morning
go to george st diner for breakfast if youâre in the east end , the people are the best there & iâve never had a bad meal , they also turn tables at a truly impressive rate while never making you feel rushed .. real professionals at work 𫡠[irish breakfast is fantastic in all 3 sizes itâs offered in] -> {afterwards go across the street to window shop at haven if youâre into beautiful but expensive clothing}
in the west end go to the federal itâs quick & reliable & cute , small menu but nothings bad [cubano & eggs federal are standouts for me]
if you want a coffee i think hamers is the best in the city , they really care about what theyâre doing & the prices are surprisingly reasonable in a world where a coffee can easily scrape $10 if youâre not careful ... rooms coffee also has a couple locations across the city & the spaces are thoughtful & beautiful & filled w/ the city's creative directoriest types
afternoon
ossington is a ridiculous street but thereâs a couple great stores there if you like shopping , lost & found is great for high end basics & i miss you is one of the best designer consignment stores in the city . sonic boom probably has the biggest vinyl selection in the city but itâs also home to torontoâa only genuine film photobooth , itâs so cute & fun to squeeze into the booth & get a little strip of photos to take home
while around there you can walk around bellwoods & watch the dogs or get some great fruit & oysters from the farmers market if youâre there on a tuesday & head down the street to get a glass of wine at grape witches gorgeous back patio [theyâre open from noon]
you could also head west to high park which is huge & a great place for a picnic or a stroll
museum wise the textile museum is small but always has something that takes my breath away , truly special exhibitions if youâre into textile arts
for a snack stop by leâs sandwich [cash only] for a stunningly cheap & surprisingly good banh mi from the ownerâs living room or make the trip up to st clair to go to futura granita + gelato exceptional vibrant flavours & unmatched textures .. best in the city & so worth the trek
evening
if youâre west you can go roncesvalles & catch a movie at the revue [the citys best theatre] , just go see whatever is playing the editorial team there is fantastic & the crowd is always fun ! pre movie you can browse vinegar syndrome if youâre into under seen/under distributed movies of all varieties , lots of beautiful re editions here by the house label as well as others
for a nice dinner go to stop or mhel my two favourite restaurants in the city , seasonal & chef driven , both have small but passionate & kind teams who really care about the food & experience , definitely worth the admittedly high price to portion ratio , beautifully considered dishes & drinks but no fussy pretension behind them .
more mid priced options are le swan or bar vendetta [both from jen agg the cityâs most publicly opinionated restauranteur who is also one of the best] , dottyâs or cafeteria [one of the new dinner/dance club hybrid spots that are mysteriously becoming a thing here now] cafeteria in particular is headed by eric mcdonald who has been my favourite chef since she blew my mind with what she was doing at sakai bar a few years ago
for drinks go to archive or little jerry for beautiful & interesting wine [little jerry in particular has fantastic warm sound & atmosphere & great vinyl djâs setting the tone] or black dice for a fun japanese rockabilly cash bar
this is so long sorry ⌠but i love my city & i especially love the food & drink scene/community here i think itâs really something special đĽ˛