We all know that when it comes to hometown pride, through thick and thin, Torontonians know what’s up. People living in Toronto are known to have a love-hate relationship with the city, but most of us are proud to call the GTA home.
Co-founders of Honeycomb Hospitality Group Matty Tsoumaris and Brandon Farmer are no exception. Two heavy hitters in Toronto’s entertainment industry, the duo own hotspots Baro, Dasha and Petty Cash, and they believe that in the past few years, Toronto has risen in the global ranks when it comes to entertainment hotspots to check out.
“Doing what we do for so many years, it’s been an amazing experience not only for us to see the hospitality [industry] grow but to see the city grow along with it,” Tsoumaris shared.
BEST PLACES FOR A GOOD TIME
We hit the streets to see which cities people in Toronto believed had the best entertainment scene. New York, London, Nashville and Miami are some of the places that came to mind, but Farmer and Tsoumaris are warning people not to sleep on Toronto.
“Toronto in the summertime is a vibe,” Farmer said, “It is rocking when you go out, people are out and vibing.”
“We have people come out to visit us from all over the world and they all say the same thing: that Toronto is in their top five.”
“I think in the past three to five years Toronto has overtaken other cities and I’ll put us in the top three,” Tsoumaris continued.
But does the world see us as being in the top three?
“I think so,” Tsoumaris shared, “If we’re not [in the] top three then why are these New York brands and Miami brands and international brands coming to Toronto?”
“Why is Nobu coming to Toronto if they don’t know that it’s a market where we have great food, great [cuisine] and great people?”
THE BEST PARTS OF THE CITY
A common complaint from people in the city is that there are not enough hubs for nightlife, with many of the most popular places concentrated in just a few blocks on King Street West. But the HoneyComb co-founders argue that there are tons of places for entertainment outside of the King West strip.
The duo say that Ossington, Dundas, Queen West and the Financial District are all places that clubgoers and bar hoppers should check out.
“What makes Toronto Toronto, and the culture of [the city] is that we have different defined neighbourhoods, where [and] each neighbourhood gives a different experience for a different type of clientele,” Tsoumaris said.
“Each place has amazing restaurants, amazing life and amazing cocktail bars, and King West is just one piece of that puzzle.”
IS KING STREET FOR EVERYBODY?
Toronto’s King Street West has taken some heat in recent years, with some would-be patrons calling out establishments in the area for discrimination. These establishments are outside of HoneyComb’s portfolio, and the duo wants people to know that everyone is welcome at their restaurants.
“We don’t tolerate any of that in our company. Come check us out, we have such a diverse group of people working for us,” Farmer said.“ Our team is a wide range of people from all over the world.”
“Our core values that we implement and how we hire are very important in our company and company culture,” Tsoumaris added.
“I do agree that there are some bad apples around in the city. You know, it sucks that some people [stereotype] King West with one or two bad apples, but we focus on us and what we do. We serve thousands and thousands of customers a week,” the co-founder continued, adding that he believes their success and growth can be attributed to how they operate their businesses, and how they treat their clients.
Farmer and Tsoumaris dish on the transition of Toronto nightlife, how dating apps have changed the game and more on this episode of The Brandon Gonez Show.