Bosk
Photo Courtesy of Teddy Chau
There are two seasons in Toronto: winter and patio season. With the temperatures up and the sun shining, here are five of the most buzzworthy decks to check out this summer if you’re looking for stylish, elegant ambience.
Bosk
For those in the Financial District, the Forbes Travel Guide Four-Star Shangri-La Hotel, Toronto houses the perfect after-work watering hole. The hotel’s signature restaurant, Bosk, offers a sleek, urban patio space where you can enjoy the weather and whet your whistle with a strawberry basil margarita or a chamomile-infused gin and tonic. The drink menu also includes a clever nod to Toronto native Drake: the Summer in the 6ix, a red wine sangria infused with fresh berries and citrus and steeped for 48 hours.
The food roster by executive chef Damon Campbell, featuring chimichurri fries, buttermilk fried chicken and Bosk sliders (house-ground burgers topped with smoked cheddar and tomato aioli in a fluffy brioche bun), gives casual bites a more upscale touch.
DEQ, Photo Courtesy of The Ritz-Carlton Hotel Company LLC
DEQ Terrace and Lounge
It isn’t summer until Five-Star The Ritz-Carlton, Toronto, launches the Nueva Vista Social Club at DEQ. The Cuban-themed experience transforms DEQ’s patio into an island oasis featuring the food, flavors and music of Cuba. Located in the heart of downtown Toronto with a striking view of the CN Tower, Nueva Vista brings DEQ to life on Thursday and Friday evenings with live local musicians.
Dive into Cuban street food, such as Cubano sandwiches and braised flank steak empanadas, or savor favorites like pulled short-rib sliders and the East Coast lobster roll. Between nibbles, tilt back a handcrafted Expense Account Mojito made with Bacardi 8 rum, maple syrup, lime, fresh mint and sparkling Cuvée Catherine Rosé to top it off.
Bar Reyna
Brand new to Yorkville, Bar Reyna is one of the most anticipated restaurant openings of the season. The Spanish-Mediterranean snack bar and cocktail lounge features a front and back patio for all the real estate you might need to enjoy a drink or two.
Take in the bar’s Moroccan-influenced, low-key décor as you imbibe treats like Her Royal Highness, a four-ounce drink served up in a golden pineapple and made with Mount Gay XO rum, Elyx vodka, saffron, housemade cardamom and rosewater syrup, orgeat, grapefruit and citrus.
Club Monaco’s Farmers Market
The flagship Club Monaco clothing store at Avenue and Bloor Street West is opening its Bloor Street Farmers Market for its second summer season.
The iconic fashion brand has invited local vendors to set up shop street-side. Pick up coffee from Sam James Coffee Bar, cold-pressed juices and smoothies from Evolution Food Co., homemade sweets from Bake Shoppe, gourmet ice pops from The Pop Stand or custom Club Monaco-inspired bouquets from Sweet Woodruff flower shop and enjoy it all in the patio seating.
Nao Steakhouse
Go for top-notch alfresco dining in the heart of Yorkville on the Nao Steakhouse patio. The stylish area features cozy lounge furniture and lush greenery, creating the perfect place in the city to see and be seen.
Throughout the summer, the Toronto restaurant will offer a buck-a-shuck special on Tuesdays, complete with Veuve Clicquot, and a four-course surf-and-turf prix fixe on Thursdays. Surf-and-turf Thursdays will also have a DJ spinning on the patio.
