Leonard Cohen's favourite Toronto dive The Matador will re-open in January 2016

by Mark Teo

January 28, 2015

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For Toronto west-enders of a certain vintage—myself included—the Matador, located near Dovercourt and College St., is a complete mystery. The venue shuttered in 2006, and for its reputation as a rough-and-tumble country bar—which hosted Jonny Cash, Stompin’ Tom and Blue Rodeo, and a legendary after-hours scene that attracted the likes of Leonard Cohen—younger Torontonians had never been inside its doors. Not that we weren’t curious: Its rusted sign, hanging over Dovercourt road, just looked iconic.

But until last December, it remained a bombed-out, underused building. Until, as BlogTO reported, its new owner, Paul McCaughey, announced that he’d be reviving the venue, which was at peril of becoming a parking lot. Now, we’ve learned new details about the Matador’s reboot: It’s slated for a soft launch this fall, and will be fully operational by next January.

McCaughey, along with councillor Ana Bailão, previewed the event space yesterday. It won’t be the grimy honky-tonk booze can that Cohen immortalized in his 1992 video for “Closing Time,” below. Instead, the new Matador will be more upscale, hearkening back to its origins as a ballroom.

According to Metro, McCaughey discovered the Matador’s ballroom origins after pulling back the grimy barnwood walls to discover the venue’s original plaster moulding. That, says McCaughey, inspired him to delve deeper into the venue’s origins.

“I’ve grown into a strong understanding of the history of the Matador in the city of Toronto and its place in Canadian music culture,” McCaughey told Metro.

Whatever the Matador looks like this fall, with the recent troubles of the El Mocambo and the shuttering of the Guvernment, we’re glad to have another classic Toronto venue back. Now, can we re-open the Kathedral?

Tags: Music, Cancon, News, Leonard Cohen, The Matador

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