Kensington Lodge in Toronto, ON

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Telephone:	+1 647-769-9936
Website:	thekensingtonlodge.tumblr.com
Address:	21 Kensington Avenue, Toronto, ON, M5T 2J8 Kensington Market
Nearby public transportation stops & stations:	620 ftDundas Street West 950 ftNassau Street 0.2 miSullivan
Categories:	Cafes

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Bussiness info

Bike Parking	Yes
Good for Kids	No

Good for Groups

Yes

Today

Today	6:00 am – 1:00 am Open now
Local time (Toronto)	1:33 PM Friday, November 29, 2024

Business hours

Monday	–
Tuesday	–
Wednesday	6:00 am – 11:00 pm
Thursday	6:00 am – 11:00 pm
Friday	6:00 am – 1:00 am
Saturday	1:00 pm – 1:00 am
Sunday	1:00 pm – 6:00 am

Description

Specialties

The Kensington Lodge is an artist owned and operated café-style pub in the heart of Kensington Market, Toronto — a cottage vibe in the city. We serve local craft beer and comfort food with specials changing daily and made form ingredients sourced from the local market when available. The Lodge hosts an Open Mic every Thursday and all are welcome — musicians, spoken word, comedy, etc. Every Friday and Saturday night entertainment changes from DJs (French Music Night, cocktail & soul) to musician performances (folk, blues, jazz, etc) to poetry nights — check our events tab on FB. We are a new business working out some kinks — kinds suggestions are always welcome.

History

Established in 2013.

The Lodge is located on the first floor of a Victorian home built in 1888. You are literally hanging out in someone’s livingroom. Its not cookie cutter in the least — its a unique experience and one that is diminishing in Toronto’s vastly growing condo surge. If you want to hang out with quirky /nice locals in Kensington Market this is your chance!

Meet the Business Owner

Michele G.

Business Owner

The owner is a former touring musician who loves art, music, cooking and people. It seemed only natural to continue the house party in a house! You never know what is happening in the house but no matter what is happening you are invited and will be welcomed!

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7 reviews of Kensington Lodge

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Martin S.

Place rating: 3
Toronto, Canada

It’s a bar in an old house in Kensington market so it has all the divey charm honed to a fine point. There’s a sign in the bathroom telling you to respect the plumbing because the house is that old. The front room has a small stage by the window hosting a variety of different performers including a young teen girl who sang a couple of songs and played the guitar and ukulele. That’s the kind of variety you might expect. The small crowd seemed to respect the performers and not talk too much or loudly. The next room is a small cute bar with seating so you can chat with the bartender. Drink specials were listed and I had a Dark and Stormy. In the back is the bathroom and nice that it’s on the main level. Looking past that is a cozy backyard style patio. How many bars do you go to that have trees in the front yard? Here’s one!

A F.

Place rating: 1
Toronto, Canada

Terrible service. It took a very long time for the food to be made. The food was good, but too way too long and small portions. This is supposed to be a restaurant, not someone’s house! The food should be prepped and served in a timely manner. There was only 1 other table there at the same time as us. I don’t recommend this place for anything other than a tea.

Evanna L.

Place rating: 5
Richmond Hill, Canada

They served us their specialty drink — apple cider with bourbon. It was a bit too sweet for me, so I didn’t really finish it, but for those who have sweet tooth. Make sure you try this drink!

Faiza K.

Place rating: 4
North York, Canada

This is a great (if not small and cosy) place t hang out with a few friends and chill. It was a house before that was renovated for this bar, which explains why it’s a bit narrow but full of charm. The owner who has lived here for 12 – 13 yrs is just lovely! Our group was talking to her for a bit as she explained a bit about the history of the place. Apparently it’s haunted so watch your stuff!
All the tables are reclaimed art pieces, the bar and benches are from reclaimed wood from the house and shed. I love that eccentric and rustic look all rolled up into one great place.
I had a hot buttered rum and it was divine! The owner really sources out traditional recipes for the drinks and you can definitely tell. Even the hot apple cider is good — definitely not some pre-packaged mix that so many other places use.
We were told that there is often music, poetry etc that happens in the evenings (maybe on the weekend evenings — can’t remember exactly) so will have to check that out. Maybe in the summer since they have a nice patio that you can take advantage of.

Kat B.

Place rating: 2
Toronto, Canada

Wow. What a random establishment.
I came here on a Friday night. There was a guy playing some blues on their front patio. They have a back patio but I didn’t check it out. You have to go inside to serve yourself at the bar. The servers were pretty clueless. I asked for a glass of their chardonnay and the guy didn’t know whether or not they had any. He didn’t even check the bar without saying that, and the wine fridge was right behind him. I then wanted to pay for my glass of wine with Visa. This actually probably took around 10 minutes to process, and at the end of it all it turned out that they can’t take the combined Visa-debit cards so be forewarned about that! I ended up paying in cash. I paid $ 15 ($ 8 for my wine and $ 7 for my friend’s beer. I gave them a $ 20 and they gave me a $ 5 bill — which is fair enough, but it made it hard for me to tip them!
The inside is clean and relatively well maintained. They also have a few board games available to play (e.g. Trivial Pursuit, Jenga, Scrabble). We didn’t order any food, but I saw another table’s hummus and pita plate which looked pretty good.
Overalll I don’t think I would return as there are better places to visit in the area.

Barry G.

Place rating: 2
Oakville, Canada

I went here for a lunch early afternoon on the weekend. A nice selection of beers and reasonably priced appetizer type of menu. Unfortunately, the service was very bad.
At least on this occasion, we had to seat ourselves, find our own menu, and order at the bar. I was also asked to pay at the time of order which I did, including a tip. I was also told I had to go to the front to pick up my own food at the BBQ in front despite already paying 15% tip. A waitress stopped me on the way and said she would get the order for me.
The other food order of pita & hummus took several requests and a personal trip to the kitchen before the even started making it, despite being told it was coming right out. In total, it took us 50 minutes before we received all of our food. To their credit, they were apologetic and refunded our entire meal and were friendly about it.
Despite the friendliness, I wouldn’t recommend going there for anything but drinks. They just did not seem set up for food service of any kind. The kitchen I believe is just a walk in closet next to the bar and despite there being no one in the back, and us being the only ones inside, and 4 – 5 small tables of people on the front patio –they kept saying «they were slammed». I would hate to think of the service if they had an actual crowd.

Suzanne U.

Place rating: 5
Toronto, Canada

This is a great bar that recently opened up in the Kensington Market neighbourhood. The owner and the staff are really friendly. They’ve got many different cocktails and beers available. Nice patio in the back as well.