Mother is a Queen West cocktail bar where fermentation, natural ingredients, and low-waste technique drive the drink list. Go for Dirty Tomato, zero-proof Tomato Soup, polished small plates, and a candlelit room that still leaves room for walk-ins.

PREQUEL & CO. APOTHECARY is a Queen West cocktail lounge built around Frankie Solarik's apothecary theatre, a serious Champagne-and-absinthe drinks program, and French-leaning small plates. Reserve for the room, lead with the cocktails, and use the food as part of the bar experience.

The Carbon Bar is a Queen East restaurant where oysters, cocktails, seafood, live-fire barbecue, Sunday brunch, and large-format platters all share the same downtown dining room.

Black Sheep is a third-floor Irish cocktail bar in Liberty Village, open Wednesday through Saturday until 2 a.m. The draw is high-end cocktails, a patio room, and a pub menu with Traditional Irish Spice Bag, Irish Espresso Martini, Black Sheep Nachos, Guinness BBQ Sliders, and zero-proof cocktails.

Reposado Bar & Lounge is an Ossington agave bar built around tequila, mezcal, live music, and a compact tapas menu. The Reposado Margarita, Mezcal Flight, fresh ceviche, and back patio make it a drink-led Toronto night rather than a full-dinner play.

RHAPSODY is a late-night Ossington cocktail room with a current Chinese comfort-food menu: Dragon Box, Spice Bag, crispy chili beef, duck rolls, prawn toast and seafood snacks. It works best as a reservation-led night out, especially when happy hour or a first cocktail frames the food.