Do good ideas come from coffee houses?

Is going for coffee a great way to create better ideas? How about being on Facebook while you're there? Maybe Toronto's coffee shops are good for more than just coffee, conversation and culture... creativity?

Te Aro's French press impresses us coffee newbs

Te Aro has been written about a fair bit. In fact, many Toronto cafes have been lately. Specialty coffee shops are a newer thing in Toronto, part of Toronto's new food and drink culture that's taken off.

So sitting in this former garage at a twelve-foot long table of a single tree, we (PLe and Darcy) are impressed by our french presses and the atmosphere of this place. We don't know anything about coffee, and we're using our independent coffee passport to try the places in town.

A good balance between rustic and chic, Te Aro freshly roasts its beans in house and produces a good, fresh coffee along with some baked goods and a daily vegan soup - we shared a strong Thai curry. The streetcars whisp by on Queen East Leslieville, and it's all super cool and gentrified.

We're the last people here along with another couple of folks as the staff are cleaning up. We'd recommend this place. The atmosphere reflects the demographics of the neighbourhood - a couple families with young children... not the singles of downtown. Te Aro takes its name from the Māori word for another inner suburb in Wellington, New Zealand.


mixed crowd, good coffee, french press, use of garage, yummy bread, vegan option


soup too sour