oronto is a city with strange mystical energy. This often bubbles to the surface in the guise of lounge beats and astonishingly delicious cocktails. Here are the spots that have had a seismic effect on Toronto in 2006....



The Boat
A Portuguese restaurant-turned Chucks-and-nods hot (literally, especially in the drip-warm summer)-spot, the Boat draws crowds for disparate parties and dust-vinyl nights. Local acts spin, strum, meld, and wear skinny ties. Take some Gravol, cuff your jeans, and tilt your head back, moving your hair just enough to see the stairs as you ascend to this faux-ship for the vest crowd. 158 Augusta Avenue, Toronto, ON Full Story



Coca
Cocktails, sherry, and tapas! Just bring those raciones on and take us now, right on top of this ultra-hip table! Hopefully your date will be just as, uh, impressed with your choice of eatery. Coca feels fancy, but the prices are more than reasonable. Patrons soak up the social scene and the high hipster-quotient over some comfortable fare, but if it's culinary improvisation and big boy plates that you're after, go someplace else; Coca specializes in small-bite, Spanish tapas. -J.B. 783 Queen Street West, Toronto, ON Full Story



The Cobourg
The sexy vibe and excellent drinkage at this Cabbagetown neo-institution make it an ideal get-to-know-you destination. The eponymous painting, a frozen-pond winterscape, decorates one wall; it's a soothing image and that calm pervades here. The space radiates soft, earthy

Because getting soused in the park is for hobos and Europeans

tones while Jazz and soul music fills the air. Couples are lost in conversation, cozily tucked into the ass-pleasing puffy chairs and couches. This is Toronto culture at its least pretentious and most inviting. 533 Parliament Street, Toronto, ON
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The Drake
I don't care if you hate it or love it: you will talk about the Drake in a decade; you will remember it in your drool-and-forget era. Like no other bar, the Drake elicits visceral responses from Torontonians. Though the weekend crowd has grown increasingly 905-heavy, weeknight clientele and diners still tend toward the Stober-era quasi-locals. With one of the best roof-top patios in the city, and an underground space that houses avant/indie nights and acts, the Drake is versatile, imposing, and influential. 1150 Queen Street West, Toronto, ON Full Story



Doku 15
As an unabashed wearer of Fendi rip-offs, I don't give a damn about Manolo Blahniks; but, if I were in the market for being on the market, I'd have my ugly shoes at Doku 15's bar on a regular basis. Though fake energy ignites this young thing, the sake-cocktail-culture makes it the perfect location to prove you're in-the-know-ness. Signature drinks reflect the environs and expert bartenders can mix up just about any classic (as long as it’s made with sake). 8 Colborne Street, Toronto, ON Full Story