This is it, the final installment of the Toronto Pub Crawl series. We have explored Toronto East, the Danforth, Leaside, Downtown, Yonge Street, stops along the Bloor TTC subway line, and now we will venture off to the Dundas West/Kensington/College area of Toronto.
Before I being, though, I know I'll probably take some heat for not including a crawl along Queen West or along the Ossington Strip, but I felt that the way I set the criteria I couldn't put together a solid list. I wanted to include The Rhino and The Acedemy of Spherical Arts, but it didn't work out that way. Go visit them regardless, they're both great spots to have a pint.
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Now, back to the final crawl. The first stop belongs to Sin & Redemption on McCaul Street, just north of Dundas W. Here you'll find numerous imports on tap, some that are hard to find like Delirium Tremens and Weihenstephaner Hefe-Weiss.
When you're done your pint head to D'Arcy Street and walk west for 12 minutes to Spadina and then head north to Baldwin and south on Augusta. Head into the Kensingston area and grab a pint of King Pilsner or a McAuslan product at The Embassy Bar, a comfy spot that caters to mostly young urbanites.
The third stop belongs to Ronnie's Local 069, a true local with a mean Grilled Cheese. To get there from The Embassy Bar walk north on Augusta Ave to Nassau St and the pub is right there on the corner. Grab a pint of craft beer (Great Lakes, Cameron's, Stratford) and head out to the large street-side patio. This unpretentious pub is a great spot to relax with friends, but beware, the hours go by quickly at this pub.
The Kensington area is a nice place to go for a stroll, so continue north on Augusta from Ronnie's Local 069 to College Street and turn west on College. On the north side of the street you'll come across The Cloak & Dagger, a pub with many Ontario beers on tap. There was a time I didn't care for the Cloak, but I've since come around to appreciate their uniqueness. Also, it's only one of a handful of places in Toronto where you can get a pint from Northumberland's Church Key Brewery, including their Holy Smoke.
And the last stop on the last crawl belongs to Magpie Cafe, a small pub on Dundas West, just east of Euclid Street. Magpie hasn't been around that long, but they have a healthy following and have shown their committment to serving local craft beers from breweries in and around the GTA. They're also part of Toronto's Cask Ale trail, which seems to be growing all the time. Local art graces the wall along with a handful of knick-knacks that were probably once destined for trash, but together the mis-mash creates a cool vibe.
So there you have it - over 30 pubs in seven different areas of the city. What are you doing this weekend?
*Sin & Redemption - 136 McCaul St
*The Embassy Bar - 223 Augusta Avenue
*Ronnie's Local - 69 Nassau St
*Cloak & Dagger - 394 College St
*Magpie - 831 Dundas St. W
2 comments:
The Rhino is definitely worth a visit outside the tour.
Matt - I know, I know. I wanted to try fitting it in, but alas.
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