Toronto’s Latest Addition to the Nightlife Scene, The Hartly, Paves the Way for More Supper Clubs to Open

When the global pandemic first made the news, no one anticipated how greatly it would affect the world. As the COVID-19 virus spread from one country to the next, governments were forced to take precaution, forcing multiple establishments to close down. The pandemic plunged many countries into an economic crisis, affecting restaurants among other industries. However, as the year went by and vaccines were developed, a sense of normalcy started to fill the air and people either resumed business or rebuilt.

Reza Abedi, owner of Lobby, a latin-inspired late night restaurant, has joined forces with co-founders of Daisy. Sam Reznick and Josh Herman of Daisy, an establishment in Toronto that goes beyond the typical nightclub. The venue is renowned for its innovative interior, transforming from an upscale cocktail lounge to a table service hotspot. Additionally, Daisy features a small room in the back that allows women to fix themselves up.

During the early days of the pandemic, the Goldie ownership group was forced to break up and close its establishment. When news reached Herman, he grew interested in taking over as the venue proved to be promising. “When we took over, we weren’t interested to keep the brand,” he revealed. “We revamped the whole place with Chef Daniel Ken (who previously worked with Blowfish and Lavelle).” Renaming the establishment “The Hartly,” it is quickly becoming Toronto’s hottest new restaurant.

With The Hartly’s revamp, they decided to focus the renovations on the bottom floor. His decision proved to be rewarding as it created a unique ambiance reminiscent of nightclubs in old, mystery films. The downstairs venue features a restaurant that doubles as a lounge. The Hartly also has a Variety theater for burlesque shows.

“We’ve built out a stage, changed fixtures, and added a 25-person communal table that doubles as a runway for entertainment,” shared Herman. “We’ve redesigned the whole space with a new footprint and functionality.”

Like Daisy, The Harley’s menu provides everything one can find in the nightclub from cocktails, hot and cold shares, salads, main dishes, and dessert. The Hartly team concocted some unique alcoholic beverages like the “Matcha White Rabbit,” a drink that consists of Blanco tequila, Licor 43, matcha coconut cream, and tapioca pearls. They also created the Umami Caesar, a dish that lets people select their choice of spirit, kimchi Clamato, umami bitters, and togarashi. The Hartly’s menu also gives people the option of having short ribs, branzino, or momotaro rigatoni for their meals and top it off with a lava cake.

Reznick hopes that the normalcy of businesses reopening is a sign that the lockdown days are finally over. “It’s time to get back to normal life,” he said. “You can’t live a normal Toronto life without a night out to King West every once in a while though.”

As the world slowly sets down, Herman, Reznick, and Abedi hope that the opening of The Hartly will pave the way for the nightlife scene to expand in Toronto. Although The Hartley has only just opened, they have plans to expand their new Hospitality Group to new locations throughout Canada and even internationally.

Learn more about The Hartly by visiting their official website.