Afternoons And Greasy Spoons: Are Toronto’s Diner Days Fried?

“For I have known them all already, known them all
Have known the evenings, mornings, afternoons,
I have measured out my life with coffee spoons”

– T.S. Eliot, The Love Song Of J. Alfred Prufrock

“There is nothing finer than being in your diner.” – Jerry Seinfeld in Seinfeld, “The Bubble Boy.”

First the windows were papered over. Darkened by construction sheets and topped with a sign that read, “closed for renovations.”

That was the beginning of August. Six weeks later and Queen Street West dining institution Stem Open Kitchen (pictured, top) is still sheltered from the light of day. Only the sign is gone.

And so another one of Toronto’s legendary diners looks to be on the ropes, following the closure of iconic Cherry Street greasy spoon The Canary, which closed in 2007 when the Bayview extension went down to construction. Its sign is now relegated to reruns of Matthew Perry movies. So too went St. Clair’s Tivoli, a family restaurant with 30 years of tradition.

But while Stem appears to be headed the same way, a bigger and more important question logically follows: are the city’s diners dying?

Toronto is a great place to have breakfast. Brunch? Ditto. But a good meal and a good diner are not the same thing and significantly fewer places qualify as the latter.

The Lakeview Lunch (1132 Dundas St. West) is one such landmark that’s helped carry the torch – er, spatula for more than 60 years. From atop the hill at Ossington and Dundas, the venerable establishment also had its windows covered over recently, sparking widespread concern for its immediate fate, particularly with the explosion of bars and restaurants on the white-hot Ossington strip.

But CityNews got inside the historic building (pictured below) and found that at least this story may yet have a happy ending.

Rather than drastically alter The Lakeview or erase it altogether, spanking new owners Fadi Hakim and Alexander SenGupta are hoping to return the business to its roots, giving The Lakeview a much-needed scrub and buff while easing it into the rapidly changing neighbourhood in the process.

Despite torn up floors and a thick blanket of dust covering a location also featured in a flick or two, theirs certainly appears to be a mission of restoration moreso than repurposing.

“We’ve had our eyes on this place for a while,” a beaming SenGupta admits. “For a long time people would come for the décor just because it was The Lakeview. We want to keep that, bring that out, and really up the menu.”

The exact date for The Lakeview’s relaunch isn’t set, but when it is we’ll be there to take it all in, both literally and figuratively.

And while that much is promising, similar spots are hardly guaranteed the same longevity or rebirth. Though the diner is perhaps the most iconic of all eateries (think Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks) it’s not necessarily one of the most lucrative, particularly with the rise of high-end brunches, breakfast bistros and full-service coffee chains in the downtown core.

Of course there will always be a select few (we hope), but the food service game is forever changing and it remains to be seen what impact those changes will have on the city’s simpler, more traditional culinary counters.

At least there’s some relatively new blood.

East of Yonge, tucked onto Richmond at George is the George Street Diner (192 George Street). The place is classy, friendly and perhaps most importantly, true to the diner aesthetic despite being less than a year old in its current incarnation.

Sitting across from me in a classic booth backed with red vinyl that pops against the stools opposite, owner Ash Farrelly explains why she went the way she did with her business.

“There’s just something about a diner,” she admitted. “People come in, they talk, they meet each other … it’s community. We have so many regulars.”

Still, it’s not always easy.

“We’re slowly getting better, bit by bit,” she adds. “We just try to support local businesses.”

The George Street Diner will celebrate a sort of one-year anniversary around Thanksgiving, which will closely coincide with The Lakeview’s reopening and hopefully, some news one way or the other on the ultimate fate of Stem.

But while we wait, let’s all have a cup of coffee and check out a few of Toronto’s still-great diners. After all one day you could be sitting inside reading a paper and the next you may find that very page taped to the front glass.

Avenue Diner
222 Davenport Road at Avenue

This place is as old as school gets. Loads of Hollywood-related history and surroundings that would make Sam Spade feel right at home. Just get there early.

Mars Foods
432 College Street at Bathurst

Scrap the fancy decorations or faux retro tabletops; Mars (pictured below) has been around since 1951 on the strength of location, speed, hours and a damn fine muffin.

Vesta Lunch
474 Dupont at Bathurst

Part lunch counter part truck stop diner, the Vesta is greasy as a spoon can get. Open all night and serving nothing your doctor would recommend, this place has been going strong since the mid 1950s.

Avenue Open Kitchen
7 Camden Street at Spadina and Richmond

Should Stem disappear for good from the Queen and Spadina spectrum, Avenue would become the de facto diner for the grease heads during those morning-after pilgrimages. If you haven’t been, head down on a Friday. And try the mac and cheese.

The Senator
249 Victoria Street at Dundas and Yonge

Easily among the oldest and most historic buildings to house anything dineresqe, The Senator has had good times and bad during it’s decades-long existence. Currently it’s enjoying a healthy stretch of the former, so be sure to go over and take it in.

Swan Restaurant
892 Queen Street West at Crawford

Now fueled by “West Queen West” trendoids, the Swan (pictured below) doesn’t do the most diner-like dishes, but the tablecloths are bleached white and the booths are cozy. We’ll take what we can get.

Fran’s
210 Victoria Street at Shuter & 20 College Street at Yonge

Multiple locations and several changes to the Fran’s empire have soured some on an institution that’s survived in one form or another since the 1940s. But its history, perseverance and quintessential Torontoness earn Fran’s a legitimate spot on this list.

The Good Bite
2463 Yonge Street north of Eglinton

Serving the midtown crowd since 1969. Lineups a plenty, but the white-capped grill men deliver exactly what the name promises.

aaron.miller@citynews.rogers.com

Reader Feedback:

The Patrician
219 King St. East, west of Sherbourne

“Got a family feel and stays true to the old diner look.”

– Suzanne

Bendale Restaurant
3264 Lawrence Ave. East, just west of Bellamy Road

“I would highly recommend it … has been there for years and is fantastic.”

– Vickie