Sunday, April 21, 2013

what is the best hotel to stay in downtown toronto?

Q. price is not a worry, needs to be a good hotel!

A. I've stayed in a couple of "boutique" hotels in downtown Toronto. If you don't want the huge mega-hotel experience I can highly recommend them. The Soho Metropolitan is in the theatre district, has a friendly and helpful staff and fantastic large bathrooms. http://www.metropolitan.com/soho/

The Cosmopolitan is right in the heart of downtown, near Yonge and Bloor. They are going for a "zen" kind of feel - they have a spa attached and have extremely comfortable beds. It's great if you are staying for more than an overnight as the rooms have little kitchenettes. There is a bar and a restaurant, but no lobby to speak of and a very unassuming entrance down a small side-street. But it is my personal favourite in Toronto. http://www.cosmotoronto.com/

Otherwise, the usual mega-hotels - the Sheraton, Delta Chelsea, Intercontinental, Hyatt are all highly rated.

Where in TO can I enjoy a fancy 7 course meal like what I always see on Iron Chef America?
Q. I love watching Iron Chef America, especially judging time! And I want that fancy 7 course meal experience. What is the best restaurant in Toronto for this? Pricing preferably from $30-$60 a person.

A. I am a former chef and from Toronto, still live here in the Annex, and prix-fixe dinner are not as common now as they were when I trained at the Windsor Arms Hotel in the 1970's, most place now do smaller 3-4 course ones and some will do 5, the hotels were the place in years past, alot of places offer them on the weekends or midweek to attract clientele, I know of a number in town, Italian, Portuguese, Chinese and North America, places along King St in the Entertainment district, the Italian places on College between Bathurst and Dufferein, high end chinese like Lai Wah in the Metropolitan Hotel on Chestnut St behind City Hall, and a number of places near me on Bloor between Spadina and Bathurst, I go to a Korean place near Christie, you can also find Greek places on the Danforth to who offer multi-course meal, price can vary and if you have any drinks it can be more.

Help please: How far is Toronto's airport from Chinatown? What might a taxi cost?
Q. I would also like suggestions for a nice hotel in Chinatown. Thank you!

A. Which Chinatown? Toronto has 3 of them.
If you mean the largest of them, it's in the Spadina/Dundas area.

A taxi will cost a minimum $40 to $50. (It'll cost considerably more if stuck in heavy traffic.)
A much cheaper option is taking an airport bus downtown - http://www.torontoairportexpress.com/

A good hotel nearby is the Metropolitan - http://www.metropolitan.com/toronto/rooms.asp
The Delta Chelsea is a bit further away but also nice - http://www.deltahotels.com/en/hotels/ontario/delta-chelsea/




Powered by Yahoo! Answers

No comments:

Post a Comment