They call it downsizing, but who are we kidding? Four glam condos that redefine urban opulence
The comprehensive index of every blog post, magazine story and restaurant review that appears on Torontolife.com
All stories relating to Windsor Arms
The inn crowd: Toronto’s five new luxury hotels
Over the next couple of years, this city will get five new luxury hotels. It starts with the Thompson, which opens its high-concept doors this month and promises to be ground zero for the beautiful people
If you build it: the Thompson Toronto, on Wellington West, is the first international arm of the New York–based brand (Illustration: Kagan McLeod)
Lately, King West is an urban cloud nine: designer condos, old brick studio spaces, fantastic carpaccio. Only 15 years ago, no one had much reason to venture down here—not for work, not to live, not for a dining scene, because there wasn’t one. There were no ad agencies, no Susur Lee joints, no Spoke Club and certainly no boutique hotels. But now the dozen or so blocks bounded by Spadina and Bathurst, from Adelaide down to Wellington, are a humming, self-sustaining ecosystem—a model of how to retrofit a vintage downtown neighbourhood.
Real estate agents call this part of town King West Village, a handle the locals find too artificial to pass their lips, especially considering the place isn’t yet fully formed. At every turn, there’s a construction site, or a gaping hole in the ground, or a lot with a target on its back, almost all of them bearing the same signage: an artful graphic in lower case letters saying “freed.” It’s not an existentialist statement; “Freed” stands for Peter Freed, the Forest Hill–bred developer who has nine projects on the go in the area. No one has been a bigger catalyst of the evolution of King West, or capitalized on it more, than Freed. His real estate portfolio, mainly condos, is worth $1 billion, and much of it is geared to a highly specific breed: a 35-ish, design-obsessed demographic that wears Japanese denim, listens to Phoenix, works in advertising or banking or consults in high tech, travels often and widely, and stays at properties designed by Ian Schrager, the Manhattan entrepreneur often credited with founding the boutique hotel genre. In King West, Freed has prepared a landing strip for these hipster high flyers (and those who aspire to become them). They’re not rich, necessarily. Their ambition is to be tastefully in the know.
For them, Freed has invested in a crowning achievement, a gleefully anticipated light box on Wellington: the 102-room Thompson Toronto, which is scheduled to open its high-concept doors this month. Read the rest of this entry »
House of the week: a $12.8-million customizable Yorkville penthouse
Sky’s the Limit
ADDRESS: Penthouse, 206 Bloor St. W. Read the rest of this entry »
NEIGHBOURHOOD: Yorkville
AGENT: Diane Stead, Sotheby’s International Realty Canada, Brokerage
PRICE: $12.8 million
THE PLACE: This unit is the kingpin of the 26 exclusive luxury suites that will sit atop MuseumHouse. The pre-built penthouse will occupy both the 18th and 19th floors, providing 180-degree views of the city. Though all residents will have direct elevator access in their suites, the MuseumHouse team stresses that this building will be all about “community.” With just over two dozen units, occupants will have a hard time not getting to know their neighbours; we hear a mystery rock star, a bigwig athlete and a handful of financial giants are among them.
J.P. Challet returns to the Windsor Arms
Peter Tsang, Jennifer Decorte and J.P. Challet (Photo by Jessica Darmanin)
More than a decade after he reopened the restaurant at the Windsor Arms, French chef J.P. Challet is returning to revamp the dining options at the classic hotel, along with partners Jennifer Decorte and Peter Tsang. Their company Ici La-bas Partout, which has been operating out of an as-yet-unopened bistro on Harbord, will be transforming Prime, the hotel’s steakhouse, into a modern French restaurant called Ici. As for the spot on Harbord, it’s still coming, assures Decorte; they plan to open Ici Aussi in March.
Read the rest of this entry »
J.P. Challet to take over at the Windsor Arms
We hear that George Friedmann of the Windsor Arms has asked local legend J.P. Challet and his team to take over the Yorkville hotel’s food and beverage service, including a reinvention and possible renaming of its main restaurant Prime. No dates have been confirmed for the takeover, and questions remain about the future of Challet’s most recent project, Ici Bistro (but it appears that recent plumbing problems might keep the Harbord Street hot-spot-that-never-was closed for the time being). Check back next week for full details.
[Update: The full story on Challet's move to the Windsor Arms is available here.]
Dignity helps when trying to party with Nicolas Cage, Fergie and Keanu at the InStyle bash
British actor Bill Nighy is mobbed by fans with poor taste in hats outside the Windsor Arms last night (Photo by Jen McNeely)
“We want the king, we want the king!”
At first we couldn’t decipher what the overzealous crowd was chanting, but as we drew closer to the masses outside the Windsor Arms, it became clear that it was not the king they wanted but the Cage. Nicolas, that is. The mob was gaining momentum and force, so when British actor Bill Nighy exited the hotel, an emergency PR situation dominoed: fans surged forward, magazines slapped magazines at Nighy and women on walkie-talkies were frantically trying to locate his driver. Cops had to buffer the mania so Nighy could escape. As he wandered in the direction of Theatre Books, all we could hear him say was “Where the fuck? What the fuck? Fuck!” An intense female wrangler yelled, “Bill—back inside!” She shouted louder, “Bill! Inside, let’s go!” ushering him in haste back in the embrace of the Windsor Arms. By the urgency in her tone, we thought the fans were about ready to rip his flesh off, like a scene from Shaun of the Dead.
Today at TIFF: September 15, 2009
Our daily roundup of the most buzz-worthy opening galas, parties and screenings.
• Monterey Pop free public screening, Yonge–Dundas Square, noon
• Robin Hood free public screening, Yonge–Dundas Square, 3 p.m.
• Bad Lieutenant: Port of Call New Orleans premiere, Ryerson Theatre, 6 p.m.
• The Private Lives of Pippa Lee premiere, Roy Thomson Hall, 6:30 p.m.
• Shinan Govani’s book release party, Holt Renfrew
• Free swing-dance lessons and a live concert from Aelita with the Galaxy All-Star Orchestra in support of the Russian musical Hipsters, Yonge–Dundas Square, 7 p.m.
• Youth in Revolt premiere, Winter Garden theatre, 8:30 p.m.
• J’ai tué ma mère (I Killed My Mother) premiere, Isabel Bader Theatre, 9:30 p.m.
• Micmacs (Micmacs à tire-larigot) premiere, Roy Thomson Hall, 9:30 p.m.
• InStyle party (possible guests include Naomi Watts, Keanu Reeves and Michael Cera), Windsor Arms
• Cinema Against AIDS Toronto benefit for Amfar (performance by Sarah McLachlin), The Carlu
• Bad Lieutenant after party (guests include Nicolas Cage), Ultra
The IT Lounge is where media go to swig back hangover juice and chase with vodka
The Please Mum duds that Jennifer Garner will recieve
Please mum, can I have a sweater? The objective of a gifting lounge is to connect George Clooney with a Sharpie marker, Woody Harrelson with some Teva sandals, Demi Moore with…umm…a Penny Protein Plan muffin? And then we, the media, talk about which talent scooped up what. For PRs, it’s kind of like the bonus back massage you get when you book a pedi.
The IT Lounge publicists know how to push product, and that’s why Jennifer Garner received cutesy Please Mum duds for her little Gaffleck girls delivered right to her door. Will they wear them? Not sure, but Olivia Wilde’s nieces will battle the rain with a sweet Please Mum raincoat. While taking a looksy, Wilde also fell for a J. Rox lariat necklace (designed by Toronto’s Jane Apor), which we assume she’ll wear tonight at the Artists for Peace and Justice event at The Windsor Arms.
Read the rest of this entry »
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 »
Oscar buzz, vodka and stalking advice doled out at the Hazelton Hotel
To be Blunt: early rumblings suggest Young Victoria could be Emily Blunt's big break (Photo by chloe004)
With two weeks left until the opening gala of the Toronto International Film Festival, reporters gathered at the Hazelton Hotel to get a rundown on the buzziest films (Precious), parties (One X One), possible Oscar contenders (Mo’Nique, the woman from Soul Plane) and TIFF-inspired cocktails (Skyy vodka for all).
CTV film critic Richard Crouse said the Oprah-backed film Precious could mean a possible Oscar nomination for Mo’Nique, while co-star Mariah Carey can finally shake off the tarnished glitter from, well, Glitter. Closing film Young Victoria also got a thumbs-up and was predicted to be Emily Blunt’s big break. But the most intriguing film tidbit (and a brilliant marketing move to boot) was that everyone who went to the pre-screening of Heath Ledger’s last film, The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus, had to sign a waiver that forbid them from talking about it.
Read the rest of this entry »
To a tea: a look at one of Toronto’s truly unique dining experiences
Anyone who believes afternoon tea is a stuffy, doily-laced affair has never experienced it at the Windsor Arms. The Yorkville hotel has been serving afternoon tea since 1927, but history and convention have not kept the practice stuck in the past. We swing by the elegant French-style tea room for the unconventional “twilight” tea seating ($45), available from Thursday to Sunday at 6 p.m., which is complemented by a glass of sherry or flute of sparkling wine. Join us as we sink into our upholstered seats, pinkies high, and enjoy one of Toronto’s truly unique eating experiences.
Windsor Arms Hotel, 18 St. Thomas St. (at Bloor St. W.), 416-971-9666, windsorarmshotel.com.
Where to eat during Pride 2009
The Gay Village is buzzing as it gets ready for Pride’s climax this weekend. As any yearly attendee knows, Church Street’s focus during the last weekend of June is on fun and drinking—not dining. For Torontonians and tourists looking for great food and respite from the crowds, here are our picks for where to eat during Pride 2009. Read the rest of this entry »
