Stella

Stopped in on a cold night and had an amazing time! It was pretty quiet so we sat at the bar with the wonderful Brianna, who was equally talented and sweet. It was my friend’s birthday and she really went out of her to make it a great night. Her a hot toddy was one of the best things I’ve enjoyed in Bloordale in ages; her attention to detail was second to none. I just wish I’d taken a picture of it! In fact, we had gone in with the intention of just having a drink but ended up staying for hours because of the great service and killer drinks.
The bar also smelled phenomenal; the cooks were making a curry. We will be going back for dinner soon!

One of Bloordale’s best kept secrets. Stella is a stylish bar with great tasting home-​style Indian food. My favourites are the butter chicken and fish curry (both costs $ 11.50).

Nice little space with authentic dishes (curry inspired) to warm the palate on a cold winter day. Good assortment of beers on tap to pair with the dishes. Dark & Stormy and Whisky Sour… both nice options. Cozy and friendly no fuss atmosphere that delivers a wonderful plate. If curry’s your thing… this is most defiantly the place.

Everything about this place is awesome. The ambiance is great, the menu is simple — every item is perfectly done… and they serve food late into the night.

Came here for a late night meal and drink, and was not disappointed! Randomly stumbling into this bar, ordered the shrimp and green beans, as well as the veggie plate. Both came with curry and rice, cooked beautifully. Veggie plate came with egg plant, potato, cabbage, curry and rice. Had a curry flavor throughout, a good amount of spice to leave you reaching for your beer, not too spicy to ask for a glass of milk. The shrimp and green beans was the spiciest, but even then not overly spicy. Highly recommend this place!

Great beer list.
Delicious Dark and Stormy.
Great curry for only $ 10.
Good music.

I’m a regular. This food is absolutely incredible, some of the best traditional Indian food I’ve ever had. Great staff. Cheap drinks, large variety. Stella rocks my socks

Decent Music selection. Pitchers were a tad pricey at 24 $. My buddy had the curry burger and said it was really good. I’d come back but probably stick to mixed drinks.

A great spot for a drink with friends.
We came here a while back for Avitania’s birthday celebration. This was an ideal spot. The bartender was super nice, made great drinks, and didn’t seem to mind that we took over the whole place and rearranged all the furniture.
They also have curry on the menu, and the curry is indeed very very tasty. Somehow, I didn’t feel self conscious scarfing down a big plate of vegan curry while everyone else was drinking beer.
The place feels like you’re hanging out in your friend’s cool parents’ basement. They even had the same record player I had as a kid! Part of me wonders if it was actually the one I grew up with…

Was in here for the crawl. Yes, it was only the one visit and yes this place is seriously in the middle nowhere… if you live anywhere but in the hood.
The bartender was friendly, the beer was fine but for what I saw this place was not different than any other divey looking bar.
Standard bar, tall chairs, short chairs, cheaper looking décor. No idea on the food status (typical of me of most bars) and the place just seemed ‘alright.‘
However going all the way to Lansdowne for just an alright bar is not alright. Just not worth it.
If you live in the hood than you got yourself your typical watering hole and I would recommend it. Mind you the pickings around this hood… well, just remember the old sayin’ «In the land of the blind, the one with one eye is king.» It applies here.
Fun fact: 11 years ago, I lived 2 blocks north of this joint for 6 months! Would have visited more often had I known about it.

I’ve come to frequent this spot in recent weeks. Close to Lansdowne subway stop, it’s a good spot to meet friends who will venture west (to the ‘ass end of nowhere’ as Eric M notes) to meet up near me.
I say it’s well worth the trip for the Dark and Stormy alone, but they also offer a variety of beers and some delicious smelling curry that I have yet to try.
They’ve got open-​mike nights, and DJs on the weekend, but my favourite evenings are the quieter ones where Vince will play you his faves or you can bring your own!

I hesitated a bit to write a review about this place. I’ve been here three times, usually on a Saturday night and it’s never been crowded.
The main reason for this review is the awesome bartender they’ve got there! I don’t remember his name, but he’s British, friendly and easy to talk to.
He makes great drinks too!
This is a great place to bring friends and make new ones!

Came here one night to listen to Fabio blast out some good tunes. But didn’t stay too long.
On my follow-​up visit with some friends we had a good time. The place was packed on a Saturday night and unfortunately they were short staffed. The bartender though was in good spirits and made the best of the situation.
Like any good hipster bar they have tallboys of Steigel. Mmm, mmm good.
Try the dark and stormy.

Ugh, the music was way too loud for conversation – in a room this size, you hardly need a sound system. It’s a cozy living room-​sized bar: lots of mismatched chairs and dark walls, a single bartender, some cool drink specials (the Dark and Stormy? YUM. And the bartender’s pretty generous with the liquor). It’s a good place to go with people you don’t really need to talk to – don’t bring a first date here!

This place is amazing. Shame on you and your three or less star reviews. Vince is fantastic and this place would easily become my local if it wasn’t in the ass end of nowhere.
I haven’t had the chance to try the food but that was because I made the mistake of eating somewhere else first and just needed more drinks. I’m glad we stumbled in here even if it wasn’t trivia night (again, my fault because I got the dates wrong).
Try their dark and stormy if you like fresh lime in your drinks.
Other important details include, walls and ceiling to keep the elements outside where they belong. Washrooms at the back are a little dark and foreboding but clean and functional which is all that really matters.
I honestly can’t understand why I haven’t been back here yet and it’s only been a week since I found out about it.

The Toronto Lover system:
5 stars = Must visit!
4 stars = Really good. I take my friends here.
3 stars = Somewhat worth it… if you have nowhere better to go.
2 stars = Below average. Attend only when necessary.
1 star = Do not visit!
This is a room near Bloor and Lansdowne that has a bar. There are tables and chairs. There is no air conditioning.
That is it. The vibe and your experience at Stella comes straight from the group you’re with, or the entertainment of the night (acoustic performers or perhaps a DJ.)
I’m not even sure what I’m reviewing, because the venue itself only offers four walls and an exchange of drinks for money. If this is the kind of minimal service and atmosphere that hipsters feel the need to leave their living rooms for, then who am I to judge?
Oh wait, I’m me. This place will get tired very fast unless its owners go to the trouble of offering *something* to keep customers from losing interest. I’m not satisfied by Stella, but I’m curious to see where it goes.
2 stars

Although this place is just average, it has a nice ambiance to it. Dimly lit, slightly crowed, but in an intimate way.
There are simple wooded tables and chairs, with a decent sized bar with seating.
I was only there for 30 minutes but I will remember it as an alright place to grab a few brews.
You gotta try the Dark and Stormy; Ginger beer and rum. It’s delicious!

CMYE: Bloordale Bar Crawl #1
Drink: Sleeman’s Light
Café with no food? OK Café Stella is a drinking place only until the Chef return from his vacation?
Surprising only 1 draft available. nothing against Steam Whistle… but hey I am not visiting Steam Whistle Brewery today.
They do have great selections of bottle/​can beers. I had the Sleeman Light secretly hoping it is really light in calories because I don’t want a beer belly yet!
Furnitures remained me of tables and chairs when I was still in elementary/​high school… secretly wishing it wasn’t that long ago. I wish I can have some more comfy chairs to lounge around…

Very cool place. The owner was super friendly and served our drinks quickly considering he was the only one there.
Cheap décor and furniture, the usual hipster-​ish kind of set up I’m seeing a lot of lately.
Great booze selection and love the large menu clearly indicating what you can order and how much it costs. (Some bars fail miserably at this). I liked the sound of the «whineing pomegranate» drink, although I wasn’t up for trying it at 7pm on a Tuesday night. Maybe next time!
Hope the chef gets back from vacation soon so I can return to sample some food.

Stellar. A new favorite.
Arguably the best hipster music bar in town. Hand selected… curated content. Turntables if you need them.
What was once a derelict hangout has become the perfect place to grab a drink while forgetting the cold world outside.
Everything’s been revamped. From the beautiful new bar top to the suddenly-​awesome selection of beer and perfectly priced single malt scotch.
A place where you wouldn’t be caught dead is now date-​night worthy.
Street cred meets sophistication.
The city is alive.
The rotting flesh of burnt-​out crackheads has given way to the sweet smell of urban gentrification.
Strongly recommended.