As with most small Ontario towns, there is naturally a Timmy's in Durham (pop. 2500). But before I…read morestopped there, I was thrilled to find Garafraxa, a cute little independent place that seems to have coffee shop/bistro/entertainment venue all wrapped into one. I stopped in for a tea, and was pleased to be offered a loose-leaf cream earl grey. The cranberry and pistachio biscotti was very fresh and a perfect pair for the tea... So yummy. I should note, I never ask for soy milk in small towns (was laughed at one too many times in the past), but a gentleman that came in after me (looked even more "out of town" than I did ;) asked for it... And the women serving, proudly announced she did have soy milk. Impressive. Wish I had some friends up here (hehe) - this place seems like a perfect Saturday night venue to grab a glass of wine and listen to live music :)

The first thing that caught my eye was the storefront. A hip basic black look with red highlights…read more Not something I expected to see in the small rural town of Durham. A pleasant surprise. I was also happy to see cafe tables and chairs outside. It was a hot day and I needed a place to sit with my dog. Stepped inside and again was impressed with the look of the place, especially the stage. At the back of the room was a stage, stage lighting and a large screen. I didn't realize Garafraxa's is also a music venue. Looks like an excellent spot for musicians to pump up their performance. The espresso prices were Starbucks expensive, but my latte was quite large. The spinach pastry I ordered is the mass-produced pastries I've seen and eaten in other shops around Ontario. I would have preferred a little something savoury that was locally made.

The E-bar was the location for my networking reception during an event this past weekend…read more I can't comment much on the actual food they may provide, but from what was offered in the reception, I enjoyed the food very much. They had a large selection of cheese varieties available ranging from camembert to blue cheese, as well as assorted veggies with dipping sauce, grilled flatbread, and homemade panko-crusted meatballs. The event space was large and overall decent, although the seating could've been arranged better, as the booths were quite tight considering our party. The acoustics were also quite loud, and voices were bouncing off the walls like crazy, which made conversations quite difficult. Other than that, the bar did a very good job accompanying us, and my group was satisfied with the night overall.

So, my friend and I felt pekish for a drink and nice atmosphere.. We'd heard good things about this…read moreplace so we thought we'd pop in... We walked upstairs to find an empty dance floor and a few randomly scattered patrons. Okay - so not exactly the lovely atmosphere we were hoping for... But nonetheless, since we were more about getting a nice drink - we thought we'd at least stay for one. Sigh. We were disappointed. We watched one table get menus and then patently waited for ours. They did not come. We thought, "...perhaps the dozen or so people here might be overwhelming? So let's wait a little longer shall we? Unfortunately that did not help. I finally went over to the bar and asked for a menu. I was matter-of-factly told that there was no table service on Fridays. We weren't quite sure why - seeing as the waiter to patron ratio was approximately 1:4. We thought we'd just cut our losses - and were getting up to leave - when the waitress later popped by with a menu - saying, "I thought you were waiting for people..." Wow - really?? This review was written from a lovely bar just down the street which does in fact provide table service on Friday night.

Fantastic venue to see a live band - unlike other venues that just cram a band into whatever corner…read morethey can fit as an afterthought, this room is purpose-built for live music, and the bands are always high-quality. Also, a nice selection of beers on tap, and a no-BS vibe from the staff, who are laid-back and friendly.

Sweetest karaoke Dope staff…read moreSplendid clients‍ Great location Food still to be tried by mwa' Fun and energetic/welcoming atmosphere for all

Fantastic atmosphere to hang out and enjoy whatever live music is on that night. The drinks are…read moresome of the best cocktails I've tried, and everyone there was friendly and helpful in deciding what to order.

I'll leave it to quoting Danko Jones who has played every venue in the land probably: "best music…read morevenue in the country."

Good venue - they can scale it up or down to fit different size crowds. Pretty bare-bones,…read moreno-frills room, but you're there for the band, not the decor, and they tend to have really good bands there.

i played here with The Dillinger Escape Plan one time and Greg (the singer) almost ripped a hanging…read morespeaker stack out of the ceiling and onto the crowd. Later he threw a box fan over the crowd and it exploded on the wall. I've played here twice. Both times the staff was nice, helped us load in, gave us lots of drink tickets and nothing went wrong. Decent sound as well.

Horrible. Kicked me out believing I was to drunk after one beer. I ordered a second one, they took…read moreit away from me and that was it. Obviously can't fight them at the time because it will only give them another reason for them to say I'm drunk. Pathetic. Thanks for the long weekend.

Went here to see a friends band play for the first time. Venue is great for bands! Huge stage and…read moregreat sound system... I could have done with out all the blacklights and the fog machine but what girl doesn't want to look more tanned in dead of winter (thanks black lights!)??... I will say it was a bit loud... concert I know, but this was a bit tooooo loud The staff were friendly and attentive, my friend ordered nachos and the second layers cheese wasn't melted but the top layer tasted good (she took the rest to go figuring she could heat them up at home and voila second dinner). **Update on the reheated nacho idea... not so good** Band was great! (the ultrasounds) Would definitely go back to see bands there.

Great bar and grill to grab a bite. Food prices are good and the food is even better. Only had…read morehamburgers and fries. Fries where Costco fries which are ok but the hamburger was MUCH better than I expected. Great size and nicely seasoned. 100% recommend for a beer and burg

This is probably one of my favorite music venues it's the place to be in Toronto…read moreWalking in the bar area is just really cool and then you go back to where the actual stage is and you just don't expect a whole other room. The stage is super small which really makes the experience better in my opinion. It feels so much more intimate with the band. I've had so many good nights here Like that they have a bunch of sitting areas with tables right behind a standing area in front of the stage. Saw and fell in love with many bands here and many more to see in the future hopefully

If your standard for live music involves walking through a metal detector to enter a sterile,…read moremulti-tiered corporate sports arena - where you sit in a numbered plastic seat, look at a massive digital screen because you are half a mile from the artist, and pay forty dollars for a warm, low-bitrate lager in a branded plastic cup - stay on the Gardiner Expressway. You are a consumer of commercialized culture. You are participating in the systematic flattening of the sonic experience.

Hidden Gem! This place is a little tricky to find (especially with construction) but so worth it…read more We had a fantastic evening with great food, great drinks, great service, and fantastic music. The band we saw, led by Stacey Kaniuk, was really rocking. The Reservoir Lounge has that classic upscale jazz club vibe. You feel cooler just being in this place. The food exceeded our expectations, especially the chocolate cake. Making reservations was tricky however. I never received any confirmation of my reservation via the online form, and when I sent an email and left a voicemail to follow-up and confirm, I never heard back from anyone. If they step up their reservation game, this place would be perfect.

This is a true hidden gem in Toronto with an incredible, speakeasy vibe. The music is soulful! Very…read moretalented musicians. The service is on point as well. You step down into the basement and almost feel like you've stepped into a different time and place. They have a nice menu with various small plates and an extensive drink menu as well. I'd suggest a reservation in advance if you want a table, but I've been here with standing room only at the bar and that was also great! A very funky place!

Last night I went to the Sunday night Karaoke by myself. As a woman this can be a daunting…read moreadventure. The karaoke was great. What was even better though was the service, thoughtfulness and care of the staff and security. I felt safe and heard and that speaks volumes to a culture that can be creepy when drinking is involved. I highly recommend if you have nothing to do on a Sunday night and are a single woman looking for a good time- these people will look after you if you ask, even if you don't.

I mean, listen, I don't know what's going on here lol. We were there on a Thursday night after…read moredinner to have more beers and play some games. Some games would eat your coins and not play games, others wouldn't take coins and you could play forever (I had to voluntarily withdraw from a buck hunting game). We enjoyed the ambience and the DJ that night was actually quite good! The place was kind of empty though (not that we minded). The drinks were cheap, staff were solid, bathrooms were incredible (!???). They have all you can eat wings on Thursdays and their kitchen is open till midnight. Definitely down to go visit again and hopefully many of the arcade games will be fixed up as that was a real bummer.