Last Thursday night, Reserve Properties, the developers behind the new building project at 109 Ossington, threw a party to officially open their sales centre. They threw an event befitting the neighbourhood, with Rolling Rock beer, hors d’oeuvres, DJs and a performance by local musicians Eight and a Half.
The event was well-attended by a mix of locals, potential buyers, friends of the owners, and media, lots of media. We spoke with Sheldon Fenton, the President and CEO of Reserve Properties, who plans to host more events and become a valued member of the Ossington Village community. He mentioned that until they go into full renovation mode the space will host local events and art exhibits.
St Patricks Day started early on Ossington. Opera Bob’s was already busy by 1pm and the Dakota got things going early with bands from 2pm playing Irish music. Here’s a few shots from earlier in the day. Hope everyone enjoyed the day!
Outside Opera Bobs
Party on a Condo Balcony
A crowd heading out for some St. Paddy’s fun
Inside Opera Bob’s – Green Bowlers
Some Irish Music at Dakota Tavern
The Party Happening with Lemon Bucket Orchestra at The Garrison
Soon-to-open new restaurant The Grove, next to Churchill on Dundas at Lakeview, is already getting preview attention for its English menu.
The local art scene is also getting some coverage, starting with a story about art which mentions some street art on Queen near Ossington. It’s a cool picture – definitely want to check it out!
About this time of year, we like to look back and see what people have been reading on the site and highlight the most popular posts of the year by traffic.
The list is interesting, reflecting not only what’s been popular, but also highlighting places and events we have covered first, been the only ones to cover, or which do not have their own web presence.
1) The Port – updated local spot keeps traditional Beef Shishkabob The first on the list is actually a post written in 2010 about The Port on Dundas. They did an overhaul at the end of last year but decided to keep the one menu item the new managers thought would sell, a delicious beef shishkabob which comes to the table on a sword.
2) Fishbar Opens their Doors – In second place was our post about the long awaited Fishbar, which opened in May and has been going strong ever since. We especially like their Oyster matinee on weekend afternoons.
3) Havana Cultura Starts Today! – This post, written in 2010 for the first edition of the festival, is still more popular than the post we wrote about this year’s festival in July. We’re looking forward to many more years of this Cuban cultural festival remaining in the neighbourhood.
4) Beau Lieu Bistro is Now Open – We wrote this post in September 2010 and it’s still popular. It’s probably because this quiet French bistro hasn’t had much publicity in other media and audiences online are looking to know more.
5) The evolution of Dundas off Ossington – Another post from October 2010 remained popular through 2011. As the moratorium came to a close in 2010, we noticed the quick transition of Dundas to a more food-centric strip. At that time, many new places were opening, including Churchill, Enoteca Sociale, Brockton General, The Red Light, The Port, Camp 4, and more, all taking the local food and drink culture which had started on Ossington to a new place around the corner on Dundas.
6) Opening Soon: Amaya Express – There’s no doubt it takes a long time to get a restaurant open. We wrote about this Indian restaurant chain soon-to-be opening in March. Here it is December and we’re still waiting.
7) Cosmopolis shoot brings stars to Ossington and Dundas – It seems vampires are popular. When we wrote in May about how Robert Pattinson was filming in the neighbourhood, his fans immediately retweeted and shared our post. The day we posted this was one of the busiest days this year for traffic on the site.
Psst – There’s an Ossington Village Alleyway Party – In early August, local musician and bartender at Communist’s Daughter and organizer Michael Louis Johnson organized a party in the alleyway between Argyle and Foxley. This post was shared widely, letting people know of this no-so-secret event.
9) Yours Truly Now Open – Despite only being on the site for about 14 days, this post, written on December 16th about the new restaurant Yours Truly, is still in our top 10. We ended up stopping by later in the week and the food was outstanding. We’ll be back there a lot.
It’s only a few weeks away, and you still don’t have plans for New Year’s? No matter how cold it is, at least on Ossington you know you’ll find a cab home! Here are some great ways to celebrate the start of 2012.
Bohmer Restaurant is holding a Speakeasy New Year’s Eve, with a 5 course tasting menu with a glass of bubbly, for $75 pp.
At this year’s Dakota Tavern New Year’s party, CATL will have everyone dancing with a show starting at 10PM.
The Painted Lady sticks to what it does best, with music by Salazar and burlesque from Anastasia Burlesque.
The Ossington is planning an 80s boogie funk New Year with “Love Handle NYE Edition” with DJs starting at 10PM.
Opera Bob’s is hosting their 3rd Annual New Year’s Eve-Stravaganza, with live music from The Unknown Culprits and guests. Admission is $20 but go buy tickets in advance as they sold out well before the big night last year.
The Garrison‘s Annual New Year’s Eve party features Chronologic and Shit la Merde and tickets are available at Soundscapes and Rotate This for $20.
Lower Ossington Theatre‘s new event space, LOT, is hosting a New Year’s party for $10 with dancing all night. Tickets on sale now and the party starts at 10p.
UPDATE: Fishbar has announced their dinner menu for New Year’s (scroll down) and for $55 pp they are offering a 4 course meal, drinks not included.
People will be dancing at Levack Block. Featuring DJ Dougie Boom in the backroom with special guests in the front. Entry is $20 in advance, $30 at the door, plus there’s a $40 VIP wristband = entry to second floor & champagne toast at midnite. Doors open @ 10pm, serving till 3AM.
Tickets available at the bar from Thursday to Saturday from 5pm or through PayPal via levackblock@yahoo.com
We’ll keep updating this post as we learn of more happenings in the neighborhood.
Ossington always celebrates Halloween in style, and this year is no exception. We already know about a few Halloween events and parties, so get your costume ready!
The Toronto Zombie Walk kicks Halloween off early when it returns to Trinity Bellwoods Park on Saturday, October 22. The 2011 9th Annual Zombie Walk is open to everybody who wants to dress up and participate, and if you have been there or read about it, you know people dress up! The walk begins at 3pm, but go early to see the crowd and enjoy the Zombie Wedding!
Reposado is planning a Halloween bash on Saturday, October 29 with prizes for best costume, live music and Duggan’s Beer.
Last year’s show must have been a success, because Lower Ossington Theatre is encoring the Rocky Horror Picture Show this October. The show runs Thursday, October 20 – Monday, October 31, with a sing-along edition on the 27th. Tickets here.
The Garrison is holding a Halloween House of Horrors on Saturday, October 29, with a $5 cover with costume, or $8 without. DJs Shit la Merde, Scott Cudmore and Jilly Botting will be entertaining party-goers starting at 9:30PM.
Also in the Halloween spirit, Crafted is running a “Best Costume Idea” contest and offering a pound of coffee free to the winner. Check into the shop for more information and/or to enter.
Additional parties announced: Levack Block is hosting a Halloween party weekend with DJs and costumes Friday and Saturday nights starting at 9PM. On Friday night, head over to Watusi for a Halloween Dance Party with DJs and a prize at midnight for the best costume. Opera Bob’s is having a party on Saturday night after 9:30PM and giving out some good prizes for costumes: $60 Opera Bob’s gift certificate for best group costume, $30 for best individual costume.
Please check our calendar for these and other upcoming events.
This Thursday, Opera Bob‘s, our local sports bar, is hosting a unique charity event. Gregg Zaun, former Blue Jay pitcher and Rogers SportsNet analyst, is putting on a charity casino night in support of the Sick Kids Hospital and Horizons for Youth. Opera Bob’s got quite a reputation this summer for their Jays Days events, where for a bunch of out-of-town games this season, they recreated the spirit of the game right in the bar, right down to the seventh inning stretch and servers walking around selling canned beer and hot-dogs.
Thursday night’s event is for a good cause, and also includes the opportunity to:
Play Blackjack, Roulette, Crown and Anchor with professional casino dealers,
Celebrity bar tending, including 2010 Miss Universe, Elena Semikina
Opera Bob’s is no stranger to charity events. They regularly provide a venue for many local charities to raise funds for all sorts of great causes. Head over on Thursday to Opera Bob’s and enjoy the tail end of the baseball season while helping others!
Free Show / Beer Week Festival Opener Party! Foxfire-OPOPO-Mamabolo-Pants & Tie-Shit la Merde This Friday-The Garrison
Other local participants are listed on the Beer Week website. Some are offering beer specials, food and beer pairings, or something else. Keep your eye out for the beer week specials on Ossington, and enjoy the craft brews!
It’s mid-summer and we are still working our way around the local patios. The Red Light at 1185 Dundas St West is open most weekend afternoons, and at night. The two room bar also offers a cozy, South-facing patio with a lot of built in benches for seating. Order a drink from the bar before you head to the back, and lounge in the sun making new friends of your neighbors. It’s a young, friendly crowd, and sometimes they have special BBQ meals and other one-time-only events. You never know what you’ll get, but it’s probably fun at The Red Light.
Down on southern Ossington lies Baby Huey, a mostly late night spot at 70 Ossington. We stopped in on a recent Saturday after 11pm, and the crowd still hadn’t arrived, which allowed us the back patio almost entirely to ourselves. It’s a large back patio with some pretty interesting wall murals, and the drinks are cheap, so come early for a seat, or later to mingle with the cool kids. See you on the patio!
Eight and a Half playing in the upstairs event space:
Ossington always 
