Toronto, Ontario is the largest city in Canada and is considered the most cosmopolitan city in the world, in a study done by the United Nations. Lucky for us that it's little more than an hour's drive from Buffalo (that is, driving at nearly Mach 0.15 like I do; heheh). Needless to say there are many interesting places to visit and things to do here. For now, I'll include some links to servers which can tell you more about this marvelous city than I can, but before I do that, here are my impressions of some of the more interesting nightspots to visit in Toronto:
The Phoenix Concert Theatre (*****). This is simply the largest nightclub I've ever laid eyes on in my entire life. It has many, many different chambers for hanging out, sitting and talking, playing billiards or darts, and dancing, and each is quite huge. The dancefloor is extremely large, to say the least; certainly larger than any I've ever seen in Buffalo. The music and clientele are quite nice and modern, "alternative" I suppose, and, well, it's just the quintessential cosmopolitan nightclub. Do check it out. Oh yeah, one can find it at 410 Sherbourne St. It's almost certainly the overall-best nightclub in all of Canada, and I wouldn't be surprised if one couldn't find a more spectacular nightclub anywhere on earth. Bring a lot of money with you.
Sanctuary: The Vampire Sex Bar (*****). This is quite possibly the most comprehensively representative exemplar of any gothic nightclub you're likely to find anywhere in the world. It's considered the trendsetter for gothic subculture in Toronto (for better or for worse) and pretty much every where else as well. It doesn't do it justice to merely write about it; you just have to see it to believe it. I'll tell you right now, be prepared for anything though. Here, you will see all, hear all, experience all... One can find it at 732 Queen St. W., in southern downtown Toronto. I guess weekend nights are the best nights here for goth/industrial music, but I really can't imagine any night not being good. Oh yes, there is a dress code here...
The Catacombs (****+). This is a hidden nightclub which resides downstairs from Sanctuary. One can get into it from the rear of the building, and by then proceeding down a maze of stairs and tunnels. It's a pretty damn neato-looking place once you get to it. It has a nicely-sized dance floor, and several very pleasant areas to sit and talk. Pretty elaborate and mystical-looking. It doesn't attract a crowd quite as big as Sanctuary though. I think the hard-core gothic night here in Fridays, and it is said that one can find genuine vampires here...
Whiskey Saigon (*****). Here we have a very large multi-layered nightclub, with a pretty well-mixed environment, with something for just about everybody. The first floor has a lot of pool tables, while the second has a few pool tables with a dancefloor. The third floor is the primary dance floor, while the forth is the roof of the building, with a very nice view of the sky and the surrounding city and everything. Music varies according to the night of the week. One should be forwarned of the expensive cover charge and drinks here however. Find it at 250 Richmond St. W.
Limelight (*****). This is an excellent multi-level nightclub which has a very good atmosphere and a well-rounded modern cosmopolitan feel to it. 'A good place to be in Toronto on Sunday nights, it's at 250 Adelaide St. W. It doesn't look like much from the outside, but once inside, you'll see the magnificence. 'A large dancefloor on the lower level with mostly very cool people; a catwalk level with a bar, and an upstairs place where very particular types hang out... Among unspecialized Toronto nightclubs, it's the next best thing I've seen to The Pheonix so far.
The Savage Garden (***+). This is another gothic/cyberpunk nightclub in Toronto, at 550 Queen St. W. The music and dancing aren't quite as good as in Sanctuary, but there are many who believe the people here are easier to talk to, and that the overall enviroment is just plain more pleasant to hang out in. Many "net.goths" are said to reside here.
Velvet Underground (***+). This is a very nice moderate-sized "vampire" club, with a lot of very interesting people and an energetic atmosphere. It has a good dancefloor, several places to sit, a very long bar, and even an TV running. Downstairs are the restrooms, and also an interesting lounge. Very interesting place; worth checking out if one is in the neighborhood. It's on Queen St., somewhere in the 400 to 600 range of addresses, around where all the other cool shit is.
The Zoo Bar (****). This seems like about as mainstream a club that one is likely to find in Toronto. It has a pretty well-rounded atmosphere, with all kinds of people. I'd say it could defintely not be characterized as "gothic" or "cyberpunk" or with any one of those other subcultural labels. Yeah, it has the atmosphere of a major American nightclub, but with that certain cosmopolitan feeling that Toronto brings to it. Like I said, the clientele represents a fairly accurately-proportioned slice of the Toronto populace, in my opinion. It's not a place to go for some kind of deep dark artistic or intellectual moving experience, but just to dance around and have a few drinks and blow off steam and have some fun.
The Bovine Sex Club (*+). This bar has the same general postmodern atmosphere of many other bars in the area, but I'd say overall the place is rather plain. Sure, it has all the bare essentials that a bar should have, but not much else. I frankly think it needs kind of an image-overhaul, and it almost seems like the people who designed it "tried too hard." It's on Queen St., where the rest of the stuff is.
Okay, this is by no means the end of the story regarding nightlife in Toronto. There are many other awesome clubs and places to go, including a fascinating clothing store called Sirens, and a famous mall called The Eaton Centre. I promise I will post more here about these and other places as soon as I've collected more information in this legendary city!
Here are some resources you might use to discover more about the city of Toronto. If I can find any better ones in the future, I'll add those as well.
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