Friday was a sad day for coffee lovers and Trinity Bellwoods visitors across the city, as one of the most popular cafes in the area announced their upcoming permanent closure.
If you live in Toronto, you've likely heard of (and hopefully visited) a Sam James Coffee Bar, where you're always sure to find excellent coffee, great music and overall positive vibes. Owner Sam James launched his Toronto coffee empire back in 2009, offering a welcoming and unfussy neighbourhood joint for folks across the city to sip on their espresso and catch up with friends. The style of his cafes has always been quite minimalist, but that never stopped loyal guests from cozying up on one of their benches with a good book or people-watching from the windows.
The original coffee bar is located on Harbord and still going strong today, but over the years, James has expanded into a number of additional locations to bring his beans across the city. They've also developed a solid retail program, roasting their own carefully-sourced beans and selling them wholesale to other cafes in the city, as well as direct to consumers through their website.
All five SJCB locations remained closed throughout the first six months of the pandemic, leaving many fans wondering if and when they would return. Finally, they opened up their Harbord, Ossington and Park cafes at the beginning of September, then announced three short weeks later the opening of a brand new location in Parkdale. It seemed that they were back on their feet, and that things were looking up for this beloved Toronto coffee roaster.
However, devastating news came on Friday as they took to Instagram to announce the closure of their Park location located at 917 Queen Street West, right across from Trinity Bellwoods park. “You gotta know when to hold em, and know when to fold em...” they said, announcing that their time would come to an end on December 24. They thanked all of their wonderful customers and staff who made the spot what it was: a meeting place, a community and a Queen West staple. Many folks took to the comments to share stories of their time at SJCB Park, from conversations on the bench to reading in the window and meeting new friends.
The good news is that Sam James still has three locations open across the city, so although Park will be deeply missed, now is the perfect time to go and support their other cafes. Grab a silky espresso drink to-go, purchase beans off their website to brew at home or snag some merch to proudly flaunt around town, and you will be helping to keep the other SJCB spots alive and well during these tough times!
