embassy bar toronto

Toronto bar turns a joke into a booming business

If you're a rock 'n roll fan, the word techno isn't really in your vocabulary. So when Scott Harwood, a bartender at Embassy bar suggested an electronic night at the typically guitar-loving Kensington watering hole, owners laughed it off.

"When I started working there, it was kind of a joke," says Harwood. He's talking about Techno Tuesday, a weekly night where Toronto DJs play their electronic hearts out.

Little did they know that techno would experience a resurgence and that Tuesday would consistently become one of their most popular nights. It's also quietly becoming a hot spot to hear some of the city's best techno, in what previously would have been an unlikely venue.

Kaz Kandy ln #techno #technotuesday #torontonightlife #embassytoronto

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It's an anomaly in the bar's regular weekly schedule.

"Techno Tuesdays has been quite a surprise," admits Harwood. "There's always a dance floor around 12:30."

Owner Lucy Brandon has owned the Embassy for 13 years and says "there's a new energy in the place right now."

"We're all involved in one way or another with music and art," says Harwood. "There's a sound engineer, an actress...it's almost like an artist run space, and we've brought in the DJs in our own way."

Lead photo by

SALT DJing Techno Tuesday by Isaac Flagg


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