Like fellow restaurateurs born, raised and flourishing in Toronto, Richard Parrot knows the city melting pot and its denizens inside out from years of experience. Bar Wellington is close to the hipster heart, capturing the low-end spirit of a high-end area.

Bar Wellington has positioned itself in the hipster leagues; a pumping little venue fueled by the area’s activity, tinged with elements of coffee house idealism.

“This is a very cool neighbourhood,” said Parrot, matter-of-factly, referring to his new surroundings at the corner of Wellington and Portland. “This spot is already a magnet for the advertising types in the area. And we’re finding that these people are, in fact, the Bedford customers all over again - just older now, out of school and with paying jobs.”

From the outside, Bar Wellington looks fairly similar to the other buildings on that particular stretch of Wellington. However, within the unassuming edifice is one of the area’s coziest confines. Among other things, the atmosphere throughout the three-floor bar is surprisingly eclectic; the classic interior drawing from the turn-of-the-century structure, which may sound heavy but translates well, with raw wood tables, framed posters and pressed tin ceilings.

Bar Wellington serves up pizza, burgers and a full breakfast line-up to a very hip, down-to-earth bunch, the early evening crowd is very Industry, since the area is ad agency megopolis, with a trickling of the fashionistas who saunters by.