Bassel's matchbooks courtesy of the Chuckman Collection. The sort of thing most people would throw away but thankfully someone cares enough to collect this ephemera.
Like the Silver Rail at Yonge and Shuter, Bassel's was another bar on the strip that is sadly missed. Here's a collection of photos over the years. Originally Bassel's Lunch it evolved into Bassel's Restaurant and Tavern and lasted until at least 1977 (the first time I visited).
The menu.
A postcard from the early 1960's
2011.
One last shot looking south down Yonge in front of the Coronet Theatre from the late 1970's.
2010.
Posts
C.B.C. had their admin. offices upstairs where I went for an interview for my first job in Canada as a stagehand.
ReplyDeleteA popular restaurant of Toronto "rounders."
All of the stagehands from Massey Hall used to hang out the Silver Rail.
ReplyDeletePerhaps you could describe who a "rounder" is...
ReplyDeleteBasel's was particularly popular Saturday night after the hockey game at Maple Leaf Gardens. The place was packed even before the game was over.
ReplyDeletePerhaps a reason for that was that the bar closed at 11:30 Saturdays!
I was only there once in the late 70's and the waitress spilled hot coffee all over the girl I was with..
ReplyDeleteI have a beer mat from when I used to go there in the 1960's
ReplyDeleteUsed to go there often, in the late 60s and early 70s. Was working around the corner at Ryerson Theatre. The fresh orange juice, large, was served in a soda glass, for a dollar. And the omelets were terrific. Great place.
ReplyDeleteIn 1962 - after work (Racey McCallum, Charles Street)
ReplyDeleteit was a must, to go to Bassel´s. My favorite drink:
gin gimlet. Yes, it was a great place. Returned in 1968
to Germany, Bavaria and still thinking of good old times.
Fond memories of Bassel's .Will be having tea with my 100 year old grandmother (Nan) tomorrow who use to manage Bassels Restaurant.
ReplyDeleteMy mom and granddad both worked there for years. Great place and the Bassels were great people.
DeleteI have to ask...is Doris your Nan's name?
DeleteDoris was the bookkeeper.
DeleteI love reading all the fond memories that so many people have of my Grandfather’s restaurant. Brings back wonderful memories of the restaurant.
DeleteThank you!!
Marg Bassel
The rice pudding at Bassels was the ultimate. I think that is what made it famous. If I was driving by I would stop my car on Gerrard run up to the single seating and order two of them. There is no one today that can make it the way Bassels did back then!
DeleteI have to comment on the Chuckman Collection. I wonder how much is actually physically his. I do credit him with creating a vast digital archive. However there are unique photos in my collection that I purchased online which ended up on his site 2 days later.
ReplyDeleteWe fondly remember Bassel's, not the restaurant but the small bar attached. it was atmospheric with beautiful resessed lighting and very Art Deco. We used to have smart, exotic drinks. Ahhh the good old days
ReplyDeleteMy late father took me to Bassel's for the first time back in the late 1960s. We would go there after attending a classical music concert at Massey Hall. Our go-to dinner was the hamburger plate special and a piece of blueberry pie. Years later, after the Bassel family sold it to Cara Foods, I was driving taxicab and picked up one of the waitresses after her shift. I asked her what it was like to work there after the takeover and she was honest enough to tell me it was horrible. Some businesses just don't survive after the original owners sell. I still have fond memories of going there with my father and later with friends after we attended concerts at Massey Hall. Now the entire building is gone (July 2020) victim to yet another condo development site.
ReplyDeleteChuckman hasn't saved anything. These are all images he has pulled from ebay, and collector's websites.
ReplyDelete