According to a nifty chart over at the National Post that compares the city’s new crop of super-luxe hotel-slash-condo-towers—the Trump tower, the Ritz-Carlton, the Four Seasons and the Shangri-La—it’s a tight race. While the Shangri-La earns points for scoring two Momofuku restaurants by New York chef David Chang, the Ritz-Carlton has high-definition televisions in the bathroom mirrors. Then again, a penthouse at the Four Seasons went for $28 million, more than twice the price of any suite in the other buildings. For our part, though, we give the prize to the Trump tower: as the tallest of the lot, it’ll have the largest impact on our city’s skyline. Trust the Donald to recognize that size matters. Read the entire story [National Post] »
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Which of Toronto’s opulent new hotels is the most over-the-top?
Buyers don’t want the Ritz-Carlton’s lavish condos; we wonder what that means for the luxury market
Apparently, the heat of Toronto’s condo market doesn’t extend to luxury penthouses (those one-per-centers must be chilly up there)—nearly a fifth of the 161 high-end condos at the Ritz-Carlton Hotel and Residences have languished on the market for months, and some have even seen their prices slashed, the Toronto Star reports. While the developer is still trying to flog 12 units at $1,100 per square foot, a recently sold two-bedroom condo on the 28th floor was listed at about $825 per square foot. It all makes us wonder if a glut of luxury suites is ahead, with the Trump International tower opening January 31 and the Living Shangri-La and Four Seasons residences due later in the year. Read the entire story [Moneyville] »
Year in Review 2011: the best houses, condos and cottages of the week
Let’s face it: taking a peek through a stranger’s home gives us all a voyeuristic thrill. But aside from when a place goes up for sale, it’s pretty well impossible to get inside without breaking windows (and the law—an open house with a realtor is one thing; gaining access with a crowbar is completely another). That’s why we take such delight in scouring the city every week to find the most opulent, outrageous and storied church conversions, summer getaways and stately mansions on the market. Here, our 10 favorite houses, condos and cottages of the week from 2011 (with a yurt thrown in for good measure).
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Conrad Black Book Club, A Matter of Principle: Chapter 12 (wherein Conrad goes to court)
As his trial approaches, Conrad Black is wringing his hands. While his lawyer, Eddie Greenspan, is the finest legal mind in Canada, Black is concerned that Greenspan lacks the requisite knowledge of the American justice system.
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Reason to Love Toronto: four new five-star hotels are about to make staycations super-luxe
Toronto is a great place to visit. Just ask the people who live nearby. Residents of Halton Region, a mere 30-minute drive down the QEW, made 153,000 overnight visits to the city in 2009, more than came from British Columbia, California, Texas or Illinois. The same goes for many of Toronto’s other bedroom communities: they could drive home after the show, but they prefer to stay the night. Tourism here is a giant house party, and our accommodations are getting a major upgrade with four new five-star hotels. Last February came the Ritz-Carlton on Wellington Street. January will mark the opening of the Trump Tower, a flamboyant structure at Bay and Adelaide whose 275-metre, 90-ton spire took 12 hours to lift into place (arguably Toronto’s greatest feat of high-rise engineering since the CN Tower). Asian Pacific–style opulence arrives next summer with the 65-storey Shangri-La on University Avenue. And our own luxury export to the world, Izzy Sharp’s Four Seasons, will finally get a hometown building worthy of its brand in summer 2012: two slender glass towers at Bay and Yorkville. The Manhattanization of our hotel industry is the result of an economy that continues to dodge the disasters befalling others. Together, the new hotels will provide 989 super-luxe rooms that are sure to be a hit with tourists. They may even resurrect Toronto in the eyes of Americans, whose impressions of us and willingness to visit are still tainted by the SARS crisis. But above all, they’ll make it more fun to splurge on ourselves.
Daniel Boulud’s new Café Boulud announced last night at the Four Seasons
(Image: Four Seasons)
The Four Seasons condo presentation centre played host to celeb chef Daniel Boulud last night, where he introduced his much-gossiped-about new restaurant, Café Boulud, set to take up residence in the new Four Seasons hotel on Bay Street. Café Boulud will have its own entrance and patio space facing Yorkville Avenue, and sit above a new bar that will celebrate the hotel group’s 50th year in business. Boulud is famed for his New York-based, globe-spanning empire of restaurants, including his most renowned, the three-Michelin-starred Daniel.
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The cat’s out of the bag: Daniel Boulud to open restaurant at the new Four Seasons
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Back in April, we reported that Daniel Boulud was another in the growing group of Michelin-starred chefs to snub Toronto in favour of Vancouver or Montreal. Not so, apparently: the National Post’s Shinan Govani confirmed yesterday the rumours that the lauded New York chef of Daniel fame will be opening a restaurant in the new Four Seasons hotel and condo complex on Bay Street (there’s an official announcement scheduled for next Thursday). This is the second Canadian hotel partnership in the works for the chef, who is opening Maison Boulud in Montreal in early 2012 to coincide with a $150-million renovation to the Montreal Ritz-Carlton. Previously, Boulud opened and subsequently closed two restaurants in Vancouver, DB Bistro Moderne and Lumière, after only two years in business.
Toronto ranked middle of the pack by Condé Nast Traveler Reader’s Choice Awards
Publishing powerhouse Condé Nast recently released the Condé Nast Traveler Reader’s Choice Awards—an annual roundup of the best places to visit and stay around the world—and Toronto’s showing was average at best. More than eight million votes were cast for the survey, with top honours going to exotic locales like Ritz-Carlton Shanghai, the Peninsula House in Dominican Republic and Four Seasons Sharm El Sheikh in Egypt. Toronto, on the other hand, seems to lack the allure of other far-flung (read: tropical) destinations. In fact, no Toronto-based hotels made the cut on the Top 100 travel experiences list, although a few Canadian locations did (King Pacific Lodge in B.C., Langdon Hall in Cambridge, Ontario, Emerald Lake Lodge in B.C. and Auberge Saint-Antoine in Quebec City). In the Canadian rankings, Toronto ranked fifth, behind practically every other city that matters (Quebec City, Vancouver, Montreal and even little Victoria). Although a few local spots did make the cut for the Canadian hotels list (the Hazelton Hotel was named fifth best in the country, the Four Seasons in Yorkville ranked 27th and the Windsor Arms and the Toronto Marriott Downtown Eaton Centre Hotel took 31st and 35th place, respectively), the results prove that the CN Tower has nothing on historical clout, mountains or waterfalls. The verdict: we could really use an ocean view and year-round sunshine. Read the entire story [Condé Nast] »
TIFF 2011 Roundup: The winners, and the losers, from this year’s installment of the Toronto International Film Festival
(Images: Christopher Drost)
Well, it’s a wrap. Some might suggest that there are no winners and losers at TIFF, and that the festival is a harmonious celebration of filmmaking and the artistic spirit. For our part, we say these people are wrong. Life is a competition, and we’ve got the goods on the stars, the parties, the neighbourhoods, the red carpet galas and the films that came out on top—and on the bottom—this year, after the jump.
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SPOTTED: Kiefer Sutherland at the Ritz-Carlton
(Images: Ken Munday)
A Toronto Life tipster caught a glimpse of former Toronto resident and 24 star Kiefer Sutherland leaving the Ritz-Carlton and going out for a casual stroll along Wellington Street. Then, our intrepid—and trusted—tipster saw him pose with a screaming fan before continuing on on his merry way (and into the TIFF Bell Lightbox).
Find this story on our Star Spotting Map, where we plot the locations of celebrities spotted around Toronto.
SPOTTED: George Clooney gives a friendly salute to his adoring public
George sort of waves to fans at the Ritz-Carlton (Image: Ken Munday)
A Toronto Life tipster shared this shot of George Clooney heading back to the Ritz-Carlton less than 24 hours after being spotted there just last night (we’re starting to think he’s sleeping there with rumoured flame Stacy Keibler). Philip Seymour Hoffman and Ryan Gosling were soon to follow, so perhaps this is just another one of those celebrity-only lunches that we’ve heard so much about. Is the Ritz-Carlton becoming Toronto’s The Ivy?
Find this story on our Star Spotting Map, where we plot the locations of celebrities spotted around Toronto.
SPOTTED: George Clooney, Stacy Keibler and Jason Reitman enjoying a friendly chat at the Ritz
The CBC had a mole inside the Ritz-Carlton last night and managed to spot a friendly get-together among George Clooney and some pals. The star was seen with rumoured girlfriend Stacy Keibler on his arm (careful George, she’s a former wrestler) as the pair ran into Montreal-born Jason Reitman, who directed Clooney in the 2009 TIFF film Up in the Air. Pleasantries were exchanged (and photographed, hazily).
Find this story on our Star Spotting Map, where we plot the locations of celebrities spotted around Toronto.
SPOTTED: Anna Faris and Chris Pratt at the Deq at the Ritz-Carlton
We spotted the House Bunny herself, Anna Faris, and husband Chris Pratt (who we know more fondly as the buffoon Andy Dwyer on NBC’s Parks and Recreation) at Deq at the Ritz-Carlton last night. She was madly texting or tweeting in between sips of an orange cocktail, wearing a leather jacket and her hair in a high ponytail. The star-stalkers showed restraint last night, as both Faris and Pratt were left to enjoy their one beverage each; they left soon after.
(Images: Anna Faris, Rob Kim/Wire Image/Wire Image; Chris Pratt, Michael Buckner/WireImage/Getty Images Entertainment)
Find this story on our Star Spotting Map, where we plot the locations of celebrities spotted around Toronto.
QUOTED: Ritz-Carlton’s manager on just how far they’ll go for a celeb
As long as it’s legal, moral and ethical, everything’s a yes.
—Ritz-Carlton general manager Tim Terceira, on what they’ll do for a star [CBC]
TIFF after hours: the 44 (and counting) film fest venues with the coveted 4 a.m. last call
(Image: walknboston)
Every year celebs from all over the world flood into the city for TIFF, but for many, it’s the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario that’s the real star throughout the month of September. Just in time to combat post-summer blues, the AGCO grants certain venues the rights to the elusive 4 a.m. last call. While last year’s list clocked in at 44 venues This year’s list of venues with extended hours finally caught up with last year’s, bringing the current number to 44—some of them not open to the public (we’re looking at you, Windsor Arms) and others open for one night only. Check out the list of late-night watering holes after the jump and stay tuned for updates on extended hours, as more are expected to roll in before the festival.
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