Insider tips on where to go, shop and eat in Stratford this summer

STRATFORD, Ont. — This tourism slogan says it all: “The Arts Are What We Are.”

Since the Stratford Festival was first incorporated in the fall of 1952, this southwestern Ontario city has built its reputation as an artistic mecca, and tourism-related businesses — hotels, restaurants, bars and shops — have grown up alongside the festival and other arts events.

After two years of pandemic hiatus (no shows in 2020 and a limited outdoor season in 2021), the festival is back in nearly-full-swing for its 70th season, with a program of 10 productions, the long-awaited opening of the glorious $72-million Tom Patterson Theatre and a packed program of ancillary events. The festival runs through Oct. 30.

Travelling to Stratford to see and review shows is one of the neatest perks of my job as a theatre critic. It’s massively gratifying to see both the city and festival itself back to their regular flow this summer. While being an influencer is not usually part of my job description, I’m delighted to share some of my favourite spots and insider tips for a great few days in the Festival City.

For me, the excitement of a trip to Stratford ramps up on the final approach to the city through beautiful farmland: it’s the overture to the full-scale production that is the city itself and a chance to exhale after travelling Hwy. 401. While it can be hard to find street parking close to some of the hotels and restaurants, there are free city lots downtown. The Cooper Lot, on Downie St., is a favourite.

But Torontonians don’t necessarily have to drive to Stratford.

The festival has excellent bus service running from downtown Toronto directly to the Stratford theatres. There’s at least one round-trip on performance days in high season, and on weekends there are two return trips to Toronto after matinee and evening shows. Via Rail is also an option, and the Stratford train station is conveniently close to the core.

The city’s origins as the county seat of a farming region remain near the surface: The Market Square is still the city’s hub, where chi-chi boutiques and restaurants sit cheek-by-jowl with a sturdy shoe shop and an old-school Guardian pharmacy. The tourism office, Destination Stratford, is on Market Square, as is the beautiful historic city hall. It’s also the location of Revel café, where the almond croissants are legendary and festival actor star-spotting is a perk. There are two other popular coffee spots on the main drag, Ontario Street: Edison Cafe Bar; and the first-ever storefront Balzac’s.

There’s no doubt that a few days in Stratford can get expensive, especially this summer with inflated hotel and gas prices. But there are ways to lower costs that come with the bonus of prompting a nice meander through the city. Rather than eating lunch in a restaurant, grab a sandwich at one of the delis on Market Square — Sirkel Fine Foods or The Butcher and The Baker will do nicely — then sit on a bench by the Avon River ogling the city’s famous swans.

You can wander back up to local favourite Jenn and Larry’s on York Street for soft-serve ice cream, or Angela’s Gelato for Italian-style scoops.

Speaking of sweet tooths, if you’d like to contribute to a local debate, sample the Mint Smoothies, dark and milk squares of mint chocolate, at Rheo Thompson Candies and judge against the dark and milk chocolate Minties at Chocolate Barr’s. Whichever you prefer, they make great gifts for friends and family back home.

Fuelled by that sugar high, attention turns to shopping. I always love visiting Fanfare Books on Ontario Street where knowledgeable staff are eager to offer reading recommendations as well as chat about the best shows to see in the festival season.

On that same stretch of Ontario, Willis + Prior is a beautiful home decor store, and Bradshaws has everything for the kitchen.

For me a trip to Stratford is not complete without a visit to Resonance, a superb boutique for women and men expertly curated by Jo Gordon with an eye to sustainability as well as quality. Women’s clothing from the Danish brand Part Two is their top seller, with Nic+Zoe, Armed Angels and Indi & Cold also popular brands.

Distill Gallery is another little gem of a shop that features all-Canadian fashion and home decor designs. Owner Allison Skinner’s been in her Stratford location for five years, 16 years in Toronto before that, and is a great source of local tips as well as shopping advice. And if you end up at Distill, right next door to Angela’s Gelato, you’re perfectly positioned to take in a show at the Avon or Studio Theatres right across the street. When it’s time for a sit-down lunch or dinner, you’ll have loads to choose from: Stratford’s dining scene is as buzzy as ever. Foodies are mourning the loss of one of Stratford’s best-loved restaurants — the Red Rabbit shuts its doors on Aug. 20 — but a couple of newer places are justly generating excitement.

Lovage on Wellington Street, which opened in May, is a gorgeously airy open-plan space with the busy kitchen in full view. The eclectic menu changes daily and mingles small plates with full-scale entrees. This is a place to bring your friends who love to share and experiment: my companions and I particularly enjoyed the fried green tomatoes, summer beans and ricotta gnudi (a gnocchi-like dumpling). They raved about the Grapefruit Smash mocktail.

Braai House, tucked into a second-floor space above its sister restaurant, The Alley, is a South African-inspired spot where most of the cooking is done over an open fire (”braai” is Afrikaans for “grill”). There is an outdoor patio as well as an inviting dining room. I sat at the bar, watched the chefs work and enjoyed the host’s advice about what to order: The spicy tuna appetizer was small but incredibly flavourful, and the smoked duck was melty-delicious.

Braai House’s parent company Keystone Hospitality also runs Brch & Wyn, a stylish coffee and wine bar about a five-minute walk from city centre on Downie Street.

Some of the city’s established restaurants continue to flourish: Cafe Bouffon is the new name for the main-floor restaurant above Pazzo Pizzeria, and it’s as solid a choice as ever for well-considered French cuisine, open for pre-matinee lunches and weekend brunches as well as dinners. People around town are talking about a new menu item there, a swirled bun made out of croissant dough, with cardamom spice and demerara sugar.

Pazzo is still a popular and relatively affordable place for casual dinners but not somewhere to go for intimate conversation, as it gets noisy at peak times.

Mercer Kitchen and Beer Hall is one of my Stratford mainstays: its varied, Asian-influenced menu makes it a great place to take a group with varying food requirements. Vegetarians and gluten free folks have lots to choose from.

And finally, the entertainment itself. In addition to its full productions, the Stratford Festival runs the Meighen Forum, a season-long series of talks, speakers and panels, workshops and special performances in Lazaridis Hall in the stunning new Tom Patterson facility. On a recent visit I heard a reading of Carlyle Brown’s “The African Company Presents Richard III,” based on the true story of a Black New York theatre company which ran into trouble in the 1820s when it put on Shakespeare’s “Richard III” at the same time as a high-profile white production. The reading, co-produced by Shakespeare BASH’d, was fun and instructive to see in the same season as the Festival’s well-received production of “Richard III.”

I can’t wait for the Meighen Forum premiere later this month of “Freedom Cabaret 2.0: How Black Music Shaped the Dream of America,” the first iteration of this cabaret created by Beau Dixon was a big success last year. Other Forum guests this season include Tomson Highway, Martha Chaves (part of a late-night Friday comedy series), Ron Sexsmith, drag queen Pearle Harbour and Salman Rushdie.

Forum events range in price from $27-$89. Do keep an eye out for ticket deals on the season productions as well: seats in the Bravo Zone at the Festival, Patterson and Avon Theatres are $42 all season long.

And the Stratford Festival is far from the only show in town: Stratford Summer Music runs this year through Aug. 14, with a wide variety of indoor and outdoor events, some free and some ticketed. Here for Now Theatre, founded in 2012 by Fiona Mongillo, flourished during the pandemic with open-air festivals in 2020 and 2021. This year it’s producing a nine-show season at the Falstaff Family Centre, a short walk across the Avon River from the Tom Patterson Theatre.

PULL OUT BOX 1,

Where to stay in Stratford

There are many price point options for accommodation in and around Stratford. It’s wise to book early. In high season rooms can be hard to come by. If you’re on a budget, you can lower costs by staying outside the city: there are motels on the city outskirts and in nearby Shakespeare and a number of AirBnBs in nearby towns such as St. Mary’s and Tavistock.

Blow-out: The Bruce Hotel delivers utter luxury a short walk away from the Stratford Festival Theatre, with room prices ranging from $475 to $650 a night in peak season. Amenities include breakfast included in the reservation, complimentary Molton Brown products, full-sized balconies on most rooms, valet service and courtesy car on call, a warm cookie hotline 24/7, a 6.5 acre property with a patio oasis overlooking a wildflower garden, an on-site beekeeper who offers hive tours and indoor heated pool. The Bruce.ca and 855-708-7100. 89 Parkview Dr.

Gracious and intimate: Each room at The Three Houses Stratford Inn is individually decorated and breakfast, included in the room price, is made with local ingredients and items from owner David Lester’s garden. Amenities include a heated salt-water pool and the location is steps from the festival’s Avon and Studio Theatres. Prices range from $265 to $365 for double rooms, $495-795 for townhouse suites. Thethreehouses.com and 519-272-0722. 100 Brunswick St.

Sturdy standby: High-season rooms are in the mid-$200 range per night at the Best Western Plus Arden Park, which has an indoor pool and hot tub as well as free parking and wifi. It is walking distance from the Festival Theatre and a short drive to downtown. Ardenpark.ca and 519-275-2936. 552 Ontario St.

Suburban gem: Stratford Suburban Motel is a 10-minute drive from downtown Stratford. It’s sparkling clean and has lovely amenities including a garden with a gazebo and outdoor pool. The average nightly rate is about $150. Suburbanmotel.com and 800-387-1070. 2808 Ontario St. East.

Stratford: Go, see, eat and shop

Destination Stratford: visitstratford.ca and 800-561-7926 (SWAN). 47 Downie St.

Stratford Festival: stratfordfestival.ca and 800-567-1600. The festival’s bus service can be booked on the website or by phone.

Stratford Summer Music: stratfordsummermusic.ca and 519-271-2101.

The Cooper Lot: 164 Downie St.

Revel cafe: revelstratford.ca and 519-305-1600. 37 Market Pl.

Edison’s Cafe Bar: @EdisonsCafeBar on Instagram and 519-275-1396. 46 Ontario St.

Balzac’s Coffee Roasters: https://shop.balzacs.com/pages/stratford and 519-273-7909. 149 Ontario St.

Lovage: Lovagestratford.com and 519-305-1999. 72 Wellington St.

Braai House: www.braaihouse.restaurant and 519-271-5647. 34 Brunswick St.

Brch & Wyn: brchandwyn.ca and 519-305-5996. 245 Downie St.

Cafe Bouffon and Pazzo Pizzeria: cafebouffon.ca and pazzo.ca. 519-273-6666. 70 Ontario St.

Mercer Kitchen and Beer Hall. Mercerhall.ca and 519-271-9202. 104-108 Ontario St.

Resonance: resonancefashion.ca and 519-273-6617. 23 Downie St.

Distill Gallery: distillgallery.com and 519-814-9600. 96 Downie St.

Fanfare Books: fanfarebooks.ca and 519-273-1010. 92 Ontario St.

Wills and Prior: willsandprior.com and 519-273-0202. 94 Ontario St.

Bradshaws and Kitchen Detail: bradshaws.ca and 519-271-6283. 129 Ontario St.

Sirkel Foods: sirkelfoods.com and 519-273-7084. 40 Wellington St.

The Butcher and The Baker: 519-273-1850. 26 Wellington St.

Jenn and Larry’s: jennandlarrysicecreamshoppe.ca and 519-508-4949. 49 York St.

Angela’s Gelato and Fine Refreshments: angelasgelato.com. 98 Downie St.

Rheo Thompson Candies: rheothompson.com and 888-271-6910. 55 Albert St.

Chocolate Barr’s Candies: chocolatebarrs.com and 519-272-2828: 55 George St.

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