he Cadillac Lounge: take a hyperactive neighbourhood bar, add a 4,000 square-foot patio, mix it with a dash of live entertainment, sprinkle heavily with curious downtowners (but go easy, as we don’t want to ruin the taste), and then throw in virtually every thirsty neighourhood dweller you can possibly imagine (from the Parkdale art students to that bitchy spinster on heavy prescription meds).

While the lounge itself may sit in plain sight - with half a Cadillac as an overhead awning - the expanded patio hides out back, which means a gratifying walk through the bar. In that walk, one expects to see Elvis Impersonators ensconced in one of the faux-leopard armchairs of the lounge area, or perhaps guzzling pints of Amsterdam at the long bar. Smoky windows add a bit of light to the dark room, which is flanked by a bar at one end and a large stage at the other.

Once you've made your way through, you'll see much change out back. When nightlife aficionado Sam Grosso (former owner of Graffiti's Bar & Grill) opened his quirky Parkdale bar, a nicely-sized outdoor patio came with it. But it took the purchase of the building next door to bring new life (and square-footage) to the patio.

"I bought the building next door for its back yard," says a beaming Grosso, gesturing over to what was previously the neighbour's yard, now a vast addition to his patio. "I had been looking over at that unkempt brush for years, and when I heard that the building had come up for sale, I did everything in my power to get the property."