Innehållsförteckning för August 2023 från Toronto Life

“I try to keep six months of expenses set aside just in case” ERIC VAN GIESSEN, 32 WHAT HE DOES He’s a sociology PhD student and teaching assistant at York University and the owner of art-and-apparel company Queero Gear WHAT HE MAKES $90,200 WHERE HE LIVES A one-bedroom apartment in Upper Jarvis REGULAR EXPENSES RENT AND HYDRO: $1,900 a month. “It’s a good rate for downtown but $1,100 more than my previous place by Allan Gardens.” CELL: $100 a month. “This plan with Freedom Mobile helps pay off my phone.” INTERNET: $35 a month. “I got a special six-month intro deal with TekSavvy.” GROCERIES: $500 a month. “I get a food box from HelloFresh. They have good vegetarian options, and it’s less wasteful. I also can’t live without sour cream…

My wife and I just moved to Toronto from the Kawarthas. As it happens, we have friends who live a few streets over, so we’ve started showing up at theirs unannounced. Such behaviour is quite routine where we’re from, but I’m getting the impression that it’s not welcome in the big city. Every time our friends open the door, they seem a bit confused, and they rarely invite us in. Is the drop-in dead? Should I start texting ahead of time? —Space Invader, Bloor West Village UD: The drop-in is still a thing, but people’s comfort levels vary. Maybe your friends are neatniks who like to tidy up for guests. Whatever their reason, they’ve given you a clear signal. Why not act on it? Texting them beforehand is a good way…

WHO: Jamie Shannon and his Norwegian forest cat, Buddy WHAT: A 28-foot 1987 Hobby Tugboat WHERE: Toronto Island Marina For the past 12 years, Jamie Shannon has been bouncing between his rowhouse in Kensington Market and his artist’s studio on the Toronto Islands. Jamie was the co-creator of Nanalan’, an erstwhile CBC children’s puppet series. Now, he’s the artist behind Puppet Island, which supplies high-end custom puppets for movies and television. After years of ferrying across the lake to his workshop, Jamie bought an old boat from the island’s lighthouse keeper, Manuel Cappel, in 2012. “All the wood was rotting, so he sold it to me for $1,500,” Jamie says. It was named Girlfriend. He loved the boating life so much that, in 2019, he decided to purchase a second…

WHO: Dale Christensen and Cathy Geddes WHAT: A 49-foot Eastbay Grand Banks yacht WHERE: Toronto Island Marina Dale and Cathy met in California 19 years ago. Cathy, a Canadian citizen, was working for a dental manufacturing company in San Diego, and Dale, who is American, co-owned a real estate development business there. The couple got married in Palm Springs in 2006. During their courtship, Cathy took Dale to Toronto and Georgian Bay, where her family has cottages. “I fell in love with the area,” Dale says. He had grown up boating on the Missouri River, where the water tends to be muddy and fast, but he had never been on the Great Lakes. The couple ended up buying a cottage on an island in Parry Sound as well as a…

WHERE: 6768 Lundy’s Ln., Niagara Falls, flyingsaucerrestaurant.com IN OPERATION SINCE: 1972 WHAT TO EAT: The ET Special breakfast WHAT TO DRINK: A banana-strawberry smoothie A TRIP TO NIAGARA FALLS isn’t complete without a little camp, and Clifton Hill isn’t the only option for a divorced-from-reality pit stop. Just a 10-minute drive away, on Lundy’s Lane, is a retro-futuristic fever dream that’ll scratch that kitsch itch. The Flying Saucer Restaurant delivers on its name: the spaceship-shaped diner looks plucked from The Jetsons. “My late husband, Henry, designed the building, and the first 10 contractors we spoke to refused to build it—they said a building shaped like that wouldn’t last,” says owner Lillian Di Cienzo. “Well, it’s been 51 years and no cracks!” Inside, the intergalactic greasy spoon continues to deliver on…

Bite Club Our annual restaurant ranking always sparks a FOMO-induced frenzy among the city’s food lovers, who update their culinary bucket lists accordingly, as well as the occasional gripe about prices. This year was no different—but with some added enthusiasm for our cover subject, Matty Matheson, and his recent expansion into fine dining. “Given the photo of Matty Matheson—resplendent tats, thorny rose in his lapel and satanic laugh—he could have named his restaurant El Diablo’s Prime Seafood Palace. Bring out the mini pitchforks with the knives and spoons. He’s clearly having a hell of a time!” —Marty Cutler, Toronto “One of the best things at Matty Matheson’s new restaurant is the welcoming and unpretentious nature of his staff. This is instilled by Matty. I had my 70th birthday there, and…

JOSH RICHARDS is semi-sprinting down the stairs of his vast LA home. If you are under 30, this counts as a celebrity encounter. If you are over 30, the name Josh Richards is likely vague to meaningless—maybe that guy in IT? This Josh Richards has 40 million followers on social media, heads several start-ups and is 21 years old. When he extends a hand to the decidedly older legacy media reporter intruding on his crowded calendar, he is polite but wary, shaking a cloud of platinum-blond hair out of his eyes. This recent mane change is a big deal in the Josh Richards universe, prompting online comments like “Love the hair it’s giving Jack Frost” and “The hair is hairing.” He’s followed down the stairs by his bandana-wearing dog, Buddy,…

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. Membership is 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 Sushi Night at Roll This Way: TL Insiders took part in a special Mother’s Day sushi-making class at Roll This Way. Guests were provided with a kit to make four types of sushi—maki, uramaki, temaki and nigiri—and then enjoyed MOMosas, a special MOMchi mochi ice cream dessert and a bouquet of flowers for Mom to take home. Cocktail Master Class at Prequel &…

WHO: Deb Francey, Andy Oakes and their 14-year-old son, Henry WHAT: A 44-foot 1980 Gulfstar WHERE: Queen City Yacht Club In 2008, the year after Deb and Andy got married, Andy asked her if she’d like to live on a boat full time. The couple owned a day sailboat and a condo at Village by the Grange, but they craved a greater sense of belonging. “The yacht club is very community-minded—that’s why we gravitated toward this lifestyle,” says Andy. Andy is a mobile boat mechanic, which means he tootles around the island in a dinghy repairing people’s cabin cruisers. An aquatic apartment suited him perfectly. Deb figured she’d try it out. So Andy started looking for a bigger watercraft in St. Petersburg, Florida. “I found out I was pregnant in…

THE SELLERS: Michael and Tanya Kovendi, both 39. He’s a consultant at a tech company; she’s a family physician. THE PROPERTY: A five-bedroom, two-bathroom bungalow in North York’s leafy Clanton Park neighbourhood. THE STORY: In 2016, Michael and Tanya bought this 2,200-square-foot home for $840,000. The area was quiet and close to transit hubs, with good schools—ideal for a young family. A few years later, when a two-storey, 3,500-square-foot house came up for sale down the street, they bought it as an income property, planning to rent it out and move into it someday. By 2022, they had two kids and were feeling pressed for space. Plus, with interest rates soaring, it no longer made sense to carry both properties: the two mortgages were costing them a staggering $16,000 per…

1. Cherry Bomb Bang Bang’s Sour Cherry and Milk Jam Bracingly tart Ontario cherry and roasted milk (think dulce de leche) combine to strike a balance between sweet and sour. It’s the brainchild of owner Rosanne Pezzelli—the pastry mastermind behind Bakerbots—and it’s well worth braving the line that snakes outside this popular Ossington scoop shop. $14. 93 Ossington Ave., unit A; bangbangicecream.ca 2. Bread Winner Ruru Baked’s Everything Bagel Leave it to Luanne Ronquillo to figure out how to make onion, garlic, poppy seeds and sesame seeds work in an ice cream. It may sound zany, but it’s borderline addictive. Inspired by the Oscar-crushing Everything Everywhere All at Once, this is an edible meditation on the virtues of the unexpected. $13. 659 Lansdowne Ave. and 4300 Steeles Ave. E, unit…

I SPENT 11 YEARS as a spokesperson for the TTC and four as chief communications officer for the City of Toronto. After that, I was ready to retire. I loved my career, but the pandemic was exhausting. The city’s response occupied every moment of my life: we collected the latest information from our health authorities, attended press conferences and wrote news releases about masks, economic recovery and vaccine campaigns. By last summer, I was running out of gas. I gave my notice: as of December 2022, I would officially be done. Retiring had its perks. My wife, Pam, and I had relocated to Oro Medonte—a town on the north shore of Lake Simcoe—during the pandemic. I spent my days as a new retiree binge-watching Scandinavian cop shows, like Bordertown, and…

CYBER SQUAD Three AI start-up execs explain the tech’s extraordinary powers—and its potential dangers MIKE MURCHISON CEO, ADA | Makes AI more personal and conversational Dream job as a kid: “I wanted to be Mario Lemieux. He taught me a lot about leadership—always making his teammates better.” Your first encounter with a smart machine: “It was with Eliza, one of the world’s first chatbots. It was magical that I could speak with another form of intelligence without having to code.” Favourite programming language: “Human language, because that’s the programming language of the future. ChatGPT is close to its final form.” Robot butler or robot dog: “Robot dog, to give my real dog, Sedar, a new friend. We adopted her during the pandemic, so she hasn’t socialized much.” A leader you…

In the late 1960s, following the success of Montreal’s Expo 67, Toronto finally decided to do something about its long-neglected waterfront. The Toronto Harbour Commission developed a master plan to transform a 155-acre swath of land into a massive recreational site. The result, Ontario Place, included five sci-fi-esque multi-use pods, a marina, an outdoor concert venue, a geodesic dome housing a theatre, a one-of-a-kind children’s play area created by British designer Eric McMillan and a collection of “villages”—modular structures containing restaurants and shops. German Canadian architect Eberhard Zeidler—best known for his work on the Eaton Centre and the McMaster University Health Sciences Centre—spearheaded the project, which broke ground in March of 1969. Zeidler’s design drew inspiration from the Eiffel Tower and London’s Crystal Palace. Landscape architect Michael Hough was tapped…

WHO: Paul Bedford and Laura Alderson WHAT: A 42-foot 1989 Grand Banks trawler yacht WHERE: Toronto Island Marina When they met in 2008 at U of T’s Hart House, Laura Alderson and Paul Bedford found that they shared an enthusiasm for boats. As a child, Laura would visit her uncles’ cottages in the Kawarthas, where they had small motorboats. “That was the highlight of the cottage experience for me,” she says. Paul’s father had owned two boats in his hometown of Oakville. At age 12, Paul puttered around Sixteen Mile Creek on a cedar strip boat he bought for $100 with paper-route money. (His dad chipped in for a 10-horsepower outboard motor.) Five years ago, the couple decided to get a boat together and picked up a teak-filled trawler yacht…

WHO: Gary and Rita Bates WHAT: A 43-foot Galeon 430 HTC WHERE: Oakville Power Boat Club During the pandemic, Gary decided he needed a boat. The idea came from watching YouTube videos of people blithely sailing around the world. But Gary, a semiretired entrepreneur who lives in Oakville, wasn’t looking for a Magellan-scale exploit. He wanted a spacious motorized vessel equipped with chichi comforts: advanced technology to make navigation easier, room to store electric bikes and a propane barbecue, and a stateroom he could stand up in. Rita was onboard with the idea. “We’ve always been adventurous, both in our businesses and in our personal lives,” she says. “We’re not afraid to try new things.” Rita is pursuing a PhD in literary and critical studies through the University of Gloucestershire,…

WHERE: 4210 Hwy. 6, Hagersville, hewittsdairy.com IN OPERATION SINCE: 1962 WHAT TO EAT: A BLT followed by a sundae or a double scoop of grape ice cream WHAT TO DRINK: A chocolate milkshake FOR ANYONE heading to Lake Erie’s sandy shores, a pit stop at Hewitt’s is basically obligatory. Popping into the retro dairy bar on the way to or from the beach has been a summer tradition since it opened in 1962. And, except for the prices, staff members and maybe some of the funkier ice cream flavours, not much has changed. One half of the space is devoted strictly to ice cream creations; the other is taken up by a long diner counter lined with old-timey bar stools, where visitors can grab a light lunch (but don’t even…

FESTIVAL A joyful multi-day celebration of Caribbean culture THE TORONTO CARIBBEAN CARNIVAL Aug. 3 to 7 | Various locations THIS MONTH, the Caribbean Carnival kicks off for five days of magnificent costumes, great music and even better vibes. One of the largest of its kind in North America, the event attracts millions of visitors from around the world. On Saturday, the Grande Parade will fill the waterfront with colourful masqueraders, steel drummers and dancers. Reggae, soca, calypso and dance hall concerts are also taking place across the city. A hopeful collection about what it means to be human BOOKS Falling Back in Love With Being Human: Letters to Lost Souls by Kai Cheng Thom Out Aug. 1 KAI CHENG THOM is a Chinese Canadian transgender activist and author who has…