4 Best Nightlife in Toronto, Ontario

Tucked down a cobblestone laneway across the street from its original location on Yonge Street, Bar Volo is one of the city's top destinations for beer lovers. Once specializing in rare and one-off brews from other breweries (still a major, the new location at the other two Volo locations in Little Italy), Bar Volo now has its own brewery on-site. That means you can get traditional English-style hand-pulled cask beers, highly drinkable German and Italian-style lagers, and some hoppy ales. It's a European style, which means the beers are all well-made, approachable classics and not too wacky (though you can find some of those on the beer list as well). For non-beer drinkers, there's also a full cocktail program and a full list of natural wines they import themselves. After pandemic-era changes to the city's liquor laws, those one-off wines and beers are all available to buy and take home. Or sip them alongside southern Italian tapas inside or on the sizable front patio.

In comparison to the raucous, glittering scene you'll find nearby, Boutique Bar is a (relatively) low-key spot for a cocktail, whether you're feeling like a classic negroni, a martini, or one of the house creations. If you can, grab a spot on the tiny front patio and watch the comings and goings along Church Street. DJs bring the party on weekends.

Downstairs is Crews, a queer bar with a stage for karaoke, open mic, or drag shows (depending on the night), a dance floor in back with a DJ spinning house beats, and a sizable back patio. Upstairs, Tangos has a bar and a small dance floor that gets packed with twenty- and thirtysomethings kicking it to old-school hip-hop and 1980s beats. The gender ratio is surprisingly balanced and the drag shows are lots of fun.

A predominantly upscale crowd of men, mostly in their twenties to forties, frequents this cavernous pub and its brother bar Sailor where DJs mix nearly every night. The Toronto gay bar institution is known for Best Chest and Best Butt contests, which are hosted by some of the city's most beloved drag queens, as well as raucous dance parties. The exterior of Woody's was used on the television show Queer as Folk.