A New Toronto Wedding Venue With A Swanky Palm Springs Vibe

Good news for couples craving a California-cool venue that doesn’t require a plane ticket: Casa La Palma, a lounge-slash-dining room on top of Dundas West favourite La Palma, is now open for business. It’s an extension of Craig Harding and Alexandra Hutchison’s downstairs restaurant, and while that one is all about the classy-yet-boho Venice Beach vibes, the second floor was meant to have a moodier, late-night feel. Says Hutchison: “It’s a contemporary take on the quintessential Palm Springs interior: a sunken living room with a central hearth that evokes the familiarity of domestic hospitality.” Here, guests can nosh on pescatarian snacks from chef Julian D’Ippolito and lounge in front of the fireplace on modular floral-printed sofas—until 2 a.m. every night.

It’s perfectly suited for intimate affairs or pre-wedding festivities (the 1,400-square-foot space can fit 60 people, max )—especially if the goal is to make guests feel like they’re at the laid-back LA house party of someone famous. Come spring, garage-like doors will slide up to reveal a rooftop patio, complete with a DJ booth, from which you can gawk at the Dundas West partiers stumbling home. Oh, and the separate unmarked entrance means your guests can come and go as they please without having to traipse through the La Palma dinner crowd.

849 Dundas St., 416-368-4567, lapalma.ca