Out & About #948 | Downtown Exploration + Next Stop: Japan (Day 1)

My mid-week in-office day started off frigid, as if the conclusion of Halloween and entry into November signified the immediate arrival of winter. I had braced myself accordingly with a scarf and beanie, just as Mr. Buttons does year-round.

​The floor was relatively peaceful for the first hour, then noise levels steadily surged, eventually to the extent where I could no longer hear my own thoughts. Shortly after 9 AM, a passive-aggressive altercation would ensue, provoked by the trivial topic of desk bookings. Wednesday was an evidently challenging day to fulfill attendance requirements.

Lunchtime would see a leisurely stroll towards Michaels - the only one in the downtown core, shockingly - for Halloween clearance items. Alas, beyond drab decorative installations, there was little else of interest.

​The Christmas cookie cutters/stamps positioned by the entrance were of distinctly more intriguing, though far pricier than their eBay counterparts (with questionable durability).

At John and Adelaide, I spotted a new coffee shop by the name of Columbus Café. Its storefront had been integrated nicely into the brick exterior of the condo building, with a large grizzly affixed to each of its street-facing window panes.

Continuing southbound with vigor, I inched closer towards the West Wing of Union Station. The main attraction of the day would be Next Stop: Japan.

Despite having familiarized myself with the vendor lineup well in advance of the four-day event, I was nonetheless excited to partake personally, especially given that I had missed out on free scallops!

A number of booths had taken over the waiting area connecting 97 Front Street and the Great Hall, with a stage situated at the west end. An information desk and photobooth area could be found at the entrance, while a variety of vendors lined the perimeter:

• Japan Store by Amazon and JETRO presented a range of Japanese houseware and wellness products, including a headless furry fixture
• The Japanese Paper Place offered stationery, origami paper of various sizes, and crafting materials; by following the business' social media account, one would receive a free pin and card paper bearing an oriental design.

• Hattendo was on site retailing their standard selection of cream buns, and only cream buns. In order to be entered for a roulette chance, one would need to follow the bakery's Instagram account and make a purchase, though the prizes would be strictly limited to cream buns with no monogrammed merchandise available.
• Aburi restaurants positioned adjacent to Hattendo, providing samples of specialty imported products like Honey and Salt Cookies. These bite-sized cookies, along with senbei, potato soup instant packets, and Aburi restaurant-branded soy sauce, could be purchased at premium price points.
• Momo Tea and Ito En shared a stall, joining forces to share their love of tea and facilitate samples of Momo Tea's Genmaicha. When asked about matcha, the owner of Momo Tea responded that she had forgotten the product during the packing preparations, but could bring Matsu the following day. I excitedly agreed to return the next day for my inventory restock.

UNIQLO was the booth spurring greatest excitement. I spotted a brief queue forming, which I alluded to an element beyond interest in the HEATTECH-donning mannequins. One of the staff members explained that, by downloading the UNIQLO app, visitors could earn one chance at playing the gachapon machine. An additional play could be earned by posting an Instagram story with the pertinent event hashtags and account mentions.

Each gachapon capsule would contain a sticker, distinguishing the prize tier by colour:

• Yellow for HEATTECH
• Blue for choice of UNIQLO-branded item
• Pink for keychain
• White for character sticker

I joined the queue with the aim of obtaining one of the nylon bags, for not nearly as useful were the ceramic mugs, canvas tote bag (a thinner material than the EATALY tote and less sturdy) keychains, and stickers. The wait spanned no more than ten minutes of a wait, allowing sufficient time to connect to the TD-Union Wi-Fi network, re-download the app, and troubleshoot login credentials.

My first gachapon play earned me a sticker - a pitiful prize that the young female member of staff responded towards with an unwarranted amount of enthusiasm. I was noticeably less amused, and voiced my desire for the "cooler bag". By some stroke of luck, the next capsule emerged with a blue sticker. The staff responded in an equally thrilled manner, and gestured towards the table for redemption.
"You can ask him for the cooler bag." She said, pointing towards a young fellow handling a cardboard box.
"Which one is the cooler bag?" I was keen to seek confirmation.
"The black one."
"But what are the other ones? The blue and orange?" I inquisitively pointed towards the smaller nylon bags.
"Those are lunch bags."
"But not cooler."
"Right."

Needless to say, the decision was an easy one. Triumphantly prancing away with my prize, I marvelled at its durable, waterproof exterior and smooth, insulated interior. It was concluded that visiting earlier in the day would guarantee a better assortment of prizes, as the gacha machines were not refilled on a regular basis, thus reducing the probability of picking a yellow, blue, or pink sticker.

A traditional flower arranging demonstration, known as Ikebana, had summoned a crowd by the stage. However, being neither invested in flora nor capable of seeing above taller attendees, I continued onwards.

​Sake samples had also been advertised, but were nowhere to be seen on site. A member of staff informed that all sampling would take place in the LCBO at Concourse level, due to regulations surrounding the serving of alcohol. On the first day, sake samples would commence at 4 PM, but 11 AM starting the second day (November 2nd).

As my post-work plans involved coming back anyway, I proceeded with exploring the basement-level shops between the York and Bay Concourses. The visit aligned with Hazukido's Soft Opening period. Wandering within, it was learned that the Union Station selection far surpassed that of the First Canadian Place and Atrium on Bay outposts. Rather, the product range was comparable to the standalone North York store, boasting bottled beverages, cake boxes and entremets, a variety of sweet and savoury croissant rusks, and even location-specific tote bags.

​Bottled Cold Brew and a Raspberry Croissant constituted an afternoon pick-me-up. I also took advantage of the opportunity to secure a bear croissant phone grip at a reduced cost, despite the two-dollar discount causing quite a delay at checkout due to the cashier's inexperience.

Back at the office, I relished in the filling-free pastry topped with tartness and flakes of freeze-dried raspberries.

Around 4:30 PM, I had found my way back to Union for sake sampling. By this point, the black cooler bag had vanished from the UNIQLO booth, leaving just tote bags and a few grey zippered pouches. My friend, a mutual who had been acquainted initially at P1HARMONY and again at 1MX Festival, would join me for the remaining activities of the day.

Leading the way to LCBO, I would lay eyes on a small crowd before the navy-and-gold Hakutsuru banner came into view. Microscopic servings of Hakutsuru's Sho-Une Junmai Daiginjo and Sayuri would be distributed to interested patrons, while wasabi peas and Honey & Salt Cookies were present as pairings. Profile notes would be detailed by a scruffy, middle-aged member of staff clad in a black dress shirt with an open collar; his pronunciation would be awfully telling of his non-Japanese origins. It only dawned on me later that samples could be obtained without ID verification.

Deliberating briefly, we decided on consuming supper prior to heading over to the AGO. Originally considered was the York Concourse Food Court, though my proposal of Ronin Izakaya was met with positivity, given its proximity to the gallery and reasonable price points.

Read Part 2 HERE !