Good Eats

Last year at TIFF, Girish introduced me to his friend Andrew, a kind, soft-spoken Torontoan who's something of a fixture at the Cinematheque. When I become depressed by the sad state of film culture in the American South, I live vicariously through Andrew, who, over the last decade, has sat through complete retrospectives of Ozu, Imamura, Rivette, and who knows how many other great directors as their films have worked their way through Jackman Hall. After launching this site, I bothered Andrew for a local's perspective on favorite places to eat, and he kindly passed along the following:

Here are the ones that I've frequented over the years and a few more that I've recently discovered.

*Cheap (under 10 bucks); **Moderate (10 to 20 bucks)

Northwest
Minutes from Cumberland 4, ROM and Isabel Bader.

*China Garden Restaurant
200 Bloor Street West (located on the north side across from the ROM, up a flight of stairs). Lunch special is $4.95 which includes a pop. Dinner for one is $7.99. Fast service. In and out in under 40 minutes. Order what you want and the way you want it. 11-10 on weekdays; 11:30-10 on weekends. Next door on the same level is Booster Juice for fruit juices and smoothies.
Subway Stop: Museum

Northeast
Minutes from Varsity

**Eggstasy Diner & Grill
1255 Bay St. (between Cumberland St. & Yorkville Ave. on the east side) Newly opened. Thirteen different omelets, wraps, fajitas, twelve different sandwiches, freshly made burgers, grilled chicken, grilled steaks and home-cut fries. Average price of a meal with a tip: $11 to $12 bucks.
Subway Stop: Bay

*Flo's Diner
70 Yorkville Ave (on the north side near Bay & Yorkville). Located on the second floor you go up a spiral staircase from street level. They have 50's style booths inside or sit on the patio under large umbrellas. All day breakfast, burgers, salads & deserts. Two eggs with bacon, ham or sausage with home fries, bagel or toast: $6.95. Flo's feature specials range from mixed berry pancakes $8.50 to $12.95 for Spaghetti bolognese. Known for their ice cream sodas, shakes & floats. Open 7:30 am - 10:00 pm weekdays, 8:00 am - 10:00 pm Saturdays and 9:00 am - 8:00 pm Sundays. Takeout menu available.
Subway Stop: Bay

*Crepes A GoGo
18 Yorkville Avenue (at Yorkville & Yonge, across from the Toronto Reference Library) Newly opened at this location Crepes A GoGo is run by Veronique Perez, a Parisian born filmmaker. Forget that you're in Anglo Toronto. All of her staff speak French and Perez encourages her customers to practise their rusty Francais. During TIFF Veronique tells me they will have film projections from her side of the street onto a wall on the opposite side. Worth checking out! At the front she has a large outdoor area for seating. But lets not forget the food. Her crepes are the best quality for price that you can get anywhere in the city. They are stuffed with a wide range of fillings starting at $4.25. Open from 11:00 Monday to Friday and from 10:00 Saturday & Sunday. Not sure about closing times during the festival.
Subway Stop: Yonge & Bloor

*Zyng Asian Grill
730 Yonge Street (at Charles next to Second Cup) Create your own meal for $7.49 plus tax: 1 sauce + 1 protein (Beef, Shrimp, Grilled Chicken Breast, Tofu or Zoya) + 1 choice of noodle or rice + choice of vegetables includes a non-alcoholic beverage.
Subway Stop: Yonge & Bloor

*Oja Noodle House
689 Yonge Street (across the street from Zyng Asian Grill). Covers Korean, Japanese, Chinese & Thai cuisine. Large portions and fast service. Prices & quality make this one of the best kept secrets in Toronto. Open 11:30 - 11 everyday.
Subway Stop: Yonge & Bloor

Southeast
Minutes from Ryerson Theatre

There are many cheap eats in the vicinity of the theatre on both Church St. and especially on Yonge St. but personally I would not risk them. However, there is a viable option. Prior to, that is, getting off at College St. Subway station, or immediately after a screening at Ryerson you can stroll over to College Park (Between Gerrard & College Streets on the West side) location of the Festival Box Office on the lower level next to the food court you will find Dominion Food Store. At the "Fresh 2 Go" counter they have sandwiches for $3.49, Wraps $3.99, salads starting at $3.69. Stone baked pizza is $2.49 a slice. Combos are as such: Soup, Sandwich & Beverage $5.99, Wrap, chips & beverage $5.49 & Baguette, chips & Beverage $5.29. Good value and truly fresh to go. You can eat in the food court or take it with you as you bolt for your next film.
Subway Stop: College

Further South
Minutes from Paramount/Scotiabank Centre, Elgin/Visa Screening Room

*Queen St. Patrick Market
238 Queen St. W. (east of John St. on the North Side) A number of vendors share these narrow confines. High round tables located up the centre isle to eat on while standing. LouLou's Shawarma & Falafel (right to the back) and the Gourmet Pizza are the best of the lot while Sandwich Box (at the front), Burrito Mexican Grill, and Greek Food are also good. LouLou's offers 2 falafel sandwiches for $6.99 while Gourmet Pizza offers two slices from $3.25 to $3.99. Good place to pop in when short of time between screenings. Most vendors are open quite late as they get a lot of traffic off of Queen St. at night.
Subway Stop: Osgoode

**Little India Restaurant
255 Queen St. W. (at Duncan & Queen). Recommended by Girish. Daily Lunch Buffet is from 11:30 -3:00 for $8.95. India Palace Restaurant next door offers the same deal.
Subway Stop: Osgoode

*Village by the Grange
575 Dundas St. W. (West entrance across from AGO & Jackman Hall on McCaul Street) This has always been Cinematheque Ontario members' refuelling station. Some very good choices here. My favourite is Helena's Magic Kitchen run by a Korean couple. Boy can they cook! Polish food never tasted so good and this is coming from a Pole. Helena's open early for lunch and close around 7:00 pm. My favorite on the menu is sweet potato pie with two side salads for $5.99. Another sure bet is Island Foods (West Indian Foods). The best rotis I've tasted any where in T.O. Open Mon-Fri 11-9. Closed on Weekends. Rotis range in price form $4 for potato to $6.25 for Shrimp. My favorite is the spinach for $4.25. I can also recommend Mary's Greek Souviaki Plate, Sakura 'Japanese', Pita Village 'Turkish' & Red Red Noodles 'Vietnamese'.
Subway Stop: St. Patrick

Now if you're with friends, have a few hours respite from the Festival and are looking for excellent food with a good atmosphere you owe it to yourself to check out Baldwin Street. Located two blocks north of the AGO, West off of McCaul:

**St. John's Italian Cafe is the most popular while Margaritas 'Mexican', Cafe la Gabbe & Bocca's are also well known. All stay open late.

The Isabel Bader

This might sound odd, but the Isabel Bader Theatre is the one TIFF venue where I have on occasion felt underdressed -- and I mean that as a compliment. Evening screenings there, especially during weekends, feel more like social events than run-of-the-mill movies at a multiplex. The building, located on the campus of Victoria University, opened in 2001 and features plush seating, a small balcony, and especially good acoustics. My one complaint with the Bader is its sight lines, which can be frustrating during heavily-subtitled films.

The Bader is on Charles Street, one block south of Bloor, making it a quick walk from other north-end venues like The Varsity and The Cumberland. (Something to keep in mind on those five-film days.) Eat before you get there -- Charles is a quiet, tree-lined street. More than once I've grabbed a hot dog from a street vendor (there are a ton of 'em on University) and found a comfortable place in line outside of the Bader.

Two of my favorite TIFF experiences were at the Bader. In 2004, I saw the premiere of Moolade there. Because the film got off to a late start and ran longer than expected, there was no time for a post-screening Q&A. Instead, Ousmane Sembene invited everyone to join him outside in the courtyard, where he took a seat, lit his pipe, and chatted about what would prove, sadly, to be his last film. The next night I returned for the premiere of L'Intrus, which frustrated me to the point of exhaustion. When Claire Denis took the stage afterwards, she was haggard from jetlag and lacked the energy (or will) to fight through the stream of poor, meandering questions that too often plague Q&As. L'Intrus is my favorite TIFF film, though, because it revealed to me how essential conversation is to the festival experience. By the time I flew home -- after talking and talking and talking about Denis's film with Girish and others -- I'd completely reevaluated my original response and was eager to spend the next few months watching and rewatching all of her films.

Subway Stop: Museum
Rush & Ticket-Holder Lines: Form outside of the theater along Charles Street

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Ten Places to Go in T.O.

(by Girish.)

It's devilishly hard to keep the list down to ten, so forgive me if I do some cramming and cheat a little:

1. Cinematheque Ontario. Alas, it's not in season during TIFF but this is the place that draws me most to Toronto and I just had to begin with a coup de chapeau to it.

2. Little India. On Queen Street, and probably my favorite Indian restaurant in Toronto. It's quite small, and monstrously popular, so I'd suggest lunch either early (11:30-ish) or late (2:00-ish). For a whole cornucopia of Indian food, I'd recommend a trip to the Indian section of town on Garrard Street East. For about three blocks, you could swear you were in the middle of Mumbai.

3. Bookstores: Andrew Tracy hipped me to this chain called BMV (Books Music Videos) that carries discounted merhandise and tons of it. I've been to 2 locations, one off Yonge near Dundas and the other at Yonge and Eglinton. I also recommend a great used-book shop called Eliot's on Yonge near Wellesley for books on art, film, music, etc.

4. College Street West: Adam Nayman turned me on to this books-and-music zone which includes stores like She Said Boom. I've been here just once and scarcely skimmed the surface. I'll be trying to squeeze in a visit during TIFF.

5. The Beguiling: Seriously: the best indie comics shop I've been to in North America and I've been to a few. If you're an indie comics aficionado, leave your credit card at home and take a budgeted amount of cash. You've been warned. Also, close by is one of the largest video stores in the city, Suspect Video.

6. The Art Gallery of Ontario (AGO). The gallery is only partially open because of construction but it'll be running exhibits of Chuck Close and Bernini during TIFF.

7. The Rex. Top-flight music club hosting the best in local Toronto jazz. Very often, there's not even a cover charge. Good food and beer selections. On Queen St., close to Little India.

8. Two More Great Bookstores: (a) Pages on Queen St., not far from the Rex; and (b) Theater Books, a stone's throw from the Varsity and Cumberland theaters. Great selection of film books at both places.

9. The Film Reference Library. Affiliated with the TIFF group. You can't borrow anything but you can watch videos and DVDs from their large collection (lots of rare and unreleased stuff) and consult books and back issues of periodicals. Recommended from their collection (and unavailable in the US): Claire Denis's U.S. Go Home and Olivier Assayas's Cold Water.

10. The NFB Mediatheque. For two bucks, you can get comfy in a large plush chair/viewing station and call up any of the hundreds of films produced by the National Film Board of Canada. The last time I was there, I caught Gilles Groulx's Le Chat Dans Le Sac (1964). My next trip will likely feature some Arthur Lipsett. Located close to the Scotiabank Theatres used by TIFF.

Your suggestions and tips for fun places to go in Toronto? Perhaps we can build ourselves a little trove of ideas here. Thank you!

The Varsity

The Cineplex Odeon Varsity Theater is located in the Manulife Centre at 55 Bloor Street West (one block west of the intersection of Bloor and Yonge). The TIFFG Box Office is on the north side of the building at street level; The Varsity is on the opposite end and one level up. The Manulife Centre is also home to a large Chapters bookstore and several small restaurants and coffee shops, so it's a decent place to kill time between films.

The Varsity is unique among TIFF venues in that the quality of viewing experience varies greatly from theater to theater. Varsity 1-6 are among my favorite screens at the festival. Each features stadium seating and fantastic projection and sound, but the rooms are a bit smaller and more intimate than those at The Paramount. Varsity 7 is a very small room with one level of seating. (If you ever went to a multiplex in a mall in the early-'80s, you'll remember theaters like Varsity 7 .) Due to its size, Varsity 8 often hosts high-demand films. It's a massive room with deep seats, limited leg room, and horrible sight lines. Subtitled films often send the audience's heads a-bobbin'.

Note: Ticket-holder lines begin near the theater lobby, but because of limited space there, they often continue down the back stairs and outside of the building onto Balmuto Street (on the east side of the building). Rush lines almost always begin outside, on the south end of Balmuto.

Subway Stop: Bloor-Yonge
Rush & Ticket-Holder Lines: Theater lobby and on east side of building (Balmuto Street)

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