Wide Open

I came here recently for the first time in what seems like a decade the other week, and I can say its still what I remember of it.
–Relatively cheap drinks, at a cost of rather shitty selection.
–Tiny and super narrow room that will make things awkward when 2 people try to pass the bar in different directions.
–A very interesting mix of people inside.
It is what it is, and while not what I’d consider a destination, the place seems to stick with what they do well (which is being a dive bar, nothing more nothing less) and for that, I can’t hate on it.

If you are student and want cheap drinks with and okayish place then this is the place. There is a deal on drinks everyday. $ 15 for a pitcher is super cheap.

Definitely a great local dive. Crappy wood tables. Long bowling alley type of place.
Strange cool crowd. Normally everyone is very causal and chill.
I love hanging out in the evenings after work, typically having some cheap drinks :)
I think they only take cash, but they do have a bank machine in the back.
I music is generally rock, but it’s fortunately not blasting loud so you can actually have a conversation.

The drink deals here are incredible; I don’t know of another place in Toronto that compares to Wide Open on that front.
I went to the Thursday Happy Hour, where everything is $ 2.75. That is a ludicrously good deal for this city. It appears they have similarly mind-​blowing deals every night of the week. Add to that the fact that Wide Open is in a great location, in close proximity to other Toronto nightlife, and it really becomes a no-​brainer where you should meet up for a pre-​drink before going somewhere else to dance/​see a show/​etc.
The place is small, so expect to stand if you show up at the wrong time, because people in the area all seem to be well aware of the deals here and will crowd the place accordingly. But there is a decent amount of space and some good seating to be had if you’re punctual.
The aesthetic is cool, with a huge graffiti mural running the length of the wall. Graffiti Alley (the actual name of the street) is right around the corner and was probably an inspiration.
Again, and most importantly, this is your one-​stop-​shop for cheap drinks, and that is by far the biggest strength of Wide Open.

Never felt so unsafe in a bar in toronto. Cheap drinks attract a terrible crowd, and security is needed 7 nights a week.
A confrontation happened between a male member of staff and a patron that ended in the staff members friend swinging a broken bottle at people. No more information necessary.
The situation happened because of the staff member, not a random drunk patron. The management need to do something before something more serious happens.

This place is a total dive bar! It’s small, dark, it looks like it once caught on fire and no one cared. It looks like someone installed a roof on an alleyway between two shops… But the vibe is pretty cool and the drinks are CHEAP, CHEAP, CHEAP!!! It’s a great place to drink if that’s your scene.

If you’re looking to get your belly-​ful of alcohol, this is the place to be. Super cheap beer on any night of the week, that includes bottles and pitchers! The ambience can be descrbied using the same adjective as the price of the drinks. However, when it’s dark and you’ve had a couple of drinks, you wouldn’t mind the dirty table tops, bar tops, floor, and the bathrooms that looks filthy and disease covered.

They should have named this place «Tits Up», because that’s a good way to describe anyone in the bar after about half an hour. If you like your drinks and want a solid place to get ‘em in ya after work, you can’t do any better than Wide Open.
Amazing drink specials every night of the week and friendly and efficient service tops off a graffiti filled evening with loud classic rock and revelry. I should specify that I probably wouldn’t have given it such a high rating if we hadn’t had a table, but I’m a smart cookie who reads the reviews on Unilocal before I go anywhere. When a friend suggested this place, I knew we’d have to get there early and snag a table for our group. I’m really claustrophobic but this awesome table offered us ample room to drink and watch the crowd swell within the tiny space.
Plus I can walk home. Well– that’s debatable.

Excellent service for a dive bar. Cheap drinks. Great place to drink after work. Loud. Don’t worry about sitting, there isn’t much space here. In fact, they should get rid of all the seating.

It’s a total dive. There’s very little in the form of atmosphere. And the place is filthy and probably hasn’t changed it’s appearance in its entire existence. But you know what else? NO ONE CARES!
This place is always, and I mean ALWAYS, busy. As long as it’s open there’s patrons there, at least as far as my general observation as someone who lives in the neighborhood goes anyhow.
If I were to liken it to anything it’d be the coolest treehouse that you had ever seen as a kid, but it serves beer and you’re all grown up now, at least according to your drivers license anyhow!
Cheap beer, bar rail and shots. Close to the bar you were going to go to afterwards. If you can’t be around hipsters then maybe stay away, although after enough affordable drinks you probably won’t care anyhow!

I just love this bar. It’s one of the last true dive bars in a real sense, not some hipster re-​creation of a dive bar *cough* el furniture warehouse *cough*. The drinks are incredibly cheap, the crowd is very diverse, and you never know what you’re gonna get with the music. While the bartenders are the usual aloof 20-​somethings, hired more for their «accoutrements» than their customer service skills, you really can’t complain when the drinks cost like $ 4.

Perfect dive bar. Cheap and cheerful drinks with friendly locals and bartenders. A not so hidden gem on Spadina.

Its small and overcrowded but the beer selection is good here and its cheap. A great place to have a drink or watch the game. Nothing special, just a bare boned small hole in the bar with good service. 4 stars if they do a few renos, but the pricing is great and its not too loud. I don’t know if they even sell food here, but it is a great place to catch up with an old friend, and it is very casual. The location is great for ‘Cityplacers’!

This is a dive bar!
Only come here for cheap drinks in a Cody environment! Do not come here for food/​or clean washrooms/​pick up women/​to be seen drinking a martini! CHEAP drinks that is all! It’s very narrow, long bar (one bar) not too many seats and most are repeat customers. This place has some history behind it too, but u got google for that!

It’s not for me but I see the value of the place. Booze is cheap and cheap booze is becoming a rarity in this city. I got a bottle of beer for like $ 3.50. The place is long and narrow, no room to breathe, and not air conditioned (at least when I was there melting). It was also almost at capacity around 6:30 PM when I went in. I don’t think I’d go there with a group but if I were by myself waiting to meet people in the neighbourhood I’d pop in for a quick sip.

I was here in May with a group of family and friends to celebrate an up-​coming wedding. This was a great place to start the evening, and for everyone to meet up. Since we brought our own party of over 10 people, we didn’t really pay attention to what else was going on in the bar.
This is a classic dive bar. No room to move during happy hour, a filthy bathroom (whose walls don’t reach the ceiling), and lots of happy drinkers. If you’re going for elegance, this is not your place. but if you’re looking for good drink specials and a spot to meet up with a group of people, this might be your place.

Wait, How have I not reviewed this place before?
This is actually the Hubster’s hangout, and once in a while I’ll come to crash the party. The service is super friendly (though Hubster and his friends are regulars, so that might have something to do with it). The atmosphere is fun, but the place is CROWDED every time I’ve been and it’s a bit grungy. But in a good way.
I think drinks are well priced. I’m usually pretty out of it by the time we get around to paying.

Cheap drinks.
Good service.
Narrow, dark space.
Really loud music.
Graffiti everywhere.
Afraid of the bathroom.

This ironically named after-​work dive is not for a claustrophobic crew.
It’s also not for people who want to have intimate conversations, or be guaranteed a seat. But pitchers are $ 12 and pints are $ 5 and it’s a great place to wind down on a Friday, or heck, a Monday.
I’m on my way there, right now, actually…

DIVEUX MAXIMUS. Yeah, this is a dive and a half.
I had heard good things about this place and I was thinking of giving it a try, so I went to meet a friend here for a drink and there are two things you must remember:
One? Again… yup, this is A dive. Two? Once you are there you will certainly catch the irony in the name. As this place is as narrow as a the world perspective of a fundamental Baptist.
Beer is generally cheap, lots of graffiti line the walls, a number of tv’s above the bar playing sports but there is not a lot of seating. On that last note, this locale is just so-​so and not much different than a place like Sneaky Dee’s… except for the lack of space.
Yet… could I see this place getting packed? Totally.
It has that run down, should-​make-​you-​question-​the-​hygiene-​of-​the-​joint… Mmm… or that je né sais quoi that acts like catnip to cats that hipters simply can’t say no to.
All in all, not a bad place to drop by from time to time if you are meeting a few friends. Just not too many.