Bounded by Bloor St. West, Avenue Rd., Davenport Rd. and Yonge St. TTC: Bay Station
This Toronto hotspot is strictly upper crust. One of Toronto's more elegant shopping and dining areas, Yorkville's designer boutiques, antique shops and galleries are absolutely first-class. The area features a gallery of small courtyards and alleyways, including a contemporary park located in the very heart of the neighbourhood. (Make sure you visit the "Rock", a huge piece of granite trucked hundreds of miles from the Canadian Shield!)
The Details
The village of Yorkville was formed in 1853 as a middle-class suburb outside of Toronto proper, with Victorian mews housing, picturesque gardens, and quiet tree-lined streets. It has its own Town Hall and Coat of Arms until 1883, when it was annexed by quickly expanding Toronto.
The area remained residential until the early 1950s, when many small specialty shops were being dwarfed by large development projects downtown, and decided to relocate.
During the 1960s, Yorkville became the locus of Toronto’s hippie culture. Flower children from around the world flocked to the area to visit the dozens of coffeehouses. Canadians like Neil Young, Joni Mitchell and Gordon Lightfoot began their musical careers in the neighbourhood.
Now a trendy shopping and dining area, many of the charms that have enabled Yorkville to thrive since the 1850s remain. The streets are lined with charming Victorian restorations, some converted into outdoor cafés, antique shops, art galleries, and designer boutiques.
A warren of laneways links the area, and cobblestone courtyards come complete with rustic lampposts and wrought-iron park benches.
Bloor Street West, at the southern edge of Yorkville, is Toronto’s premiere shopping street. Dubbed the “Mink Mile,” it is home to high-end designers like Chanel, Tiffany, Giorgio, and Hermes.
Homegrown additions include Roots (casual Canadiana), Harry Rosen (upscale menswear), Holt Renfrew (clothing), William Ashley’s (dinnerware and china), and Birks (jewellery). A host of smaller retailers offer truly unique, quality Canadian products.
Yorkville streets stay alive at night, with plenty of martini bars, romantic restaurants, outdoor patios, and trendy night-spots.
Places & Events of Interest
• Village of Yorkville Park – the result of a global design competition, this part (which was once a parking lot) represents the varied topography found in southern Ontario. Gardens range from a birch grove and a wildflower meadow to a pine forest and a massive granite outcrop. The park has won a number of international design awards, and Torontonians are passionate about it – they either love it or hate it!
• Hazelton Lanes – one of Toronto’s most striking shopping centres, the “Lanes” is built around a series of courtyards, and offers high-end fashions and gifts.
• Toronto International Film Festival – celebrating world cinema, this popular event takes place every September. Hollywood’s biggest names meet in Toronto for this 10 days glamfest. The festival is centered on the many cinemas in the Yorkville area. The neighbourhood’s upscale restaurants and bars provide the perfect setting for stargazing.
• Santé: The Bloor-Yorkville Wine Festival – an annual celebration of great wine and great food — and the people who appreciate it. Set in one of the world’s top ten retail destinations, Santé combines the world’s best winemakers with the city’s leading chefs and most spectacular venues. Adding to this allure, all winemakers and principals of participating wineries will be in attendance.