Bad news broke earlier today for jerk chicken and roti fans across Toronto. Riverside's The Real Jerk Restaurant, which has been around for more than 25 years (at its current location for 22 of them), announced that it's closing its doors at the end of the month. In a note on the establishment's Facebook page, owner Edward Pottinger explains the situation:

On the heels of yesterday's news that the The Book Mark is closing, it seems that there's more bad news for Toronto's independent book/print retailers. Toronto comic-book mainstay Dragon Lady Comics is also set to enter the deadpool. Kevin Boyd was one of the first to report on the news, and after his article was brought to my attention, I headed over to Dragon Lady Comics to see what I could find out about the situation.

Following on the heels of Tomi-Kro, another long-serving Leslieville restaurant has closed its doors. While the circumstances surrounding Toast's closure appear to be less dramatic, it's still a blow to the brunch-loving neighbourhood. Details are scarce but Leslieviller is reporting that there was no single reason for the closure, just "a few reasons", none of which were likely "insurmountable".

Tomi-Kro, the restaurant many Leslieville locals regard (regarded) as the best in the neighbourhood has gone bust. The dreaded notice of distress appeared on the front window of 1214 Queen St East on October 19th indicating that the landlord is due $49,814.64. It's a bit surprising given the owner of Tomi-Kro opened The Playpen a new restaurant at the corner of Carlaw and Gerrard East around the same time. Makes you wonder if the two things are related.

Loyal customers of Fahrenheit Coffee might have been surprised to find the cafe MIA this week on the Esplanade. I stopped by yesterday to grab a pick-me-up only to find it no longer existed. The tiny cafe was completely empty - no equipment, no fixtures, no counter, no signage....almost nothing to hint that one of the best new coffee shops to open this year ever existed.

All that remained was a notice on the door from GOAG Grinding and Brewing thanking customers for their support and mentioning that a new full service training facility will be opening within the next four weeks.

West Queen West retail staple Delphic closed its doors this past Sunday after serving the area for 10 years. Owned by Matt Robinson and partner Lena Kim, Delphic was known as a hub for signature pieces from once hard-to-find lines like Acne and J. Lindeberg. Doesn't the saying go, "When one door closes, another shop pops up right in its place"? Let's say it does. Delphic will now become a new — and hopefully more visible and frequented — outpost for Robinson's own line Klaxon Howl, known as rugged menswear for the modern urbanite.