Toronto Yorkville Village (was Hazelton Lanes) | ?m | ?s | First Capital | Kasian

prosperegal said:
Hazelton Lanes lost personality some 20 years ago when they closed the skating rink and (original) restaurant. The one which opened afterwards, which was more like a lounge (what was its name again? I remember going to a few parties there) kind of sucked.
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Is the restaurant you are thinking of either the Hazelton Club or Hazelton Gourmet? Did a quick Toronto Star search on the TPL website, and the Hazelton Gourmet seemed to have been the more casual restaurant, with tables extending in front of the Classical Record Shop, with the Hazelton Club (formerly Hazelton Cafe) seemed to be the fancier of the two, with an outdoor garden.

Here is an ad from December 1990 listing the tenants at that time:

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Filip said:
There was an amazing Mexican restaurant with nightly entertainment in the courtyard. Must've been early to mid 90s?
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And I stumbled on this too. You're thinking of Carlos & Pepe's, a California chain which opened once the Hazelton Cafe/Club had closed. Here is a review from 1994:

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Filip said:
Ha! That's the one.. What a blast from the past. Looks like they're out of TO but still operating in MTL.
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Yeah, interestingly, all that appears to remain of the chain are two locations in Montreal and one in Fort Lauderdale. The Quebec outlets seem to have no relation to the Florida outpost (completely different websites, different logos, etc.), other than maybe historic links to what was once a larger chain.

Well, at least if you ever want a blast of nostalgia, it is as close as Montreal.
 
Skeezix said:
Yeah, interestingly, all that appears to remain of the chain are two locations in Montreal and one in Fort Lauderdale. The Quebec outlets seem to have no relation to the Florida outpost (completely different websites, different logos, etc.), other than perhaps historic links to what was once a larger chain.

Well, at least if you ever want a blast of nostalgia, it is as close as Montreal.
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My mother used to take me almost weekly to that place as my dad worked at Hazelton Lanes. Maybe I'll have to take a road trip to Montreal and check it out, but it would be unfair to go without the matriarch.
 
Filip said:
Ya I went once with my mom - back when the Classical Record Shop was down there.. It opened and closed rather suddenly - much to our chagrin. It was definitely Mexican though.
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I wouldn't say the restaurant that was there in the late 90s closed "rather quick" - I think it was there for at least three years, probably more (I remember going there throughout high school, and high school back then was five years). One of my last meals there was shortly after I graduated from high school, which was in 1998.

The event space/lounge which came AFTERWARDS, however, THAT place closed rather quickly.
 
Skeezix said:
Is the restaurant you are thinking of either the Hazelton Club or Hazelton Gourmet? Did a quick Toronto Star search on the TPL website, and the Hazelton Gourmet seemed to have been the more casual restaurant, with tables extending in front of the Classical Record Shop, with the Hazelton Club (formerly Hazelton Cafe) seemed to be the fancier of the two, with an outdoor garden.
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I definitely remember the Classical Record Shop with the big Martin Logan speakers pointing out into the public area. Good times.

AoD
 
AlvinofDiaspar said:
No way! It is really quite a neat place, I remember going through the store every other month or so in the early/mid 90s - formative years and all that.

AoD
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Yep, and then he moved to Tower (closed), Sam (closed) and now HMV Yonge (doing alright).. We joked whenever he took over a classical department, the store liquidated :D
 
Filip said:
Yep, and then he moved to Tower (closed), Sam (closed) and now HMV Yonge (doing alright).. We joked whenever he took over a classical department, the store liquidated :D
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Well, sign of the times re: music retailing- though classical is probably relatively resistant compared to other genres.

Gawd, so much changes in the Yorkville/Yonge/Bloor area - all my old watering holes are gone. Coles at Yonge and Charles - gone. Brothers - gone. Croissant Tree - gone. One of a Kind at the Colonnade - gone. M&S - gone. Science City - gone. Chapters on Bloor - gone. Starbucks at Chapters on Bloor - gone. Green Mango - gone. :mad:

AoD
 
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prosperegal said:
My parents came to Canada around 1975 or so. I don't think they EVER lived in Chinatown (they would have been in their mid-20s at that time). I know they were in Peel region for a while and settled in Willowdale shortly before I was born (I think they moved to the Willowdale area in '78 and I was born in '79). I wouldn't say there was a CHINESE COMMUNITY like one would see in, say, Markham today, but we were definitely NOT the only Chinese people in our area. My parents said they pretty much only went down to Chinatown to eat and get ethnic-specific groceries.

ETA: It's funny. When they first came in the 70s, they went downtown (from Peel and then North York) to eat and buy groceries. Now that they live downtown, they go to up to the 905!
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AlvinofDiaspar said:
Well, sign of the times re: music retailing- though classical is probably relatively resistant compared to other genres.

Gawd, so much changes in the Yorkville/Yonge/Bloor area - all my old watering holes are gone. Coles at Yonge and Charles - gone. Brothers - gone. Croissant Tree - gone. One of a Kind at the Colonnade - gone. M&S - gone. Science City - gone. Chapters on Bloor - gone. Starbucks at Chapters on Bloor - gone. Green Mango - gone. :mad:

AoD
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What was "better" about the Starbucks at Chapters that isn't at any other Starbucks, anyway? Technically, they moved a few doors east to the corner of Avenue and Bloor. There's another one at the back, on Cumberland - where Brooks Brothers is.
 
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