Manic Coffee

Another coffee shop I had the pleasure of sketching in. However, the café americano was so so.

sketchbook 30/12/09

Using two coloured pens. This is me being daring.

sketchbook 23/12/09

The last spread in my current sketchbook. I had a lot of fun drawing the snapping turtle at the ROM today. Apparently snapping turtles are an invasive species to the Great Lakes ecosystem and as a result, are creating quite a bit of havoc to the natural native flora and fauna.


When my dad was in the hospital, he roomed with a few gentlemen. This is his second roommate, Guido. I kid you not.


This spread was a reaction to the first day back to the ROM in about a month. My main objective was to lay down a lot of ink. Subject matter wasn't too important.

My sister renewed my membership to the ROM and I have to say it is one of the most thoughtful birthday gifts i've ever received!

Mission accomplished: Naco Cafe and Zoots

It's 3am and I'm way too tired to comment on these images coherently. So I'll return to them in 8 hours.

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Good morning all. It's 6.5 later and I'm feeling quasi rested. So as promised I'm here finishing this post. The Naco Cafe is located a block from my place and is owned and run by Julian, a really nice guy from Mexico, I believe. His cafe doubles as an art gallery and constantly has shows running there. I've been there in the past but this was the first time I really looked at the space and how it felt to be in there and it really had a cool vibe. Alot of eye candy going on in the space like the religious icons; a picture of jesus and the small devil's head over the doorway to the back. If you're in Toronto, you definitely should check this space out.

Another cafe is Zoots. It's owned and run by Melanie Janisee, a Detroit native who finally landed in Toronto. I was fortunate that Melanie was curious enough to come up to me to see what I was doing. From this she told me that the name Zoots was the name of the cafe that she worked at while she was in Detroit. So i guess this is Zoots, the Toronto Version. Thanks for letting me idle away a few hours away drawing your cafe, Melanie. (She's also a great artist herself who has a few pieces hanging on her walls, in particular some small vignettes outside the washrooms)

Cafe at 181 Dovercourt Road

I was walking through my old stomping grounds and remembered a cafe on the corner that I always wanted to try out. So I did and I didn't regret the decision.

I couldn't find any name to the cafe other that the word "cafe" painted on the side of the building. Can you get anymore concise than that? I like it.

Amendment: I stand corrected. Thanks to Jen Spinner, the cafe is called, The Luna Café. Thanks, Jen.

Alternative Grounds Coffee House

The trouble with sketching in coffee houses is the seat availability. First come, first serve and so I didn't get the seat I wanted to do the interior of Alternative Grounds. So I had to settle for this view of the coffee grinder. I'll probably head back soon and try to draw a view that captures the window because it seems I've gotten into a pattern with the past two coffee houses of including the exterior facing window. So stay tuned and hopefully another Alternative Grounds image will be uploaded with a window in it.

White Squirrel Cafe

Well, as promised, another cafe interior.

TAN coffee

With the coming of winter, spending more time indoors is not an option, it's a necessity. I've walked by tthis coffee shop many times and always wanted to sketch this bean roaster. So here it is.