BarChef is a bar in Queen West, Toronto.
BarChef on Queen West is Frankie Solarik's modernist cocktail bar since 2008, theatrical drinks with dry ice, smoked glass domes and botanical foams.
Must order: The signature smoked Manhattan presented under a glass dome.
Food program: Bar snacks only
Tip: Reservations recommended; cocktails run $25 to $50. Closed Monday.
Address: 472 Queen Street W, Toronto, ON M5V 2A8
Mahjong Bar on Dundas West pours Asian-inspired cocktails behind a Vietnamese sandwich-shop facade since 2016, a speakeasy through the back door.
Signature drink: Asian-inspired cocktails
Food: Vietnamese small plates
Order: A Pandan Highball with the bahn mi sliders.
Tip: Enter through the sandwich shop; the back door opens after 19:00. Reservations on Resy.
Dreyfus on Harbord is the Annex's reference cocktail and natural-wine bar since 2018, chef Zach Kolomeir's small-plate kitchen under 50 seats.
Signature drink: Mediterranean spritzes, Beaujolais by the glass
Food: Mediterranean snacks and pasta
Order: A spritz and the cured fish board.
Tip: Closed Mondays. Sister to Bar Mordecai on Dundas West. The chairs at the bar take walk-ins.
Pinkerton's Snack Bar on Gerrard East is the city's reference snack-and-cocktail dive since 2017, owner Marc Baglio's pan-Asian plates and drinks.
Signature drink: House cocktail rotation
Food: Pan-Asian snack bar
Order: A house cocktail with the bao buns and crispy rice.
Tip: Walk-ins only. Closed Monday. Late nights to 02:00 Friday and Saturday.
The Communist's Daughter on Dundas at Ossington is the strip's reference dive bar since 2003, a former Portuguese diner with low ceilings and cheap beer.
Signature drink: Beer and a shot, well drinks
Food: Bar snacks
Order: A pint of local lager with a shot of rye.
Tip: Cash preferred under $10. Late kitchen has frozen pizzas after 22:00.
Miss Thing's on Queen West in Parkdale runs Polynesian tiki cocktails and Pacific Rim plates since 2013, the painted bamboo interior the strip's reference.
Signature drink: Mai Tai, Tiki classics
Food: Pacific Rim small plates
Order: A classic Mai Tai with the salt-and-pepper squid.
Tip: Closed Monday and Tuesday. Weekend nights take walk-ins after 22:00 only.
Sneaky Dee's at College and Bathurst runs the city's reference late-night Tex-Mex kitchen until 04:30 on Friday and Saturday nights since 1987.
Signature drink: Pitcher of cheap lager
Food: Tex-Mex, King's Crown Nachos
Order: The King's Crown Nachos with a pitcher of Stella.
Tip: Cash only at the till; debit card at the bar. Late-night kitchen the city's most reliable after-bar option for nachos.
