Toronto's most famous Coffee Time reopens with a new name

What was once Toronto's most notorious Coffee Time location has reopened its doors at the corner of Dupont and Lansdowne after shutting down last Thursday, but now under a different name. 

A piece of paper taped to the door early this week informed patrons that the property would soon be reopening as Coffee Place.

While the name doesn't quite have the same ring to it, the coffee shop did indeed reopen Tuesday morning as a cash-only spot selling donuts and muffins in a bag for $3. As of right now, its operating hours are 6 a.m. to around 11 p.m. daily.

Now rented by the same couple who ran the previous Coffee Time franchise, this shop has no signs and no menus, further solidifying the fact that this is just a temporary holdover until the property owner's development proposals go through. 

Yes land owner is interested in developing the site but they have temporarily rented the space to an independent coffee operator. https://t.co/npfTRxp2K8

— Ana Bailao (@anabailaoTO) February 9, 2018

According to a statement from ward councillor Ana Bailao, the development will likely be a condo with street-front units and a doctor's office, though no plans have officially been submitted to the city yet.

Coffee Time's closure last week followed a 10-plus year run in the Wallace Emerson Area and prompted a mixed bag of emotions from the city's netizens. 

I am so shaken that the Coffee Time at Dupont and Lansdowne is closed. This is historic Toronto news.

— felicity justrabo (@felicityjust) February 1, 2018

This reopening will come as unwelcome news for people who celebrated the end of a shop frequently associated with illicit activities, but good news – albeit, temporary – for those mourning the loss of a makeshift community hub serving people who often had nowhere else to go.