By Autostraddle
To put it bluntly, Toronto is a big city, and there is a whole heck of a lot going on here. No guide could cover all of the amazing things that occur on any given week/month so just consider this our take on the best of the city, especially the queer, West-end leaning aspects. More than just queer friendly, in Toronto queer culture mostly feels totally integrated into the fabric of the city. It is very much a city where you have to make your own community. Put in the effort, put yourself out there and you will be rewarded with a really, really good time.
Part of Toronto's charm is also its overall queer-friendliness. Although there may once have been a real need for a queer-specific area, now it is less necessary and furthermore, the community doesn't demand it. That doesn't mean that there is no place for Church St. However, it just means that the city has lots more to offer the queer resident or visitor than what's contained in the Gaybourhood.
Parkdale is in the West end of downtown and stretches from Dufferin to Roncesvalles (mostly along Queen St. West). It is one of the most queer-friendly parts of Toronto and is a quickly and eternally gentrifying neighbourhood full of fun bars, cafes, restaurants and shops mixed in with families new to Canada, amazing roti, jerk shops and cheque cashing places. Don't let the apparent lack of patios fool you - many places have full ones in the back, like Cadillac Lounge (1300 Queen St. W. 416-536-7717 open daily 11am-2am). Other places worth checking out are Grand Electric (1330 Queen Street West, 416-627-3459 open daily 6pm-late) for hipster tacos and Bacchus Roti (1376 Queen Street West, 416-532-8191 open T-F 12pm-9pm, S 2pm-10pm) for Guyanese-style Roti.
In summer, walk a little east on Queen, stopping first on Ossington St. Ossington is a relatively new stretch of excellent restaurants and bars. The best of the street is Pizzeria Libretto (221 Ossington Avenue, 416-532-8000 open daily 11:30am-11pm) home of the only real Neapolitan style pizza in the city. End your visit to Parkdale with a break in Trinity Bellwoods Park (Queen St. W. at Strachan St.). If you want another snack, Nadege (780 Queen Street West, 416-368-2009 open MTW 8am-8pm, ThF 8am-9pm, S 8am-8pm, Su 8am-7pm) has macaroons and cakes almost too beautiful to eat.
For more of the story, visit http://www.autostraddle.com/camilla-melissa-meredydd-queer-girl-city-guide-toronto-canada-15326/