Toronto/Downtown East

The Downtown East of Toronto covers an area south of Bloor Street roughly between Yonge Street and the Don River. Most points of interest are clustered either in the north or south ends of this district.

Understand


Here are some of the neighbourhoods in Downtown East:


 * Church-Wellesley Village is affectionately known as the "Gay Village" and is one of Toronto's biggest tourist attractions. There are a number of restaurants and pubs in the area centred at its namesake intersection. See also LGBT Toronto.
 * Cabbagetown gets its name from the large cabbages said to be planted in front lawns by Irish immigrants in the 19th century. It was once one of Toronto's poorest neighbourhoods, but is now a distinctive neighbourhood populated with elegantly renovated Victorian homes. The commercial heart of Cabbagetown is at Parliament and Carlton Streets with stores and restaurants catering to the local residents.
 * Old Town Toronto is an area with many preserved Victorian-era commercial buildings. The area is roughly south of Queen Street East between Yonge Street and Parliament Street. The St Lawrence Market neighbourhood is south of King Street and is essentially the southern portion of Old Town Toronto. Included in this area are St Lawrence Hall and St Lawtrence Market.
 * Corktown and the West Don Lands are neighbourhoods south of Queen Street East between Parliament Street and the Don River. This area includes the Distillery District, a complex of preserved Victorian-era industrial buildings.

By public transit
Subway line 1 along Yonge St provides access to the western side of the district; stations of note are:
 * Wellesley - One block east is the Church-Wellesley Village.
 * King - One block east is the St. Lawrence Market neighbourhood.
 * Union - Two and half blocks east along Front St will bring you to the St Lawrence Market.

Streetcar 504 King has two branches which overlap along King Street. Branch 504A runs from downtown to the Distillery District while branch 504B continues to Broadview Station on subway line 2 (Bloor-Danforth). Both branches connect with the U-shaped subway line 1 at St. Andrew and King stations.

Streetcar 506 Carlton runs through Cabbagetown from College Station on subway line 1 at Yonge St.

Bus 65 Parliament serves Parliament Street through Cabbagetown to Castle Frank Station on subway line 2 (Bloor-Danforth).

Bus 121 Fort York-Esplanade runs from Exhibition Place via Front Street and Union Station on subway line 1 (King St at Yonge St) and continues past St Lawrence Market to the east entrance of the Distillery District on Cherry Street at Mill Street.

Both streetcar 504B and bus 65 come within 2 blocks of the Distillery District, but streetcar 504A and bus 121 will deliver you right to its east entrance. There is more frequent service on route 504 than on routes 65 or 121.

By car
The main streets are Carlton and Parliament.

See
Sites of interest are mostly clustered north of Gerrard Street or south of Queen Street.

Church-Wellesley Village
On Church Street between Isabella to the north and Carlton to the south you will find more restaurants than just about anywhere in the city in a comparable distance (comparable to Greektown). The restaurants often suffer in Toronto's tourist districts, this is no exception. If you have to eat here, the take-out often beats sit-down, and you get to walk. There are several good "sub" joints north of Wellesley on Church. The key here is that you are eating as part of a larger plan to be out with friends for drinks, socializing, dancing and having a wild time. ''See also LGBT Toronto for more listings in this neighbourhood. ''