September 2012

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oRONTO

oday September 2012

higher and denser But where’s the infrastructure and green space to keep our city livable?

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12 GARLIC’S GOT A BAD RAP It’s easy to grow, tasty to eat and has more uses than keeping vampires away

Bigger but better

H

aving been introduced to Toronto and Toronto politics in the 1970s, I recall the era of mayors David Crombie and John Sewell as the golden era of controlled development — slowing the rampant building of the fifties and sixties that was threatening to turn Toronto into the unlivable urban messes that many American metropolises were becoming. We were never against development per se or change in general then, despite the propaganda of the “pro-development� forces. And over successive decades Toronto has grown tremendously while remaining a great place to live. Becoming an even greater place to live. However, the building pace we’re setting now — possibly the fastest in North America — is disturbing. Not because we have anything against intensification as an alternative to sprawl. Or anything against condo highrises if people want to live in them. Or against folks enlargging their homes or selling off infill lots, as long as they can do so without hurting the quality of their neighbourhoods for the other folks who live there. We accept the city will change

Eric McMillan, Editor-in-chief — must change — to stay dynamic, interesting and fun for our diverse population to enjoy. But are we sure the current changes will actually deliver that dynamism, interest and fun? Putting up more and taller buildings alone will not. They have to come with the schools, shops, parks, cultural centres, athletic facilities and public transit that connect us as families, workers and social beings. So we can appreciate our chosen bigcity life together. More on this quest inside. TT

6 DESIGNING DUO Behind the Smythe fashion label are actually two local women 8 BRINGING DOWN THE BARRIERS Activist’s Fourth Wall art project aims to open up City Hall to the citizenry 10 GARDENERS, GET ORGANIZED Now is the season when you can finally get that shed in order 12 NO KVETCHING Yonge restaurant delivers ample dinners— even if you’re sitting at the worst table 17 THE FIELDS OF YESTERYEAR Research turns up the storied sites of our past athletic endeavours

Plus lots more...

On the cover: The city’s growing higher and closer. What more do we need? Story Page 4.

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WHAT ABOUT THE

INFRASTRUCTURE?

We’ve been building upwards and closer together to accommodate our growing population. But we need the services, facilities, transit — and green space — to keep it a great place to live.

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By OMAR MOSLEH

or a place called Deer Park, his neighbourhood has an alarming lack of green space, resident Ulli Rath says. According to a report by the Metcalf Foundation on improving Toronto’s parks, Torontonians enjoy about 7,900 hectares of parkland and natural green space, or roughly 30 square metres per resident. That number is quite low compared to Ottawa, which includes a large suburban/ rural area within the city’s boundaries, where residents enjoy 80 square metres per resident, but much higher than Montreal with 12 square metres per person. According to Rath, who is acting president of the Friends of Oriole Park, the situation in midtown Toronto is even less accommodating than the comparison indicates. “The central part of Toronto is about five to 10 times less (than the Toronto average),” he said. “Deer Park is a splendid example. Oriole Park is the largest park in the Deer Park neighbourhood, it’s just under five acres (two hectares) in size, and yet we are surrounded on many sides by high rises.” And with many more condos under construction. “We are essentially a greenspace-poor area,” Rath says. For all intents and purposes, Rath is a dedicated midtown Torontonian. He’s owned six homes in the vicinity, near Summerhill, Davisville, Lawrence Park and now in Deer Park. Over the years, he’s noticed how more and more midtowners come to Oriole Park as a green space haven. “We get people walking from as far north as Eglinton,” he said. “We routinely meet people from several kilometers away and the reaction is always ‘Thank God for Oriole Park, at least we have something.’” But it’s not just green space missing from central Toronto. Local councillors have expressed concern about the needed infrastructure to meet the demand of the area’s burgeoning population. Between 2006 and 2011, Toronto’s population grew by 111,779 residents, or 4.5 percent. Areas such as YongeEglinton, Davenport and Summerhill saw steady growth, and that’s not expected to end anytime soon. In Ward 22 alone, there are nearly 40 development applications approved, with dozens more being

TORONTO TODAY september 2012

reviewed. With the federal government proposing a new riding of Mount Pleasant that would combine the eastern section of St. Paul’s with a northern part of Toronto Centre, Ward 22 councillor Josh Matlow said the issue of population growth and the necessary infrastructure weighs heavily on his mind. “When we discuss growth, it’s often done in isolation and focuses on height and density,” he said. “But it should be a wider and more holistic conversation about what infrastructure and services are necessary for the community to support an influx of density.” In addition to parks, that infrastructure includes sidewalks, the sewer system, and the bigger pieces such as schools, hospitals and — of course — public transit. “The Yonge-University line is already incredibly overcrowded,” Matlow said. “Can it support the thousands of new residents moving into midtown?” Much like its transit system, Toronto’s sewage system is old. As a result, water main breaks and basement floods are common. “Many of those sewer pipes are 70 years old or more,” Matlow said. “While the city is replacing them, it’s a very slow and incremental process.” There’s also a dearth of recreational space and public pools in Matlow’s ward. School fields are heavily permitted, and the only publicly accessible pool aside from the local school pools is at North Toronto Memorial Community Centre. “There aren’t enough fields for the clubs to play in,” Matlow said. “They’re constantly, desperately looking for space.” The situation isn’t much different in neighbourhoods like Moore Park and Rosedale, represented by Ward 27 councillor Kristyn Wong-Tam. “Families have to walk 40 minutes to get to a playground,” Wong-Tam said. “Then their kids are lined up for several minutes to get on the swing.” In the downtown area, the population growth has been so rapid even basic infrastructure like sidewalks cannot keep up. “Parents with young children are having trouble traveling on subways and on sidewalks,” Wong-Tam said. “They can’t even move the stroller through because it’s so difficult for them to travel.” That may sound like a south-of-Bloor

issue, but Wong-Tam says we could soon see a similar situation in midtown. “It starts to fill out around Eglinton, so we have to be realistic and have an honest conversation about where the economic growth in the city is coming from,” she said. “We have not seen new infrastructure coming to downtown and midtown Toronto. There’s talks of modernizing and expanding subway services, but if the ridership can’t even get on the platform … it’s not going to work,” she added. Wong-Tam has already seen examples of heavy development being approved without the necessary local infrastructure. For example, there will be potentially six new 40 storey towers on Charles Street. On the same street, residents have already complained about the water pressure being too low. “Why did we not upgrade the water main before we approved this type of density?” Wong-Tam asked. “We shouldn’t be approving incredible intensification without making sure we have the services on the ground to support the new dense urban-built form.” Schools in midtown are already struggling to meet the demands of population growth. Matlow, a former school trustee, said while secondary school enrolments are plummeting in parts of downtown, the situation is very different in midtown. Davisville Public School is at capacity, and there are long lineups to get into Northern Secondary School and North Toronto Collegiate Institute. “The child population in the neighbourhood is bursting at the seams,” Matlow said. “I remember when the Minto (condos) were being built, there was a big sign there that said if you move in with kids, they won’t be able to go to local schools because they’ve closed enrolment.” Toronto hospitals are another example of a vital piece of infrastructure facing the crunch from population growth. “The urban development that has been wonderful for our city, because it’s brought in prosperity and jobs, [but it] has also had a very negative, detrimental effect on our social fabric,” Wong-Tam said. “Hospitals are overflowing … they’re not even barely handling it, they’re drowning.” While the situation at Sunnybrook Hospital is not as severe as at some of the University Health Network downtown hospitals, it’s worsening. “The challenge at Sunnybrook is as big as or bigger than any of the Ontario hospitals around emergency volumes,” said Dr. Keith Rose, executive vice-president of Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre. In 2009, Sunnybrook’s emergency room had about 110 visits per day. Today, some days exceed 200 visits. “That’s about a 35 percent increase overall in that that period,” Rose said. While there has been population growth in the area, Rose says there’s more to the challenges Sunnybrook’s emergency room faces. Sunnybrook has the largest emergency room in the country and acts as the trauma centre for several areas outside the GTA. That puts an additional strain on Sunnybrook’s patient and critical care beds as well as other services. In the same three-year period the emergency room saw a 35-percent increase in admission, the cancer program has seen the number of patients admitted through the emergency room rise from 1,500 patients to 2,500. “I remain optimistic that we will find ways to cope with population growth, but it will be a combined effort,” Rose said. CONTINUED Page 9

Photos Omar Mosleh/ToRonto Today

We are essentially a greenspace-poor area: Deer Park’ resident Ulli Rath.

WE need a holistic conversation about infrastructure: Councillor Josh Matlow.

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Midtown duo’s jackets sought by celebs

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By Ann Ruppenstein

rowing up, Andrea Lenczner, half of the duo behind the Smythe label, wasn’t privy to fashionable threads like her business partner Christie Smythe. Most of her wardrobe in fact came from garbage bags filled with hand me downs. “My parents really weren’t interested in fashion. It wasn’t important to my parents, which I admire now a lot but at the time it was a nightmare,” she says. “I think I got my obsessiveness about fashion from the not having and the wanting.” “I think there’s something to be said about having to make something of nothing,” Smythe adds. “If you get your bag of hand-me-downs and you have to make a look out of that when you are 15 or 16 — that’s I think where Andrea’s true fashion sense came from.” It was during high school that Lenczner had her first real brush with fashion after convincing her mom to take her to a store in Yorkville where she met designers Dean and Dan Caten, who had just received a shipment of their own collection and made her try on every item. “I for sure had like really frizzy hair and buckteeth and they were just so complimentary — probably the thing I had going for me was that I had no meat on my bones,” she says. “They were like you have great clavicles. I never forgot that and I bought an outfit of theirs and I wore it to my dance and now they’re DSQUARED2.” Although the midtown residents have been friends since attending Branksome Hall, it wasn’t until years later when Smythe returned from New York, where she worked as a designer for Gap after studying fashion, that they decided to go into business together and start a cloth-

ing line of their own. “During math class at Branksome, we were supposed to be paying attention in finite class, instead we were sketching prom dresses we were going to wear to the semi-formal,” Lenczner says. “We set out to do it as soon as I knew I was moving back home,” Smythe says. “Instead of making any elaborate business plans we put our heads down and set about making the process of something we were proud of. We found contractors here and suppliers and that was our mission to make one garment that we really loved and were proud of and we went from there.” Since 2004, they’ve created a successful collection of blazers, jackets and coats coveted by celebrities like Jessica Simpson and Kate Hudson and worn by the Duchess of Cambridge Kate Middleton during her tour of Canada and to the 2012 Olympic Games. Recently they’ve also expanded into blouses and are now working on pantsuits. “It’s modern classic, really modern fit but there’s always a thread of nostalgia in terms of iconic silhouettes and really traditional menswear fabric and tailoring,” says Lenczner, who worked at Holt Renfrew as a buyer before partnering with Smythe. “I hope that they see value in what we make,” says Smythe. “There’s nothing that makes us happier than seeing somebody wearing a jacket from our first or second season and years later they’re still enjoying it and wearing it. We hope that people see the longevity in our design. It’s something that is valued, cherished and worn for many years.” Although Lenczner and Smythe both serve as designers, they settled on the name Smythe because a combination of their last names sounded like a law firm and Smythe’s heritage suited images of British and menswear tailoring, tweeds and nostalgic fabrics and equestrian life they were trying to evoke, they say.

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TORONTO TODAY september 2012

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photo courtesy smythe

ONE NAME, TWO DESIGNERS: While the only name on the label of Christie Smythe, left, and Andrea Lenczner is Smythe’s, the pair are both active in creating the line.

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“Everyone is always amazed, because we’re co-designers, that Andrea is probably the only name in North America that didn’t have an ego about that,� Smythe says. “It’s really rare that your co-designer wouldn’t want equal recognition in your label.� “Everyone thinks I’m the bean counter,� says Lenczner. “Everyone thinks because my name is not on the label and because I have a finance background I’m the business and she’s the designer. It sometimes hurts my feelings.� While they’ve garnered international recognition, have been featured in Harpers Bazaar, InStyle and Teen Vogue magazines and have collections available at Holt Renfrew, the best part of their job is seeing someone they don’t know walking down the street looking great in one of their blazers, Lenczner says. “I think that’s better than any of the celebrity stuff or anything,� she says. “It’s just real life, someone who has taken that money and chosen to buy a Smythe jacket. It’s not inconsequential that amount of money so it’s super flattering.� TT

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Against the wall Activist works to pull down civic barriers

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By Karolyn Coorsh

egal Heights resident Dave Meslin wants to flip city hall inside out. The self-described community choreographer and shit-disturber says the 960 windows of Toronto’s city hall towers — all facing inward — serve as a metaphor for a rather pitiful state of civic engagement. Meslin’s The Fourth Wall exhibit is a series of recommendations for civic change at the municipal and provincial level. In July, just as council was wrapping up for summer, Meslin brought The Fourth Wall to city hall’s groundfloor rotunda. As bells chimed from council chambers above, Meslin told Toronto Today he conjured up the idea for a civic art project while contemplating those who frequent the hallowed halls. “I started thinking about how few people were engaged in this building and why is that the other 2.5 million

people in the city aren’t. Is it that they don’t care or is it that it’s actually really hard to get involved?” City hall sure doesn’t make it easy, he said. Case in point: At the front doors of city hall the first and only information kiosk is filled with sightseeing maps directing tourists to the nearest gokart racing and musical show. Not one provides information on how to make a deputation at committee or look up property tax rolls. Meslin learned the ropes over time, but he said it took more effort than it should have. “I would like to think that more people would be involved if the system was actually inviting rather than a maze. It shouldn’t be alienating.” The 37-year-old has been a colourful figure on the local activism scene for years. Inspired by the work of the late Tooker Gomberg, a guer-

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TORONTO TODAY september 2012

Karolyn coorsh/Toronto Today

DAVE MESLIN’S Fourth Wall art project aims to open up Toronto’s City Hall to ongoing citizen engagement.

rilla activist legend in his own right, Meslin sought to remove the anger from activism with fun and quirky “happenings”. The first one he staged was a local Reclaim The Streets event, essentially a street party that brought awareness to issues of public space. Reflecting back on his early activism days, Meslin says his approach has changed over time. “When I first got involved in activism, I didn’t know how to engage with the system, so when I wanted to see more bike lanes, I would buy paint and paint bike lanes. “It seemed like the only way. Since then I’ve learned that you can actually

advocate within this building.” Buzzing with ideas, Meslin then set out to create the Toronto Public Space Committee, an activism organization that has since disbanded, but not before spawning other organizations like Spacing Magazine and Guerrilla Gardeners. Meslin pioneered City Idol, a contest that encouraged citizens to run for council in the 2006 municipal elections. A familiar face in city hall committee rooms, Meslin has addressed politicians, students, and the media — whoever will listen — on everything from cycling issues to billboard

bad in Toronto, Meslin says. There have been some strides, including the creation of the city clerk office’s award-winning web portal — it makes council proceedings more accessible to the public. Several city departments are also getting on board with social media sites such as Twitter. Outside the Clamshell, neighbourhood action teams have been established, albeit only in Toronto’s 13 designated priority neighbourhoods. More change is afoot. Councillors have asked staff to explore the possibility of ranked balloting in municipal elections. It’s as easy as it sounds, Meslin says. Voters mark their choice on the ballot, ranking the candidates in order of preference, rather than choosing only one candidate. It ensures no one can win with less than 50 percent of the vote, and eliminates the possibility of vote splitting. Government management committee chair Paul Ainslie has also moved a number of motions based on recommendations from The Fourth Wall , such as opening a civic engagement office in the rotunda, the introduction of dedicated staff to support residents groups and better signage to guide resident through city hall and civic centres. Josh Fullan, director of Maximum City, a summer workshop program that teaches youth about urban planning and civic engagement is also featured in the exhibit. The workshop’s aim is to get youth involved in city decision-making at a young age. Fullan has worked informally with Meslin in the past, and he’s been a guest speaker at the workshop. Fullan says his work resonates with adults and youth alike. “His work has tremendous reach and impact,� Fullan said. “I’d say he’s as important as any elected official we have in the city of Toronto.� Meslin shows no signs of slowing down. He’s still working on a campaign to reverse the removal of the Jarvis Street bike lanes, and he’s heavily promoting the instant run-off voting reform. Ten years after carving out a distinct role in Toronto politics, Meslin says he’s still trying to figure out how to make the world better place. “I still haven’t quite figured it out, but I figured out enough that I’ve been able to make a small difference, and maybe inspire others to do so as well.� TT

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bylaws, and he’s been a strong advocate for voting reforms. The Fourth Wall , he says, is the culmination of all the ideas “bubbling around� in his head. All boiled down to 36 recommendations for municipal and provincial reform. Some examples: A call to retire the mayor’s title of “your worship�. Redesigning those text-only public notices so people will actually read them. Exploring the possibility of evening committee meetings so more working families may attend are others. Naming structures, buildings and public spaces after non-elected community leaders. Weekend municipal elections. The creation of a “city hall� school with a designated classroom at Toronto city hall. Research for the exhibit began six months before the unveiling, and is just as grassroots as Meslin’s previous projects. While touring other cities with his band, the Hidden Cameras, Meslin would approach the mic at the end of each show: “I would say, ‘does anyone here know how your city council is elected?’ And two or three hands would go up, and I would say, ‘Okay, come talk to me backstage’.� Meslin then examined each cities’ best practices to see if they could apply to Toronto. “I didn’t want to be just complaining: ‘why don’t we have WiFi?’ � Meslin says. “I want to be able to say, ‘they have WiFi, why don’t we have WiFi?’ � When the exhibit first launched at a downtown gallery in fall 2011, it garnered the attention of municipal politicians, many of whom expressed support for various recommendations. Meslin also took the exhibit on the road to various cities. Already, it’s bred results. The Village of Pemberton, B.C. took elements out of The Fourth Wall submissions to redesign their public notices. There, all it took was one staff person to change the system, Meslin points out. “City staff want to move forward with this, but it takes a longtime because the bureaucracy is so big,� Meslin says of Toronto. Despite all that limits public engagement at the municipal level, it’s not all

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Cont. from Page 5

To create the ideal neighbourhood, Wong-Tam envisions an area where daycares, affordable housing, schools, hospitals and parks are all within walkable distance. But she acknowledges the most difficult part of building infrastructure, from a resident’s standpoint, isn’t necessarily funding it, but actually constructing it. “All our residents have said they really love to be able to walk to their amenities, walk to their cafes and walk to their social supports.� Wong-Tam said. “What they don’t want to do is run through a construction obstacle course.� TT

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Home&Garden

It’s the City Gardening

Lorraine Flanigan

A

s quickly as I can buy new plants, I seem to be able to amass a dizzying array of gardening paraphernalia. Buckets, gloves (12 pair and still counting…), kneeling pads, pruners, trimmers and weeders, not to mention a cornucopia of fertilizers — liquid kelp, bloom-inducing 1530-15, humic acid, slow-release flowering shrub and vine food and tomato feed — all arranged higgledy-piggledy in bottles, boxes and jars, on shelves, on the floor, in baskets and tucked into flowerpots. I’d like to say I can put my (grubby) hands on anything I need at any time, but truthfully, by the end of a busy season, the garden shed is a disaster zone. It’s not for lack of trying. For an article I once wrote for a gardening magazine, I kitted out my shed with all manner of organizing solutions. I used plastic drawers that slid out so I could carry trowels, pots and secateurs into the garden where I was working. From a building supply store, I bought a rectangular metal grid used in construction and mounted it on one wall; scissors hung from s-hooks and trowels were tucked between the squares of the grid, out of the way but handy when I needed them. A repurposed pot-lid holder purchased from a kitchen shop held my wardrobe of gardening gloves, and lovely Martha Stewart-approved glass jars were lined up artistically to hold decorative stone and mosses.

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organizing season That was then. Now, the plastic drawers are so jam-packed I have to shake them roughly and yank them out of their sliders. The metal grid is still in place, but to get at it, I have to reach over a wall of miscellaneous items that has mysteriously accumulated on the formerly pristine galvanized metal countertop meant for nothing more than potting up plants at my leisure. And that’s what greets me only if I can get through the door of the shed and past the bulky leaf shredder I bought last fall (without thinking about where to store it…) and stacks of empty pots — evidence of this season’s plant shopping expeditions. So this fall, I’m determined to get things under control in my garden shed — it’s the perfect time to do it. In the spring there are so many other things to do to get the garden in shape for another season that there’s scant time for organizing. The end of the season, though, when the bulbs have been planted, compost spread over the beds and leaves shredded and stored for winter mulch, cleaning out the garden shed can be a satisfying end to the gardening year.

combine them into one and toss the empties into the recycling bin. After dumping plants and soil from containers and window boxes into the composter, power wash the plastic containers and use a wire brush (it’s in that shed somewhere…) to clean the insides of terra cotta pots. Stack all of them neatly on shelves. Clean, sharpen and oil all secateurs and cutting tools — even the blades of shovels and edgers will get a swipe and a wipe. Wash all grotty gardening gloves and then arrange them neatly into the slots of the pot-lid holder. Tuck rolls of landscape cloth into the rafters. Sweep the floor and close the door on another gardening season.

Here’s a checklist of what I plan to do: Check jars of fertilizer: I usually find three or more of the same type open and half full, so I’ll

Thinking about organizing her shed, Lorraine Flanigan writes from her garden in the South Eglinton neighbourhood of Toronto. TT

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september 2012 TORONTO TODAY 11

Garlic: easy to grow, tasty results

W

By Mary Fran McQuade

hat do Egyptian pharaohs, French queen Catherine de Medici and scientist Louis Pasteur have in common? They all valued garlic. Not long ago, garlic was considered “common.” These days, though, it’s the darling of the foodies. No Chinese-grown, packaged supermarket stuff for them. Only 100-mile-diet garlic bulbs grown here in Ontario are allowed in their kitchens. Gardeners do it better But gardeners can do even better than that: We can grow our garlic ourselves. “It’s dead easy,” says Toronto allotment gardener Claudia Wood, who’s been growing garlic for several years. This is the time to begin, she says. That’s because garlic is a bulb, like tulips and those big purple allium flowers you see in spring. Like them, garlic has to sleep through the winter, then sprout in spring. And, like its flower bulb cousins, garlic is happiest in sun and sandy soil enriched with compost. If you’re stuck with clay, add compost to it, too, along with coarse sand. That last bit of earthy advice comes

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from Canadian author Liz Primeau. She should know — she literally wrote the book on garlic. In Pursuit of Garlic (Greystone Books, 2012) covers the territory, from history to benefits to current facts and figures — plus growing how-to’s, recipes and sources for garlic. The real dirt on garlic growing Primeau (founding editor of Canadian Gardening) is mainly a flower gardener, but she confesses to a garlic obsession. In her home garden, she puts patches of her favourite garlic varieties right into her perennial bed, far enough away from flowering plants that they don’t shade the garlic. She leaves about 15 centimetres between the individual cloves and digs them in so they have at least 5 cm of soil above their tops. Like flower bulbs, they go in the ground pointy end up. When the plants appear, water them enough to stay green, but not so much that the bulbs rot. Green, curvy flower stalks, called scapes, will appear around mid-June. Cut them off — you want the plant’s energy building the bulb, not flowers. Don’t throw scapes away, though.

They’re tasty chopped into dips and salads and even pickled. When the leaves begin to brown, carefully pull up the plants, bulb and all. Lay them out in an airy, shaded place until they’re fully dry, then gently wipe off any dirt with a dry cloth or soft brush. Store your harvest in the dark, at about 15 degrees C. (Primeau uses a clothes closet in a cold outer wall.) Where and what to buy Farmers’ markets often have garlic bulbs in late summer. Get some to eat and some to plant. “Don’t buy individual cloves to plant because they may have broken skin that lets in bacterial infection,” Primeau warns. You can also order bulbs online from Canadian sources. Forget U.S. suppliers — your garlic almost certainly won’t make it across the border. Hardneck garlic seems to do best in our climate. This type has a hard stem in the middle of the dry bulb. Varieties Liz suggests are ‘Music,’ ‘Fishlake

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#3,’ ‘Spanish Roja’ and ‘Russian Red.’ The first two are strong-flavoured; the last two are more mellow and good to eat raw. (That’s the way to get the most health benefits from garlic, by the way.) She also recommends ‘Chesnok Red,’ which is tasty and stores well. Even the strongest garlic sweetens and mellows when it’s cooked. Drizzle a whole, unpeeled bulb with olive oil, wrap it in foil and roast in a 400 F oven until soft. Squeeze the yummy cooked cloves into dips, on bread, or right into your mouth. Now I’m getting hungry. I think I’ll wrap some garlic bulbs and throw them on the barbie. TT

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LA VECCHIA’S Risotto La Vecchia, top, was a highlight with our reviewers while the Insalata di Mare was disappointing.

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’ll confess from the outset that I was more than a little miffed with the maitre d’ of La Vecchia. Not only did he seem unable to find our reservation, but he then by-passed a choice table near the front to place us by the rear curtain separating restaurant and toilets. To add insult, the choice table remained empty for most of the time we were there. Patently we weren’t seen as favoured guests. Ouch! La Vecchia is a busy spot, even on a Tuesday night. Nonetheless, service is fairly brisk; slices of olive bread, olive oil and balsamic appear quickly and our appetizers are surprisingly quick to follow. I’ve barely time to peruse the “Reserve Wine List”. Wines on this start at $85 and go to 10 times that for a 1997 Sassicaia Bolgheri from Tuscany. I find myself checking out the dining public — is anyone here likely to order that one? My Insalata Casanuova is an appealing blend of fresh mesclun and other greens in a feather light dressing ($9). Two tomato wedges and some olives add contrast and parmesan shavings complete the dish. It’s a refreshing salad but the chef could be a little more forthcoming with the parmesan. I barely get a nibble from the three or four shavings I’m served. My guest’s Insalata di Mare is a generous blend of octopus, calamari and large and tiny shrimp, all tossed with roasted red peppers and lots of artichoke hearts in a lemon infused olive oil ($13). The advertised scallops are absent and the olive oil is infused with vinegar, not lemon. It’s so strong, its acidity overwhelms the delicate seafood. It’s a shame, as the dish is beautifully presented and has, for me, all the right ingredients. My guest too, is disappointed. With the main courses, the chef totally redeems himself. My Risotto La Vecchia is a unique blend of kiwis and rice that has a beautiful flavour. The dish is finished with white wine and three enormous shrimp in garlic and lemon sauce ($22) and it’s a thing of beauty. The rice is perfectly cooked, the grains distinct but the risotto is creamy as only well-prepared risotto can be. The shrimp are delicious. Despite loving every mouthful, I can’t finish the huge portion of rice. My guest too, raves about her main dish, Veal Scaloppini al Limone ($20.50). Thin slices of veal are fork tender and the sauce has a distinct lemon zing. It occurs to us at this point that three of the four dishes we have chosen have lemon overtones. The veal comes with roasted potatoes and grilled zucchini and red peppers. It’s tangy and succulent. The portions are so generous, she only manages to finish half the dish. Duty bound to try dessert, we choose from a long list of which only four are homemade. We opt for what’s described as panna cotta topped with berries — a crème caramel made without eggs ($8.95). It’s my first experience of panna cotta served this way. It’s smooth, creamy and amply covered with the sugar syrup of crème caramel. But somehow, it doesn’t seem to have the lightness of a panna cotta. The berries prove to be a single strawberry sliced into four and three cape gooseberries. Nonetheless, we finish every mouthful. It’s good. La Vecchia combines smart casual dining with good, fast service. The prices are reasonable and for the most part, portions are generous to a fault. Indeed, friends who celebrated their anniversary here were treated to a glass of Prosecco when the waiter found out. I recommend you make a reservation — and ask for a table away from the curtain. La Vecchia, 2405A Yonge St., 416-489-0630, www.lavecchia.ca. TT

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ThingsToDo

Royal theatre

Mark you calendar Tuesday, Sept. 18–Sunday, Oct. 7 Between the Sheets, Tarragon Theatre. 30 Bridgman Ave. 8 p.m. What begins as an ordinary parent teacher interview unravels into a gripping and raw confrontation between two women on the brink of disaster. One woman is fighting to protect her family. The other is fighting for the family she always wanted. 416-531-1827. Thursday, Sept. 20 Monthly Meeting, Canadian Federation of University Women, Northlea United Church, 125 Brentcliffe Rd. 7:30 p.m. First meeting of the year. Refreshments served. Visitors and new members warmly welcomed. Please visit our website at www.leaside. org/cfuw. Free. Saturday, Sept. 22 Bob Clegg Jazz Sextet concert, Shops at Don Mills, 1090 Don Mills Rd. 1 p.m. Join the Bob Clegg Jazz Sextet in the Town Square for some classic hits from the 60’s all the way through to the 90’s. Sun and free swingin’ jazz make a perfect afternoon. www.shopsatdonmills.com. Sunday, Sept. 23 Toronto Wheelchair Relay Challenge, Canadian Paraplegic Association Ontario, 520 Sutherland Dr. 9 a.m. Participants — with and without disabilities — team up to relay race. All money raised supports people who are re-building their lives after a spinal cord injury through the programs and services delivered by Canadian Paraplegic Association Ontario. Thursday, Sept. 27 Bus Trip to Niagara-On-The-Lake, Central Eglinton Community Centre, 160 Eglinton Ave. E. 9:15 a.m. Join us for a day at Niagara-On-The-Lake. Cost does not include lunch. For complete details call 416-392-0511, ext. 228 or e-mail olderadults@centraleglinton.com. Must register. Must be aged 50+. $75 for non-members. Saturday, Oct. 6 The Musicians In Ordinary: His Perfections Like the Sunbeams – Music in honour of Henry Prince of Wales (1594–1612), Heliconian Hall, 35 Hazelton Ave. 8 p.m. Commemorating Henry, Prince of Wales, Hallie Fishel, soprano; John Edwards, theorbo; Christopher Verrette, violin; and Justin Haynes, viola da gamba perform music associated with the prince who would have been a brilliant king. $20– 25. www.musiciansinordinary.ca.

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Shows and performances fit for a queen

T

By SUSAN Wakefield

he GTA is a hotbed of great family entertainment but with the hustle and bustle of school and extra-curricular activities, families can forget to enjoy it. Set aside an afternoon or evening this month to take the family to one of the many fabulous and affordable shows tailored to suit younger audiences or those of all ages. Whether its a show dance show that turns preconceptions upside-down, an interactive fairy tale, a familiar Toronto favorite or a world premiere, we’re sure you will find something you can all enjoy together. High voltage tap If there was any last shred of “top hat and cane” stereotypes still out there when it comes to tap, the Tap Dogs have literally stomped it out of existence. With an explosive mix of raucous tap and rock concert, creator Dein Perry has reinvented tap for audiences in 330 cities around the world. Kids who think they don’t like dance (yes even boys!) will not be able to resist the raw, industrial feel of this show and its tough, high-energy performers. The Tap Dogs are only in town for a limited engagement so catch them before they are gone. Sept. 25–30, Royal Alexandra Theatre, 260 King St. W. Tickets $25–89. 416-872-1212 or www.mirvish.com. Fairy tale fantasy for little ones Families with younger children will appreciate the intimate and safe theatre environment at Solar Stage. Youngsters can sit right up front on comfy cushions while their sightline blocking parents sit in more comfortable chairs further back. Their new production The Gold Bird is an interactive show full of colour and music created just for youngsters from ages 3 to 10. A gold bird steals gold apples from the queen’s orchard while the queen’s daughter, the heroine of the show, must try to stop him. Shows run at 11:00 a.m. and 2:00 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday throughout September. Solar Stage Theatre in the Madison Centre, 100 Upper Madison Ave. Tickets $16 for all ages. 416-368-8031 or www.solarstage.on.ca Famous People and a famous theatre company The Famous People Players have become a Toronto institution in family entertainment with their innovative shows that pay tribute to the music of famous people with life size characters. Your family may be familiar with them from Treehouse Television’s show Role Play but make time to enjoy one of their fabulous live shows. Jumping and Jiving is a black light production where characters and props dance, sing and vanish as if by magic to familiar tunes like “Route 66” and “Chattanooga Choo Choo”. This show is

enjoyable for audience members young and old and it is hard to find a better value than their dinner and show packages. Show prices include a three-course dinner by Chef Christopher Woods, with dessert reserved for after the show. Famous People Players Theatre, 343 Evans Ave. Dinner and show tickets $62 adults, $56 seniors/students, $40 children (under 12) and every ticket supports the Exceptional Achievement Program. 416-5321137 or www.fpp.org. “Would you like to be queen for a day?” Whether you love or hate reality TV, you will not be able to resist Queen for a Day, a musical look at the original reality show that turned house-wives into contestants competing for the coveted title of Queen for a Day. The Broadway-style show will make its debut at the Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts with a talented all-Canadian cast of mega musical alumni. Families will love being taken back to the polished glamour of 1950’s Hollywood with a touching and funny story of a woman who begins to question if she really wants to be the perfect housewife. Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts, 10268 Yonge St. Sept. 26–Oct. 7. Tickets $35-59. 416-259-1625 or www.queenforadaythemusical.com. TT

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Sports

The fields of yesteryear

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The forgotten places where we used to play

By Perry King

oronto’s sports history is vast. But, with the powers of investigation, Toronto Today has rediscovered some forgotten sports history that may have you cheering for more. If you look closely at the photos, you may see something you recognize. Tournament Park

sporting past. On Dec. 4, 1909, the first Grey Cup championship — originally played as a rugby match — was contended on this field, pitting the University of Toronto Varsity Blues against Toronto Parkdale Canoe Club. In front of about 3,800 people, the Varsity Blues won the game 26–6. According to the official Grey Cup website, more people were interested in the semi-final between Varsity and Ottawa a week earlier. “Despite a seating capacity of 3,400 an estimated 12,000 watched Varsity defeat Ottawa 31–7 at Rosedale Field,” says the website. “Only 3,800 would be at the venue a week later to watch history in the making.” There are a lot of side stories to this game. Despite winning the game, U of T could not be awarded the trophy until March because Earl Grey had forgotten to have it made. To boot, according to the Torontoist website, when the Blues finally got their hands on the Cup, they refused to relinquish it, and didn’t make it available when they failed to reach the 1912 and 1913 Grey Cup games. After winning the Cup in 1915, the Hamilton Tigers exacted their revenge for U of T’s greed by adding an inscription — a fictional one — to the trophy’s base proclaiming the Tigers as the 1908 champions. In May, the CFL celebrated Rosedale Field’s contribution to its history with a plaque ceremony. Broadview and Allen Avenue

Photo courtesy rbccanadianopen.ca

Tucked behind Yonge Street south of Highway 401, Tournament Park was one of Old York Mills’s oldest neighbourhoods. St. Andrew’s College, an all-boys private school, owned the area between Yonge and Bayview, north of York Mills Road during the early 1920’s before moving north to Aurora in 1924. Once they moved, the site was purchased by St. Andrew’s Estates, which operated a championship golf course. St. Andrew’s Golf Course came to great prominence, hosting two consecutive Canadian Open golf tournaments, in 1936 and 1937 — the first course host to the event in back-to-back years in Canadian Open history. In the 1950s, the club was sold to developers, but St. Andrew’s Park, Tournament Park and local street names — including Foursome and Lower Links — remain as indicators of the area’s golfing past. Rosedale Field

Photo courtesy jamiesarner.com

What stands in Rosedale Park today is merely a grass field where the community plays soccer and takes in the sun. But, the field has a revered

Photo courtesy Toronto Public Libraries Special Collections

Today, this part of Broadview between First and Allen avenues features low-rise housing and small businesses. But, in the 1910s, the site was a field used for various activities. The lot was owned and operated by the Broadview Young Men’s Christian Association, who in 1909 took control of the Broadview Boys’ Institute that was based in a building at First Avenue. According to the book Toronto Architect Edmund Burke: Redefining Canadian Architecture by Angela Carr, the Broadview YMCA was built at the same time as the YMCA at College and Dovercourt in the west end. C.J. Atkinson, who was worried Toronto’s boys were going “sport mad,” created the institute in 1903. With the field, Atkinson promoted the concept of “industrial play” to foster vocational and business skills, the city of Toronto website says. The field came to also feature an agricultural project, where 84 farming plots were created to grow local produce. The Broadview YMCA eventually moved north of Danforth in the 1950s, selling the lot to numerous developers. Some heritage properties, located near First Avenue, still stand today. CONTINUED Page 18 september 2012 TORONTO TODAY 17

CoolStuff

Look down Floor coverings for kids, dogs and the chic By Liz Campbell

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his month Cool Stuff is all about laying down the paw — and the toys — and the carpet. In fact, this month is all about floor coverings that are useful, attractive and even handy. How is a mat handy? Read on. Flor has to be one of my favourite finds in a long time. Having a somewhat artistic bent (or pretensions to one) I love the idea of being able to create a unique carpet or hall runner. Flor’s carpet tiles are not the usual peel and stick version. They have a non-skid backing but they assemble using giant dots that hold the squares together. They come in an incredible array of colours and textures you can mix and match to create a truly distinctive and unique floor covering. The tiles are 50 by 50 centimetres and cost $10–16 each for most designs, (there are a couple as high as $30) so you can create a truly unique area rug for as little as $150. The website offers design tips and ideas but at the end of October, Flor will be opening its first Canadian store on Cumberland Ave. in Toronto. Visit www.flor.com.

endless pieces of Lego, this s a brilliant solution. The Lay-n-Go Lite (just 50 centimetres) is ideal for restaurants, road trips, airplanes, or anywhere you want to contain the mess. Full size: $64.95; Lite: $24.95. Soon to be available in stores, you can order online at www.layngo.com. The Soggy Doggy Doormat is made from absorbent, microfiber “noodles” that absorb water and dirt like a sponge. Each of the noodles is made from millions of textured, ultrafine strands woven together. Its enormous surface area provides great absorbency and super-fast drying. And it’s soft with a non-slip back so it’s also a great travel bed. This mat is a boon for dog owners — all those wet, mucky paws— and for friends of dog owners who bring their canine friends along on visits. They come in three sizes: small, $21.99; large, $39.99; XL, $84.99 and are all available on the website: www.soggydoggydoormat.com.. TT

Kids love small, fiddly toys — Lego, construction toys, even dolls and their myriad clothing and accessories. The Layn-Go is an activity mat, cleanup, storage, and carry-all solution in one. This five-foot activity mat converts into an easily transportable satchel allowing for effortless play and clean-up of small toy pieces … just open the Lay-n-Go to spread out the toys, ready for play. Once playtime is over, the drawstring is pulled and the activity mat is converted into a completely sealed soft storage bag. For moms who have spent 20 minutes searching for and packing away Cont. from Page 17

Photo courtesy City of Toronto Archives

18 TORONTO TODAY september 2012

Glengrove and Yonge racetrack? Racetracks have come and gone in Toronto. Many modern Torontonians don’t know where some of these racetracks were. In the case of a Yonge and Glengrove track, it may have had a small role in Lytton Park’s history. Lytton Park, or Lot 3 Concession 1, was originally a rural suburb of the city, and the Metropolitan Street Railway began servicing and investing in the area in 1886 — by purchasing 80 hectares, the Glen Grove Estates subdivision, close to their railway station at Glengrove.

It was at the Yonge and Glengrove site that a racetrack was set up and was active from 1887 to 1889. Eventually, a residential boom took roots in the area, and the track was closed and sold in lots by the railway company. The memory of a track has been almost forgotten, and photo documentation of the track has not been found — although you could see it in bits. The first houses along Glengrove were built in the 1890s and early 1900s. Glenview Presbyterian Church was built in the 1920s. TT

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Celebrating 100 years of educating boys

since 1913

Men of Character from Boys of Promise Open House dates for October & November at crescentschool.org/openhouse 20 TORONTO TODAY september 2012 Download

a free Crescent School app at crescentschool.org/APP

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