Indholdsfortegnelse for March 2022 i Toronto Life

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On the day of the record-setting storm, more than 50 centimetres of powder shrouded the streets, forcing Mayor John Tory to declare a “major snowstorm condition,” an abstruse bureaucratic term that could be roughly translated as “stay the hell inside.” Still, some Torontonians ventured out, whether by bold choice or brutal necessity, digging their way out of thigh-high drifts and turning parks, like Jean Sibelius in the Annex, into impromptu rinks. “We just paid $2.5 million for land in the metaverse”—Lorne Sugarman, Metaverse Group, p.22…

Late last year, I got a new job at a company with about a dozen employees. Since then, I’ve been WFH, and the line between my working hours and personal life has totally dissolved. My boss has started sending emails labelled “URGENT” at 10 p.m. and Zoom-shaming me if I don’t reply the same night. I’m worried about what might happen if I push back, but this is seriously ruining me. What can I do to get my life back? —Night Terror, Cliffside If you worked for a bigger company, I’d tell you to hold tight. On June 2, a new piece of provincial legislation will require every employer in Ontario with at least 25 employees to write a policy outlining the right to disconnect after hours. Since your company doesn’t…

Now she’s releasing Turning Red, a film about a Toronto teen who morphs into a giant red panda—and it’s going to be huge WHEN DOMEE SHI was growing up in 1990s Scarborough, her mother, Ningsha Zhong, was the central force in her life, a figure both intimidating and inspiring, idolized and emulated. As Shi crept toward adolescence, though, she started to seek independence. On her first day at Don Mills Middle School, Shi made a group of new friends. “We were walking out of the school and then suddenly one of them goes, ‘Uh, who’s that lady behind the tree?’ ” she says. “I look up, and to my horror, it’s my mom wearing sunglasses.” (Zhong had wanted to make sure Domee was fitting in.) That scene made it into…

After a decade-long reign as Toronto’s party hotel, the Thompson bid adieu to King West with an epic 2020 NYE blowout bash. Twenty months later, the property was transformed into a verdant oasis that bills itself as an eco-luxury destination, featuring muted colour schemes punctuated by loads of living greenery. For the U.S.-based boutique hotel chain, eco-luxury isn’t just a boho aesthetic—it’s also a commitment to sustainability. 1 Hotel Toronto limits single-use items—preferring chalkboards to paper, glass to plastic, and filtered Lake Ontario water to the bottled stuff. This mission-driven hotel hasn’t sacrificed an ounce of opulence to meet their green goals: the 112 sun-soaked rooms are decked out with organic cotton linens, heated floors and rough-hewn wood furniture made from fallen Toronto trees by local artisans Just Be Woodsy.…

When Oxford Properties announced their planned overhaul, Torontonians were apprehensive—would the Park Hyatt lose its magic? Four years of scaffolding later, their worries were assuaged. Local design firm Studio Munge’s Group of Seven–inspired colour palette flits between warm and cool, featuring lots of organic materials: limestone from Owen Sound, walnut and oak accents, and buttery leathers. The update wasn’t just cosmetic. KPMB Architects added a glass-fronted podium connecting the hotel’s two towers, and the original 346 guest rooms were reconfigured into 219 larger ones. Outfitted with blackout blinds and bespoke Beautyrest mattresses swaddled in Beaumont and Brown linens, the rooms facilitate a good night’s sleep, even if the Writers Room bar tempts guests to stay up past last call. DRINK THIS In the Writers Room, Of Granite and Tweed features…

Sibling Rivalry and the Messy Business of Succession Some of the most dramatic rivalries in film and literature happen between siblings. The Hebrew Bible is chock full of feuding brotherly intrigue: Cain murders Abel. Jacob cheats Esau out of their father’s blessing. Joseph’s brothers dump him in a pit and sell him into slavery. In Shakespeare, King Lear’s daughters compete viciously for his affection. Claudius kills his brother to win the crown and marry Gertrude. The Godfather is propelled by the tensions between Michael, Sonny and Fredo. In all those cases, the siblings believe they’re fighting over a scarce resource, something that can’t be shared: love, power, status or wealth. Last fall, Torontonians were gripped by the spectacle of a real-life sibling rivalry that played out like the script of…

Everyone has heard of the metaverse, but not everyone’s sure what it is. Help us out? If Facebook and Google were Web 2.0, the metaverse is Web 3.0. It’s the next phase of the internet, in which users explore video game–like 3-D worlds with a self-created avatar. You can do it now on your computer or with a VR headset. What does your avatar look like? Right now it’s pretty basic but ideally jeans, sunglasses, a Bruce Springsteen concert T-shirt, Nike sneakers. What’s the appeal of all this? Escapism, forgetting what’s going on in your day-to-day. It’s social, it’s fun, and you can be whoever you want. And as the technology improves, the experiences are going to become more immersive. How big is the metaverse? There are a few worlds,…

$84 Starting fare for a one-way flight between Toronto and New York on Flair, a new ultra-low-cost airline. A Boeing 737 Max will service the route, with flights beginning in early April. $207 Cleaning fee charged to Uber passenger Alyssa Schwartz following a dispute with her driver about opening the windows. When he said it was too cold, she said she’d call another Uber, and he relented, but he later took a picture of a wet backseat as “proof” of the mess she made. Schwartz received a refund in the aftermath. $1,895 Retail value of a rocking chair tagged in one of Jagmeet Singh’s Instagram posts. Singh, who said his family received the recliner “as a gift,” faced backlash for the plug and vowed to repay the cost. $8,000 Price…

IN 1989, MY MOTHER, Penina Coopersmith, decided to get pregnant. Forty years old and chronically single, she’d always wanted a baby, but had never had a serious relationship that lasted longer than a few years. She believed her window of opportunity was closing, so she decided to do it on her own. My mom was every inch the independent woman. In her early 20s she moved from her native New York to study architecture at the University of Toronto; she barely knew a soul in Canada. By the time she was 40, she was living in Ottawa and had a good job as the executive director of a government non-profit. She was tough and self-reliant, and she was confident she could raise a child by herself. My mom was adopted…

After nearly two decades of empire building, local hotelier Jeff Stober has turned his attention back to where it all began. This past December, the Drake unveiled its five-storey glow-up, adding 32 rooms and a rooftop suite to the hotel’s existing 19. The expanded lobby exudes retro cool—there’s the impossibly plush rainbow carpet with Magical Mystery Tour energy (designed by Studio Watson and former Drake art director Kathy Grant) and the cane-and-tambour wood banquette with original vintage upholstery. DesignAgency’s fetching interiors continue upstairs in the guest rooms with custom millwork, sensuous tufted velvet headboards, graphic wallpapers and Douglas fir–lined hallways. Gadabouts will enjoy the spacious rooms, sumptuous Frette linens and locally sourced mini-bar treats. BEST ROOM The two-bedroom Rooftop Suite—done up in geometric patterns printed on marble tiles, wallpapers and…

TURN THE PAGE FOR MORE 1.The Italian Job Lambo’s Deli, a year-plus-old hoagie shop at the edge of Trinity Bellwoods, keeps its lineup of cold-cut combos admirably old school while adding some tasty frills. For its standout Italian Trio, capocollo, prosciutto and mortadella are layered on a pillowy seeded bun, with generous hunks of fresh mozzarella, roasted red peppers, pickled onions and just enough arugula. What puts it over the top are the herby house-made pesto and spicy Calabrian chili spread generously applied to each half of the packed roll. $14. 176 Bellwoods Ave., lambosdeli.ca 2.Chick Magnet FBI Pizza is best known for its, well, you know. But it also makes a mean hoagie. Our favourite is essentially a grown-up chicken finger sub. Strips of white meat are coated in…

IT HAPPENED LAST MONTH: A LOOSE CHRONOLOGY…

ANDY HOANG Founder and CEO, Aviron Interactive, which sells game-equipped rowing machines COMPANY HQ: Scarborough FOUNDED: 2018 EMPLOYEES: 36 HOW MUCH YOU SPENT INITIALLY: “$300,000, including my own money, a loan from my parents and a home equity line of credit. It mostly went toward hardware and software development.” YOUR TURNING POINT: “We initially launched into the commercial space, selling our rowers to hotels and condos. When Covid hit, our monthly revenue dropped to $5,000, so we pivoted to the home market, using e-commerce. With gyms closed, a lot of people were exercising at home. That’s when things took off for us. By the end of 2020, we were making $300,000 a month.” YOUR BIG-TIME BACKERS: “We’ve raised $4.5 million (U.S.) from a bunch of investors, including Samsung Next, Formic…

HIGH-RISE TORONTO ● Cove 17 storeys, 39 Annie Craig Dr.● Water’s Edge 56 storeys, 2163 Lake Shore Blvd. W.● Milan 37 storeys, 825 Church St.● Pearl Place 34 storeys, 19 Hollywood Ave.● Altitude 26 storeys, 88 Grangeway Ave.● Infinity 1 35 storeys, 30 Grand Trunk Cres.● Infinity 2 16 storeys, 51 Lower Simcoe St.● Infinity 3 35 storeys, 19 Grand Trunk Cres.● Infinity 4 16 storeys, 25 Lower Simcoe St.● Ruby 23 storeys, 51 Drewry Ave.● 100 Edward Street 22 storeys● Platinum Towers XO 36 storeys, 18 Spring Garden Ave. MISSISSAUGA Wide Suites 37 storeys, 208 Enfield Pl. ● Cameo 23 storeys, Eglinton Ave. W. and Mavis Rd.● Grande Mirage 22 storeys, 349 Rathburn Rd. W.● Universal Suites 22 storeys, 335 Rathburn Rd. W.● Aspire 355 Rathburn Rd. W.● Matrix McCowan Rd. and Ellesmere Rd. MARKHAM ● Orchid two 19-storey buildings, 8293 and 8303 Warden Ave. THORNHILL ● Conservatory 8…

CREATED FOR Nearly two years ago, front-line health care workers were tasked with putting aside their own lives to save the lives of others. Fighting in the trenches of the Covid-19 pandemic, these people have given up big things and small, like the simple pleasure of going out to dinner, for the greater good. When it comes to giving back, luxury appliance brand Monogram and esteemed Canadian chef Patrick Kriss know the recipe by heart. Earlier this year, they teamed up to give these heroes something extra special: a memorable dining experience conceived by Kriss himself using the new Monogram Professional Range. Kriss, the mastermind behind three award-winning restaurants, served up five beautifully prepared courses to recognize and give back to a group of front-line workers, nominated by the people…

For the hotel’s grand reopening in early 2022 following a decade of dereliction, new owner and first-time hoteliers Greg Sorbara and Sol Korngold painstakingly repaired the Royal’s façade with bricks imported from the Netherlands to match the 1879 originals. Inside, architects Giannone Petricone Associates reimagined the space, blending sleek design with gentle nods to the building’s Victorian heritage, using cross-stitch, doily and tartan motifs. The elegant Dining Room is the chef-d’oeuvre of the hotel’s main floor. Toronto escapee Albert Ponzo (formerly of Le Sélect) helms the kitchen, cooking up elevated Italian plates using hyper-local ingredients. All 33 rooms provide a cozy, quiet place to recharge—far, far away from city sirens and construction. Many feature gas fireplaces, a much-welcome winter extravagance. BEST ROOM Large sash windows flood the Royal Gala Suite…