Hot spots for preshow bites

Best Eats

Having worked with the Arts Club Theatre Company for more than 12 years, Bryan Woo spends a lot of time at the Stanley Industrial Alliance Stage. Six shows at the venerable theatre every season mean that the director of sales and marketing, along with other crew and cast members, can frequently be found in South Granville’s eateries, raising a glass or two and refuelling.

“One of our favourites is the Ouisi Bistro,” says Woo of the strip’s New Orleans–style restaurant that specializes in Cajun and Creole cuisine. “We’re always there at the wrapup party after any performance.

For Million Dollar

Baby for our team dinner, we went to the Marquis [Grill]. It was really fun; we had a great time. It’s a casual, relaxed place with great food. That’s one of our team favourites. I love the beef bourguignon.”

A New York–style spot with items like burgers, flatbreads, and bratwurst, the Marquis is just one of several options for hungry theatregoers in South Granville, an area that, much like the city’s dining scene itself, has expanded, diversified, and grown up over the years. And the Stanley’s very presence in the neighbourhood—an anchor point—has contributed to the strip’s culinary blooming.

“One of the greatest things is the diversity of choices in the area now: economic diversity, dietary diversity,” Woo says. “There are so many options. Everyone is accommodated. I miss the old Red Door [Pan Asian Grill]. There’s been a lot of change but there’s also a lot of consistency.

“I really think the Stanley caps off an experience people can have on South Granville,” Woo adds. “There’s an incredible community feel with everyone who lives in that neighbourhood. Theatre patrons spend the day going shopping, going to cafés, sitting on a patio to grab dinner, then seeing a show. It’s an all-day outing, like a New York Broadway experience.”

Whether they’re subscribers or taking in a one-off, like season opener Angels in America or Beauty and the Beast, the club’s holiday selection, Stanley audiences have more than topquality theatre productions to chew