A cult favourite Toronto restaurant has been replaced with a groovy new vinyl bar

A trendy Toronto restaurant that shut down earlier this year has officially been replaced by a funky new vinyl bar.

It’s hard to believe we’re already over halfway through 2025, and, for fans of the now-shuttered, hyped-up King West seafood restaurant, Pink Sky, that means it’s also been seven months since the restaurant closed its doors permanently.

A concept from Toronto hospitality heavyweights Ink Entertainment, who also head up popular spots like Kost, Animl, and Byblos, the restaurant became a hot spot in its four-year run thanks to its opulent and vast seafood menu, aided by its prime location on the lively King West strip.

All good things come to an end, though, and that was exactly the case for Pink Sky, which announced its permanent closure on Jan. 2, 2025, but, if there’s anything we know about Ink Entertainment, it’s that there’s always something better just on the horizon.

Enter Vinny, the new concept that’s officially taken over the space left behind by Pink Sky as of Friday, July 4.

In just seven months, the space has been transformed into a sultry, comfortable restaurant and vinyl bar, tapping into Toronto’s increasing interest in more intimate, less showy spaces — even on King West.

Touted, on Instagram at least, as the place where your night “starts and ends,” Vinny doubles as a full-service restaurant and a club (of sorts), where local DJs will be spinning vinyl tracks into the wee hours.

“Vinny is designed to connect with the neighbourhood and the people who live here, offering a diverse, global menu that speaks to the city’s energy,” says Ink Entertainment Founder and CEO Charles Khabouth.

“I believe in tailoring each venue to its neighbourhood and audience, and here, we wanted to create a place where people come for dinner and stay for the music and vibe.”

Headed up by Chef de Cuisine Ivan Kuuts, an Ink Entertainment mainstay, the menu draws inspiration from the city’s cultural mosaic, with an expansive suite of offerings spanning U.K., Japanese, Italian and American cuisines. Think Scotch Egg and Tuna Sashimi to start, followed by Ricotta Cappeletti or Fried Chicken, and Granita for dessert.

After 11 p.m., there’s a special late-night menu in place to keep you fuelled while the party rages on.

It’s quite the choose-your-own adventure menu, kind of like Toronto.

As far as beverages go, the drinks menu dwarfs the food one, with a diverse selection of house cocktails all named after music hits of yesteryear, like the Can I Kick It? which is something of a grown-up take on rum punch, or Stayin’ Alive, with tequila, gentiane liquer, matcha, cucumber and tajin.

Where the food and beverages offer an intentionally mixed bag, the interiors, designed by Toronto’s own NIVEK REMAS, are decidedly streamlined, giving the feeling of an underground listening room with none of the musty basement smell and low ceilings.

Eclectic ephemera, like vintage sound systems and record stacks, are paired with sleek lines and warm accents, including lateral lighting and a colour scheme flooded with deep earth tones to keep the whole thing grounded.

It’s never fun to see one of your favourite spots in the city go, but if Toronto proves one thing time and time again, it’s that whatever comes next has the potential to be just as great, if not better.

So, with that said, welcome to the neighbourhood, Vinny. Let’s see what you can do.

Vinny

Address: 480 King St. W.

Phone: 647-660-0999

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