Alice in Wonderland tea parties are the new Mad Men cocktail parties. Toronto’s Four Seasons is throwing one such event this weekend, mirroring similar ones in Chicago and Los Angeles. The buzz for the upcoming film even prompted the Calgary Herald to run a how-to piece on throwing a Wonderland event, and the Vancouver Sun, no doubt experiencing Olympics withdrawal, is calling Alice the new black. As for the Four Seasons tea party, the menu is entirely predictable: raspberry jam and cream cheese pinwheels. No word yet on whether opium will be served as a digestif, though it certainly seems appropriate.
Posts Tagged ‘four seasons’
Toronto International Film Festival 2009
Elevated Oprah takes no chances with security (except sometimes)
Destination unknown: elevator numbers were switched off at the Hazelton when Oprah was changing floors (Photo by Karon Liu)
Going up? O, no you’re not.
When Oprah Winfrey rides the elevator, the numbers go black, or so claims a Yorkville insider we met at the InStyle party. The insider told us that although Oprah fans had swarmed the Four Seasons in hopes of catching their 4 p.m. saviour, the Precious producer was, in fact, staying at The Hazelton. We also learned that when Oprah wanted to go up or down the elevator, FBI tactics were in play: all the elevators went dark so no one could know which floor she was on. To further ensure her safeguard, security would block off the foyer to prevent other guests—A-listers or not—from getting to their room.
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Toronto International Film Festival 2009
The Oprah effect: The press conference-turned-talk show taping
Oprah ropes in her fans at the press conference for Precious
“It’s like the president is coming,” said one photographer looking back at the burly security guards at the entrance of the room.
“It’s bigger than that,” replied another. “It’s Oprah.”
With our cameras slung over our shoulders, painfully weighed down by the giant lenses and flashes attached to them, 15 or so photographers negotiated spots and angles with each other so we all would have a clear shot at the mighty O behind the table she’d be sitting at for the morning press conference of the movie she co-produced: Precious: Based on the Novel Push by Sapphire. (To see all photos from the Precious press conference, click here.)
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Toronto International Film Festival 2009
We don’t care about the young folks: the Park Hyatt is overrun with stargazing 20-somethings
Bored of the dance: many seemed exasperated with the deluge of short-skirted 20-somethings in Yorkville (Photo by Jen McNeely)
Did Gossip Girl put out an APB directing all 19-year-old girls from the GTA to the Park Hyatt roof? The hotel has been so inundated with stargazers that metal fences are required to block the driveway at night and elevators are crammed with intoxicated 20-somethings vying for a lewd stare from any Hollywood hunk. We managed to squeeze through the human wall (thanks to National Post’s Shinan Govani) and bypass the party crashers to get a glimpse of the hoopla at the Hyatt’s Nikki Beach. Drew Barrymore was sitting pretty on the patio, but a somewhat stunned Elijah Wood was seemingly scared off by the masses of miniskirts and lipstick-stained teeth.
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Toronto International Film Festival 2009
Latest from Yorkville: Celebs are staying inside until nightfall
Sassafraz awaits the teeming masses (Photo by Fraser Abe)
This afternoon, we went to the secret celeb hotspot known as Yorkville in an attempt to see a few of our faves, but were shocked at the serenity of it all. The calm before the storm, perhaps? Sassafraz’s patio was nowhere near capacity. One’s lunchtime terrace was looking sparse. Ditto for other local favourites Remy’s, Hemmingway’s and Flo’s. Like the celebs themselves, the stalkers still seem to be in hiding. The scene at the front doors of The Hazelton and The Four Seasons were all crickets and tumbleweed.
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Toronto International Film Festival 2009
Getting a TIFF drink: a complete list of establishments open until 4 a.m. during the film festival
Drake of dawn: the Queen Street hotel is one of many spots open until 4 a.m.
Stalking celebs at TIFF takes a lot out of us—and, we imagine, avoiding us takes a lot out of celebs. The best way to soothe those festival blues or celebrate festival triumphs is with a few cocktails around dawn. Luckily, more bars than ever are serving late this year.
Why so many licences this year? David Brown, bar manager at the Drake Hotel, posits a theory: “The economy is a little tight in general, regardless of what the Bank of Canada says. Giving licences earlier is a benefit to the city and businesses.” He notes that the crowd typically thins out a bit around 2 a.m., with a fresh round of TIFFers coming in around 2:30 a.m. Richard Lambert, owner of The Social, echoes Brown’s sentiment: “We will see a good turnover in the crowds, with a second wave coming around 1:30.” Read the rest of this entry »
Deathwatch
Truffles to close: Toronto’s grandfather of fine dining bites the dust after 37 years
After nearly four decades of obsequious service and high-end dining, the Four Seasons’ restaurant Truffles announced that it will close on September 5—just before TIFF would have provided an influx of celebrities ready to savour its signature “black gold” truffle spaghettini. Staff will be partly absorbed by the Studio Café, but the new Four Seasons hotel, which is slated to open July 2012 at 60 Yorkville, will not resurrect the Truffles concept, signalling another mighty nail in the fine-dining coffin. A new direction at the hotel will respond to changing times and reflect the vision of Studio Café newcomers chef Claudio Rossi and pastry specialist Philip Vellagares. Read the rest of this entry »
Read All About It
Truffles to close, the KFC “float-thru,” 64,373 kilometres of Twinkie wrapper
• Truffles, one of Toronto’s most revered fine-dining institutions, will serve its last meal on September 5. Four Seasons executive Dimitrios Zarikos told Corey Mintz that while business had been declining at Truffles for years, it was the recession that retired them at age 37. Internationally acclaimed alumni include Jonathan Gushue of Langdon Hall in Cambridge, Lynn Crawford of the Four Seasons New York and Jason McLeod of Elysian in Chicago. Predictably, Truffles will be replaced by something “more casual.” [Toronto Star]
• Howstuffworks.com has just ruined a few more foods for us. Each year, 64,373 kilometres of plastic wrap are used to package Twinkies; worcestershire sauce is mainly anchovies; and most disgustingly of all, the U.S. FDA allows up to 19 maggots in each can of assembly line mushrooms. If the latter doesn’t make one a Tupperware-toting slow-food vegetarian, nothing ever will. [Howstuffworks.com]
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Bottoms Up, Toronto International Film Festival 2009
TIFF turf wars: eTalk and ET Canada have started to mark their territory and announce parties
Park party: ET Canada's TIFF HQ is moving from Casa Loma to a Hazelton Hotel–adjacent parking structure
Broadcast stations are starting to claim their territory for the 10 days of TIFF, mostly setting up headquarters from where they will navigate the circus of galas, schmoozing, parties and possible Oprah sightings.
The folks at ET Canada, Global’s major entertainment show, have claimed a parking lot rooftop in Yorkville, directly across from the Hazelton Hotel, where all of the show’s interviews will be held. A temporary floor is being installed, and the space is being decorated completely in white and accented with crystal chandeliers and an elevated DJ booth. The location is quite a departure from ET Canada’s Casa Loma headquarters in 2007 and 2008—it’s a smart move from a logistical standpoint (Austin Terrace isn’t exactly party central) but could potentially take the grandeur down a notch.
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