The Distillery District

From a combination of feeling like a little bit of an outsider in Toronto and knowing that it has so much more to offer than I've ever known, I'm discovering and experiencing some interesting emotions/things due to this great city.

Yesterday, I was in The Distillery District...at little area out of the way of hard-core downtown Toronto. I'd only been here once before, but it was nighttime and everything was closed. Still, at night, it seemed to have a great presence.
Anyway, a visit in the middle of the day ensured that I would have the chance to see the area in all its glory. What you would imagine a block of distillery buildings to look like, well, that's exactly how the area is and I LOVE it. It adds an old character to an otherwise modern city (remember, I'm coming from Europe here). After walking the concrete jungle of King and Bay, this was a nice breath of fresh air. As I mentioned to one of my companions, I feel like the Distillery is a bit like a movie set. It just doesn't belong with its surroundings. The beautiful brick buildings, streetlamps that would be fabulous to sit under and have a good chat and cobblestones that any women with heels should be weary of.
The buildings of the former Gooderham and Worts Distillery now house shops, cafes, restaurants and even gallery spaces. It seems like a very trendy area that I could see myself wanting to visit quite often, but the problem is - it's out of the way. I guess in the grand scheme of things, it really isn't too far of a walk from the centre of town, but if I fall back into my old Torontonian self, an attitude that I feel many Torontonians have, the walking will just seem too monumental for me to ever get back there again.

Among the places ventured into:
Corktown Designs. A small shop selling local jewellery maker's items. Some trendy and unique pieces displayed sparsely in a well lit shop. Descriptions of each designer accompany each collection. The salespeople are welcoming and quite chatty.
Brick Street Bakery. A bakery which makes you immediately salivate upon entry. Well designed lemon and chocolate tarts, old school big oatmeal chocolate chip and oatmeal raisin cookies and creative sandwiches which rival the best panini shops in Italy. Personal favorites are the sandwich with turkey and stuffing and the lamb with apricot curry/mayo(?) sauce.\
SOMA chocolatemaker. As the name gives it away, if you like chocolate, this is where to go. I've been told that they have just recently moved to their current, more spacious location and it was still busy with activity. A seating area for those wanting to sample their goodies before heading out into the heat and having it all just melt in front of their eyes is in front of big class windows so that you can spy on the lucky few who are paid to be surrounded by all that cocoa-y goodness. I notice an area with seating fit for a school group - do I smell education opportunity? Good for them! I notice on the website that they are in association with Oliver Bonacini restaurants - if the restaurant at Sheppard and Bayview still exists, it's not bad. Not exquisite, but not bad. I am immediately drawn towards the little sacs of milk chocolate with almond and toffee brittle and realise that I'm surrounded by dark chocolate items. Yes, I get that this is the real deal, but I just don't like the stuff. I mean, I still enjoy white chocolate (gasp!) for goodness sakes. Truffles look delicious as do the other praline specialties. I'm intrigued by the olive oil truffle along with the balsamic vinegar one. Companions opt for a more sensible Douglas(?) fir praline and an espresso one. Freshly made gelato is also tempting including such staples as pistachio, mango and stracciatela along with creative options including rhubarb with ginger. Yum!
lileo. A trendy retail location housing an even more trendy juice bar. This shop reminds me of a mixture of Over the Rainbow (but thankfully, more mature) and Kitson (but thankfully, less errr, annoying Hollywood starlets). You know, your typical bring in trendy items and place them in a store kind of concept. It could easily be a Yorkville immigrant. I was witness to a full-out swearing confrontation between a salesperson and a customer which needed to be stopped by the laid back, canine doting owner. Not what you'd expect in this kind of shop. I'm pretty sure it was an anomaly. Merchandise ranged from clothing, accessories and footwear (all for men and women) to home designs and even a small baby and toy centre. This is your typical "we sell a lifestyle" concept shop. They're having a huge sale right now, so head on down to find many an item at 50% off.

Just looking through the Distillery's website, it seems that there are more alleys that we didn't have a chance to get to. I'd like to return to fully discover the Distillery and sample what they have to offer. La Creperie anyone?
Prices in the Distillery seem to be more expensive than your average Toronto venue, but I would pay for it. It's different, the quality is better, and well, quite frankly, it's a steal compared to other countries! Seriously though, if you can afford it, I say do it. Life's too short to skimp out on the great things that Toronto has to offer.