It is summer of 2022. Everyone wants to get out of dodge and travel to all of the places they missed during the last two years of COVID. But all of these adventures, plus a shortage of workers leads to many a travel headache and lots of lost luggage. It is for this reason that we decided our last excursion of the season will be a road trip from NYC to Niagara Falls. Stop two is Toronto Canada for 3 Days (later we continue to Montreal and Quebec City)
Home in Toronto Canada for 3 Days:
One King West Hotel and Residence
Pros
- The hotel is housed in a former bank and the lobby is grand
- We have a clean and spacious suite that is larger than most NYC apartments. It has a full kitchen, dining room and a huge living room
- We have a washer and dryer!! Big time unexpected BONUS!
Cons
- The hotel lobby has a clubby vibe and is very loud in the evening, especially on weekend nights (not my speed)
- Our living room is sunken with two abnormally steep steps. The bathroom is on the first level and the beds on the second. That just doesn’t work for me.
- The SUV parking lot was full when we arrived, so we had to park a block away
- The water in the shower takes a long time to get hot and the pressure isn’t great
- They offer only take out breakfast from a cafe next door
- The black-out window shades have significant gaps so it doesn’t get dark
- Some of the elevators just don’t work sometimes ☹️
Day 1: Harbourfront for dinner
The guy at the front desk of our hotel isn’t very helpful when I ask about heading over to the Harbourfront as an evening activity. He just said to “go straight until you hit the water”. Well, there is nothing there, so we take a chance and head left. Our intuition is correct for a change and we find a nice pedestrian area with restaurants and a concert venue by the water. We happily watch the sun set over Lake Ontario while enjoying Italian dinner at Pie Bar. The food is good and the servers are extraordinary. Really.
Beaver tails
On the way back to the hotel, we just HAD to stop at the famed Beaver Tails. This shop specializes in Canada’s version of a donut. Beaver Tails are shaped as their namesakes and topped with almost anything you can imagine. I don’t like donuts, but this treat is more like a zeppole…it is decadent and delicious. Alex says he likes Beaver Tails it even more than the churros in Amsterdam! 😲
Day 2: Fran’s Diner for breakfast
I read about this place that offers 24-hour breakfast on a few blogs. Since our hotel doesn’t have a restaurant, we decide to give it a try. The location we chose is kind of far, but I’m glad we went. With Elvis crooning in the background, we enjoy a delicious meal with excellent service!
Kensington Market
Known as the bohemian center of the city, my expectations of this area are way high. I love all of the art that surround us, although I do find it strange that cars drive over peoples faces in the street…something about that just strikes me the wrong way. Based on the several blocks we walked, this neighborhood has mostly vintage clothing stores.
Chinatown
I love it when we run into a festival we didn’t know existed! That’s what happened today while wandering around Chinatown. We got to see and smell all kinds of interesting foods. It’s fun to people watch the locals enjoying their day.
Graffiti Alley
My favorite part of the morning is exploring the vibrant walls in this area. It’s a very cool spot to visit! Apologies for all of the photos…I can’t stop!!!!
Market 707
This “market” is way smaller than the blogs led me to believe. Unless I am in the wrong place, all I can find there is a small collection of shipping boxes with mostly food for sale. We aren’t ready for another meal yet, so we call an Uber move on pretty quickly.
Distillery District
Here you will find lots busy restaurants and crowded stores. Note that the prettily-arranged, HUGE (!) shops are on the pricey side. Nina is excited to go shopping and finds a super funky pair of boots.
Pai
Finally it is time for lunch. Ready to try some of the gourmet food that this city is known for, we put our name and number on the waiting list at Pai. The delay is way shorter than we are quoted…I love it when that happens! I like the chill vibe here and the food is SO GOOD!
Abstract Acrylic Paint Pouring Adventure
The coin toss decides that we will take an art class instead of a city boat cruise. The atmosphere at the Fresh Paint Studio and Cafe is so zen and sets the scene for getting our creative juices flowing.
After a quick lesson in paint pouring techniques, we venture to give it a try. Renato wins for best student. I love how his work came out! (NOTE: the studio is about a 30 minute drive from downtown Toronto).
La Betolla Di Terroni
Yup, time for a late dinner. The kids request Italian and google finds La Betolla Di Terroni. The background noise is at that perfect level where you can tell everyone is having fun, but you can also hear your dining companions. Dinner is excellent!
Day 3
Ok, so we yesterday we actually completed my full 3-day itinerary for Toronto. This is good because everything was outside and today the forecast is for rain. This is bad because now we have no plans!!
Saving Grace
Since Toronto is a foodie town with a great brunch scene, we had to find a suitable eating establishment. The food here is great…Nina says it is amongst the best she has ever had in her “entire life”!
NOTES:
- Although they don’t take reservations, Saving Grace does have a waiting list on Yelp. They are extremely popular, so add your name to the list long before you plan to eat (We signed in at 11:44, are seated around 12:45 and served at 1:22)
- There is nothing to do in the blocks surrounding, so bring your patience and a book or something.
- They only accept Canadian cash or debit cards.
Saint Laurence Market
The weather is muggy and ominous today, so we are happy to have an indoor activity. We enjoyed walking around this beautiful, expansive, (mostly) farmer’s market. Eyeing the fresh fruits and veggies, meats and cheeses, fish and seafood, candy and baked goods makes our mouths water so we sample some treats at one of the stands.
Toronto Island Park
Luckily the weather improves, so we catch a water taxi to Toronto Island. (FYI: the Ferry is free but it runs on a schedule. A water taxi is available on command, but will cost you $12 Canadian per person). The breeze on Lake Ontario is revitalizing and gets us ready to meet the crowds (and there ARE CROWDS!) at Center Island.
This lush escape from the city seems to be mostly for locals (rather than tourists) as there are few amenities on the island. They do have a small farm, a carnival-type amusement park for young children that has seen better days, and a beach.
El Catrin
This is another very popular (and yummy!) restaurant, so be sure to make a reservation in advance. The decor is interesting to look at and we really enjoyed their authentic Mexican bites!
My thoughts
One of the main reasons that I have always wanted to go to Toronto is because my Grandmother really liked it here. I remember her saying it was one of her most favorite vacation destinations. Grammy Rose died in 1988, so it has to have been more than forty years since she visited. Anyway, I’m trying to figure out what she loved about it.
The positives
- IMHO, the best thing about Toronto is the diversity of the people and cultures. I love seeing all of the mixed couples, families and groups of friends and colleagues; it’s rare that places look so colorful. For this reason, I can see how Toronto is probably a great place to live and work.
- The buildings are geometrically interesting, there is a lot of art, and the streets are way cleaner than New York.
- There are so many choices for food! We are picky and have dietary restrictions, but everywhere we ate has delicious food.
- It is worth mentioning that the staff at every restaurant we visited is way above average…SO NICE!!! In fact, almost all of the people that I spoke with during our stay in Toronto Canada for 3 Days were especially lovely.
The negatives
- It’s quiet. This may count as a pro for some people, but I miss the hustle and bustle of a city this size (Perhaps this is because it’s August and people are away?).
- Sorry to locals but….I find Toronto absent of soul. It is vanilla and lacks the fun, quirky, unique neighborhoods that I expect in a city of this size (with the exception of Kensington).
- It’s weird, but I feel like Toronto isn’t a very tourist friendly city. There’s not much to see and do here other than dining. I felt this way when I went to Madrid as well…I kept thinking that maybe I was missing something…? Then again, not every place is for everyone, right?
- An aside: Nina and Alex have taken to reading my blog notes. They feel that this post makes Toronto seem better than it is. It’s true. I have made a concerted effort not to be “too negative”. These days it seems that when I express that I don’t like or love something, people accuse me of being “negative”. Personally I do not ascribe to this. I feel it’s just being honest. There are things that we like and there are things that we don’t. Honesty means that we can express it either way without having to feel like people reject the “negativity”. Rant concluded.
Thanks for reading Toronto Canada for 3 Days ❤️
To hear about the rest of our Canadian adventure, check out these posts: