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Lava down, Supermarket up
It seems like every time you turn around, another Toronto nightlife institution is closing its doors to make way for condominiums. Infamous leather bar the Toolbox has been having an extended farewell party all summer, and now, on the other side of town, the Lava Lounge will soon be closing, too.
Lava was originally slated to close at the end of August. Owner Greg Bottrell will open a new restaurant lounge in nearby Kensington Market, in a former pool hall at the top of Augusta.
“We actually just found out that we’re getting another month,” Bottrell says. “We were given our six-months’ notice, and the September 1 Mod Club party was supposed to be our last night, but our landlord just called us up and gave us another month.”
The new bar, Supermarket , is tentatively scheduled to open at the end of September with A Man Called Warwick ‘s record fair and sale. John Kong will be doing some of the programming for the new nights, but the plan is to keep the Tuesday-night reggae event as well as Wednesday night’s long-running Mod Club. Expect a brand new menu focusing on Japanese noodles.
Bottrell is trying to stay sensitive to the challenges of integrating into a new location.
“Kensington’s a different neighbourhood. People go to bed earlier and it’s a lot quieter. We may try something like a kids’ series on Saturday afternoons like the old Bamboo’s.”
