A peek inside Parts and Labour, a new Parkdale restaurant that unites owners of The Social, Oddfellows and Castor Design
First Cowbell, then Local Kitchen, and now this.
With the arrival of Parts and Labour, a hardware store transformed into a restaurant, the tail end of Queen West takes another step from weekend antiquing destination to social hub. Parkdale locals are excited about the new spot, and with good reason: it represents a new partnership between the owners of The Social, Castor Design and Oddfellows.
During a tour with Richard Lambert, one of the owners, we’re told that Parts and Labour is designed for “Social graduates who want to be more mature and don’t go out to clubs as much anymore.” He adds with a laugh, “We also have a no-electronic-music policy.”
Although the space is huge (6,000 square feet) and seats 120, Lambert insists that Parts and Labour is not a supper club catering to rich, condo-dwelling 30-somethings. “I hate the term ‘supper club,’” he says. “This is first and foremost a restaurant, but with a laid-back, rock ’n’ roll vibe to it.” And since the neighbourhood has many low-income housing complexes, Lambert says the goal is to make the place inviting to everyone—not just fans of Oddfellows and The Social. “You can have bolognese for $12 or a salad for $6. There are also entreés for $35. You can spend $10 or $100 here.”
The restaurant is still weeks away from opening, but elements of Oddfellows and Castor Design are already evident. Designers Brian Richer and Kei Ng are bringing in communal tables (eight in the main dining room), as well as their iconic cylindrical light fixtures made of fluorescent bulbs. The firm is also playing up its quirkiness with a wall made of car windshields at the entrance and bar stools that resemble huge springs.
Oddfellows’ chef, Matty Matheson, will be in charge of the menu and will be cooking here five nights a week (he will retain his post as executive chef at Oddfellows). The back of the restaurant will double as a venue for parties and art shows, and the basement, called The Shop, will act as a music venue.
“It’s definitely becoming a foodie destination,” says Lambert. “Cowbell is beside us, and Mitzi’s Sister is a few doors down. It’s the reason why we’re here. We’re not in a saturated neighbourhood, so we can be more flexible with what we do. I don’t think this would work if we opened on Richmond.”
Parts and Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. (at Sorauren Ave.), 416-588-7750, partsandlabour.ca.
![](http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=https://torontolife.com/food/a-peek-inside-parts-and-labour-a-new-parkdale-restaurant-that-unites-owners-of-the-social-oddfellows-and-castor-design/&title=A peek inside Parts and Labour, a new Parkdale restaurant that unites owners of The Social, Oddfellows and Castor Design&picture=https://torontolife.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/03/PartsandLabour.jpg&description=[caption id="attachment_19628" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="Parts and Labour: under construction (Image: Karon Liu)"][/caption]
First Cowbell, then Local Kitchen, and now this.
With the arrival of Parts and Labour, a hardware store transformed into a restaurant, the tail end of Queen West takes another step from weekend antiquing destination to social hub. Parkdale locals are excited about the new spot, and with good reason: it represents a new partnership between the owners of The Social, Castor Design and Oddfellows.
During a tour with Richard Lambert, one of the owners, we’re told that Parts and Labour is designed for “Social graduates who want to be more mature and don’t go out to clubs as much anymore.” He adds with a laugh, “We also have a no-electronic-music policy.”
Although the space is huge (6,000 square feet) and seats 120, Lambert insists that Parts and Labour is not a supper club catering to rich, condo-dwelling 30-somethings. “I hate the term ‘supper club,’” he says. “This is first and foremost a restaurant, but with a laid-back, rock ’n’ roll vibe to it.” And since the neighbourhood has many low-income housing complexes, Lambert says the goal is to make the place inviting to everyone—not just fans of Oddfellows and The Social. “You can have bolognese for $12 or a salad for $6. There are also entreés for $35. You can spend $10 or $100 here.”
The restaurant is still weeks away from opening, but elements of Oddfellows and Castor Design are already evident. Designers Brian Richer and Kei Ng are bringing in communal tables (eight in the main dining room), as well as their iconic cylindrical light fixtures made of fluorescent bulbs. The firm is also playing up its quirkiness with a wall made of car windshields at the entrance and bar stools that resemble huge springs.
Oddfellows’ chef, Matty Matheson, will be in charge of the menu and will be cooking here five nights a week (he will retain his post as executive chef at Oddfellows). The back of the restaurant will double as a venue for parties and art shows, and the basement, called The Shop, will act as a music venue.
“It’s definitely becoming a foodie destination,” says Lambert. “Cowbell is beside us, and Mitzi’s Sister is a few doors down. It’s the reason why we’re here. We’re not in a saturated neighbourhood, so we can be more flexible with what we do. I don’t think this would work if we opened on Richmond.”
Parts and Labour, 1566 Queen St. W. (at Sorauren Ave.), 416-588-7750, partsandlabour.ca.){kind=link}
Did you speak to Parkdale locals who expressed excitement over this as you stated in the article? Because I live just steps away from this new bar and my neighbours and I are definitely not excited about another night club opening up in the area. Just try to walk, bike or drive through the eastern edge of Parkdale on a Saturday night and you will see why.
I just don’t understand when people complain about their area in Toronto becoming too busy and like a night club area on a Saturday night…you live in Toronto!! There are certain areas in Toronto that you can live that are a bit quieter but complaining that an area on Queen, very close to downtown is getting busy should not surprise anyone! I don’t go out on a Saturday night in specific areas in Toronto, not expecting to see large crowds because that’s what you SHOULD expect in large cities! Thanks:)
I’m a bit nervous about the whole endeavour but as long as there is no electronic music, it could be ok. I’m gonna hold this to the owners….we also don’t want plastic young folk around talking their shite. Alas, I shall hold my tongue and my criticism until i experience the place. Don’t disappoint me please!…
Really Lambert? Everyone? How about the crack addicts and mentally ill who currently populate the neighbourhood? Will the place be inviting to them? It’s preposterous to me that Lambert, a BMW driving hipster who appropriates the misery of the poor as irony (‘The Social’ is another term for welfare) pretends to care about lower income residents.
The venue has seats for 120, but it’s licensed as a restaurant with 417 occupants. By law, seating must be provided for at least half of those 417. Sounds like they intend to run it as a night club, not a restaurant.
I agree with monstereo. I’m not excited about Lambert setting up shop in the area, but the opinions of existing residents weren’t solicited because Lambert and crew craftily circumvented any of our qualms by applying for their license during the civic strike. Pretty shady. I know Gord Perks tried to put an end to the proposed rooftop terrace. Hopefully he was successful, because Parkdale is starting to resemble the Entertainment District.
If Social is any indication, noise will certainly be an issue, but I can’t help but feel that even worse than this, the shiny people will continue to use our community as their drunken playground and cause disruptions with the locals. Not long ago, I witnessed an SUV of laquered trogladytes and their giggling cohorts verbally assault a mentally ill panhandler, and my neighbour saw another group throw eggs at a prostitute. Do we need to suffer more of this in the name of ‘progress’?
As a practicing urban planner and Parkdale resident, take it from me that no neighbourhood is stable. They are all constantly evolving. Sure, some faster than others. If you expect your neighbourhood to remain stable, then don’t expect the city to continue spend any of their scarce budget there any longer. Take care of your own garbage. Get your own water. Fix your own roads. This venue represents a group of tax-aying business owners who have the right to generate much needed revenue for your service provision. Ever been to Detroit? No complaints about new businesses opening there. Also, real estate is very inexpensive. I’d encourage you to check it out and compare.
I grew up in Parkdale in the 80’s and live here now. I went to grade school at King and Jamieson. Parkdale has improved tenfold, and is only now beginning to bear any resemblance to it’s heyday prior to the 1950’s. I applaud PnL for bringing vibrancy to a well deserving place.
I live right around the corner from where this is opening up. Very excited for a new restaurant and music venue. I love the food at Oddfellows, so I can’t wait to eat at Parts and Labour! A welcome addition to the neighbourhood – the west west end desperately needs a music venue!!!
Yes new business is welcome in Parkdale; venues like P & L may help my neighbourhood thrive. But I have to agree with the earlier post re: P&L’s seemingly crafty approach to a liquor licensing strategy, and the continuing rumours that they will seek a rooftop license in the wake of very real neighbourhood concerns. It may be Queen Street, but it’s a stone’s throw from where people live/sleep/seek to enjoy their own backyards. It’s not the entertainment district, and Parkdale residents deserve the same respect that Ossington & Annex residents get re: careful consideration of what venues best reflect the neighbourhood. Supper club? Fine. But live music venue with a capacity for hundreds of patrons? Hmmm.
Really looking forward to the opening June 4 :)
The food at Oddfellows is great, Chef Matty does a great job with the comfort food so I look forward to his new and expanded menu.
Yes this is first and foremost a restaurant :)
The reason they have a “no-electronic-music-policy” is that they can’t get the much coveted Entertainment License and therefore have to run it under a Restaurant License instead (DJ and dancefloor are criteria for requiring an Entertainment License). The Social also opened under a Restaurant License and when they were unable to get an Entertainment License they started working on this new club instead — hoping that Parkdale will be much slower than West Queen West to outlaw nightclubs.
Too bad, if Toronto wasn’t trying so hard to shut down all the nightclubs, they wouldn’t keep moving into new neighbourhoods like Parkdale.
This is good.
Adding vibrancy and economics to an area is usually a good thing. Embracing change is always a better attitude – this refined crowd that Parts and Labour are trying to entice should be more sympathetic to the neighbourhood than the ‘super clubs’ operating elsewhere.
Good Luck Parts and Labour!
The Social is a hotbed for scum!
This new joint better not screw around, because there are many
more opinionated residents nearby that might decide to take the law into their own hands.
Ye be warned!
Waaaaaaahhhh I live downtown in a major North American city! Waaaaahhhhh I also live near Queen West where something new is coming. Waaaahhhh I have no understanding of what’s actually happening but want to complain about what it might end up being. Get bent people, exciting food and live music won’t hurt you. If you want to hear crickets all night go to the burbs, can’t have it both ways.
Social is a great establishment that serves it’s patrons well. You are in one of the world’s largest global cities. Deal with it or get the f out. Parkdale residents get with it, this is a good thing for your bourough.
Yes, there is a knee-jerk reaction to anything related to the Social “invading” this stretch of Parkdale. I live here and welcome more nice placed to eat and even more punk rock shows. The problem is not changing neighbourhoods, or fancier places coming in.
The problem is clubs in the guise of restaurants opening in residential neighbourhoods. There is a reason that gross Entertainment District exists — because after years of residents near the Copa and the Phoenix complainiing about drukerds shouting into the night and pissing on their lawns the city created a zone for nighttime fun away from where people actually live and sleep. Now you’ve got people buying condos to be near that action, then growing up a bit and complaining that the entertainment district is just too darned entertaining. And on the other end, people who want to run nightclubs that are not in that zone, so sneakily getting restaurant licenses then operating them as nightclubs. (Hello, Wrongbar. Add as many chefs as you want, you are CLEARLY operating as a DJ/dance/nightclub.)
If it’s true that P+L is already contravening its license before doors even open (if poster Dea’s correct about the number of seats required, etc.), we’re off to a lousy start.
There is a huge difference between a bar restaurant and a club. Bar/restaurant people generally don’t pile up on the sidewalk hollering as late as 3 or 4 in the morning night after night after night with taxi cabs honking at them. Sure, in Parkdale there have always been drunks making a fuss on Queen at all hours, that’s part of the life here. But clubs attract them by the dozens or even hundreds, night after night. People who live in the city have a right to sleep. Telling us to move to the burbs is ridiculous. We’re not the ones breaking the noise and restaurant by-laws.
Last nights soft opening to friends and family was stupendous! The food was great, the vibe is fun and exciting. Our server Lisa was a delight. I didn’t see one drunk in the place, just a lot of people excited to try out a classy new restaurant :)
I had the lamb heart tartar to open and the short-rib for my main. For dessert I had the burnt honey ice-cream and it was spectacular :) They make all their own ice-creams in house.
The open concept kitchen with 3 chef’s tables was very popular and gives you a birds-eye view into the work flow of great kitchen. Much better than watching the food network :)
Since the live music is in the basement, called “The Shop” (in keeping with the Parts & Labour theme) it’s a small room so it’s highly unlikely anyone more than 20 ft from the building will hear anything other than a muffed thump or two.
Have any of the critics who have no clue as to what this place is, seen the blog about the roof top garden?? These guys are on the cutting edge of fresh eats in this city.
http://parksrecroof.blogspot.com/
The official opening is June 10
aaaw poor crackies and hookers will be displaced by the hipsters. Gentrify away boys!
Sorry to say, but the food at Oddfellow’s isn’t very good, at least not good enough (this is my own opinion, mind you) to warrant another restaurant being opened with this chef. I suspect it will be more club-like which will definitely take the emphasis off of the food, but for $35 on a main, I’m going to be expecting far far more than the passable ‘French’ food that’s served at Oddfellows currently. The place has always seemed like a cool place to eat, but not one of particular quality.
Design wise I think it’s overdone and obnoxious, but I think that’s the clientele they are aiming for.
menu looks eclectic and fun but seriously only one local wine… AN ICEWINE ! Embarassing and a slap in the face to the other restaurants Cowbell and the Local Kitchen who focus on local food AND local wine. Also the lounge and live music aspect is not looking good.
As both restaurants & live music venues go, I do not think this place will be able to compete with fun, funky (& less expensive spots) like Mitsy’s Sister or the Cadillac Lounge.
the food is very average at oddfellows…i am sure it’ll be the same at parts and labour. they aren’t interested in sourcing fine food products – they like to buy all their food in the same place they get their cleaning supplies and toilet paper (the one stop shop).
what’s so special about another place like that?
save your time and money…go to pizza libretto
pizza libretto … don’t waste your time or money
This place is TERRIBLE. Long line ups. Bad customer service. The food is burnt yet soggy (not sure how they managed to do such a poor job). There are many better pizza places in Toronto. If you get stuck in this area for dinner I’d recommend walking across the street to BQM (Burger Shoppe). The food, atmosphere, customer service and drink selection is 100% better than Pizzeria Libretto! Pizzeria Libretto… you need to get down from your high horse and humble yourself.
you missed my point mr. paine. i was talking about how oddfellows is less than average.
last time i looked we lived in a free society where we could voice our opinions. do you feel better after writing your last sentance? no need to be mean.
Mr/Ms Bap,
You made no valid point, you made false statements regarding Oddfellows sourcing of ingredients. I do not consider lies to be valid in any way, shape or form.
You expressed your opinion freely, I expressed mine or would you rather I not?
anyone who eats here deserves to get all the equine parasites they serve via their horse meals
laquered trogladytes!
I live right across from Parts and Labour. The noise is not an issue and any day I would feel safer walking by a bunch a drunk kids and taxi cabs at night then finding myself alone with a couple of crack heads staring at me. That’s what it used to be like when I first moved in. A little bit of loud street traffic is well worth it if it’s the price for feeling safer. I don’t understand how people can put up such a stink towards something that attracts new revenue to an area that needs it badly. More street traffic will help all the small business around. I just wish people would give them a chance before pouncing on them over assumptions. I hope more new restaurants and nice bars open in Parkdale then more people can see what a beautiful neighbourhood we have. Also, yes, if you live off of Queen (a major artery to downtown toronto) it’s a little silly to think you are going to live in a quiet suburban neighbourhood, you should move if that’s what you are looking for.