Patio season in Toronto is short, so you do not want to waste a sunny weekend on a mediocre one. This is the real ranking of the best patios in the city, the rooftops with the skyline view, the waterfront day-clubs and the downtown drink spots where the afternoon turns into the night, judged on what the place actually feels like when the sun is out and it is full.
TT By the TopTorontoClubs teamUpdated June 20267 min readWe actually go out
Toronto's patios split into a few clear lanes, and knowing which one you want is half the battle. The rooftop patios are the showpieces, perched above King West and the financial core with the downtown skyline as the backdrop, dressy crowds and a view you pay a little extra for. The waterfront patios trade the skyscrapers for Lake Ontario, all white decor and pool-deck energy, closer to a Miami beach club than a Toronto bar. And the downtown street-level patios are where the city actually drinks, the King West and Adelaide West spots where a casual afternoon rolls straight into a proper night out without ever moving your group.
So we did the legwork. We aim this guide at the young professionals and weekend crowd, roughly 20 to 35, who want to be where the city's socialites actually are, not a generic list of every backyard with a beer. We have stood on these rooftops, day-drunk by the water and bounced between the King West patios on foot. This ranking is honest: the view, the vibe, the crowd that shows and whether it is a daytime spot or a place that goes all night. No paid placements. Here is the order we would send a friend in.
1
Lavelle
The rooftop patio that turns into a night out
Fashion District · King West
TypeRooftop patio & pool
ViewDowntown skyline
CrowdDressed-up, 21-35
Best forDay-to-night, hip-hop
NightsFri & Sat
Address627 King St W
Lavelle has been the rooftop patio in Toronto for years, and it earns the top spot because it does the one thing the others do not: it carries you from an afternoon by the pool all the way into a real night out without you ever leaving. It sits on the top floor of a King West and Bathurst tower at 627 King St W, with two pools, a clear downtown skyline view and a resto-lounge layout that spins hip-hop, R&B and trap to set the vibe as the sun drops.
The crowd is dressed-up and social, the kind of put-together 21-to-35 room you come to King West for. The catch is the same thing that makes it special: those pools eat into the floor space, so capacity is genuinely limited and it fills fast on a sunny Friday or Saturday. Get there a little earlier than your reservation, because a popular weekend can hit the cap before your slot even opens.
If you want one patio that delivers the view, the crowd and a night that keeps going, this is it. Book a table or get on the guestlist ahead, because walking up cold on a hot weekend rarely works here.
The rare rooftop that's a brunch spot, a pool patio and a proper night out in one address.
Best for
A dressed-up rooftop that runs from afternoon pool to a hip-hop night.
Go if / Skip if
Go if you want the view and the night out. Skip if you want a quiet, low-key drink.
Cabana is the closest thing Toronto has to a Miami beach club, and there is nothing else like it in the city. Out at Polson Pier on 11 Polson St, it is the only real waterfront day-club here, an all-white deck on the edge of Lake Ontario with a pool, the skyline across the water and a DJ running EDM, house and hip-hop while you day-drink in the sun.
This is a daytime spot, running Saturdays and Sundays through the summer, and the vibe is pure pool-party energy: swimwear, resort wear, bottles and music. The view of the Toronto skyline from the lake is genuinely the best on this list, and you cannot fake the beach-club feel anywhere else downtown. It is a short ride from the core out to the Docks, which keeps it feeling like a getaway rather than another King West room.
Because it only runs on weekends and the deck has a hard cap, hot summer days sell out well ahead. Lock in a daybed or table early, and treat it as the main event of the day rather than a stop on a longer crawl.
The only patio in Toronto where the skyline is across the water, not above you.
Best for
A weekend pool-party day by the lake with a beach-club feel.
Go if / Skip if
Go if you want sun, water and a party. Skip if you want a late-night room or a quiet drink.
Kost is the best rooftop in the city for a daytime patio, and it made its name as Toronto's go-to rooftop brunch. Perched on the 44th floor of the Bisha Hotel at 80 Blue Jays Way, it pairs one of the highest patio views downtown with a coastal, baby-blue-and-light-wood look that feels like an ocean-side pool bar dropped on top of a tower.
Where Lavelle is the night-out rooftop, Kost is the vacation-vibes day spot. Come for brunch, day drinks with a view, or just snacks in the sun. The neutral tones, the height and the bright Mediterranean feel make it the move when you want the skyline without the late-night intensity, and it photographs as well as anywhere in the city.
It is a daytime-leaning room, so reserve for brunch and weekend afternoons, when the view seats go first. If your group wants altitude and a relaxed, sunny patio rather than a dance floor, this is your spot.
A 44th-floor pool-bar feel, built for brunch and a view, not a dance floor.
Best for
Rooftop brunch and daytime drinks with the highest view on the list.
Go if / Skip if
Go if you want a sunny, elevated day patio. Skip if you want a late, loud night.
Petty Cash is one of King West's most popular club-bars, and its patio is the reason it ranks here. Sitting at 487 Adelaide St W in the thick of the King and Adelaide West strip, it uses its outdoor patio to give you the lively King West night out energy in the open air, with hip-hop, R&B and Top 40 carrying the room.
It is one of the smaller patios on the list, but it sits on one of the busiest, most foot-trafficked nightlife corners in the city, so it never feels quiet. This is the spot for the group that wants to start with drinks on a patio and slide straight into a night out without changing venues, exactly the day-to-night flow King West does best.
Weekends get full, so it pays to get on the guestlist and arrive before the late rush. If you want a patio that is really a launchpad into the night, Petty Cash delivers.
A small patio on a big corner, where afternoon drinks roll straight into the night.
Best for
Patio drinks on King West that turn into a proper night out.
Go if / Skip if
Go if you want energy and a night ahead. Skip if you want a big rooftop or a view.
Baro is a multi-level Latin-leaning spot on King West at 485 King St W, and The Loft, its rooftop terrace, is the patio worth coming for. It pairs a restaurant downstairs with an open-air terrace up top, so you can roll a dinner into rooftop drinks and a dressed-up night without leaving the building, with reggaeton, Latin, soca and hip-hop setting the tone.
The crowd is social and put-together, and the King West address means you are steps from the rest of the strip if you want to keep moving. It is a smarter, more upscale rooftop than the street-level patios, but it is more of a vibe-and-drinks terrace than a packed dance floor, which is exactly what some groups want on a warm night.
It books up on weekends, especially if you want the rooftop rather than the main floor, so reserve ahead and ask for The Loft specifically.
Dinner downstairs, then a Latin rooftop terrace up top, all on one King West address.
Best for
A dinner-to-drinks rooftop night with a Latin soundtrack.
Go if / Skip if
Go if you want a dressy terrace and good food. Skip if you want a pure dance floor.
The Shangri-La patio is the upscale, grown-up entry on this list. Set at the Shangri-La Hotel at 188 University Ave near the financial and entertainment cores, it is the posh outdoor terrace for young professionals and a more mature clientele, with ritzy hotel-bar polish and an artisan drinks and food menu to match.
This is not a dance-floor patio. Come here to impress a date, to host a refined group, or for an elevated drink in a calm, upscale setting. It runs pricier than the King West spots, but the exclusivity buys you a quieter, more polished crowd and a patio that feels a notch above the rest of downtown.
It is the move when the night calls for something dressier and more intimate, and a smart pairing right before or after dinner downtown.
The patio for the night that needs to feel a little more grown-up.
Best for
An upscale, low-key patio drink to impress a date or host a polished group.
Go if / Skip if
Go if you want polish and quiet. Skip if you want a party or a budget night.
Stackt Market is the casual wildcard on this list, and it earns its spot because nothing else feels like it. Built from shipping containers at 28 Bathurst St, steps from the club district, it is an outdoor market with a big, open, park-like patio that serves both food and drinks in a laid-back, no-pressure setting.
This is the move for an easy daytime patio before the night kicks off. It is a block from King and Portland, so you can grab afternoon drinks in the sun here and then walk to dinner or a King West room when you are ready. No dress code, no cover, no reservation, just a relaxed open-air spot to start the day with a group.
Programming rotates with seasonal events and pop-ups, so it is worth a check before you go, but as a low-key launch pad for a bigger night out, it is one of the best casual patios downtown.
A park-like, no-cover patio a block from King West, perfect for the warm-up.
Best for
A casual, walk-in daytime patio before the real night begins.
Go if / Skip if
Go if you want easy and free. Skip if you want a view or a nightlife crowd.
King West and the Fashion District hold the most of them. Lavelle sits on a rooftop at King and Bathurst, Baro's Loft terrace is a few doors down at 485 King West, and Petty Cash is right around the corner on Adelaide West. You can patio-hop the whole strip on foot, which is exactly why it is the heart of the scene.
Downtown and the financial core give you the elevated and upscale spots. Kost is 44 floors up at Blue Jays Way in the Entertainment District, and Shangri-La's terrace is on University Ave, both a short ride east of King West.
The waterfront is its own world. Cabana out at Polson Pier on the Docks is the lone true day-club on the lake, and Stackt Market on Bathurst near Front gives you the casual, ground-level option before you head into the night.
What to expect
What a Toronto patio day looks like
Patio season here runs roughly May through September, and the best days are the warm, sunny weekends, when these spots fill from early afternoon. The rooftops and day-clubs, Lavelle, Kost and Cabana, are the ones that genuinely sell out, so they reward planning. The street-level King West patios run on the same Friday and Saturday rhythm as the clubs they are attached to, opening in the afternoon and building into a night.
The split that matters most is daytime versus day-to-night. Kost, Cabana and Stackt are sun-and-view spots you plan your afternoon around. Lavelle, Petty Cash and Baro are patios that hand off into a real night out without you ever switching venues. Shangri-La is the quiet, upscale exception for when the night needs to feel more refined.
Getting a spot
How to get on the best patios
Two moves cover almost every patio on this list. First, reserve or get on the guestlist for the rooftop and day-club spots, because Lavelle, Kost and Cabana cap out fast and walking up cold on a hot weekend usually fails. Second, arrive earlier than your slot, since the best rooms hit capacity before the booking time and the view seats go first.
Dress for the lane. The rooftop and night patios like Lavelle and Baro run a smart-casual to dressy door, Cabana is swimwear and resort wear by the pool, and the daytime spots like Kost, Stackt and Shangri-La are relaxed but still put-together. When you are unsure, level up a notch.
If you are rolling deep or want a guaranteed spot in the sun, book a table or daybed with bottle service ahead of time. Tell us the patio, the day and your headcount and we line up the table and the minimum, so there is no guessing at the door.
Common questions
Best patios in Toronto FAQ
What is the best rooftop patio in Toronto?
Lavelle on top of the King West tower at 627 King St W is the rooftop patio for a night out, with pools, a downtown skyline view and a dressed-up crowd. Kost on the 44th floor at 80 Blue Jays Way is the best rooftop for daytime and brunch with a vacation feel. Both are 19-plus and fill fast on a sunny weekend, so reserve ahead.
Where are the best patios in downtown Toronto?
King West and the Fashion District are the heart of it. Lavelle, Petty Cash and Baro all sit within a few blocks around King and Adelaide West, so you can patio-hop on foot. Kost and Shangri-La are a short ride east toward the financial core, and Cabana is on the waterfront at Polson Pier.
What is the best waterfront patio in Toronto?
Cabana Pool Bar at 11 Polson St is Toronto's only true waterfront day-club, with a pool, a Lake Ontario and skyline view and a Miami beach-club feel. It runs Saturday and Sunday in summer, daytime into early evening, and books up well ahead on hot weekends.
Do you need a reservation for Toronto patios?
For the rooftop and day-club spots, yes. Lavelle, Kost and Cabana cap out fast on sunny weekends, so reserve a table or get on the guestlist ahead of time. Casual spots like Stackt Market are walk-in. Either way, arrive earlier than your booking time, because the best rooms fill before the slot opens.
Which Toronto patios are good for day drinking?
Kost gives you a 44th-floor pool-bar feel for brunch and afternoon drinks, Cabana is the waterfront day-club, and Stackt Market is the casual, park-like spot for an easy afternoon before dinner. For an upscale daytime drink, Shangri-La's outdoor terrace is the move.
What should I wear to a patio in Toronto?
The rooftop and night spots like Lavelle and Baro run a smart-casual to dressy door, so leave the gym fits and beat-up sneakers at home. Cabana is swimwear and resort wear by the pool. Daytime spots like Kost, Stackt and Shangri-La are relaxed but still put-together. When in doubt, level up a notch.
Keep reading
Related guides
More ways to plan the day and the night, from the best clubs overall to bottle service and the top bars in the city.
Fashion District · King West
