Summer, Toronto, MetaFilter -- let's put something together

posted May 16, 2012 8:11 PM | |

Sat June 9 at 8:00 PM, Blue Banana

250 Augusta Ave, Toronto, ON M5T, Canada (Map & Directions)

Welcome to Toronto, demagogue! I've never yet made it out to one of these, but there's a first time for everything. :) If nothing official gets organized, drop me a line and I'd be happy to go out for coffee or show you around town.
posted by dendritejungle at 5:34 AM on May 17, 2012

I like meetups AND the summer. Good call.
posted by chunking express at 5:55 AM on May 17, 2012

Welcome to town! I would suggest a) a patio, b) sometime far away enought that people don't have it booked yet c) someplace reasonably central (the east v. west arguments get INTENSE lol) d) skirting any of the upcoming long weekends.

Within that framework I would say something along the lines of "Friday June 8, 7pm at the Old Nick" or the Bedford Academy has also been a great pick in the past as it's got a huge patio and highly accessible.

Thanks for doing this, this will be very fun! It's been a while.
posted by SassHat at 5:57 AM on May 17, 2012

I like the patio idea and it's always worked out well in the past.

Another possibility is a trip to the Toronto Islands on a lazy afternoon!
posted by cranberrymonger at 7:06 AM on May 17, 2012 [2 favorites]

I'd love an excuse to go to my first meetup - count me in when it happens.

Oh - looked at your profile, and saw you're a 1L in toronto who wanted thoughts on jobs outside of biglaw. I'm a UofT law grad, and currently in-house at a big canadian corporation after a short stint at a big firm. PM me, and I'm happy to chat with you on the phone about it or meet up for coffee or something if you didn't have enough answers from the thread. Would be happy to introduce you to a few other canucks who could give you some further thoughts on alternative careers.
posted by evadery at 7:15 AM on May 17, 2012

Nice! I will pencil in Friday June 8th for a meetup and watch for further details.
posted by ThatCanadianGirl at 7:43 AM on May 17, 2012

I fucking hate the Bedford Academy. Lousy service, terrible food, over priced, never again. I will go to almost anywhere else
posted by PinkMoose at 3:32 PM on May 17, 2012

PinkMoose: I fucking hate the Bedford Academy. Lousy service, terrible food, over priced, never again. I will go to almost anywhere else

If it weren't for your second sentence there, I'd think you were a sockpuppet.
posted by gman at 5:20 PM on May 17, 2012 [8 favorites]

Sounds fun! I like cranberrymonger's suggestion of Toronto Island - with picnic supplies (read: wine)!
posted by Acer_saccharum at 7:07 PM on May 17, 2012 [1 favorite]

Fun times!
Are relatively-new-MeFites-who-are-about-to-move-away-from-the-TDot allowed?
*insert charming grin here*
posted by Dorinda at 7:52 PM on May 17, 2012

If it weren't for your second sentence there, I'd think you were a sockpuppet.

Now, now... let's all play nice.

I love a good patio night but I was also picturing an islands/wine/picnic/frisbee/suntan/cards situation. There's no reason NOT to have two meetups :)
posted by cranberrymonger at 8:30 PM on May 17, 2012 [1 favorite]

A pic-a-nik would be super.
posted by seanmpuckett at 3:29 AM on May 18, 2012 [1 favorite]

Hey folks, I moved to Toronto last summer and have been meaning to attend one of these shindigs for a while. I'd love to meet some local mefites. Count me in.

Depending on the number of folks who want to attend, I can also tentatively offer a BBQ-equipped rooftop patio in Kensington Market as an alternative to bar/restaurant/whatever.
posted by drklahn at 1:05 PM on May 18, 2012

The suggested date of June 8th works for me as well.

cranberrymonger: I love a good patio night but I was also picturing an islands/wine/picnic/frisbee/suntan/cards situation. There's no reason NOT to have two meetups :-)

I like the cut of this jib.

dendritejungle and evadery: sounds great! Please shoot me a MeMail, or wait for me to get in touch with you.
posted by demagogue at 2:57 PM on May 18, 2012

I'm always down for another meetup or two, but June 8th is about the only date in the near future I know for sure that I can't make.
posted by flex at 3:44 PM on May 18, 2012

in for a picnic, a patio, and most likely an apology for being a little aggressive
posted by PinkMoose at 12:34 AM on May 21, 2012

I could try to meetup. June 8th no longer seems far away to me.

I was going to say that the advantage of a bar/restaurant is that everyone can find it; but I believe one can rent fire pits on the islands in advance. Maps could then be made available :)
posted by Heart_on_Sleeve at 5:06 PM on May 21, 2012

June 8 might be the only weekend I can't make! Is two in a month too much? Or maybe should the ones left out meet on their own another time?
posted by onwords at 5:55 AM on May 22, 2012

I'm away from june 1 - 10 but I am def down for an Island funtime if anyone else wants to work that one in later in the summer?
posted by SassHat at 2:55 PM on May 22, 2012

June 8th is actually about the first day I can do --I will be getting back from two weeks on the road on the 7th,
posted by ricochet biscuit at 7:43 PM on May 22, 2012

What about:

1. drklahn's tentatively offered BBQ-equipped rooftop patio in Kensington Market on Friday June 8th (or the Old Nick if there are too many people).

2. Toronto Islands picnic on Saturday July 7th.
posted by cranberrymonger at 8:03 AM on May 23, 2012

Yay for an "on land" meetup on June 8th!
posted by ThatCanadianGirl at 8:10 AM on May 23, 2012

Is Saturday June 9th not possible?
posted by flex at 8:43 AM on May 23, 2012

Sorry flex - didn't see your comment that you couldn't do Friday.

demagogue - does Saturday work for you?
posted by cranberrymonger at 11:04 AM on May 23, 2012

I like the idea of the Island. Few meetups include tossing a Frisbee about. Except that one time at Smokeless Joe's. I understand they were upset, but they really didn't need to call the cops, man.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 7:59 AM on May 24, 2012

Rooftop BBQ in Kensington sounds fantastic (especially given that I'm usually there anyways on a Friday). Can't do Saturday the 9th, though- Mum's birthday.

I am also tentatively down for the Island, depending on date/time. Note that it is probably a good idea to reserve a picnic area/firepit ahead of time.
posted by TheWhiteSkull at 11:41 AM on May 24, 2012

cranberrymonger: it does. Appreciate you asking. :-)
I'm seeing primarily two ideas and two dates (sorry - I know there are some that can't make either of these dates):

Ideas:
1) Patio, likely rooftop in Kensington
2) Islands
Dates
A) Friday June 8
B) Saturday June 9

How do you guys normally work these things out around here? A Doodle? Google doc spreadsheet?
posted by demagogue at 6:10 PM on May 24, 2012

I think you have to message the mods to turn this into an "event" rather than a "proposed event"? Then people can RSVP...
posted by cranberrymonger at 12:01 PM on May 25, 2012

Normally, the person who calls for a meetup picks the date/details because they're the one who usually ends up doing the footwork of finding a place and making a reservation or whatever. It'll just make you crazy to try to schedule by consensus, IME. =)

Just try to get an idea of what date + location will get the most turnout and confirm it, then people can say "Yay, see you then" or "nope, doesn't work for me, have fun" for sure and you can get an idea of numbers - often people won't jump in until there's a confirmed date on the meetup list; you can always change it after confirming it if it's not working out. I don't know why it came down to June 8th/9th right now - SassHat was just using that as an example as far as I can tell, she herself isn't even around then. Maybe the weekend after? The person who is offering up a rooftop patio - what works with their schedule?
posted by flex at 12:15 PM on May 25, 2012

The person who starts the meetup thread has the option to change it from "proposed" to "confirmed" and set the details, cranberrymonger. No need to message the mods =)
posted by flex at 12:16 PM on May 25, 2012

I just me-mailed drklahn (he who potentially has the rooftop patio) to ask him to chime in with the details of that offering; i.e. date, time, capacity.
posted by cranberrymonger at 5:40 PM on May 25, 2012

Hey folks,

Sorry, I was out of town for a wedding over the past few days.

Dates are very flexible. The patio is part of my startup's office space. There's comfortable seating for probably 8 - 10 people and standing room for many, many more. We usually do beers on the patio on Friday afternoons, but are typically finished by 6:30pm on any given day. I'll be at the MEC Paddlefest on Saturday and Sunday the 9th and 10th, but will supposedly be finished by 5:30 - 6:00pm. If we're going to do Saturday, I'd suggest 7:30 or 8:00pm as the starting time just to give me a bit of time to set everything up.

Any other day, anything after 7pm is probably fine. If it's on a weekend, pretty much any time of day is fine. We have a grill, but it hasn't been "opened" for the season quite yet, so I'll need to check the status of that before the event. We have a limited supply of kitchen utensils, plates, and cups, so it's probably best if we do this as a potluck and have folks bring along disposable plates and cutlery. I think the space can easily handle 20 - 30 people, but there won't be seating for everyone. If the weather cooperates, we can bring some of our office chairs out to the deck to provide additional seating. I can provide an outdoor sound system for a bit of music, and we can always move to Ronnie's Local around the corner if folks want to keep the party going late or drink more than what is provided by the group. There's a beer store nearby along with a large number of excellent restaurants. I like the idea of people bringing dishes to share, but we can also just pick up food individually and enjoy each other's company. I will volunteer to run the grill for anyone who brings food. I'll also volunteer to provide guacamole, chips, salsa, and meat or veggie hamburgers for all attendees.

My office is on the third floor of the Blue Banana retail store at 250 Augusta Ave. There are lots of newly-installed bike racks in front of the building, and there's a parking lot in the back (accessible from Nassau) that is usually locked at 7pm. I can unlock it for folks who might be driving to the event. My company is called EmployTouch, and we're in suite 301. There are two entrances to the building-- the primary entrance for Blue Banana, which closes at 7pm, and a secondary entrance just to the left of the primary entrance. At the secondary entrance there are mailboxes and nameplates for the other businesses in the building. We've only been there for a few months, so we don't have a nameplate, but there's a little sign with our company name and buzzer code. I'll be there to buzz anyone in.

Anyone who is planning to come should memail me to let me know that you'll be there, and I'll send you my phone number. I'll also provide directions for finding the place and getting up to the third floor. Please let me know if you will require parking. We've probably got about 15 - 20 parking spaces free in the evening.

Cranberrymonger, I will memail you to begin coordination. If nobody objects, I've found the easiest way to organize these events is to set up a Google spreadsheet with attendee names, contact info, and a required items that people can sign up to bring along. Once we've set up the spreadsheet, I'll share a link in this thread so that people can sign up and volunteer to bring food, drinks, or whatever.

Looking forward to it!
posted by drklahn at 10:54 PM on May 27, 2012

Here's a link to the spreadsheet I've started:

https://docs.google.com/spreadsheet/ccc?key=0Ai8d0xDbTZTUdG9kUEFHQ3MxcWNnRlZFXzJpV1BhaFE

At this point, I am assuming the date is Saturday, June 9th. I can make the patio available nearly any time we want, though, so if the group decides on a different date, it shouldn't be a problem.

The spreadsheet is editable by all. If you don't feel comfortable sharing your real name and contact info, just use your mefi name and send your details to me or cranberrymonger. I'll need to get an accurate headcount and some idea of who to expect in order to buzz people into the building.
posted by drklahn at 11:09 PM on May 27, 2012

I think that if we do the Islands, we ought to push it back a bit, rather than planning for June. That's going to take a bit more coordination than the proposed Kensington Market meetup.

Another option for the Kensington Market meetup is Sunday June 10th! But I will let demagogue decide. :)
posted by cranberrymonger at 6:45 AM on May 28, 2012

cranberrymonger, I'm good for either date. I've added an "Available on..." column with columns for June 9th and June 10th, so people should fill in when they're available, we can figure out the date that day.

I would encourage June 9th, though -- I'm thinking that, just in case people end up going out late, it's usually better for that to be a Saturday night than a Sunday night.
posted by demagogue at 6:15 PM on May 28, 2012

9th or later would be best for this mefite.
posted by ricochet biscuit at 3:27 PM on May 29, 2012

The dates on the spreadsheet are:

Saturday June 9 (real date)
Saturday June 10 (not a real date)
posted by cranberrymonger at 7:36 AM on May 30, 2012

The spreadsheet has been updated to reflect the correct date of Sunday, June 10th. At the moment we have four attendees. Anyone else available, or shall we explore some additional dates? I've never been to one of these things, so I'm not sure how many people to expect.
posted by drklahn at 4:07 PM on May 30, 2012

Does anyone want to take on the job on messaging users who stated interest in this thread?
posted by demagogue at 4:21 PM on May 30, 2012

We've got 7 people on the spreadsheet. I will message the others right now.
posted by cranberrymonger at 1:36 PM on May 31, 2012

DONE! *punches clock*
posted by cranberrymonger at 1:42 PM on May 31, 2012

I can't go (in LA until the 10th) but I will check in if there's an island meetup in the works
posted by SassHat at 1:42 PM on May 31, 2012

I think I added my details to the Google Doc, please memail me if it doesn't show. Thanks!
posted by zix at 10:18 AM on June 2, 2012

I'm in as well - perhaps it's time to make this a real event instead of proposed?
posted by troll on a pony at 10:26 AM on June 2, 2012

So according to "projected attendance" on the spreadsheet, it appears that the event is best held this Saturday June 9th.

Here's a round-up of the details, which I hope will be satisfactory to everyone:

-meet at 8:00pm (or later) at 250 Augusta Avenue (Blue Banana)

-go to the secondary entrance just to the left of the primary entrance

-look for a sign saying "EmployTouch" and use the buzzer code indicated

-people should bring their own disposable cutlery/plate/cup

-drklahn, the generous host will provide "killer guacamole, hamburgers, veggie burgers, and sausages for up to 20 people"

-evadery will bring a "treasure chest of dorky board games"

-everyone else, please go to the spreadsheet and say for certain what your contribution will be :) if you're in doubt, bring booze/easily transportable snacks.
posted by cranberrymonger at 12:58 PM on June 5, 2012

Okay, this should be changed to a "confirmed" event then so it will show up on the sidebar, and cranberrymonger's info put up at the top of the thread so everyone will know the details... demagogue? =)
posted by flex at 3:09 PM on June 5, 2012

I will also provide a treasure chest of my own dorky board games. I hope that some of you (in addition to evadery) are into that sort of thing, as I have a few that I've never convinced anyone to play.

Regardless, there will be food, drink, and a nice patio for conversation.

There is also parking. If you plan to drive, please email/memail me and ask for instructions on where to park your car that night. Kensington Market is pretty unfriendly to cars, but I will open our building's private parking lot for this event, and should be able to provide 10 - 15 parking spaces, which I presume will easily cover a group of (I'd guess) fans of public transportation.

Also, if you try the buzzer that night and can't get through, please call my cell phone directly. It's listed in the spreadsheet and I'll keep an eye on it all evening for folks who may be arriving late or have difficulty finding the place.
posted by drklahn at 3:38 PM on June 5, 2012

Hi folks,

Just wanted to pass along some additional information regarding parking and logistics:

The address of the building is 250 Augusta, but the parking lot is only accessible from Nassau, which runs perpendicular to Augusta. There are a lot of one way streets in Kensington Market, so you may need to circle a couple of blocks in order to approach Augusta from the west on Nassau.

The driveway for the parking lot is very narrow and is located in the middle of the block on the north side of the road across from Kid Icarus and Bristol Truck Rentals. The address of Kid Icarus is 75 Nassau. The entrance itself is typically closed by a large, orange/red, metal gate, but I will open it at ~7:30pm on Saturday evening. If you get to Augusta on Nassau, you've gone too far, so just make a few lefts and come back around the block again.

Park anywhere that's open in the lot. I'll close it at the end of the evening and will make an announcement before doing so. There are a bunch of signs warning about private parking and towing, but you don't need to worry about that for this event. I can't provide overnight parking, but the lot will remain open until I've left the building.

From the lot, you'll need to walk around the block to the Augusta entrance. I don't have the code to access the building from the back. When you reach the front of the building, you can buzz my office suite using the code "301." You'll see signs for Xenophile media, Sharkteeth Films, and a few other companies, but nothing obvious on the keypad for EmloyTouch. Proceed down the hallway through the doors leading to the elevator and head to the third floor. There will be a small coat room when you step off the elevator, and the door to the office will be open. When you come into the office, take a left at reception to head out to the patio.

If you get lost or need assistance at any time, please call me (Adam) at [phone].

One last note: Kensington Market is a pretty safe neighborhood, but if you are coming alone and would appreciate accompaniment from the parking lot to the building, just give me a call.
posted by drklahn at 7:11 AM on June 6, 2012

I think I edited this to be "confirmed" since the OP isn't around but can people check it and email the contact form if it's not correct?
posted by jessamyn at 7:25 AM on June 6, 2012

Still not sure if I can make it but I'll try to pop in. drklahn, I'll text you my details if it looks like I'll be there -- is that ok with you? I'll bring vegan-friendly finger food.
posted by mayurasana at 7:25 AM on June 7, 2012

Sounds good, mayurasana.
posted by drklahn at 7:47 AM on June 7, 2012

Thanks to Flex I found out about this. Sure I am totally up for meeting on Saturday. I warn you though, I may be rather high strung as I begin collective bargaining negotiations on Monday and it is my first time and I am slightly freaking out about it....
posted by saucysault at 8:05 AM on June 7, 2012

Sorry, it's been a crazy couple of days, including some time without internet (gasp).

Thanks for taking care of things, jessamyn and others. :-) See you all there.
posted by demagogue at 12:22 PM on June 7, 2012

I marked myself as "attending" on the sheet, but at the time had forgotten that I'm convocating this weekend - I'll try to stop by, but I have a lot of friends and family events in the next two days

*demagogue: I'm a freshly-minted UofT law grad going into public law, drop me a memail anytime if you have questions or just want to chat
posted by iona at 1:33 PM on June 7, 2012

Weather is starting to look a bit dicey for Saturday evening. If it's stormy on Saturday, we need a backup plan. If nothing else, Ronnie's Local is 1/2 block away and may not be super crowded if the weather sucks. We can also rain delay to Sunday or pick another date.
posted by drklahn at 1:02 AM on June 8, 2012

Ok, as of ~6pm Friday, the rain tomorrow is supposed to stop before 8pm, so I'm still planning to set things up on the patio. The barbecue was emitting gas this afternoon, so I think we're good to go there. I'll have basic food stuff covered. I brought all the seating inside to prevent it from getting wet during any showers tomorrow.

TL;DR: risks hopefully mitigated. See you on the roof at 8pm tomorrow night.
posted by drklahn at 2:50 PM on June 8, 2012 [1 favorite]

I've got an event thingy that night so we'll see how late it goes. If its not too late, I'll swing by!
posted by typewriter at 3:56 PM on June 8, 2012

Drklahn you are so organized! Thank you!
posted by cranberrymonger at 5:58 PM on June 8, 2012

I realize this is late, but I just saw this and I (and +1) would love to come, if that's okay (we've never been to a meetup before)! We will bring stuff for eats and drinks.
posted by ilana at 8:25 PM on June 8, 2012

Please do, ilana. The more, the merrier.

important for all: If you are coming late, please call me directly at [phone]. I may not be able to hear the door buzzer from the patio.

If any of you are reading this tomorrow before the event and wondering what to bring, here's the list of stuff that I'd suggest (check the spreadsheet, as we have a few volunteers already):

- A folding card table (or two)
- A cooler with ice
- Drinks (beer, wine, soda). If everyone does mostly BYOB and couple of volunteers bring a few extras, it'll probably work out fine.
- An extra bag of ice
- Plastic drinking cups
- Additional paper plates and disposable cutlery
- side dishes (we've had a few volunteers)

I will be providing:
- hamburgers (plenty of meet, 12 buns)
- bratwurst (probably 12, maybe 8 buns)
- cheese (swiss, cheddar)
- condiments (ketchup, mustard, mayo)
- pickles
- corn chips
- guacamole (I'm not excited about the avocados I picked up today, so this may not happen, unless some wonderful person would like to provide 4 - 5 ripe avocados tomorrow night)
- crappy medium salsa
- tea
- some paper plates, napkins, and plastic utensils
- speakers + iPad cables
- some games (no expectation that they need to be played)

There's plenty of seating, but very little table space.

It looks like we're at 8 - 10 confirmed and 5 - 6 maybes. If you're on the maybe list and decide to come, consider bringing extra hamburger/hotdug buns.

If we have rain, we can cook and do dinner with drinks inside my office, then move to a different venue. There are plenty of nearby bars.

I look forward to meeting all y'all tomorrow night.
posted by drklahn at 10:25 PM on June 8, 2012

We may swing by later, if we can work some things out. We'd be later than 8 probably, and we'd have already eaten, so just BYOB I guess? Are people going to be hanging out for a while?
posted by chococat at 2:28 PM on June 9, 2012

How late are you guys gonna be?
posted by tantrumthecat at 3:15 PM on June 9, 2012

Leaving now & picking up saucysault on the way. I don't plan on ending the night early ;)
posted by flex at 3:22 PM on June 9, 2012 [1 favorite]

Late depends on how long the kindly drklahn keeps things open and/or our ability to stagger to a neaby venue to keep going.
posted by maudlin at 3:29 PM on June 9, 2012

I imagine the patio will be going until at least 11 or 12. If people want to keep going after that, I'm open to the possibility of keeping the patio open, but there are also plenty of bars in the area.
posted by drklahn at 3:30 PM on June 9, 2012

Most of us have phones, so if we wander away from the patio, expect to see an update to this thread.
posted by maudlin at 3:33 PM on June 9, 2012

Zix and I will be attending. (She has already RSVP'd via Google spreadsheet, but I'm posting here to be sure.)
posted by suetanvil at 3:48 PM on June 9, 2012

Will likely be showing up in the 8:30 range - hope this is OK. Will call you if the buzzer proves to be problematic.
posted by evadery at 3:49 PM on June 9, 2012

Flex and I are on the way!
posted by saucysault at 4:47 PM on June 9, 2012

Waiting for streetcar. Sorry for
my lateness!
posted by demagogue at 5:54 PM on June 9, 2012

On my way.
posted by cranberrymonger at 6:02 PM on June 9, 2012

And we are here, with a lots of food and drink (and cookies!). Please come if you were considering it. I don't think we will be moving far from this beautiful rooftop patio. : )
posted by saucysault at 6:53 PM on June 9, 2012

Just about to hop on our bikes
posted by chococat at 7:43 PM on June 9, 2012

God damn it this was today! Noooooooooooo.
posted by chunking express at 11:09 PM on June 9, 2012

This was fabulous! Loved closing down Ronnie's. Thanks so much for an awesome first meetup, especially host drklahn and flex for driving those strange people she'd just met home, and for magic kittens.
posted by ilana at 12:42 AM on June 10, 2012

I think I may have actually beaten a couple of people home (15 minutes ago -- I needed some tea first).

That was a great meetup and it was lovely to see so many new people along with the reliable few. Big thanks to drklahn for hosting and cooking (and you will have to sit down with us more and chat at the next meetup), to flex for hostessing us at Ronnie's and to saucysault for acting as the unflappable chauffeur.
posted by maudlin at 1:04 AM on June 10, 2012

Yes, big ups to flex for the ride home (the birds were singing when I got out of the van) and drklahn for being an excellent host and also suggesting Ronnie's as well as all the wonderful conversations especially the negotiating tips! We missed you chunking express, I hope you can make the next one.
posted by saucysault at 1:49 AM on June 10, 2012

Me too. I filled out that excel sheet a while ago and them promptly forgot all about this, like a chump. Next time!
posted by chunking express at 5:21 AM on June 10, 2012

That was a lot of fun!

Now I should probably get some more sleep.
posted by one more dead town's last parade at 6:55 AM on June 10, 2012

Have fun; Sadly I'm headed back to Kingston tonight, but enjoy yourselves.
posted by Canageek at 7:40 AM on June 10, 2012

Thanks drklahn for hosting this - the location was lovely & the guacamole delicious - and thanks demagogue for calling for a meetup! It was great to see some of my favorite local MeFites again for yet another fantastic time & great to meet those new to me - particularly cranberrymonger, ilana & OMDTLP who all went to the pub with us afterwards. Can't wait for the picnic meetup - I don't get to hang out with y'all nearly often enough. =)
posted by flex at 1:20 PM on June 10, 2012

chumpking express?

This probably wasn't the best meetup to miss, but we make for an elite club :)
posted by Chuckles at 2:09 PM on June 10, 2012

Unfortunatley, I wasn't able to attend. But I'm looking forward to the next meetup! (I just set up a proposed event for the island picnic so I guess I ought to show up this time.)
posted by mayurasana at 11:45 AM on June 11, 2012