In case you haven't figured it out yet, this is no trendy nightspot. If you prefer antiseptic hotel bars as part of your airport experience, hang around Pearson International. This place has been doing its thing since 1995 and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, a lot of the regulars have been coming here since day one and can still go toe-to-toe with anyone in town, if for no other reason than they combine their dining with energetic drinking.

An intimate local setting, Club Lucky is an inviting neighborhood resto with more than a touch of salon-like playfulness. The crowd is wildly diverse and is more into drinking and lounging than dining, as the moniker and location may suggest. Club Lucky has an easy-going mix of 20- or 30-somethings dressed casually. The crowd intermingles, trading handshakes and stories, and there's a natural respect for everyone. The John Street location has a decidedly down-tempo lounge-like feel. Club Lucky’s colorful atmosphere, good food and moderately priced drinks attract lively crowds on the weekend.

The menu is the same from Club Lucky’s sister restaurant, Kit Kat, short, Italian and to the point. Dinner items include hotel dining fare like Osso Bucco Milanese, Veal Piccata and something we haven’t seen since the eighties - the ubiquitous Surf and Turf. But, the plates are generous and surprisingly well-prepared. The Filet Mignon deserves a special mention as the cut is generous, and cooked to juicy perfection.

Club Lucky’s kitchen turns out big, heartland-flavored dishes, the martinis are flowing, but the real draw here is the down-home coziness Friendliness is a key factor, starting with the staff. Bartenders and waitstaff are very fun and always smiling. The main clientele consists of hotel folk and local workers dressed in the latest fashions, but you'll always find pockets of curious urban couples who come to hang out as well. The main thing to remember when you come is to relax. It is a laid-back joint in a hip neighborhood.

The room full of people offers a mellifluous smell to the nostrils. A woman's perfume. A leather coat. A freshly lit cigarette. A scotch on the rocks. When mixed, they can keep the room interesting on more than one sensory level.

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Reader Reviews

ketchup wannabee sauce
John Toronto
July 22, 2003
If the Italian victual consists of uncooked meals, i.e., dehydrated pasta
tossed in a humdrum-ketchup wannabee sauce, then, this is the place to go. Likewise, if the Toronto fare equates to succoring restaurant service suffering from amnesia, well you guessed it, this is the place to be. Nothing Lucky about this place.


Joy, Toronto
October 24
You want Italian? Good Italian? Authentic Italian? Go to Tony Bullonni's. In the meantime, how can I tell you to avoind this place at all costs. KitKat decided that they'd get smart and get some more room happening for their patrons. Except, now you have to walk up the street and stand in line for a second time in this dingy, overdue for an overhaul, bar turned restaurant. How many times have I wanted to tell the manager/maitre'd to "go F**K youself you fat, pretentious little troll!" Phew. Sorry, I get a little carried away because of the number of times my reserved seat has been given away to a celebrity athlete that just happens to wander through the door as my table become free, finally after two hours of sitting at the bar. There is more seating at Club Lucky, I am told. All this waiting for what? An overpriced plate of pasta, that barely palatable to begin with? I think not. But seriously, you want fantastic Italian, great service at a reasonable price, because after all it is just pasta..