Toronto on a Monday Night

The quietest night of the week, and we won't pretend otherwise. The clubs are dark, but a handful of bars are always on. Here's where a Monday in Toronto is still worth it.

If you're reading this on a Monday, you already know the deal: this is the slow one. The weekend rooms are shut, King West is mostly dark, and the whole city is in recovery mode. We're not going to oversell it. There is no Monday club scene in Toronto, and anyone who tells you otherwise is selling something. But going out on a Monday isn't about a packed dancefloor. It's about a calm room, a good drink and not having to shout. On that score, Monday is honestly underrated, and the short list of places that run seven nights a week are at their most relaxed.

So this guide is short on purpose. It's only the bars that genuinely open every night of the week, because those are the only ones that will actually let you in on a Monday. No phantom listings, no "check their socials" guesswork. If you're out tonight, these are your spots, and most of them are nicer when they're quiet anyway.

Monday is the slow night. Plan accordingly.

Every city has a dead night, and in Toronto it's Monday. The nightclubs don't open, the big bars in the Entertainment District are closed or running on a skeleton crew, and even some neighbourhood spots take Monday off. If your plan is a dancefloor and a crowd, the truth is that's a Wednesday-onwards plan, not a tonight plan. But if you came for a proper cocktail and an easy seat, the lack of a crowd is the entire point. Lower your expectations on energy and you'll be pleasantly surprised by the rooms below.

The bars that run seven nights a week

This is the real Monday list, and it leans cocktail-bar for a reason. Bar Raval is open daily, all carved Gaudí-style woodwork and Spanish pintxos, a genuinely beautiful room that's even better when it's calm on a Monday. Civil Liberties on Bloor does no menu at all, you tell the bartender what you're into and they build it, which is the perfect low-key Monday move. And Bar Piquette is a natural wine bar made for a slow, unhurried night, exactly the kind of place a Monday should be.

Want a little more life? Mahjong Bar hides a Top-40 party behind a Kensington corner-store front seven nights a week, so even on a Monday there's a chance of a dancefloor where you'd least expect it. If you genuinely need to move, Warehouse is open daily and leans old-school hip-hop with no strict door, one of the only places in the city you can actually dance on a Monday. And Sneaky Dee's stays open late every night with live music, hip-hop and funk downstairs and nachos upstairs, the classic loose, no-attitude Monday late spot.

Why a Monday out can beat a Saturday

Here's the case nobody makes for Monday: it's the most civilised night to drink well in this city. No 40-minute wait for a table, no elbowing for the bartender, no shouting over a sound system. The good cocktail bars do their best work when they're not slammed, so the drink in front of you on a Monday is often better than the same drink on a frantic Friday. If you work weekends, or you just want the city without the weekend tax, a quiet Monday at Bar Raval or Civil Liberties is one of the better-kept secrets going.

Doors, timing and keeping it simple

Monday is the most forgiving night of the week at the door, because there basically isn't one. None of the spots on this list run a strict dress code or a velvet rope on a Monday, so clean streetwear is fine everywhere and you can dress however you like. On timing, there's no rush and no line to beat, but do check closing times, because some kitchens and bars wind down earlier on a Monday than they would on a weekend. Get there before last call rather than after it, and you've got a relaxed, easy night.

More Toronto nightlife

Tuesday night guide Wednesday night guide Thursday night guide Clubs open weeknights Full club list