What’s on the menu at Baby’s Cabaret, an intimate nightclub with retro vibes
A new place to party on Queen Street West
Name: Baby’s Cabaret
Contact: 563 Queen St. W., Toronto, babyscabaret.com, @babyscabaret
Neighbourhood: Queen West
Previously: Daisy
Owners: Reza Abedi and Chris Solhi
Chef: Carlo Macaraig
Accessibility: Not wheelchair accessible
Nightlife gurus Reza Abedi and Chris Solhi (Goldie, Lavelle, Lobby), the partners behind Baby’s Cabaret—Queen West’s scene-y new dance club and lounge—wanted to offer partiers something a little extra on the strip that started it all. “This was the most vibrant area of the city for a long time,” says Abedi.“It’s gone through a lot of changes, and it meant a lot to us when we were coming up, so we thought, Let’s try to restore it to its former glory.”
Baby’s isn’t a typical watering hole. Inside the tight, swanky space—brazenly filled with plush leopard-print carpet—DJs spin present-day anthems and pop classics while go-go dancers twirl around brass rails or perform old-school burlesque and high rollers who order bottle service lounge in velvet booths wearing complimentary slippers and other Baby’s swag. Bartenders sling retro drinks that hark back to the ’90s, a time when Queen Street was in its prime and King West was a ghost town still waiting for the likes of Susur Lee to turn it into what it’s become today. “We didn’t want a huge King Street bar,” says Abedi. “We wanted a small spot for the late-night crowd to enjoy something different and go crazy in a more intimate and wild setting. The kind of place we remember—but better.”
The Food
Since the 10 p.m. opening time isn’t exactly conducive to five-course tasting menus, the food menu is decidedly snacky. Savoury small plates like house-made pickles, olives, a variety of gourmet cheeses and rich cured meats are on hand to help absorb whatever it is that needs absorbing. There’s also a rotating selection of crunchy things, like chips, crostini and mixed nuts, called the Salty Snack Flight.
The Drinks
A solid selection of beer and wine meets a list of high-octane cocktails that takes its cues from those nuclear-coloured ’90s concoctions (hello, blue curaçao!) that today’s mixologists might pooh-pooh. Hpnotiq liqueur—which at tastes like tropical fruit punch and looks like blue raspberry candy—plays centre stage in the cabaret’s signature cocktail, the Baby Blue, and Sour Puss Red (remember Sour Puss?) joins tequila and Chambord in the surprisingly balanced Electric Ladyland. To get the Mariah Carey treatment, a long list of high-end spirits are available for bottle service
The Space
The design of the tight room embraces the gauche. “It took me a long time to find a designer who would agree with my need for a lot of leopard print,” laughs Abedi. He finally found a co-conspirator in textile artist Candice Kaye. Hand-drawn wallpaper with jaguar illustrations lines the walls, leopard-print carpeting fills the space, sensual velvet couches suggest animal fur, and strips of neon lighting and mirrored ceilings bring that so-bad-it’s-good quality home.
NEVER MISS A TORONTO LIFE STORY
Sign up for Table Talk, our free newsletter with essential food and drink stories.
