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The 7 - Random - If anybody is near Toronto later in the week... Register and log in to post!
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griff
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#1 Posted on 14.10.13 1504.11
Reposted on: 14.10.20 1505.33
... I'll be there playing a heap of shows in the city from Thursday to Sunday. I'm yet to meet any fellow W'ers in person so would love the opportunity!

Also, if anybody has any good recommendations for places a clueless English band could visit then kindly share! :-)
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Oliver
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#2 Posted on 14.10.13 2255.43
Reposted on: 14.10.20 2259.01
Sweet! I was born and raised in Toronto. Great memories of living there; I'm quite looking forward to showing my wife around during Christmas.

I'll try to think of a few ideas, but one thing comes to mind: Go for streetdogs: its what we call hot dogs here - there are lots downtown. Visit the corner of Bloor and Yonge and try one.

UNION STATION at Front and Bay is a beautiful building. It's a massive transit hub, but try not to visit during rush hour.

If you like Fish and Chips, go to Hamishes near Pharmacy Road and St. Clair Ave. East. One of my favorite places.
KJames199
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#3 Posted on 15.10.13 1514.51
Reposted on: 15.10.20 1516.47
Standard tourist stuff: go up the CN Tower. Take a tour of the Rogers Centre (née Skydome). Check out the Royal Ontario Museum and/or the Art Gallery of Ontario. Or there's always the Hockey Hall of Fame. You don't care, I'm sure, but hey, Canada.

The subway system is super simple to use. Get a pass if you can (The last time I was there, they only sold passes by calendar week - that may not work out for you but it might be different now anyway). Just get off at a random spot and look around. Toronto always felt really safe to me.

I saw a taping of a talk show at the CBC building, but for that, you generally need to get tickets in advance. The building itself had some neat memorabilia, but again, not being Canadian, you likely don't care.

This place didn't exist when I was in Toronto last, but it's supposed to be a good burger.

I asked a friend about record stores since he has his favourites and you said you're in a band, and he wrote a small novel:

    It depends on how mobile he is, I mean, does he like to walk? Or move his car a bunch of times? Or take cabs everywhere? Toronto is all over the place, cool pockets scattered throughought the rest of the melee…

    Walking it north to south, in my mind, I would hit:

    For CDs, we always hit Sonic Boom, at Bloor and Bathurst. In the Honest Ed's building. The basement of the BMV just east a little on the south side of Bloor has less selection but great prices, usually a gem or two there. There's She Said Boom just east of Bathurst on College, that's books/CDs/vinyl and was always a well-chosen selection. Sonic Boom also has a vinyl location in the south end of Kensington Market, I think the street name is Augusta. The market is small, just ask somebody and they'll point it out. Down on Queen West there's always Rotate This for vinyl and CD, great stuff there every time. However, if you've already done all of these places I listed, this is a bit of a hike from the market as it's west of Bathurst on Queen W. Worth it if this is a dedicated shopper, though. There's another CD shop along Queen West, with two locations, at Spadina and Queen W. The name escapes me but I've heard good things. I didn't make it there last trip. For the musician, though, probably a stop at Steve's on Queen and Spadina (across from the Horseshoe Tavern) is a must. All your instruments and paraphernalia. Great place, I can spend hours in there…

    Other touristy stuff is tough, not knowing what they like. Yeah yeah CN Tower blah blah. Especially if they've never been to Toronto before. Bloor has the AGO and the ROM, if they're into galleries. I have no idea what exhibits are on right now. Chinatown is fun to prowl for junk and colour and sights and sounds, on Spadina from College to Queen. It's just over from Kensington, if following that record shop route (above). If they wanna mall shop, people stil seem to like the Eaton Center at Yonge and Dundas, it's huge. I hear good things about the Distillery District, east of Yonge along King (I think?) but I've never been. For that matter, just get down to the water and go along Queens Quay, that's a nice walk, at least. A nice-weather trip is to take the street car out east to the beaches, it's quaint jazzy cafe kind of vibe, but this time of year may not be much going on (I'm guessing? I don't know). You would get to go across the viaduct though, that's fun. And a stop on the Danforth on the way back could be fun too…

If you have any specific questions about any of that, just let me know.
AWArulz
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#4 Posted on 15.10.13 2122.18
Reposted on: 15.10.20 2123.07
If you like oriental foods of all sorts, drive or take a cab north of city center to the Markham district and eat all sorts of Chinese, Thai, Vietnamese and other foods from that region. In fact, for Indian, Pakistani and all sorts of Oriental cuisine, there's really no place in the world like Toronto.

Sadly, the Canadian football teams in the area (the Argos and TCs) are out of town this week. That's kind of an "event" worth seeing.

go have a coffee and doughnut at Tim Horton's - it's just a Canadian thing to do. Get a Coffee Crisp Candy bar. They are only found there to my knowledge.

That's all I have. I mean, you're about an hour, hour and a half away from Niagara Falls. That's a very unique thing to see.
Oliver
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#5 Posted on 16.10.13 2257.54
Reposted on: 16.10.20 2258.37
    Originally posted by KJames199

    This place didn't exist when I was in Toronto last, but it's supposed to be a good burger.
LICKS! Best burgers in Toronto. Second place goes to a place outside of town called Melanie Pringles, near the Whitby/Oshawa border. It's a fantastic 50s throwback place with jukeboxes in the booths.

Honest Ed's is a great shopping spot, but I believe it's closing soon. The sign is something to see. Same could be said for the Sam The Record Man sign on Yonge and Dundas, but I do believe it's been dismantled since the chain went belly-up.

With all due respect to KJames199, I'd have to disagree with the idea of visiting the CN Tower. Yeah, it's tall, but the view isn't really special. To the East and West, you see buildings. To the north, more of the same. To the south: railroad tracks and Lake Ontario. It's a real ripoff, IMHO.

With all due respect to AWArulz, a cab ride from downtown Toronto to Markham would be incredibly expensive: it'd probably be prudent to take the TTC. There's a massive Asian mall on Steeles Ave and Kennedy Road that's worth checking out for some great Chinese chow.
AWArulz
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#6 Posted on 16.10.13 2358.18
Reposted on: 16.10.20 2358.21
    Originally posted by Oliver

    With all due respect to AWArulz, a cab ride from downtown Toronto to Markham would be incredibly expensive: it'd probably be prudent to take the TTC. There's a massive Asian mall on Steeles Ave and Kennedy Road that's worth checking out for some great Chinese chow.


Yeah. I always have a car in Toronto. Food's good there though. That stupid italian place too. Can't recall, but it's like a monster buffett. Bad in a good way.
Karlos the Jackal
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#7 Posted on 21.10.13 1650.06
Reposted on: 21.10.20 1652.24
    Originally posted by Oliver
    LICKS! Best burgers in Toronto.

And, as of yesterday on reddit, endorsed by Keanu Reeves (reddit.com).
Oliver
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#8 Posted on 21.10.13 2325.55
Reposted on: 21.10.20 2325.57
    Originally posted by Karlos the Jackal
      Originally posted by Oliver
      LICKS! Best burgers in Toronto.

    And, as of yesterday on reddit, endorsed by Keanu Reeves (reddit.com).
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