New Toronto bar from industry heavyweights will put a tropical spin on classic drinks
A burgeoning restaurateur and a mixologist who's worked at some of Toronto's hottest bars are joining forces to open a stylish new cocktail bar this spring.
Whether in love or business, the best partnerships always begin with friendship, don't they? Business-wise, that's exactly how Bar Etc., a new "tropical in essence" cocktail bar due to open near the intersection of Gerrard and Jones next month, was born.
The bar is the brainchild of Lee Stein, the sommelier, consultant and restaurateur behind If I May Hospitality and Hot Mess, and mixologist Sasha Siegel, whose spoils include The Lonely Diner, Overpressure Club and Bar Banane.
The pair's friendship first began when Stein, a self-described barfly, "fell in love" with Siegel's cocktails, following him to his various bars around the city until things culminated in the decision that the two would team up to open their own place.
Stein had just done a consulting turn at Leslieville's Dive Shop, overhauling the beach-themed bar's food program alongside chef Steven Kasprowicz (who also leads the kitchen at Hot Mess), and, when the bar's owners told her they were planning to close, all the pieces fell into place. Stein and Siegel were taking over.
Siegel, who calls himself a "West End guy," says that the Leslieville location of the bar provides an exciting opportunity to play an early role in building out the neighbourhood's burgeoning culinary scene.
"I think we both feel that the East End is really starting to do some super cool stuff, and has been for some time," Siegel says. "There's very clear growth happening out there, and positive growth, like, there's some really great places popping up."
In Little Italy, say, it's a weighty task to open a classics-forward cocktail bar that rises above the noise. But in Leslieville, where saturation is considerably lower, the soil feels particularly fertile.
It bears noting, though, that the area has been one of burgeoning culinary interest for a couple of years now, with the Michelin-recommended Ricky + Olivia on top of groovy new spots like Bar Mini and Corduroy Lounge also calling Leslieville home.
Still, the northern limits of the neighbourhood have yet to benefit as significantly from the boom as Queen East to the south has. Bar Etc. might just change that.
There's also the fact that the old Dive Shop space offered the perfect bones for Bar Etc., a sexy, refined cocktail bar with subtle tropical nods.
"There are really nice bones to the space. They put a lot of effort into creating a lovely space, like the wooden feature we are keeping in the ceiling, and have actually gone as far as to incorporate it into the logo. It's a really beautiful, like statement piece, which I think is a unique element for a space," Stein tells blogTO.
"So, lipstick makeover, more so, softening the space, bringing in some darker tones and hues."
Still, though the bar's predecessor is being honoured with vaguely tropical nods, both Stein and Siegel emphasize that Bar Etc. isn't a themed bar.
"We're definitely not trying to be a tiki bar by any means. I mean, there's already a great one in the city. Shameful Tiki rules. It's awesome. Like, we're not gonna do it better than them. So, why would we?" Siegel says.
Instead, the cocktail program will be populated with classic cocktails made with tropical and warm-weather ingredients. Expect a whole lot more than cursory splashes of pineapple juice and rum, though.
One cocktail uses mastic sap that Siegel has created a savoury liquor from. Another, he tells blogTO, seeks to embody the sensation of standing by the ocean in its flavour and scent. His elegant spin on the almighty daiquiri rewrites the character assassination done to the cocktail through years of sickly-sweet all-inclusive resort interpretations.
That said, all cocktails will be listed as familiar classics: a gimlet, a boulevardier, a daiquiri, so that patrons of all expertise and adventure levels can dive in.
"We don't want anyone to shy away from walking in the doors, from ordering anything, so as we rejigged the concept to make it approachable, understandable to everyone, this was kind of what we landed on to make sure that that would be the case," Stein tells blogTO.
The food menu, packed with shareable plates concocted by Stein's collaborator Steven Kasprowicz, takes on a similar approach.
"The Food Programme will echo the cocktail programme as well," Stein says. "So again, more defined by the ingredients and being found in a warmer climate, or dishes inspired by such, versus any particular cuisine."
It'll feature a tight selection of roughly eight tapas-style nibbles made for sharing, with the exception of one standout that, both Stein and Siegel concur, is a must-try.
"So, for context, I actually do not like Hawaiian pizza. It's just not for me. No judgement. If you like it, that's totally okay. Just not my thing. This is a burger based on Hawaiian pizza. It is bonkers. It is so good. I like, can't shut up about it," Siegel says.
"It's an Oklahoma-style smashed burger, so the onions are smashed into the burger itself on the grill, and we do marinate the onion in pineapple juice as well to add a little bit of flavour, but also to help break down the onion so that when you bite, you don't have that full onion that pulls out, it actually breaks," Stein elaborates.
The burger is then topped with house-made togarashi aioli, peameal bacon, old cheddar and pineapple-coriander chutney, and is made with proteins, like the rest of the menu, that are sourced largely from St. Lawrence Market.
The process of getting the bar on its legs has been chaotic, as any business opening is, but for Stein and Siegel, their partnership has made it so that there are few surprises: two seasoned captains on a choppy tropical sea.
"Both [Stein] and I have extensive experience with opens. So, I mean, that was part of the appeal, I think, for both of us," Siegel says.
"It's made, I think, the process much less painful, because it can be really intense. Opening a bar or restaurant is a wild experience: it's super tense, and you're down to the wire every single time, but again, both of us having that experience, nothing's really been a shock."
Bar Etc. will be located at 1036 Gerrard St. E.
Sasha Siegel (at The Lonely Diner), photographed by Fareen Karim
