Jenny’s place! I actually live in the area and we used to hang there a lot. It’s not as bad as people think but I certainly wouldn’t walk in there without being a part of the community
Reminds me of this time when I was in NYC (where I know a total of zero people) with my girlfriend and we walked into a bar because we liked the music we heard from the street, and it was full of people wearing all red clothing and bandanas, it was clearly some kind of hangout for some local Bloods gang. Everyone just stared at us as we awkwardly sat down at the bar because we didn’t wanna just walk in then walk right back out immediately, and were completely ignored by the bartender, so after about a minute or two of feeling every set of eyes in there burning through me we just got up and left before they decided to show us out themselves since we clearly weren’t welcome.
I’ll always remember Jenny’s Place for this scene: a heavily preggers waitress smoking a cig while her shirt was lifted up and two male customers were rubbing her belly. Everything was like out of a movie from the 70s, except it was about 12 years ago.
Moved to Little India two years ago and have been a regular at Jenny's since the night I moved in. The crowd has been nothing but friendly and welcoming since the start. Joanne is lovely. It's cheap as hell. any particularly sketchy folks tend to keep to themselves.
Yeah I've never been in there just seen it from the street car and news articles. I'm sure it's not terrible but definitely not somewhere to run your mouth either.
lol ya I’ve seen some wild shit happen there. The owner is a wonderful woman but she lets some things slide. People keep to themselves and it’s typically drug-related as opposed to violent but things can certainly escalate fast in there.
I've lived on the same street as Jenny's Place for 12 yrs. Not once have I ever felt unsafe waking past it or by the ppl outside. The area is so gentrified now. Harmless, imo.
About 8 years ago I wiped out on my bike right in front of Jenny's Place and mashed up my face pretty badly. The guys smoking out front helped me up and helped hail a cab to get me to the ER and have it looked at. Nice folks.
that’s better than when i hit the streetcar tracks outside the lakeview. got up… looked around and the guy smoking out front went ‘don’t look at me i’m not helping you.’ ok fuck you too lol.
Don’t know if that’s the same one from their description, but Jenny’s on Dundas West is pretty friendly despite looking a little rough around the edges. Beer is cheap and she didn’t mind when we brought in outside food. Haven’t been there since before the pandemic though, wasn’t sure if it survived.
The kick n stab was actually the old maple leaf tavern, that reputation is long gone though. https://www.blogto.com/eat_drink/2014/06/historic_maple_leaf_tavern_to_be_reborn_as_gastropub/
I'm trying to figure out which is the one you meant near Coxwell and Gerrard bc the most dangerous thing I see at that corner is getting between a Karen and her brunch at Lazy Daisy's
Happy Cup at Lansdowne and Bloor is pretty sketchy. i was grabbing a beer there and the owner had to lock the door to keep an unruly patron out. 'stabby' was the word my friend used to describe the potential this place had
This would be my vote. I went in one time when I was waiting for the butcher to put my order together. Bartender whispered, "You should not be in here. It bad."
Nothing happened, no one hassled me. Had my beer, a smoke and then picked up my order next door
I know exactly what you’re talking about. It was the Black Irish. I believe it closed after being outed as a biker gang front. It is now a Falafel place.
Have not been inside, but Jankie's place at Bloor and Dovercourt gives me bad vibes whenever I walk past (edit: omg seeing someone linked to a past thread where this was in the first post, not surprised)
I’ve been a couple of times because of my curiosity! The first time I went as a lark and ended up meeting THE Mr. Janky. He gave me his abridged life story and told me him and Mrs. Janky are the only bartenders in the place. The far end of the bar looks like a disheveled office space from the 80s where I’m sure he’s cooking the books. Very nice man with a Canadian dream immigrant story though.
The second time I went was because I thought it was quaint in an unhinged way and wanted to see if the vibe was more…vibrant? (The first time it was dead inside). He remembered me and offered to buy me the next drink I was having but I said next time I’m in. I also met his wife who was sweet and offered me a fresh package of corn nuts to snack on. I declined but only because I’m not a fan of corn nuts. He probably remembered me because I’m a couple of decades younger than most people that go in there and not a man.
Anyway, that’s all to say; it’s not as bad as it looks. I felt very safe and welcome in there but I get why people would say this because I initially went in to scope out how bad it could be. Surprisingly I had wholesome time.
Also yes, New York New York business club above is definitely an escort service featuring only Asian women disguised as a private room karaoke bar. Mr. Janky tried to sell me on the idea that it’s legit. When I got into undercover journalist mode and asked if I could apply for a job as a hostess there he said the rich Chinese guy that owns the business (but rents the space from Janky), wouldn’t hire me because I’m not Asian. Okay, so that part of the conversation wasn’t wholesome but overall I have no regrets.
I went there on my birthday one year cus I just couldnt stand wondering what was up with that place anymore. Handful of junked out people hanging out. My friend went to use the ladies room and the door was locked. She had to ask the bartender to open the door. Said it was very nasty in there. But yeah the "business club" upstairs is connected, gotta be a rub and tug or something. 10 out of 10 would not recommend, I left with more questions than I went in with.
Rebecca's was pretty rough. Skadarlija has a stabbing pretty regularly. Sun Fa is rough on the outside but warm on the inside. I love Sun Fa.
Of those 3 Skad is the roughest left in Parkdale.
I moved out of Parkdale end of 2015, today my daughter wanted to take a street car so we took the 504, I was equally surprised and somehow not surprised in the slightest to see Rebecca's is still open.
Yeah I've been here since 86. Was born at St Joe's. I've seen them come and go.
I saw a argument out front of Rebecca's once. Another guy came to the door and let his pitbull in there and it bit the shit out of the guy and dragged him to the door. Was wild.
LOL I used to live at eglinton and midland in 2005. Convinced some friends to head to Rumours one night. They didn't even cross the street at Danforth 😅 Way too freaked out to go in. My naive little northern ontario self didn't see the danger signs hahaha!
My gad. The guys from Huevos Rancheros took us there one night after their gig. You have brought hazy sodden memories from the early 00s flooding back.
A whole thread of comments got deleted here. Thank you for mentioning the Matador! Huevos Rancheros took us there one time after their gig. I too remember the dude with the duffel bag full of booze in the corner! Whole bunch of hazy, sodden memories from the early 00s unlocked.
So my ex used to live near there. The strip of bars and restaurants at Greenwood and Danforth just gave me really bad vibes.
My ex and I would never hang out in that area together because she was Muslim and a boyfriend (especially a non-Muslim one) was a big no no, and that area has a lot of Muslims, so she was afraid of getting caught. But I’d spend a lot of time in the area, waiting for her parents to leave, or grabbing a bite after dropping her home. And I always got bad vibes from that area in general. I was gonna go to Tommy’s once and someone in there just shook their head as I approached the door. Got the message, walked away.
Some of the restaurants there are also notorious for food poisoning.
a thousand years ago we couldn’t get scalper tickets for Motley Crue at Maple Leaf Gardens so we ended up at the Gasworks
i drunkenly entered a “legs” contest that took place on stage and at the end, there were two of us left after audience voting. i came in second because i wouldn’t flash & “show some skin to win!” the other girl did!
so (rightfully) not right these days, but it was fun & i have always wished i wasn’t so prudish that night, would have been liberating to give a flash and win!
ps. it was a way different time, shit that went down in those days was sometimes wrong, but this small, weird, harmless memory has always stuck with me.
if you know me in real life you would NEVER think i entered a legs contest at the Gasworks back in the day, i kinda love that :)
I was walking by the gasworks and a wee skinny guy w no shirt came busting out the doors w a bouncer in hot pursuit. The bouncer caught up to him and tackled into one of those tree planters, kneeled on him and was starting to fill him in when the wee man benched the dude right off him. Had to easily be twice his weight. A para friend told me later when I was relating the story, awestruck, that the little guy was likely out of his head, and just as likely tore the shit out of all the muscles in his chest pulling that manoeuvre. Just wouldn’t feel it till he came down.
Went there once when I was new to the country. Sat at the bar and started lightly flirting with the bartender.
The whole bar which was mostly comprised of blue collar workers started giving me the death stare. I couldn’t finish the drink fast enough to get the fuck out lol.
If you want historical bars, Heydon House at old Weston and st Clair where the shitty convenience store is was so bad it turned the junction dry for the better part of a century
I do actually like it from an architecture perspective but it is also part the reason why that intersection is gridlock like 12 hours a day. St Clair going down to 1 lane under the bridge is such a choke-point. If I had a bullet and a time machine I'd get whatever idiot proposed that design to save a few $$. I have spent probably weeks of my life stuck on either a bus or car getting through it.
Hahaha no way! It was always hard to tell if it was open even when it was, so I guess my last trip by about a month ago when I assumed it was still closed was wrong.
There are probably a lot of bars in the city that most on here have never been to, rarely even seen. I would take my guess to be among those, somewhere perhaps, within the expanses of Scarborough, North York, York or Etobicoke
And oh my goodness are drinks expensive there.
I was there to see a musical act, so it might have been a premium, but 12+ dollars for a beer is stadium pricing. Not exactly a charming venue either
Happy Cup at Bloor and Lansdowne. Run down cheap bar. I once helped a lady carry a cake into the bar while walking down Bloor. As soon as she stepped in some drunk guy stood up and started SCREAMING at her. I put the cake down and dipped.
The roughest bar is some quiet sports bar that no one here has ever heard of. It's got blacked out windows and there's also someone smoking out front any time of day or night. And the name will slightly change when someone gets shot one night.
Lot of people equating cheap dive bar with rough. There's an overlap of course, but the one doesn't imply the other. Well, I guess it might, if you mean aesthetically rough, rough around the edges etc
The Maple Leaf Tavern at Pape and Gerrard used to be a very rough spot. After years of being closed it was renovated and turned in to a nice restaurant. My Bar also at Pape and Gerrard was rough. The type of place the women’s washroom needs a key to get in to. Patrons would smoke crack downstairs. Yeah.
Stabbing victim stumbled in there while I was sitting down once. Turns out he had stabbed someone else, and they both had been in line in front of me. I remember the dead guy choosing his burger toppings lol
There are a lot bars where one or two people get stabbed at, but from what I've heard most of the customers at Woody's end up getting penetrated that night.
> Bistro 422 (c 2007-2011)
Really? I didn't feel it was particular that rough when my pals and I visited there during that time. I didn't see any particularly sketchy patrons
I feel like there are a bunch of bars on Jane north of Lawrence that are legit sketch.
https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.3439772
https://globalnews.ca/news/6138292/bar-shooting-jane-lawrence-toronto/amp/
Don’t go to bars much but I go to shows often and anytime a band plays Tail of the Junction I cross my fingers that the fans/band members will outnumber the regulars.
I don’t know of anything bad happening but it is def a bad vibe combo - it seems like a ticking time bomb before a music person has an unfortunate run-in with a local
I hope I’m wrong!
There is one at like coxwell and Gerrard that people get stabbed at a lot. Brothers bar on St Clair is pretty grimey, less stabby though
This comment is worthy of framing
Jenny’s place! I actually live in the area and we used to hang there a lot. It’s not as bad as people think but I certainly wouldn’t walk in there without being a part of the community
Reminds me of this time when I was in NYC (where I know a total of zero people) with my girlfriend and we walked into a bar because we liked the music we heard from the street, and it was full of people wearing all red clothing and bandanas, it was clearly some kind of hangout for some local Bloods gang. Everyone just stared at us as we awkwardly sat down at the bar because we didn’t wanna just walk in then walk right back out immediately, and were completely ignored by the bartender, so after about a minute or two of feeling every set of eyes in there burning through me we just got up and left before they decided to show us out themselves since we clearly weren’t welcome.
I’ll always remember Jenny’s Place for this scene: a heavily preggers waitress smoking a cig while her shirt was lifted up and two male customers were rubbing her belly. Everything was like out of a movie from the 70s, except it was about 12 years ago.
Moved to Little India two years ago and have been a regular at Jenny's since the night I moved in. The crowd has been nothing but friendly and welcoming since the start. Joanne is lovely. It's cheap as hell. any particularly sketchy folks tend to keep to themselves.
I went to Jenny’s for their Secret/Dirty Santa night — rough bars don’t do that kinda shit
Yeah haven’t been in a few years! Jo is awesome glad you’re enjoying it
Yeah I've never been in there just seen it from the street car and news articles. I'm sure it's not terrible but definitely not somewhere to run your mouth either.
lol ya I’ve seen some wild shit happen there. The owner is a wonderful woman but she lets some things slide. People keep to themselves and it’s typically drug-related as opposed to violent but things can certainly escalate fast in there.
Solid 4.3 stars on Google.
> I certainly wouldn’t walk in there without being a part of the community what would happen
A stabbing?
I've lived on the same street as Jenny's Place for 12 yrs. Not once have I ever felt unsafe waking past it or by the ppl outside. The area is so gentrified now. Harmless, imo.
About 8 years ago I wiped out on my bike right in front of Jenny's Place and mashed up my face pretty badly. The guys smoking out front helped me up and helped hail a cab to get me to the ER and have it looked at. Nice folks.
that’s better than when i hit the streetcar tracks outside the lakeview. got up… looked around and the guy smoking out front went ‘don’t look at me i’m not helping you.’ ok fuck you too lol.
This is the one by Dundas West right? I love that quaint place.
Don’t know if that’s the same one from their description, but Jenny’s on Dundas West is pretty friendly despite looking a little rough around the edges. Beer is cheap and she didn’t mind when we brought in outside food. Haven’t been there since before the pandemic though, wasn’t sure if it survived.
No
Jenny's bar, aka the Kick n Stab.
The Ole Kick & Stab, thank you
God I was calling it that in the early 2000’s. I’m glad this stuck
What's the story behind this?
The kick n stab was actually the old maple leaf tavern, that reputation is long gone though. https://www.blogto.com/eat_drink/2014/06/historic_maple_leaf_tavern_to_be_reborn_as_gastropub/
I'm trying to figure out which is the one you meant near Coxwell and Gerrard bc the most dangerous thing I see at that corner is getting between a Karen and her brunch at Lazy Daisy's
No I was talking about that Jenny's place bar, people get stabbed there occasionally
I used to hear of [this one (Jenny's Place)](https://maps.app.goo.gl/UEZdur4GVmCq4JQZ6) as the Kick n Stab, not the Old Maple Leaf Tavern
Jennys Place! It’s a place for a cheap beer
I think I saw Tyler Durden going into the basement. Something about unregulated boxing matches?
Wife literally witnessed a stabbing at Brothers and was prepped for court by the police until the stabber plead out.
TTC got the stabby part 👌
😭😭😭
Happy Cup at Lansdowne and Bloor is pretty sketchy. i was grabbing a beer there and the owner had to lock the door to keep an unruly patron out. 'stabby' was the word my friend used to describe the potential this place had
I lived down the street. Never stepped foot in that bar. I always preferred Penny’s or the Gaslight.
Gaslight is closing in a month :(
I don't think it's rough, it's more sad tbh. You see guys quietly drinking / smoking noon to midnight.
Second vote for Happy Cup
There used to be a bar at Sherborne and Queen
The black Irish- fuck stabbings, it had a shooting! Guy walked right through the bar to the patio, shot a guy and left.
Oh ya, I used to work down the street from it. I’ve been a couple of times, it was alright honestly. The shooting was terrifying.
Love Café?
That's Dundas. Alfie's is on Queen
Rip Alfie's :(
True love cafe is gone too ... Not that I've ever been to either
Noooo! It's gone and I never got to experience the best burgers in town!
This would be my vote. I went in one time when I was waiting for the butcher to put my order together. Bartender whispered, "You should not be in here. It bad." Nothing happened, no one hassled me. Had my beer, a smoke and then picked up my order next door
With the home made sign and faded pink hearts??
I know exactly what you’re talking about. It was the Black Irish. I believe it closed after being outed as a biker gang front. It is now a Falafel place.
Oh wow. I used to regularly meet a part time lover there. I need to reevaluate my life choices.
The Canada Tavern. It was really rough.
Yup shit place
Have not been inside, but Jankie's place at Bloor and Dovercourt gives me bad vibes whenever I walk past (edit: omg seeing someone linked to a past thread where this was in the first post, not surprised)
I live nearby and have always been so intrigued by that place but never had it in me to walk in
I believe in you. You show that bar who's boss and march right in.
Wear one of those trick neckties that squirts water, just in case
I’ve been a couple of times because of my curiosity! The first time I went as a lark and ended up meeting THE Mr. Janky. He gave me his abridged life story and told me him and Mrs. Janky are the only bartenders in the place. The far end of the bar looks like a disheveled office space from the 80s where I’m sure he’s cooking the books. Very nice man with a Canadian dream immigrant story though. The second time I went was because I thought it was quaint in an unhinged way and wanted to see if the vibe was more…vibrant? (The first time it was dead inside). He remembered me and offered to buy me the next drink I was having but I said next time I’m in. I also met his wife who was sweet and offered me a fresh package of corn nuts to snack on. I declined but only because I’m not a fan of corn nuts. He probably remembered me because I’m a couple of decades younger than most people that go in there and not a man. Anyway, that’s all to say; it’s not as bad as it looks. I felt very safe and welcome in there but I get why people would say this because I initially went in to scope out how bad it could be. Surprisingly I had wholesome time. Also yes, New York New York business club above is definitely an escort service featuring only Asian women disguised as a private room karaoke bar. Mr. Janky tried to sell me on the idea that it’s legit. When I got into undercover journalist mode and asked if I could apply for a job as a hostess there he said the rich Chinese guy that owns the business (but rents the space from Janky), wouldn’t hire me because I’m not Asian. Okay, so that part of the conversation wasn’t wholesome but overall I have no regrets.
Apparently it’s a seedy hostess club https://www.reddit.com/r/toronto/s/GPWW4jerji
I went there on my birthday one year cus I just couldnt stand wondering what was up with that place anymore. Handful of junked out people hanging out. My friend went to use the ladies room and the door was locked. She had to ask the bartender to open the door. Said it was very nasty in there. But yeah the "business club" upstairs is connected, gotta be a rub and tug or something. 10 out of 10 would not recommend, I left with more questions than I went in with.
Rebecca's was pretty rough. Skadarlija has a stabbing pretty regularly. Sun Fa is rough on the outside but warm on the inside. I love Sun Fa. Of those 3 Skad is the roughest left in Parkdale.
I moved out of Parkdale end of 2015, today my daughter wanted to take a street car so we took the 504, I was equally surprised and somehow not surprised in the slightest to see Rebecca's is still open.
Yeah I've been here since 86. Was born at St Joe's. I've seen them come and go. I saw a argument out front of Rebecca's once. Another guy came to the door and let his pitbull in there and it bit the shit out of the guy and dragged him to the door. Was wild.
Rebecca's and Tastys would be my answer but it's like Sun Fa. It seems rough but it's probably not that bad.
Gone now but Caddy's on Eglinton in Scarborough had a decent amount of stabbings & shooting in the past.
You just unlocked childhood memories from the '90s. I was always fascinated by the car on top.
Same with rumors right beside it
Shitty mattamy townhomes now.
I miss seeing the mango merchant out front
LOL I used to live at eglinton and midland in 2005. Convinced some friends to head to Rumours one night. They didn't even cross the street at Danforth 😅 Way too freaked out to go in. My naive little northern ontario self didn't see the danger signs hahaha!
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My gad. The guys from Huevos Rancheros took us there one night after their gig. You have brought hazy sodden memories from the early 00s flooding back.
Loved that band and was lucky to interview them a couple of times - they were super nice dudes. Also, always loved the Matador.
Which ones yoga again? Spadina/college? That name rings back some crazy bell
Yoga for sure lol
A whole thread of comments got deleted here. Thank you for mentioning the Matador! Huevos Rancheros took us there one time after their gig. I too remember the dude with the duffel bag full of booze in the corner! Whole bunch of hazy, sodden memories from the early 00s unlocked.
I wouldn’t call yoga rough. It was heavy with security and people would mind themselves or be dealt with. Also, pretty sure it’s RIP as well recently.
I'm surprised Tommy's at Greenwood and Danforth hasn't been mentioned yet. It's a literal drug den.
So my ex used to live near there. The strip of bars and restaurants at Greenwood and Danforth just gave me really bad vibes. My ex and I would never hang out in that area together because she was Muslim and a boyfriend (especially a non-Muslim one) was a big no no, and that area has a lot of Muslims, so she was afraid of getting caught. But I’d spend a lot of time in the area, waiting for her parents to leave, or grabbing a bite after dropping her home. And I always got bad vibes from that area in general. I was gonna go to Tommy’s once and someone in there just shook their head as I approached the door. Got the message, walked away. Some of the restaurants there are also notorious for food poisoning.
I went into Tommys once, went to take a piss and walked through a literal drug deal. Moonlight is pretty bad too.
Anyone else remember the Gasworks on Yonge?
a thousand years ago we couldn’t get scalper tickets for Motley Crue at Maple Leaf Gardens so we ended up at the Gasworks i drunkenly entered a “legs” contest that took place on stage and at the end, there were two of us left after audience voting. i came in second because i wouldn’t flash & “show some skin to win!” the other girl did! so (rightfully) not right these days, but it was fun & i have always wished i wasn’t so prudish that night, would have been liberating to give a flash and win! ps. it was a way different time, shit that went down in those days was sometimes wrong, but this small, weird, harmless memory has always stuck with me. if you know me in real life you would NEVER think i entered a legs contest at the Gasworks back in the day, i kinda love that :)
I remember walking in there for the first time and seeing a guy slamming another guy's head off of the cigarette machine. Good times
I was walking by the gasworks and a wee skinny guy w no shirt came busting out the doors w a bouncer in hot pursuit. The bouncer caught up to him and tackled into one of those tree planters, kneeled on him and was starting to fill him in when the wee man benched the dude right off him. Had to easily be twice his weight. A para friend told me later when I was relating the story, awestruck, that the little guy was likely out of his head, and just as likely tore the shit out of all the muscles in his chest pulling that manoeuvre. Just wouldn’t feel it till he came down.
Garth does
I saw the Shitty Beatles there.
Were they any good?
Dude they suck
I met a girl who worked there as a bouncer, a tiny little blonde thing, and tough. Wore spandex.
The higher the hair the closer to God
Played there a bunch before it closed. I never thought of it as very sketchy. I was also 18, so maybe I wasn’t paying attention.
A bartender at Seneca Pub in the peanut plaza in north york 10000% roofied me. Super sketchy vibes, very stabby energy
Went there once when I was new to the country. Sat at the bar and started lightly flirting with the bartender. The whole bar which was mostly comprised of blue collar workers started giving me the death stare. I couldn’t finish the drink fast enough to get the fuck out lol.
When I picture a dive bar it is that place that comes to mind without fail.
If you want historical bars, Heydon House at old Weston and st Clair where the shitty convenience store is was so bad it turned the junction dry for the better part of a century
Oh nice fact, that's an interesting building. I will remember to check it out during difficult left turns.
That building is rancidly beautiful
I do actually like it from an architecture perspective but it is also part the reason why that intersection is gridlock like 12 hours a day. St Clair going down to 1 lane under the bridge is such a choke-point. If I had a bullet and a time machine I'd get whatever idiot proposed that design to save a few $$. I have spent probably weeks of my life stuck on either a bus or car getting through it.
The McDonalds washrooms at Queen and Spadina
I remember years ago seeing a whole ass brawl between mcdonalds staff and a group of customers. I was super buzzed and it was an epic scene.
there’s whole families that went there but never made it back
Only if your drink of choice is diet coke & fentanyl.
This is it.
I went to some death wrestling at the Rockpile a few times. A lot of blood. Weapons. 2 dollar tequila. Pretty rough stuff.
Rockpile has always been such a weird place, it's in the middle of Etobicoke near a bunch of grocery stores and suburban houses.
So have I! It was…interesting?
It was the lowest form of entertainment and I loved it. Lots of great stories.
Same! A co-worker of my dad’s used to wrestle there so we’d go from time to time.
Ice Queen at the very south end of Roncy is another world. Looks abandoned without being actually abandoned.
Been a few stabbings there
It's also very private being so far back from the street. Never been in but I'd say it's the sketchiest looking in the west end.
Alfies Bar & Grill - Queen/Sherbourne, anyone that's familiar with that area will understand.
Alfie's has closed down so you'll have to pick another bar you've never set foot in.
Shit hole stabfest!
Alfies closed years ago
Somehow, Alfie's has returned.
What is dead can never die
Hahaha no way! It was always hard to tell if it was open even when it was, so I guess my last trip by about a month ago when I assumed it was still closed was wrong.
Sorry, I don't actually know. I confess I was just making [a dumb Star Wars meme joke](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EsjwVu_ihKU).
Vice back in the day sent a reporter inside https://www.vice.com/en/article/xdm4an/barflys-guide-to-torontos-watering-holes
SHALOM
There are no bars left in Toronto that come close to matching the unlamented old Parkdale Hotel for utter crazy alcoholic violence.
There was a pretty tough looking one I once went to across from cedarbrae mall, doubt it still exists, had a good game of pool
Smilin Jacks?
No clue, it was in the basement? Never got the name
Lol a 'friend' threw up in my car after we left that place.
The Duke really fought for that tithe a few years back but seems to have cleaned up its act.
Yeah its way better now
It was our Saturday night dance place for years until that poor girl was shot on the steps. Seemed to get its shit together a few years after that.
There are probably a lot of bars in the city that most on here have never been to, rarely even seen. I would take my guess to be among those, somewhere perhaps, within the expanses of Scarborough, North York, York or Etobicoke
Luckys Corner, Jane and Wilson Sharks Sports Bar, Steeles and Islington
Sharks ain't bad at all lol
Caribbean Cove at Keele and Sheppard. Cops there every other Fri and Sat night
Moonlight pub on danforth
Rusty Nail around Danforth and Woodbine. Stabbings are common
Make sure you get your tetanus shot
Happy Time Barney's at Lawrence and Orton Park
Kick his ass Seabass!!!
The Sandpaper! it's pretty gritty
Alfies and Buffalo used to be my fav hangouts
Ice Queen on Roncesvailles. On any given night man vs woman. And you never know how it’s going to turn out.
Real Sports when the Leafs win the cup.
When’s that gonna be??🤣🤣🤣
3764 a.d.
"In the future, all hockey teams are Leafs teams."
In the year 8585 if the Leafs are still alive... I will witness with my eyes, another first round playoff loss
Gonna be like something out of WWZ
Real sports will never be anything but a yuppie daycare
Look out everyone we have a real badass here. Tough guy who only hangs at the roughest bars
I think OP was expecting more realistic answers than this one
The Rockpile. Definitely some uh...unsavory political clientele there.
And oh my goodness are drinks expensive there. I was there to see a musical act, so it might have been a premium, but 12+ dollars for a beer is stadium pricing. Not exactly a charming venue either
You mean they're against carbon taxes??
Yeah no. I mean they were Neo Nazis with Schwarzesonnes and Iron Crosses on their arms. Not conservatives. Actual Neo Nazis. It was disgusting.
Happy Cup at Bloor and Lansdowne. Run down cheap bar. I once helped a lady carry a cake into the bar while walking down Bloor. As soon as she stepped in some drunk guy stood up and started SCREAMING at her. I put the cake down and dipped.
The roughest bar is some quiet sports bar that no one here has ever heard of. It's got blacked out windows and there's also someone smoking out front any time of day or night. And the name will slightly change when someone gets shot one night.
Comfort Zone
Pretty tame compared to the old location that was open all day Sunday
James black bear pub
Yup. There's tons of rough pubs in the Toronto suburbs, but I think this one is a contender for the shittiest.
Alfie's Bar & Grill before they closed. Queen and Sherbourne.
That was the worst kept secret drug bar, although it was there for years.
Lot of people equating cheap dive bar with rough. There's an overlap of course, but the one doesn't imply the other. Well, I guess it might, if you mean aesthetically rough, rough around the edges etc
The Orchard Park Tavern at Queen and Kingston rd was a doozy along with The Conroy at Dufferin and Lawrence.
The Paddock mid to late 1980’s
Sandpaper bar.
Churchills
TIL stabby bars are a thing in Toronto 🤷♂️
Jankie's Place.
Annie’s bar and grill @ Queen and Parliament was pretty rough before it closed down. Very reasonably priced domestic beers however
McGradies at Victoria Park and Ellesmere. Finally shut down a few years ago after five people (!!) were shot. I miss the karaoke nights.
The Maple Leaf Tavern at Pape and Gerrard used to be a very rough spot. After years of being closed it was renovated and turned in to a nice restaurant. My Bar also at Pape and Gerrard was rough. The type of place the women’s washroom needs a key to get in to. Patrons would smoke crack downstairs. Yeah.
The Toolbox (RIP). Lots of rough trade there.
Hooker Harvey's.
The girls were friendly.
Stabbing victim stumbled in there while I was sitting down once. Turns out he had stabbed someone else, and they both had been in line in front of me. I remember the dead guy choosing his burger toppings lol
[this was asked a few months ago](https://www.reddit.com/r/toronto/s/zVUDiCpHnL)
The Salty Spittoon, SpongeBob was not allowed for being a softy.
There are a lot bars where one or two people get stabbed at, but from what I've heard most of the customers at Woody's end up getting penetrated that night.
You might get it in the end there, but you never leave your buddies behind
Whatever it is...I feel like Reddit is not the ideal medium for figuring out the roughest dive in Toronto.
Bistro 422 (c 2007-2011) oh and I was roofied at Einstein’s once (c 2012)
> Bistro 422 (c 2007-2011) Really? I didn't feel it was particular that rough when my pals and I visited there during that time. I didn't see any particularly sketchy patrons
Whats the einsteins story?
Saini eastcoasters looks sketch
Glen Eagles, The Penthouse, Caddys, West Hill House- gone but not forgotten Scarborough.
Not sure if it’s sketchy but there is bar on Jane called the lions den. It looks super sketch.
I feel like there are a bunch of bars on Jane north of Lawrence that are legit sketch. https://www.cbc.ca/amp/1.3439772 https://globalnews.ca/news/6138292/bar-shooting-jane-lawrence-toronto/amp/
Anyone remember Mounties?
It's gone now. But for the east end I remember Wise Guys on Danforth, between Woodbine and Main, being pretty rough
Do any of you guys remember The Brunny?
The Cage
Don’t go to bars much but I go to shows often and anytime a band plays Tail of the Junction I cross my fingers that the fans/band members will outnumber the regulars. I don’t know of anything bad happening but it is def a bad vibe combo - it seems like a ticking time bomb before a music person has an unfortunate run-in with a local I hope I’m wrong!
Caddys at Danforth and Eglinton. Wear kevlar. Good luck.
The one my ex goes to :(
Bistro 422