaconer
Active Member
Starbucks on Front and Frederick now open..
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Restaurants/Coffee Shops - St. Lawrence/King East
- Thread starter adma
- Start date
AndreaPalladio
Senior Member
Praise be.
wonderboy416
Active Member
Man I hate Starbucks... I live near Front/Princess and they are everywhere. Their coffee is burnt garbage IMO and the other "big boys" being Second Cup, Timothy's and Letteiri all can't compete because they're franchised and no franchisee in their right mind would setup a location for the sake of market reservation like Starbucks does. There's no way the new Front st Starbucks will make a profit at that location, it's constantly empty, they're just there to squeeze the near by Timothy's and Second Cups just a little bit more to maintain the Starbucks burnt bean empire.
In my office there's a Tim Hortons, Timothy's and Starbucks and I have not seen a single Starbucks cup ever come up after someone has made one of many coffee runs that happen through out the day, I have to smile at that.
In my office there's a Tim Hortons, Timothy's and Starbucks and I have not seen a single Starbucks cup ever come up after someone has made one of many coffee runs that happen through out the day, I have to smile at that.
urbandreamer
recession proof
Well I checked out Red Rocket Coffee (at Vancouver St and Queen East opposite the TTC streetcar parking lot) again after a 3 month absence. The Americano I had reminded me of what a thicker Starbuck's coffee should taste like: kinda chalky burnt taste and not my thing. If you gotta add sugar (I did) to an americano it ain't worth buying again. Next time I'm in that desolate stretch of town (for all the proclamations that Leslieville is the new Queen West it still feels strangely dead and decaying and abandoned) I'm gonna check out Dark Horse Coffee (much closer to downtown actually--opposite that Toyota dealership near Broadview)--supposedly the "best coffee in town." There's another place I noticed out Leslieville way that looks rather relaxing and romantic: Tango Coffee--anyone here been there?
AndreaPalladio
Senior Member
What difference does it make? They're all selling the same rancid coffee. Any coffee that's been roasted more than 5 days has gone bad already.
PukeGreen
Active Member
Agreed. I love coffee, but I hate Starbucks. Say that too loud and you get dirty looks, though. The cult of Starbucks is a powerful one. Their coffee definitely tastes burnt from over-roasting, and they drown their lattes in so much milk I often wonder if there's any coffee in them at all. And the milk often tastes sour. Stale snacks. Deafening canned adult contemporary radio blaring through the speakers at all times, interspersed by announcements imploring you to buy said crappy music at the cash. Ugh. Blargh.
Try Cafe 260 on Richmond slightly west of Sherbourne. Stellar coffee roasted every other day, with fair trade options. Great snacks, soups, and sandwiches, much of it organic. Cozy little spot and friendly service.
Or try the Bisogno Espresso Bar at 61 Sherbourne on the northeast corner of King. Also excellent coffee, made with pride by people who know what they're doing and actually seem to enjoy it doing it.
Try Cafe 260 on Richmond slightly west of Sherbourne. Stellar coffee roasted every other day, with fair trade options. Great snacks, soups, and sandwiches, much of it organic. Cozy little spot and friendly service.
Or try the Bisogno Espresso Bar at 61 Sherbourne on the northeast corner of King. Also excellent coffee, made with pride by people who know what they're doing and actually seem to enjoy it doing it.
AndreaPalladio
Senior Member
I don't mind starbucks, but if I want real coffee, it's off to Merchants of Green Coffee for me.
beaconer
Active Member
Chefs' House
Really looking forward to this opening. I think it is going to add a lot to the street presence here.
Walking into a school/academic building to the goto former training restaurant just doesn't have the same feel.
George Brown Chefs' House opens to the public this fall
George Brown Chefs' House opens to the public this fall
New Chef School King St. storefront restaurant to offer patrons distinctive dining experiences and students leading-edge culinary training
The George Brown College Chef School, among Canada's most recognized leaders in culinary arts and hospitality training, today announced it will open "The Chefs' House" at 215 King St. East, a new restaurant on the southeast corner of King and Frederick streets in Toronto. The School has a long track record graduating top talent and emerging stars serving in restaurants, hotels, convention centres, pastry shops and kitchens around the world, and has produced many of the country's top chefs including Jamie Kennedy, Mark McEwan, Vicki Cheng, James Olberg, Bonnie Stern and Christine Cushing.
The restaurant will be the first of its kind in Canada - fully open to the public with students training to cook, bake and serve. Housed in a 3,200 square foot heritage brownstone, the new restaurant will serve up one-of-a-kind dining experiences to the city's food lovers while providing George Brown Chef School students with the latest in real-world culinary training. The 70-seat space will offer daily lunch and dinner menus; food and wine workshops; special events space and programming, and a series of culinary excellence awards and educational programs.
For students, The Chefs' House will offer Canada's very first fully integrated culinary management program with direct public interaction, along with advanced culinary and food and beverage programs. Culinary students will be front and centre in The Chefs' House, with a large, open-concept kitchen anchoring the 70-seat dining room and bar area. A private dining room, with a capacity for parties of up 16 guests, will be located in the restaurant's lower level.
"We have always felt that training in a public-facing restaurant, serving paying customers, is necessary to developing graduates of unparalleled quality, excellence and workplace readiness," said John Walker, Dean with the George Brown Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts. "With the opening of The Chefs' House we have taken the back of the house to the front, raising the bar higher by introducing advanced real-world learning - George Brown's distinct philosophy of challenging students by placing them in the middle of the action."
In addition to its role as a public restaurant and learning centre, George Brown College's Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts, in an alliance with the Ontario Hostelry Institute (OHI) will also use the facility to house the Culinary Foundation for Chefs.
Really looking forward to this opening. I think it is going to add a lot to the street presence here.
Walking into a school/academic building to the goto former training restaurant just doesn't have the same feel.
George Brown Chefs' House opens to the public this fall
George Brown Chefs' House opens to the public this fall
New Chef School King St. storefront restaurant to offer patrons distinctive dining experiences and students leading-edge culinary training
The George Brown College Chef School, among Canada's most recognized leaders in culinary arts and hospitality training, today announced it will open "The Chefs' House" at 215 King St. East, a new restaurant on the southeast corner of King and Frederick streets in Toronto. The School has a long track record graduating top talent and emerging stars serving in restaurants, hotels, convention centres, pastry shops and kitchens around the world, and has produced many of the country's top chefs including Jamie Kennedy, Mark McEwan, Vicki Cheng, James Olberg, Bonnie Stern and Christine Cushing.
The restaurant will be the first of its kind in Canada - fully open to the public with students training to cook, bake and serve. Housed in a 3,200 square foot heritage brownstone, the new restaurant will serve up one-of-a-kind dining experiences to the city's food lovers while providing George Brown Chef School students with the latest in real-world culinary training. The 70-seat space will offer daily lunch and dinner menus; food and wine workshops; special events space and programming, and a series of culinary excellence awards and educational programs.
For students, The Chefs' House will offer Canada's very first fully integrated culinary management program with direct public interaction, along with advanced culinary and food and beverage programs. Culinary students will be front and centre in The Chefs' House, with a large, open-concept kitchen anchoring the 70-seat dining room and bar area. A private dining room, with a capacity for parties of up 16 guests, will be located in the restaurant's lower level.
"We have always felt that training in a public-facing restaurant, serving paying customers, is necessary to developing graduates of unparalleled quality, excellence and workplace readiness," said John Walker, Dean with the George Brown Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts. "With the opening of The Chefs' House we have taken the back of the house to the front, raising the bar higher by introducing advanced real-world learning - George Brown's distinct philosophy of challenging students by placing them in the middle of the action."
In addition to its role as a public restaurant and learning centre, George Brown College's Centre for Hospitality and Culinary Arts, in an alliance with the Ontario Hostelry Institute (OHI) will also use the facility to house the Culinary Foundation for Chefs.
DSC
Superstar
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Good news though the fall opening of the new GB restaurant on King at Frederick is, it is hardly the first in Canada. Firstly GB has had such a restaurant (on Adelaide and called Siegfried's) for several years and the Restaurant de l'Institut in Montreal has been doing exactly this for 25 years.
PukeGreen
Active Member
Re: George Brown's new restaurant, I wholeheartedly agree. Took a tour of the building during Doors Open and it is stunning. Great addition to the 'hood.
In other news, some new commercial building permits popped up this week on the City of Toronto site for 132 Front East between Fredrick and St. George. It's the big condo with Rogers Video, Subway, Starbucks, etc. on the ground floor. The new permits are for various aspects of a sushi restaurant; I assume in the empty unit where the drycleaner was? Hope so, would be great to see that strip fully occupied again.
132 FRONT ST E
Restaurant 30 Seats or Less
Interior alterations to fit out new GF Unit #1-C Sushi restaurant. New kitchen with ventless fryer.
In other news, some new commercial building permits popped up this week on the City of Toronto site for 132 Front East between Fredrick and St. George. It's the big condo with Rogers Video, Subway, Starbucks, etc. on the ground floor. The new permits are for various aspects of a sushi restaurant; I assume in the empty unit where the drycleaner was? Hope so, would be great to see that strip fully occupied again.
132 FRONT ST E
Restaurant 30 Seats or Less
Interior alterations to fit out new GF Unit #1-C Sushi restaurant. New kitchen with ventless fryer.
PukeGreen
Active Member
Seems there are a few new restaurants opening/re-opening in the St. Lawrence Market area shortly:
1. Akira Sushi in the Roger's Video condo at 132 Front St. East will be replacing what was previously a dry cleaners. The signs are up and renos are ongoing, so hopefully it won't be too long. Nice to see all retail units in this building occupied now.
2. Naz's Falafel on King East near Sherbourne has been closed for renos and will be re-opening as a newly named "pita" place. Whether this is a new business or simply a rebranding I'm not sure. I was never very thrilled by their falafels, to be honest.
3. A slight bit northeast there's apparently a new pub called "Prince of Ales" opening soon at Adelaide and Ontario. I can't find any information on this aside from a sign in the window and some online want ads looking for cooks and servers, but the name gives me hope that this might be a pub that actually takes its beers seriously!
1. Akira Sushi in the Roger's Video condo at 132 Front St. East will be replacing what was previously a dry cleaners. The signs are up and renos are ongoing, so hopefully it won't be too long. Nice to see all retail units in this building occupied now.
2. Naz's Falafel on King East near Sherbourne has been closed for renos and will be re-opening as a newly named "pita" place. Whether this is a new business or simply a rebranding I'm not sure. I was never very thrilled by their falafels, to be honest.
3. A slight bit northeast there's apparently a new pub called "Prince of Ales" opening soon at Adelaide and Ontario. I can't find any information on this aside from a sign in the window and some online want ads looking for cooks and servers, but the name gives me hope that this might be a pub that actually takes its beers seriously!
JasonParis
Moderator
It'll be going into the space at Adelaide & Ontario that VOX used to operate out of.
C
charlie
Guest
Prince of Ales - NOW OPEN!!
Well folks, the moment we've all been waiting for:
PRINCE OF ALES IS FINALLY OPEN!!
POA is located at 474 Adelaide Street East (M5A 1N6) which is on the corner of Adelaide and Ontario. They opened this past weekend; their hours are:
Sunday - Thursday 11am - midnight (unless they're busy)
Friday & Saturday 11am - 2am
Apparently these hours are just temporary and will be extended soon. There's also talk of opening for brunch (mmmmmmmimosas) and/or breakfast...
The entire building has been renovated inside and out; the patio is HUGE with great furniture (very comfy), the bar is stocked, there's tons of seating, a great sound system, INCREDIBLE food, etc...
I'm sure that the folks from SAS, Toronto Sun and Technicolor will be all over it for lunch and dinner.
Their phone number is (416) 363-2537.
Check it out! Great new neighbourhood watering hole...
Well folks, the moment we've all been waiting for:
PRINCE OF ALES IS FINALLY OPEN!!
POA is located at 474 Adelaide Street East (M5A 1N6) which is on the corner of Adelaide and Ontario. They opened this past weekend; their hours are:
Sunday - Thursday 11am - midnight (unless they're busy)
Friday & Saturday 11am - 2am
Apparently these hours are just temporary and will be extended soon. There's also talk of opening for brunch (mmmmmmmimosas) and/or breakfast...
The entire building has been renovated inside and out; the patio is HUGE with great furniture (very comfy), the bar is stocked, there's tons of seating, a great sound system, INCREDIBLE food, etc...
I'm sure that the folks from SAS, Toronto Sun and Technicolor will be all over it for lunch and dinner.
Their phone number is (416) 363-2537.
Check it out! Great new neighbourhood watering hole...
egotrippin
Senior Member
Any new pub or bar in my area is a welcome addition, I'll have to check it out. What's the beer selection like?
GraphicMatt
Looking forward to a FRESH START for Toronto
My girlfriend and I are definitely going to try this place out. Wish they had a website so I could check out the menu/drinks beforehand, though.
I'm hoping for the best. This place is so damn close to us and it'd be great to have a place to go drink when Betty's just seems like too long a walk.
I'm hoping for the best. This place is so damn close to us and it'd be great to have a place to go drink when Betty's just seems like too long a walk.