In the course of one week on DineSafe, Kim Vietnamese on Dundas West was shuttered and then reopened after correcting seven infractions cited by city health inspectors including failure to prevent a rodent infestation. Also on the list, Habiba, the newest Middle Eastern restaurant from the same folks behind Ali Baba, a chain that is no stranger to these weekly round-ups.

See which other establishments landed on DineSafe this week.

CSI Coffee Pub (720 Bathurst St.)
Inspected on: October 19, 2015
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 6 (Minor: 1, Significant: 3, Crucial: 2)
Crucial infractions include: Operator fail to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated. Operator fail to maintain hazardous food(s) at 4C (40F) or colder.

Drupati's Roti and Doubles (1085 Bellamy Rd.)
Inspected on: October 20, 2015
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 4 (Minor: 1, Significant: 3)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Habiba (30 Weston Rd.)
Inspected on: October 20, 2015
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 1 (Significant: 1)
Crucial infractions include: N/A

Kim Vietnamese (546 Dundas St. West)
Inspected on: October 20, 2015
Inspection finding: Red (Closed)
Number of infractions: 7 (Minor: 4, Significant: 2, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Operator fail to prevent a rodent infestation.

Petite Thuet (1162 Yonge St.)
Inspected on: October 21, 2015
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 5 (Minor: 1, Significant: 3, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Operator fail to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated.

Tappo Wine Bar & Restaurant (55 Mill St.)
Inspected on: October 21, 2015
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 7 (Minor: 2, Significant: 4, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Operator fail to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated.

Donlands Restaurant (417 Donlands Ave.)
Inspected on: October 22, 2015
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 2 (Minor: 0, Significant: 1, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Operator fail to ensure food is not contaminated/adulterated.

Bazara (188 Ossington Ave.)
Inspected on: October 23, 2015
Inspection finding: Yellow (Conditional)
Number of infractions: 3 (Minor: 1, Significant: 1, Crucial: 1)
Crucial infractions include: Store hazardous foods at internal temperature between 4 C and 60 C.

Note: The above businesses each received infractions from DineSafe as originally reported on the DineSafe site. This does not imply that any of these businesses have not subsequently corrected the issue and received a passing grade by DineSafe inspectors. For the latest status for each of the mentioned businesses, including details on any subsequent inspections, please be sure to check the DineSafe site.

27 Alcina Avenue is a two-bedroom country cottage currently listed for $1,600,000. It's not your average detached house in the prime Wychwood neighbourhood near St. Clair West, looking a little more rustic than the typical urban dwelling you'd expect in this area.

The first time on the market in 50 years, the early farm house was converted into an artist studio by longtime owner, sculptor Leonard Oesterle. You can find examples of his work edged throughout the space, from the eccentric front entrance to multiple three-dimensional carvings in the yard. The house flows like a work of art from the Luminato Festival.

The unique decor incorporates materials like wood walls, ceilings, and a glassed-in solarium overlooking the sculpted gardens. The authentic countryside kitchen makes you feel like you've travelled back in time, along with the rest of the homely open floor plan.

With several hidden gems in the neighbourhood and the popular Wychwood Barns around the corner, you might say this art studio house is (somewhat) priceless.

SPECS

• Address: 27 Alcina Avenue
• Price: $1,600,000
• Lot Size: 43 x 149 FT
• Bedrooms: 2
• Bathrooms: 2
• Parking: 2
• Taxes: $5,927
• Walk Score: 93

NOTABLE FEATURES

• Live/work space
• Country-style kitchen
• Wood ceilings
• Solarium
• Loft space
• Sculpted gardens
• Two car parking

GOOD FOR

An artist, painter, poet, dreamer, creative thinker, the list goes on. The live/work studio is the ultimate space to imagine, relax with a coffee or discover your muse in the leafy gardens. A unique space for entertaining or turning the living room into a full-size yoga studio. Namaste.

MOVE ON IF

You need more than two bedrooms and dislike cedar. The inside of this country home looks like one giant sauna with wood paneling and exposed brick. You want that modern glass house? You might want to move on. It's better to preserve the eclectic home than to bulldoze its character and soul. But that's up to the new owners.

ADDITIONAL PHOTOS
What do you think of this unique house? Have your say in the comments.

Thanks to Bosley Real Estate Ltd, Brokerage for sponsoring our House of the Week. All content and editorial selected and written by blogTO.

It's not easy naming a new street in Toronto. According to rules enforced by the city (PDF), each one must be unique, positive, historically relevant, and easy for emergency dispatchers to pronounce, lest ambulances and fire trucks get sent to the wrong parts of town.

As a result, there are approximately 9,600 different names for streets in Toronto.

In the past, when outlying towns and villages were annexed into Toronto, the street names of the absorbed communities were replaced in order to avoid conflicts with those in the old city.

For example, Midway, a village formerly located between Greenwood and Coxwell, south of the Danforth, was given a bunch of new street names. Lincoln became Ladysmith, Linden was switched to Bastedo, and Vernon was renamed Walpole.

Despite the best efforts of city officials, there are still duplicates. There's an Evans Ave. in the former town of Mimico and another north of Bloor, east of Jane.

This effort to give every street a unique name has inspired special creativity around the city, particularly as pertains to laneways, but also when it comes to our neighbourhood streets.

Here are some of the weirdest street names and their origins in Toronto.

Strange Street
Running dead straight for just a few metres south of Queen in Riverdale, there's really nothing that unusual about Strange St. Seekers of the paranormal will be disappointed to learn that the name comes from Maxwell Strange, an auctioneer who lived in the area around 1837. Until at least 1924, Strange St. resumed south of the rail tracks and continued to a point just north of Lake Shore Blvd.

Disco Road
Toronto's only street named for a genre of dance music is home to a detention centre and anonymous industrial complexes. What's interesting, however, is the name actually predates the musical style. A clue to its origins may lie in 1959 classified ads for workers at Dominion Structural Steel, which had a plant on the road and was a descendent of the former Dominion Iron and Steel Company - DISCO for short.

Sesame Street
Unlike Disco Rd., Sesame Street near Pharmacy and Sheppard in Scarborough really does appear to be a cultural reference. Perhaps its location next to Fairglen Public School prompted developers to name the street after the popular long-running kids show starring Big Bird, Oscar the Grouch, and Elmo.

Avenue Road
Avenue Road isn't necessarily a strange street name. After all, an avenue is just a name for a tree lined street or approach. There are numerous Avenue Roads in the U.K. and there's an Avenue Street is Oshawa. But in North America, "avenue" is primarily used as a suffix for particularly wide or important streets and is often interchangeable with "street."

Cummer Avenue
Farmer Jacob Cummer - father of 14 kids - couldn't have known when he moved from Pennsylvania to the future site of Willowdale in 1797 that his last name would elicit giggles and guffaws from Toronto residents more than 200 years later. The Cummers operated a saw mill on the Don River near the street that currently bears their name and were devout Methodists.

Follow Chris Bateman on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Photo by spongebodge in the blogTO Flickr pool.

If you've ever wanted to try Splendido's famous tasting menu, you should probably make a reservation as soon as possible. That's because the Harbord St. fine-dining spot, which is consistently ranked as one of Toronto's top restaurants, will close at the end of this year, reports the Globe and Mail.

Chef and owner Victor Barry will shutter the 25-year-old Toronto institution in order to pursue "work-life balance," writes the Globe. Barry has worked at Splendido for ten years and bought it back in 2009. He became the sole owner two years ago, in 2013.

As the Globe notes, Splendido was one of the first Toronto restaurants to popularize the tasting menu, a feature that's now rather ubiquitous at establishments throughout the city. You can try Splendido's, which showcases fresh Canadian ingredients, up until New Years Eve.

Are you sad to see Splendido go? Let us know in the comments. Photo via Splendido.

Independent record labels in Toronto are the backbone of the city's thriving and diverse music culture. Whether it's hosting various festivals, sponsoring shows or exposing up and coming artists, indie record labels are the driving force that pushes the development of Toronto's music scene.

Here are my picks for the top independent record labels in Toronto.

Arts & Crafts Records
The premier indie rock label in Toronto features artists such as Broken Social Scene, F*cked Up and Badbadnotgood. They've made quite a name for themselves through the annual Field Trip festival that showcases many of their artists.

Dine Alone Records
This label has been represents some of Canada's best rock and punk bands such as Alexisonfire, City and Colour and Arkells. They also have a travelling record store, aptly named "Wax On Wheels" that they take on the road to promote their artists at various festivals and events.

Paper Bag Records
This label has helped give some great indie rock bands major success. In their first year of operations, Paper Bag signed Broken Social Scene and released their commercial breakthrough album "You Forgot It in People". They've gone on to represent acts such as Sam Roberts Band, Born Ruffians and Tokyo Police Club.

Pretty Pretty Records
Pretty Pretty Records is the brainchild of three Canadian DJ's and their monthly dance party at the Comfort Zone. After releasing their first LP in late 2012, Kontravoid's (ex Crystal Castles) self titled full length, Pretty Pretty Records have been continuously releasing some of Toronto's best dark techno records from artists such as SINS and Kane Vale.

Six Shooter Records
Six Shooter Records' motto, "life is too short to listen to shitty music", matches with their artist roster in an interesting way. Their artists put a huge amount of effort into each release and people have been taking notice. Their roster includes 2014 Polaris Music Prize winner Tanya Tagaq and 2012 Juno nominees The Strumbellas.

New Damage Records
New Damage has been showcasing some really great hardcore bands such as Cancer Bats, Architects and Silverstein and have had a strong presence in Toronto's punk scene. They host many different showcases for their artists such as the Stay Warm Fest.

Public Transit Recordings
This label has been exposing Toronto's underground electronic and hip hop artists such as emcee More Or Les and minimalist house artist Murr since 1998. Label founders and producers Kevin Moon and Mano Narayanan started PTR while listening to raw demo tapes on their subway rides when they decided to expose their friends' music internationally.

Last Gang Records
Last Gang Records don't limit themselves to any specific genre but rather represent some of Canada's trendsetting artists such as Death From Above 1979, Crystal Castles and Metric. Last Gang bring a lot of international exposure to their artists through their offices in London and Los Angeles and have been featured on major TV shows, movie and commercials.

Pleasence Records
With a passion for vinyl and cassettes, Pleasence Records have worked tirelessly to uncover some of the best underground experimental acts in Canada. While they don't represent a specific genre, they show a strong passion for garage rock and odd punk bands such as Odonis Odonis, The Ketamines and Young Governor.

Royal Mountain Records
Royal Mountain Records feature DIY focused artists mostly from Toronto of many different genres such as indie rock act Alvvays, punk band PUP and alt-rock crew Hollerado. They even have a budget friendly studio in Toronto where they record most of their artists as well as other bands looking for a cheap spot to record quality music.

Stickman Records
This electronic music label was one of the first to prominently feature a pro LGBT attitude - they've had a huge role in shaping not only the after hours club scene, but also the LGBT scene. Stickman have released numerous mixes from artists such as Toronto dance scene vet Denise Benson and New York artist Soul Grabber.

No Love
Originally operating from 1989-99, No Love shut down so owner Jakob Rehlinger could start his avant-garde label, Arachnidiscs Recordings. After getting enough punk submissions to Arachnidiscs, No Love made its return with releases from bands such as The Holy Gasp and Everything Is Geometry.

Ugly Pop Records
Ugly Pop Records are a long running hardcore punk record label that only releases albums on vinyl. They've lent a helping hand in the Canadian punk scene by reissuing dozens of classic Canadian punk albums and new material from up and coming hardcore bands such as The Victim Party, Nervous Talk and SFH.

Healing Power Records
This label is the love child of owners Wolfgang Nessel and Victoria Cheong who also play in the ever soothing electronic act HVYWTR. This DIY label puts in ridiculous amounts of work to release albums from some really interesting local and international psychedelic and experimental bands such as Skull Bong and New Chance.

Bakers Club
Acting as a collective, Bakers Club has released numerous mixtapes and albums since their beginnings in 2009 from artists like The 6th Letter, ChillxWill and Raz Fresco. Bakers Club represents underground Toronto hip hop as a community with their artists often collaborating and performing together.

What did I miss? Add your favourite Toronto independent record label to the comments.

Writing by Joe Smith-Engelhardt. Photo of Alvvays by Matt Forsythe.

This new nightclub near the Burrito District has it all, from cheap drinks to fancy decor to amazing guests. Spread across multiple floors, the vibe can be radically different from section to section, with private events and top notch DJs performing at the same time.

Read my review of Orchid Nightclub in the bars section.

Toronto bar and concert venue 3030 Dundas West has been forced to shut its doors after a fire broke out in one of the apartments above this popular Junction spot.

Luckily, no one was injured in last week's fire, however, 3030 hasn't announced when it's going to reopen. Though, in an update on its Facebook page it said that its pinball machines, VHS collection and beer taps were all safe.

Here's the original statement 3030 posted following the fire:

Hello All.

Thank you for your concerns regarding last night's incident. Please know that ALL are safe and sound. Unfortunately this originally external fire has taken it's toll inside the venue and sadly 3030 will be CLOSED until further notice.

We understand this situation may throw a lot of people's plans for dinner, drinks, pinballing and the enjoyment of some pretty amazing live musical acts, but again, everyone is Safe, and that is our first concern. Our next will be making sure we are OK to open again and get us all back to having some dinner, drinks, games of pinball and sharing music together. We miss that already.

Thank you all again for your concern and support. We will update you as soon as we know more about getting doors open again.

All Our Best.

Toronto's Cask Days wrapped its 11th annual festival this weekend, celebrating cask-conditioned beer with 10,000 attendees over three days at the Evergreen Brick Works.

The event, which started out on Bar Volo's patio with 21 casks has grown significantly in size and scale. This year, beer aficionados polished off 350 kegs of unfiltered and unpasteurized "real ale" from 125 different local and international breweries.

It was a quintessential fall day when I made my visit to the Sunday session. With the sun shining, a few beer samples quickly masked the slight chill in the air. Numerous DJs provided the soundtrack for the weekend and local artist Andrew Kidder, also known as Rcade Wizard, created a hand-lettered sign on site. Thanks to the numerous food vendors the whole place smelled faintly like a campfire.

While there was plenty of Ontario craft beer available, including familiar names such as Mill Street and Great Lakes Brewery, the festival teamed up with the Seattle-based Elliot Bay Brewing Company to showcase more than 30 beers from Washington state. Beer lovers could also taste brews from California, New York, the United Kingdom, Nova Scotia, PEI, British Columbia, Alberta and Quebec.

Along with IPAs, porters, stouts and ales, many brewers brought rather experimental beers as well. These included a lemongrass, ginger and Szechuan peppercorn IPA from Buffalo's Flying Bison Brewing Company, a chocolate and salted-caramel milk stout from the Wild Beer Company in the U.K. and a peanut butter milk stout from Great Lakes and Bar Hop.

A select group of Toronto restaurants were on hand to help soak up all the beer. Brando's Fried Chicken seemed to be a crowd favourite. To provide quintessential beerhall eats, Wvrst cooked up sausages topped with hand-torched raclette cheese. Porchetta & Co. offered its eponymous sandwich and 416 Snack Bar served roti.

I walked around the event with a pretzel in hand and contemplated refuelling with a cappuccino from Boxcar Social, but I ended up choosing more beer. After all, Cask Days comes but once a year.

How was your Cask Days? Let us know in the comments.

Photos by Jason Cook and Natta Summerky

This semi-hidden, second-floor space at Yonge & Dundas has transformed from a board game cafe to a cocktail bar, lounge and event space with a decidedly non-commercial bent towards Asian and Asian-inspired culture. From the art and films on display to the cocktails and snacks, you're definitely transported away from the status quo here.

Read my profile of Roll Play Bar in the bars section.

Today in Toronto it's time to get back into music festival mode. Starting today, TWiMFeST will bring dozens of bands to the city's top venues. Beyond live music there's also a film festival, a launch party at the Textile Museum of Canada and a chat with a Michelin star chef.

For more events, click on over to our events section.

• ReDesign 2015 (KnollTextiles Showroom)
• Air Canada enRoute Film Festival (Yonge & Dundas Cineplex)
• Art and Laughter (99 Sudbury)
• Screaming Females (The Garrison)
• Secret Lives (Steam Whistle Brewing)
• TWiMFeST 2015 (Various Locations)
• Kitchen Conversations: Neopolitan Gastronomy (The ROM)
• Rick Lowe Artist Talk (OCADU)
• Zaki Ibrahim (Tattoo)

Have an event you'd like to plug? Submit your own listing to the blogTO Toronto events section.

Photo of Pick a Piper via TWiMFeST

The Googie architectural movement didn't last long. For about two decades, starting in 1940s post-war Southern California, the distinctively whimsical building style became the go-to aesthetic for motels, drive-thrus, gas stations, and other (mostly) auto-centric structures across the U.S. and Canada.

In Toronto, Yonge-Finch Plaza stands out as a classic example of Googie. For $1 in the 1960s, drivers could pull in for a carnauba wax at the car wash and grab a hamburger from one of Ontario's first McDonald's. The hamburger stand, a carbon copy of the chain's drive-up restaurants south of the border, had a capsule-like dining room anchored by two giant golden arches.

If there was ever going to be a McDonald's at Clavius Base, this is what it was going to look like.

Before being demolished for the Xerox Tower, the McDonald's became a Wimpy's. The new owners lopped the tops off the McDonald's arches, but there was no disguising the origins of the building when the photos above and below were taken in 1972.

11 kms away, the Don Mills Curling Rink at Don Mills and the Donway was another Googie delight. Shaped like a flying saucer, the wood-framed building opened in September, 1960, at the south end of the Don Mills shopping plaza. Architect Douglas M. Hall described it as "a flower at the end of the long stem of buildings."

"Anything that approaches nature is fundamentally good mathematics," he told the Don Mills Mirror newspaper.

There were 12 sheets of ice and a free daycare with a window overlooking the playing surface inside the "big, bright concrete mushroom," which kept little Bobby and Susan safely occupied while mom and dad swept.

Faced with increased competition from neighbouring curling clubs, the building was converted into a bingo hall in 1971. The new format was initially popular--busloads of players would pack the smoky parlour on weekends--but the novelty eventually wore off, and the building was closed in 1984 and demolished in 1986.

Happily, some Toronto Googie avoided the wrecker. Built for the defunct Grand Union supermarket chain in 1958, Parkway Plaza on Ellesmere Ave. with its sweeping space age roof still looks like a place where Jane Jetson would have bought groceries.

Though opening day was a full decade before the moon landing, the owners were clearly absorbed with the Space Race. There was a firework display and a performance by the Space Girls. Kids could collect a free space mask and enter the "Queen of Outer Space" contest. Even the promo material was festooned with pictures of rockets and astronauts.

The Grand Union brand was bought by Steinberg's five years after Parkway Plaza opened, and in later years the supermarket operated under the Miracle Mart and Dominion brands. It's currently a Metro. In May, Parkway Plaza was designated under the Ontario Heritage Act.

Because Googie architecture was so intricately entwined in the suburban car culture of the 1950s and 1960s, many of the best examples were renovated to suit changing tastes or demolished entirely. In Mississauga on Southdown Dr. near the Clarkson GO station there's a gas station that managed to buck that trend.

Built in 1960, the Canadian Tire Gas bar became a protected heritage structure in 2011 thanks to its swooping, wing-like canopy designed by contractor Bob McClintock. It's not the only one left: there's another near Kipling and Rexdale, but structures like this are increasingly rare.

Googie fell out of style in the 1970s as the glamour of car ownership faded, but there are still reminders of its presence around Toronto. The Scarborough motel strip on Kingston Rd., which includes the Hav A Nap, Americana, and Avon, is faded, but mostly unaltered from its space age heyday.

Tom's Dairy Freeze is a solid if understated example of the form located on the Queensway. It opened in 1969 right at the end of the style's heyday, but remains a retro throwback with loads of character.

Zingburger Chicken & Rib Shack on Victoria Park Ave. and the Shell Tower at the CNE haven't been so fortunate.

Let's hope what else remains gets the recognition it deserves.

Follow Chris Bateman on Twitter at @chrisbateman.

Images: City of Toronto Archives, Canadian Tire Gas: Francisco Diez/Creative Commons, Parkway Plaza: Musée Steinberg's/Creative Commons, Derek Flack, and Jesse Milns.

Soup is a staple starter and hearty liquid lunch option in Toronto, especially as the days grow cold. Be it a rich bisque, clear consommé or chunky chowder, there's a seemingly endless variety to choose from, so when selecting from the options that abound, I considered the specialists as well as those establishments where ordering a single steaming bowl would be most welcome.

Here are my picks for the top soup in Toronto by neighbourhood.

THE ANNEX
One Love Vegetarian can be found just north of Bathurst Station ladling out piping hot bowls of corn soup ($3/$5) to go. This rich, peppery broth is thickened with chunks of potato, Jamaican pumpkin, peas and fresh corn.

CABBAGETOWN
Chicken soup by the cup ($2.75) or bowl ($4.50) is a staple on the menu at Murgatroid, but you'll also find daily features like tomato soup, or roasted squash. Mason jars for take-home are available too.

CHINATOWN
Sink into a bean bag chair at One Hour to enjoy a steaming bowl of beef noodle soup ($6.29) loaded with noodles, mustard greens and braised beef shank.

CHURCH WELLESLEY VILLAGE
Fabarnak, housed in The 519, offers a unique menu of sustainable, homestyle foods that includes daily soup ($6) ranging from tomato bisque to borscht.

DUNDAS WEST
Souppe Shoppe operates out of an upcycled shipping container at Market 707. Expect to find hearty seasonal selections like clam chowder, Thai chicken stew, and Ethiopian lentil soup in the colder months, and gazpacho and vichyssoise in the summer.

ETOBICOKE
Thrive Organic Kitchen is a vegan cafe where you can curl up on a couch by a fireplace to enjoy daily soup that rotate through a roster including cream of broccoli, kale and spinach, Mexican black bean soup, and creamy coconut ginger with sweet potato soup (to name just a few).

FINANCIAL DISTRICT
Soup is just one of the many prepared foods stocked by health food shop, Naturally Yours in First Canadian Place. The selection cycles through options like yam potage, mushroom barley, pesto minestrone, and chickpea basil.

FOREST HILL VILLAGE
At Mediterranean grill Mashu Mashu, the house favourite is the lentil soup ($5). Enjoy it on its own or along with pita coupled with mezze dips.

JUNCTION
Soup ($4/$6) at The Beet is made fresh daily and served with multi-grain toast slathered with sun dried tomato pesto. Creamy sweet potato coconut soup and curried butternut squash are just a couple recent examples.

JUNCTION TRIANGLE
Baguette and Co. is home to flavourful soup that'll fill you up. The Thai coconut chicken soup ($1.99/$2.99) is a big seller.

KENSINGTON MARKET
Soup at Hibiscus Cafe is sold by the cup ($4.50), bowl ($5.85), or paired with a salad ($12.50). The daily selection offers options like ginger squash, sweet potato coconut milk, or miso soup swimming with cauliflower, chickpeas, and potato.

KING WEST
The housemade soup ($3/$4.20) is on a schedule at Wagamama. Highlights include the vegan carrot and fennel soup served Wednesdays, corn chowder with bacon on Fridays, and apple squash soup on Saturdays.

LIBERTY VILLAGE
Health conscious soup is the specialty at Oats & Ivy where Moroccan lentil soup ($6.25) is loaded with chickpeas, spinach and mint, and the chicken and kale soup ($7.95) features wild rice and a medley of vegetables.

LITTLE INDIA
The lentil soup at Maha's Restaurant is delicious, rich and filling. Have it on its own ($6) or in combination with the also excellent, date grilled cheese sandwich ($12).

MOUNT PLEASANT
Istanbul Cafe will have you slurping up every last drop of Turkish soup ($5). This steaming bowl of comfort comprises lentils and carrots and is finished with sumac and garnished with mint.

NORTH YORK
United Bakers Dairy always has soup on its menu ($3.69/$4.89). Every day you'll find a choice of either green split pea or beet borscht, plus a daily feature like vegetable, bean and barley, potato, or cabbage borscht.

OSSINGTON
Spicy coconut laska packed with chow mein, tofu and eggplant is the thing to get at Hawker Bar. Order a veg-friendly version for $11.50 or have it with extra protein like chicken ($12.50) or shrimp ($14).

QUEEN WEST
Saffron Spice Kitchen offers one vegetarian soup and one non-vegetarian soup each day ($4/$6). Look forward to options like chicken and lentil, split pea, butternut squash, and mulligatawny.

PAPE VILLAGE
Warm up at Goat Coffee Co. with a hearty bowl of their signature lentil soup ($4/$6), which pairs especially well with a slice of avocado toast.

PARKDALE
As its name suggests, RaviSoups is devoted to bisques, broths, and purées. The hearty curried apricot and red lentil soup ($8.99) served with cheddar biscuit and red pepper jelly is a local fave.

RIVERSIDE
Pulp Kitchen is a great source for soup by the bowl ($5.50) or take-home jar ($12). The lunch counter stirs up the selection daily with options like curried veg purée, sprouted black bean, and kale and sweet potato soup.

RONCESVALLES VILLAGE
Dundas Park Kitchen is a lunch counter and bake shop where an ever changing array of soups includes options like chicken with orzo, tomato basil with cheddar croutons, and Mexican black bean soup. Add soup as a side to any sandwich for $3, make it a meal for $7 or take home a litre for $14.

SCARBOROUGH
Cliffside Hearth Bread Company knows that a hearty bowl of soup and a nice crusty bread are a perfect match. In the cooler months (fall through spring) find one litre containers ($9.50) offered in weekly featured flavours like lentil, split pea, or minestrone with quinoa - all of which are lean and low in salt.

ST. CLAIR WEST
CocoaLatte is more than just a coffee shop. Homestyle, organic, and vegan sopa del dia is big draw at lunch and has been known to feature selections like tortilla soup and apple squash purée.

WEST QUEEN WEST
Vegan soups like "cheesy" broccoli and jalapeno or chipotle dill corn chowder can be found on special daily at the Feel Good Guru.

YORKVILLE
Find at least seven soups a day at Esther Queen of Soups, a locally famous food court vendor in Cumberland Terrace. The mulligatawny is a favourite.

Thanks to Just Eat for sponsoring this post.

Lead photo from Maha's by Jesse Milns.

The Weeknd came out in full swing at the ACC in Toronto last night. His homecoming show and first stop on The Madness Fall Tour proved to be a polar opposite to summer's intimate set at the Mod Club, selling out the nearly 20,000 person capacity venue.

The Weeknd delivered an exhilarating performance that showed why he's deserving of his top spot on the Billboard charts.

Opening with the deep sounds of "Real Life" followed by upbeat banger "Losers", The Weeknd had fans ecstatic right from the beginning. In between every line the R&B star delivered fans would rabidly scream their praises.

The Weeknd's set was a roller coaster of varying moods, consistently transitioning between his more upbeat songs and serene tracks such as "Prisoner" and "Angel". The Weeknd even gave a heartfelt cover of fellow Toronto native Drake's track "Crew Love", which he originally appeared on.

One of the most lively moments of the set came when The Weeknd performed his hugely successful track "Can't Feel My Face". The strongly Michael Jackson influenced track had the crowd roaring in excitement.

The wild haired singer was swaying across the stage with the passion one would expect from a performer who sees a crowd as massive as this being completely entranced in their song.

Bringing with him a full backing band and a dazzling light show, The Weeknd's stage production was a well orchestrated performance in itself that paired along with the mood of each song seamlessly.

The pyrotechnics during "The Hills" had the crowd mesmerized as the pop star drifted joyously across the stage. The singer left briefly, building suspense before returning for encore track "Wicked Games" from his debut release, Trilogy.

The Weeknd left the crowd with some of his strongest tracks and solidified his place at the top of the current R&B and Top 40 scenes. With such a strong set it will be interesting to see how The Weeknd will follow up with his second show in Toronto just two days after this one.

Photo by Alejandro Santiago.

DILP is an acronym I can get behind. That's because it stands for Dogs I'd Like to Pet and it's the name of a smile-inducing Toronto-based Instagram account, which features pictures of pooches from around the world.

Curated by @ronnietee_ , DILP, like other accounts such as the @thedogist, is the perfect antidote for a bad day, TTC delay or any other minor mishap. With nearly 150 dog photos, you're pretty much guaranteed to feel all warm and fuzzy while scrolling through the DILP feed.

While the account showcases numerous Toronto dogs, it also accepts photo submissions via dilptoronto@gmail.com.

If you want even more cute in your life (hello, everyone), Toronto is filled with Instagram-famous puppies and pets as well as an entire festival dedicated to our fluffy canine friends.

Photo via @d.i.l.p.

Starting November 8, Toronto's Bar Isabel won't be open until 2 a.m. seven days a week. Instead, it'll close at midnight Sunday through Thursday. Why, you may ask? To give both kitchen and front-of-house staff time to rest.

"It's not because we're not busy, it's not financial," says owner Grant van Gameren in a YouTube video. "The only reason why we're doing this is for the quality of life for the staff."

The short clip features Bar Isabel staff reacting positively to this change. Some say they've ended shifts as late (or as early) as 7:30 a.m. While the restaurant will close by midnight for most of the week, it'll still be open until 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays.

But don't worry because there are still plenty of late night restaurants in the area. Bar Isabel staff recommend Oddseoul, People's Eatery, Taste of China and of course, Bar Raval.

Watch the full video below.

Do you commend Bar Isabel for closing earlier to give staff a break? Let us know in the comments.

Photo by dvn.s in the blogTO Flickr pool.

The best DIY spots in Toronto will pry you away from your computer screen for some hands-on fun. If you spend too much time with your eyes glued to your Apple products, why not go on the hunt for a new hobby? The city has a lot to offer by way of workshops with classes on everything from woodworking to painting.

Here is the list of the best DIY spots in Toronto.

In the same moment when Toronto condo developers are determined to make new neighbourhoods in this city, our old villages rise up in the absence of big development and make their mark on the urban landscape. Such is the case with Davenport Village.

"When we opened here three years ago, people thought we were crazy," Sovereign co-owner Ross tells me over a coffee the other day. He's talking about the coffee shop's first spot at Davenport and Dufferin, but the sentiment remains true now that they've taken over the former Rockabilly Rock space.

He's one of the various people making this former retail wasteland a place where you might chat over coffee and wonder if the Green Line will actually happen. And he knows everything about the neighbourhood. There's a passion on display here that bodes very well for the area. Every time we chat for five minutes, I learn something new about this little village.

I've wanted to write something about this strange small town/big city neighbourhood for a while, but now seems like the right time. Between Ossington and Dovercourt, new businesses are opening for the first time in ages. Joining the Sovereign's second outpost, Seesaw Cafe has brought some DIY spirit to the neighbourhood, while Dante's Inferno promises panini for all.

"There hasn't been enough retail here," Ross notes. "Now that's changing, but it can't get too full." This is an area that's been starved for services and restaurants for a while, and new development is marked with an obvious excitement from locals.

Over and above the activity at Dovercourt and Davenport, condo development at Lansdowne is bringing new businesses to the area. In the near future, the Foundry Lofts will have an Against the Grain Tavern and an indie coffee shop to call their own. Given that there's absolutely nothing else in the immediate vicinity, that's rather noteworthy for the neighbourhood.

Still, it's a slow process. When Picea 997 opened at Dupont and Doverourt, it seemed to hail a mini-restaurant boom in the area. It has since closed, offering a reminder that you have to do most things right to establish a foothold here.

Davenport won't be the next Ossington -- please don't think that. But, it is changing for the better. The street level presence of Workshop Architecture, a firm that's been instrumental with Green Line proposals, is indicative of the future here. This is a community oriented business that literally invites those passing by to come inside and chat.

There's real community here. And real desire to see businesses succeed. That's a good recipe for success. An influx of condo residents doesn't hurt either. When I leave the Sovereign it's closing time, so Ross packs up the remaining baked goods and sends me home with them. This isn't for good press. It's just how things work around here.

You won't be able to smoke shisha in licensed Toronto establishments after April 1, 2016 because the city voted to ban hookahs during today's all council meeting.

In May, Toronto's Medical Officer of Health Dr. David McKeown and the Toronto Board of Health released a report (PDF) asking the city for a hookah ban by October 1, reports CTV News. The related motion, which Councillor Joe Mihevc filed, was deferred until today.

The motion carried 34-3: Councillors Giorgio Mammoliti,Denzil Minnan-Wong and Jim Karyigiannis voted against it.

According to CTV, there are between 60 to 80 hookah bars in Toronto.

What do you think of the ban? Let us know in the comments.

This West Coast chain helmed by chef Rob Feenie has landed at First Canadian Place, and the flagship Toronto location seems poised to make a good first impression. The three floor restaurant boasts a generous helping of truffle-infused dishes, an all-weather patio, a killer by the glass selection of wines, and gallery-worthy artwork.

Read my profile of Cactus Club Cafe in the restaurants section.

Hot-Star Large Fried Chicken is opening its first North American location tomorrow by the corner of Yonge and Gerrard. The Taiwanese chain is famous for its massive pieces of chicken that purportedly measure nearly 30 centimetres long.

The international chain got its start in Taipei's famous Shilin Night Market in the early 1990s. Now, it has outposts in numerous countries including Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Australia.

In Toronto, a piece of the original large fried chicken will set you back $9.99 and it comes in three flavours: pepper salt, spicy or seaweed. There's also a BBQ sauce option available for an additional $1.50. The small menu features a bevy of deep-fried goodies such as popcorn chicken, fried king oyster mushroom, plum sweet potato fries and regular French fries.

While Toronto offers up a slew of fried chicken options, here's one more to help keep your cravings at bay.

Are you excited to try Hot-Star? Let us know in the comments.

Photo by Amy Grief.