🦝 What's happening in the West End March 27-31

French pastries, tasty pizza, but no eclipse.

Author

Xavier Post
March 27, 2025

Good morning West End! Welcome to the first ever edition of The West End Raccoon.

The goal of this publication is to bring our community together as much as I can. By signing up to the newsletter you’ve already helped make that goal a reality, so thank you!

Don’t forget: a year from now, when all your friends are reading The Raccoon, you can brag that you’ve been in since the beginning. “Yeah, I liked their old stuff better”.

Speaking of which, if you know a friend or family member who might be interested, please share The Raccoon with them (www.westendraccoon.ca). The more people we get onboard the more support we can give the community!

That’s enough introduction, let’s get started.

Note: As I’m just starting out here, any and all feedback is appreciated. Please reply to this e-mail with ideas, events I missed, or restaurants I need check out.

Community News

Mayor Chow Visits for a Slice

You can’t throw a rock in The Junction these days without hitting someone talking about Gram’s Pizza. (Not that I recommend throwing a rock. There are a lot of big windows in The Junction.) The pizzeria by Dupont and Dundas has become a local favourite, even more so after they announced they would be boycotting American ingredients. Mayor Chow visited them near the beginning of the month, posing for a photo with a pepperoni pizza. My advice: If you want to try Gram’s, go early! They often sell out before the end of the day.

Does the Moon Have a Problem With Us?

There will be a partial eclipse Friday morning for most of Ontario, but only for half of Toronto. The spectacle will be visible only to those East of Pape station, meaning we won’t be able to see it. This comes just a year after the eclipse last April, where the path of totality missed us by just a few kilometres. Hey moon - what gives? We want to see you too. If you still have some eclipse glasses laying around (and you’re willing to travel), the best views are supposed to be in Eastern Ontario and Quebec.

Weekend Weather 🌡️☀️

Friday - Cloudy with some rain, around 3°
Saturday - Even more rain, around 5°
Sunday - Still raining, around 4°
Not greeeeat. But baseball starts today. That means summer is coming.

Business Updates

A Parisian Bakery Opens in Bloor West

Aux Merveilleux de Fred, a French pastry shop, opened last Thursday on Bloor across from the No Frills. They boast over 40 European locations, plus additional outposts in Tokyo and New York City. Specializing in cakes, croissants, and other sweet treats, they will be a very welcome addition to the neighbourhood! This is their second location in Toronto, after their first (by Queen and John) became a hotspot.

New Bike Shop in Roncy

Attention cyclists! A new bike repair spot has opened up in Roncy, right next to AM Bagel. Biking over and then getting a bagel sounds like a perfect morning. Although I guess if you’re going to a bike repair shop you usually can’t bike. Fine, walk over and get a bagel AND a coffee. Still a good morning!

Fancy House of the Week

Who doesn’t love looking at fancy houses? The “Tower Suite” at Abbey Lofts is up for sale. 2 beds, 2 baths, and 2500 square feet. In between Roncy and Parkside Dr, this place has views of the lake AND the park. You can sit up in this beautiful tower feeling like Rapunzel for just a lowly $2.5 million (plus $1300 a month in maintenance fees 🤯) - Link

Events

Here’s all the live events happening this weekend. If there’s anything that I missed that should be included, please reply to this e-mail to let me know.

You can find links with more information for these events on our website - click here.

💃 Live Music & Dancing
 🎵 Thursday - Kadeema and the Dream Eaters (Pop) (7PM @ Burdock Music Hall) - Details
 🎵 Friday - Rec League & Alicia & The Keys (Pop/Alt Rock/Indie) (8PM @ Junction Underground) - Details
 🎵 Friday - Kev Olden (Indie Folk) (8PM @ Burdock Music Hall) - Details
 🎵 Friday - Flamenco Night (8:30PM @ NeuLokal) - Details
 🎵 Friday - John Amato: Sinatra B-Sides (Crooner/Classics) (8PM @ Old Mill) - Details
 🎵 Friday - Bachata Lessons and Dancing (8PM @ Dovercourt House) - Details
 🎵 Friday - Ian Pooley (Techno) (9PM @ 1650 Dupont) - Details
🎵 Saturday - Special Interest Group (“Songs of Hope & Struggle”) (5 PM @ The Inter Steer)
🎵 Saturday - AloneKitty No Beauty, Volatile Youth, & Katherine Caswell (Shoegaze) (8PM @ Junction Underground) - Details
 🎵 Saturday - Motown Mania (8PM @ Old Mill)
 🎵 Saturday - Birchcliff with George Rivard and Daisey (Acoustic Pop) (8PM @ Burdock Music Hall) - Details
 🎵 Saturday - Karaoke Night (8PM & Taste Seduction) - Details
 🎵 Saturday - 80s and 90s Video Dance Party (9PM @ Ground Control) - Details
 🎵 Saturday - Donald Quan Trio (Jazz) (8:30PM @ La Rev) - Details
 🎵 Saturday - Seu Quartet (Latin/Reggae Fusion) (8:30PM @ La Rev) - Details
 🎵 Saturday - Mr Rick & The Biscuits (Country/Folk/Swing) (9PM @ The Local) - Details
 🎵 Saturday - Norwuz Party with Salar Ansari, Afrooz and Emissive (Techo) (10PM @ 1650 Dupont) - Details
 🎵 Sunday - Jazz Trumpet Matinee (4PM @ My House Junction) - Details
 🎵 Sunday - Sunday Samba - Women's Month Edition (6PM @ Lula Lounge) - Details
 🎵 Sunday - Family and Barn Dance (7PM @ Old Time Social) - Details
 🎵 Sunday - Rachel Bobbitt, Jay Feelbender & Melissa Paju (Lo-Fi, Acoustic) (7PM @ Burdock Music Hall) - Details
 🎵 Sunday - Dave Clark's Western Slang (Country/Western) (2PM @ The Local) - Details
 🎵 Sunday - Kevin Conaway (Acoustic Guitar) (9PM @ The Local) - Details
 🎵 Monday - Marley Card (Acoustic Guitar) (9PM @ The Local) - Details
 🎵 Monday - Jazz Night (7PM @ Steadfast Brewing) - Details

🌍 Community Events
 🤝 Thursday - Trivia Thursdays (7PM @ Whelan's Gate) - Details
 🤝 Thursday - Roseland Public School Parents Night Out (7PM @ High Park Brewery) - Details
 🤝 Thursday - Charity Tim Burton Themed Bingo (7PM @ Ground Control)
 🤝 Thursday - Black Founders & Entrepreneurs Networking Event (6:30PM @ Blood Brothers Brewing) - Details
 🤝 Thursday - Almost Jeopardy Trivia (7PM @ Junction Craft) - Details
 🤝 Friday - Baby Time (1030 AM @ Annette St Library) - Details
 🤝 Friday - Drop-In Ultimate Frisbee (730 PM @ McCormick Rec Centre) - Details
 🤝 Friday - Messy’s Drag Bingo (7PM @ Junction Craft) - Details
 🤝 Saturday - The Ghostwood Market (11AM @ Parkdale Hall) - Details
 🤝 Saturday - Wedding Open House (1PM @ High Park Brewery)
🤝 Saturday - Monthly Indigenous Market (1PM @ George Chuvalo Neighbourhood Centre)
 🤝 Saturday - Drop-In Badminton (130 PM @ McCormick Rec Centre) - Details
 🤝 Sunday - Brooklyn 99 Escape Room (@ Trivia Escape Rooms)
 🤝 Sunday - Sunday Bingo - Leafs Tickets Prize (7PM @ Shakey's) - Details
 🤝 Sunday - Seed Exchange & Eco Fair (11:30AM @ Parkdale Library) - Details
 🤝 Monday - Community Meditation (7PM @ George Chuvalo Neighbourhood Centre)

🎨 Arts & Crafts
🖌 Thursday - Make Your Own Soap Workshop (7PM @ Big Beer Soap Company) - Details
🖌 Friday - Learn the basics of Adobe Illustrator (230PM @ Runnymede Library) - Details
🖌 Saturday - Oyster Shucking Workshop (12PM @ Island Oysters)
🖌 Saturday - Spring Wreath Making Workshop (11AM @ Old Mill) - Details
🖌 Sunday - Spring Collage Workshop (7PM @ The Arts Market) - Details
🖌 Sunday - Knit a Chunky Blanket (2:30PM @ Pinot's Palette) - Details
🖌 Sunday - French Language w/ Author Mireille Messier (1PM @ Type Books) - Details
🖌 Monday - Creating Your Own Tarot Cards (1PM @ Articulations) - Details

🎭 Comedy & Theatre
 🎫 Thursday - ROAD TRIP (630PM @ Revue Cinema) - Details
 🎫 Friday - You're Going to Hell Comedy Show (8PM @ Osprey Cafe)
 🎫 Friday - David Lynch Tribute Night (6PM @ Revue Cinema) - Details
 🎫 Saturday - Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (1PM @ Revue Cinema) - Details
 🎫 Saturday - The Stephen King Experience (6PM @ Dovercourt House) - Details
 🎫 Saturday - WICKED Sing-A-Long Screening (930PM @ Revue Cinema) - Details
 🎫 Sunday - Screening of HEAT (6:45PM @ Revue Cinema) - Details
 🎫 Monday - Brew Ha! Ha! Comedy (@ Indie Ale House) - Details

Thank you!

Thanks for reading the first ever West End Raccoon! If you have any ideas for the future of this newsletter, please reply to this e-mail and pass them along.

Have a great weekend, and talk to you next Thursday!
Xavier