Indholdsfortegnelse for October 2022 i Toronto Life

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“Do you really think I care what white people think at this point?”—Lido Pimienta, p. 30 It’s a sight not seen since early 2020: cubicle farmers rushing into Royal Bank Plaza for a day at the office. That’s because RBC employees are now expected to work in person up to three days a week. “Technology can’t replicate the…true sense of belonging and fun” of the before times, reasoned CEO Dave McKay when he mandated the move in August. A revitalized Financial District brings a bustling core, increased TTC ridership and lots of business tourism. But it also means dragging thousands of employees back downtown. The challenge for McKay and other like-minded CEOs is to do it without sparking revolt.…

SOLUTION 1 “KITCHENS SHOULD FUNCTION LIKE ANY OTHER WORKPLACE” DAVID SCHWARTZ, co-owner and executive chef, MIMI Chinese and Sunnys Chinese “Most kitchens are modelled after a militaristic brigade system where orders are barked at subordinates. It’s an antiquated way of approaching a workplace, and nothing good comes from treating people like they’re below you. In my kitchen, I expect everyone to speak to one another with respect: that means the dishwasher speaks to me the same way I speak to them. ‘Yes, chef’ is a standard response in restaurant kitchens, but imagine how weird saying ‘Yes, boss’ every five seconds would be in any other industry. Also, it’s often the case that restaurants don’t pay for proper accounting services and end up missing payroll cycles and tip payouts. Kitchens should…

The buyers: Lucas Berthault, a 28-year-old law clerk, and Erin Gardner, a 29-year-old kindergarten teacher The home: A townhouse in Tillsonburg by Green Urban People The list price: $379,000 The extra ask: $95,000 When Lucas Berthault and Erin Gardner first saw their home, in the summer of 2020, it felt too good to be true: a three-bedroom, three-bathroom townhouse listed for $379,000. The expected occupancy date, in May of 2021, coincided with their plans to get married that summer. They could see themselves starting a family in the house, hosting barbecues in the backyard. They put down a $37,500 deposit and began counting the days until they could move in. In June of 2021, the developer, Green Urban People, sent the couple a startling email. It explained that the builder…

THE BUYERS: Greg Giberson, 50, manager of data reporting and analysis for the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, and Andrew Baird, 40, subway operator for the TTC. THE STORY: In early 2021, Greg and Andrew were feeling claustrophobic in their one-bed, one-bath condo near St. Lawrence Market, which they were renting for $1,650 a month from a friend. “It started feeling like a jail,” says Greg, who began working from home full time at the outset of the pandemic. They called up their real estate agent and said they wanted a two-bed, two-bath detached with ample outdoor space somewhere in the GTA. Their initial budget: $600,000. OPTION 1 197 LAIDLAW STREET SOUTH CANNINGTON Listed at $549,900 Sold for $575,000 In September 2021, the couple visited this four-bed, two-bath detached in…

Your new variety show, which comes to CBC this fall, seems like a cross between Polka Dot Door and Power & Politics. Fair? It’s difficult to label the show, sort of like when people ask me, “What kind of music do you make?” I like to say that Lido TV is a kids’ show for adults. We’re talking about serious issues, but it’s very important that things are easy to digest so viewers can connect in a deeper way. Did you grow up watching a lot of TV? Oh, definitely. TV raised me. I grew up in Colombia, and my mother was a single parent to three kids. I was the middle child and the weird one, so TV fed my imagination. The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air, MTV—they kept me…

$22 Single-night charge from Airbnb for a pyjama party inside Theodore Tugboat in Hamilton Harbour. $300 Average per-child cost of basic school supplies (backpack, binder, pens, calculator, etc.) at stores such as Walmart and Amazon, according to a study by CityNews. $20,000 Estimated individual value of four new scholarships funded by the Raptors’ Scottie Barnes. The 12-week programs help BIPOC high school students kickstart their careers in fields such as plumbing, smart-home wiring and home renovation. $277,549 Cost to upgrade building infrastructure to support 68 EV charging stations at the Thompson Residences. Tenants who want a charger for their personal parking spots can expect to pay between $2,000 and $4,000. $7,636,988 Amount spent by Toronto police on “operational tactics”—including extra officers, police-cruiser blockades and helicopter patrols—to deter February’s Freedom Convoy…

SOLUTION 1 “We need a universal basic income” JESSE FADER, owner, Sofia “I SUPPORT a universal basic income. Our government blew the trial, and we should all be yelling about it from the rooftops. At the end of the day, the buck stops with the elected officials who take our money and spend it and the giant corporations that lobby them to effect change. Accountability and meaningful reform start there. Employees and employers are divided right now, but we’re all angry at the wrong people. The reality is that, with $2,000-a-month basement apartments and the rising costs of everything, small businesses struggle to provide a living wage. Rather than infighting, the answer is holding our governments accountable for providing people’s basic needs.” SOLUTION 2 “Level out the pay structure” AN TRAN, owner,…

SOLUTION 1 “Daycare options for night-shift workers” ALEXANDRA FESWICK, chef-owner, Fawn Over Market “THE CURRENT DAYCARE system only benefits parents who work nine to five. The restaurant industry would be a friendlier career path for families if the government provided child care options for evening- and night-shift workers. This would also benefit health care and factory workers and could boost our entire economy by allowing us to make more of what we need in Canada. For example, certain packaging, utensils and equipment are often imported from overseas—it would be great if we could source Ontario-made products. Alternative daycare could help strengthen our supply chains, decrease shipping costs and lower our overall environmental impact.” SOLUTION 2 “Four days on, three days off” ADRIAN NIMAN, founder and executive chef, Food Dudes “IF I WERE…

The buyer: Sajid Qureshi, a 48-year-old tech founder and CEO The home: A townhouse in Collingwood by DiCenzo Homes The list price: $500,000 The extra ask: $100,000 Like many locked-down Torontonians, Sajid Qureshi and his wife, Jessie Lamontagne, spent 2020 dreaming of escaping the city. They went looking for a vacation property, but everything seemed beyond their budget. Then their real estate agent showed them Waterstone, a community of pre-construction townhouses in Collingwood, tucked between the shores of Georgian Bay and the Blue Mountains. It was exactly the kind of respite they’d imagined, and at a list price of $500,000, it was within their reach. The first signs of trouble appeared a few months after they bought in. The developer, DiCenzo Homes, told Qureshi that they couldn’t find a portion…

Every month, TL Insiders enjoy terrific experiences and events across the city. More than 1,000 Torontonians have already signed up, and you can too! Members get front-of-the-line access to cultural events and private dining experiences plus exclusive invitations to Toronto Life’s salon-like discussion series. For all of this and more, membership costs only $75 a year—so sign up today and rediscover the city as a member. Don’t miss out. Sign up at: members.torontolife.com INCREDIBLE INDIAN CUISINE: Members flocked to Avenue Road in Yorkville to experience the flavours of Adrak, the neighbourhood’s newest top-tier Indian restaurant. Blending old-world and modern Indian cooking styles, crowd-pleasers of the night included cashew crush asparagus dumplings and basmati rice served under puff pastry crusts A BRUNCH BASH: To the hypnotic tunes of DJ Waves, TL Insiders…

1 OPEN SESAME PARALLEL The secret sauce of the mashweya hummus at this Geary Avenue hotspot is the house-made tahini. They combine it with puréed chickpeas and add an array of toppings. This North African–influenced version is adorned with roasted red peppers, soft whole chickpeas, garlic, onion, parsley, a swift shake of sumac and a drizzle of tangy amba, a pickled mango sauce that adds a hint of sweetness and eye-popping colour. $19. 217 Geary Ave., parallelbrothers.com 2 COOL WHIP LIMON At this Israeli restaurant in the Beaches, chef Jonathan Mishaev’s hummus arrives as a ring of garlicky, lemony whipped chickpeas. Resting in the centre is a pool of tahini, a dusting of sumac, a dollop of herby house zhug and a river of olive oil. After a few drags…

Restaurant Makeover This month’s cover story began, as many do, with a phone call. I was catching up with a friend and occasional source, a lifelong Torontonian who knows every character, rumour, scandal, buzzy hotspot and emerging trend. Overall, the news was positive: the city was emerging from the pandemic with a bright energy. We talked about a fantastic new restaurant, and I mentioned how great it is to have the industry back. My friend interrupted. “Restaurants are not back,” he said. “They are in a state of crisis.” He asked if I’d ever noticed how Toronto restaurants open, last a few years and then shut down. In Paris and London, by contrast, many restaurants outlive their clientele. They’re neighbourhood institutions, not fly-by-night culinary phenomena. So what ails Toronto’s restaurants?…

START Travel site Next Vacay deems Toronto the world’s hardest city to navigate, citing congestion and poor walkability. Lobbying documents reveal that Tesla plans to open a gigafactory in Ontario to produce electric vehicles. The CNE shuts down its beloved rainbow slide for the season after a malfunctioning hydraulic ram causes the eight-lane ride to violently tilt t0 one side. Time Out magazine deems Ossington Avenue one of the coolest streets in the world, heaping praise on its bars, restaurants, vintage shops and music venues. Condoms, tampons and wet wipes are seen floating in Toronto’s waterfront. At the time of the finding, dangerous E. coli levels had already forced the city to close several beaches. Ontario Provincial Police rescue 2,400 chicks off the QEW near Beamsville. The baby birds were en…

BINGE BARONS Ever wonder how TV shows actually end up on TV? Meet the gatekeepers behind Canada’s top streaming services TARA WOODBURY Manager, Canada series NETFLIX Dream job as a kid: “Librarian. I love books.” If you could have one superpower: “Telepathy. I took this job because I’m curious about people’s inner lives.” Celebrity doppelgänger: “Sara Gilbert from Roseanne.” Favourite place on earth: “Winnipeg, my hometown. I miss the big skies.” Your competition’s best show: “The Bear on Disney Plus. Props to Matty Matheson.” What makes a show right for Canadians: “It explores our differences, which ironically makes it more universal.” Your favourite show right now: “The Witcher. It’s one of the best adaptations ever.” Hardest part of your job: “Sometimes you just have to follow your gut, which is hard.” The show…

The buyer: Jennifer Lefeuvre, a 46-year-old customer service rep The home: A detached house in Stayner by Briarwood Development Group The list price: $534,990 The extra ask: $175,000 In 2019, Jennifer Lefeuvre and her husband, Tom Bell, went looking for a new home that they could share with Lefeuvre’s mother, whom they planned to help age in place. Ashton Meadows, a new development in Stayner, seemed perfect: they could oufit the basement with a separate entrance and kitchen to give Lefeuvre’s mom her own living space. The couple put down a deposit of $40,000, using a line of credit secured against their existing home, a condo in Barrie that they intended to sell. In July of 2020, Briarwood announced the first delay: the unit wouldn’t be ready until December of…

Paul Jackson, a tech CEO and investor, tries hard to minimize his carbon footprint. “I bike 12 kilometres to work every day,” he says, “and don’t eat too much meat.” In 2019, he and his wife, Kathleen, a marketing research consultant, made plans to build a 6,000-square-foot house near Lawrence and Yonge for themselves and their two children, but they began to worry about betraying their principles: such a large home would surely put strain on the environment. So they opted, with the help of Jack Zhou, a sustainable energy consultant, to design a net-zero home. They knew the endeavour would be challenging, but as an entrepreneur, Paul was a practised troubleshooter. Superficially, the house seems conventional: a split-level clad in brick, aluminum and lava stone, with high ceilings and…