Scotty Bons, short for the famously hot scotch bonnet peppers, is a take on traditional Caribbean cuisine with a western infusion. The new restaurant, located at 402 Bloor St. W. (just west of Brunswick Avenue), serves a halal-certified menu, from roti and sandwiches to fusion bowls.

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You won’t find true happiness inside a box By Terri Chu As we leave behind one of the most collectively awful years in living memory, let’s hope we find some happiness in 2021. During my own, personal review of 2020, one life lost in particular stood out to me. Tony Hsieh’s death hit me in […]

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Gardening resolution for the new year In May 2020, the Annex Gleaner celebrated 25 years of publishing. In acknowledgement of this history we are offering timely highlights of our past; this feature Preserving your poinsettia is from January 2006.  By Sarah Brierley Here are some realistic resolutions you may actually have a hope of keeping! […]

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A deeper look reveals a storied past By Nicole Stoffman Ring Music, the guitar shop at 90 Harbord St., whose customers included Gordon Lightfoot, Bruce Cockburn, and Lenny Breau, has closed after 51 years in business. Owner John La Roque says he’s “Working away on a new album,” and the now-empty storefront heralds the end […]

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Brave entrepreneurs open a restaurant during COVID

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Churches and synagogues ready for on-line services By Mary An Nine months into the global pandemic, religious communities have shifted their pulpits onto digital platforms. With Christmas coming, churches seem to be taking the social isolation mandates that limit their ability to connect physically with congregants in stride, while enjoying expanded audiences and in some […]

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Though their origin is a mystery, they are being mapped By Mary An  The Annex has welcomed new mystical community members who live in unconventional dwellings: tiny homes nuzzled into tree roots. Doors to these homes can be found on  trees all over Toronto, and if there’s a human-builder behind them, he or she remains […]

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A team of Indigenous workers are bringing Paul Martel Park back to life

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ANNEX GLEANER FOCUS (Oct. 2020): Jay Macpherson Green at 255 Avenue Rd. was named after Jean “Jay” Macpherson in 2013, one year after her death. She was a much-loved English professor to writers including Margaret Atwood, Dennis Lee, and Alexandra Johnston.

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ANNEX GLEANER LIFE (Oct.2020): Vibrant mural at Major and Bloor streets pays homage to local characters

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NEW IN BUSINESS (Oct. 2020): New restaurants open mid-pandemic

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In this year’s installment of evaluating park spaces within the Gleaner’s catchment area, our observers noted the impressive revival of Queen’s Park North showing what a great city can do when it focuses its imagination and resources. The neglected Euclid Avenue Park, near Koreatown, shows what happens when these resources are withheld. Compiled by Mary An, Tanya Ielyseieva, and Nicole Stoffman.

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