1. Easy Restaurant
Easy—as in Easy Rider—is the finer diner par excellence. Walls are panelled with posters of the eponymous film, booths are the rusty orange and brown of a ’70s rec room, music is of the soulful variety, and food is designer comfort. Toast soldiers, free-range huevos divorciados and banana lattes (made with Dutch cocoa, espresso, soy milk, cinnamon and bananas) are standouts. 1645 Queen St. W., 416-537-4893.

2. Stella Luna
This teensy 12-year-old boutique is stocked with pieces from pluckier epochs, with Yves Saint Laurent, Roberto Cavalli, Escada and Lilly Pulitzer making frequent cameos. Despite their age, clothes, bags, shoes and baubles feel contemporary rather than costumey (i.e., more Sienna Miller than Joan Crawford). 1627 Queen St. W., 416-536-7300.

3. Simone Interiors
More polished than some of its neighbours (where the trend is toward the deliberately arbitrary and the artfully dilapidated), this pretty shop carries an imaginative selection of home decor. Vintage ’60s clocks share space with handwoven table runners from Ethiopia; hand-beaded dolls hail from a women’s co-op in South Africa; and decorative bamboo bowls from Vietnam are lacquered a green more brilliant than sunlit rice paddies. 1690 Queen St. W., 416-530-2948.

4. Queen West Antique Centre
This high school gymnasium–size emporium carries an impressive selection of Danish, mid-century and vintage modern pieces. Lots of refurbished industrial metal (a manhole cover morphed into a side table, for example) to suit the Parkdalian flair for reclaiming the ramshackle. A large collection of antique maps and globes helps ease the wanderlust. 1605 Queen St. W., 416-588-2212.

5. Poor John’s Café
Once a travel agency–cum–tailor shop, Poor John’s is now the kind of idyllic café you’d find on a tree-lined street in Brooklyn. Exposed brick walls are brightened with paintings by local school kids (artwork changes monthly), and the chalkboard menu is made from an old car hood. Inventive sammies (Goan chicken curry; avocado, brie and mango; jalapeño tuna melt) and brunch specials (masala frittata roti, sided with chutney and raita) are best enjoyed on the flower-frilled back patio. 1610 Queen St. W., 647-435-2688.

6. Mitzi’s Cafe
Parkdale’s stalwart a.m. capital, where bohos come to brunch, has mastered the urban cottage aesthetic. Locals mumble about last night while hunched over Formica tables, mismatched coffee mugs and fortifying spreads (challah French toast served with strawberries, rhubarb and crème fraîche). Warning: you may want to pack some trail mix—lineups could try even the Dalai Lama’s patience. 100 Sorauren Ave., 416-588-1234.

7. Not My Dog
About the size of a room at the Y, this tiny, glamorously unglamorous hole in the wall is long on pogey chic. Locals, decked out in Value Village’s finest, swill organic brew and couture cocktails (wasabi martinis and cucumber saketinis) to indie folk rock strains. A 1957 Nordheimer honky-tonk piano invites Johnny Cash tributes; local band Makita Hack performs weekly. TIP: Look for the occasional Tuesday-night movie screening on the back patio. 1510 Queen St. W., 416-532-2397.