The Smiling Buddha

The venue is like any dive bar really. The plus side is that it has a big floor to move around on in front of the stage!
Bar staff were friendly and helpful, cheap beer and decent selection.
Only downside is the washroom which was a little hard to find! :)

An alright selection of drinks at $ 5 – 7 range (Jamieson shots $ 4.25 at time of writing) with a chill but competent bartender; seating available despite the small, cozy ground floor space; bathrooms involve a walk downstairs, which has another special event bar and dance floor for livelier nights; live music on ground floor at the extreme back (decent acoustics, maybe after a drink or four) with reasonable space to sit or stand for about 50 people, 100 tops.

A solid dive bar with a good stage and a eclectic selection of events and patrons. I’d come back for a special event or concert but not likely otherwise.

Smiling Buddha is a dive bar and music venue located near College and Dovercourt.
Coming from Finch, take the subway southbound to College, and from there take the 506 Carlton Streetcar westbound along College. Its REALLY far west along College, get off at College and Dovercourt and its right there at 961 College.
It’s a decent enough bar with cheap drinks, PBR tallboy was only $ 6.50. They also book great talent. They usually host local indie bands but occasionally get some touring bands. I went down here to see one of my favourite bands TOPS from Montréal live for the third time at a sold out show here.
This was by far the most intimate show I’ve been to. A smaller venue than The Horseshoe (which I already thought was incredibly intimate), at about 400 people. Capacity at the Buddha is about 100. This turns it into a really cozy, almost neighbourhood bar feel that’s unheard of for a venue.
The only downside is with such a small capacity it gets full FAST. That is why you need to GET THERE early. Knowing that the show was sold out I got there for 7 an hour before doors to make sure I got in. I also bought my tickets way in advance knowing that this show would likely be sold out given how small the venue is.
After the show met TOPS and talked to them about the show for a good 10 mins.
If you’re a fan of a band than it’s a real treat to see them at this intimate venue.
The bar is too far out of the way to come here often for drinks but it’s a great venue.
With cheap drinks and an incredibly intimate atmosphere I would definitely come back to the Buddha for a show.

Well, Lookey here! Seems like the Buddha got itself brand spanking new owners and a face-​lift! New paint job plus a cool mural. Gone is the cramped passage to the stage area — yes, the booths are gone (for now?), so no more coat stashing and loitering around the bar, but I love this new change as it opens up the space and the Buddha now has more of a concert hall feel than a dingy dive basement venue. This may have been a one off since the Buddha hosted their New Years Eve 90s video dance party which was generally great, except when it became not so great for these reasons:
1. It became super packed and some moron kept flinging a balloon upwards which hit the projector which in turn either got fucked up or turned off. Not exactly the venues fault, but the videos for our 90s video dance party kept cutting out. happened at least 3 times. Kinda a party killer at times. I became so annoyed that I grabbed that ballon and stomped on it like a disney villan. THAT THAT DRUNK DUMBIES.
2. Although they hired the legendary Master T from much music to host the event, the playlist kinda devolved into a hot mess — there were multiple song repeats, and there wasn’t even any kind of play list structure, once the requests started coming in, the videos stopped and the songs were loaded onto grooveshark or played off youtube. Not entirely professional and I expected so much more Master T!!! (I still love you Master T)
3. Sometime after midnight, they put on some moron to man the playlist and homegirl played Hall and Oates And Footloose. For a 90s VIDEO DANCE PARTY. And this wasn’t even a 90s Hall & Oates Jam. It was an 80s shit jam. And Footloose is 100% 80s bullshit. Like wtf is this ultimate white girl playlist shit? You have shit taste in music, you should be ashamed of yourself, and someone should have sent you home. Nuh uh girl. No.
Slightly Disorganized event planning aside, the owner Lucan is a real mensch! The coat girl was on point and the drinks were flowing. I generally had a blast and glad I went to the new Smiling Buddha!

After graduating University I did a short little stint as a bartender at the Buddha, feeding drinks and pretend flirting with the regular clientele: a mix bag of lonely Portuguese men and struggling artist types.
All the reviews thus far are pretty accurate. The Buddha is as good as what’s going on inside. But with that in mind, anyone on the hunt for a suitable venue for anything (a book launch, an open mic, a poetry reading, a concert, etc), should keep the Buddha on their radar.
Wayne, the owner, is open to anything and is a huge supporter of the local art scene. If you’re an artist and want to get your work on display, pop in and introduce yourself. Wayne cycles new visuals often and is always on the look out for new talent.
Another little secret, Wayne & Cathy (his sweet and smiley wife), make and sell yummy Chinese food. They don’t distribute menus to avoid the cost of meeting the demand. But just ask for one if you’re hungry and they’ll happily oblige.

In the middle of sort of nowhere, it’s a confusing mix of hipsters, activisty progressives, and queers from the queen west scene (or, of course, all of the above). It’s definitely a regulars spot with a typical scene. If you’re in you’ll adore it. If you’re out you’ll wonder what kind of hole you walked into.
I myself label it as a «meh». I’ve got friends who regularly play events there and so I’m «in», but would not really go there otherwise if I knew my regular group of scenesters weren’t there.
I’m can’t say I don’t like it, but I can’t really say I do either…

This is one of those places that is really just as good as what’s going on inside it. Otherwise it would just be a shell. A really grubby shell.
When I went I had a great time because I saw my friend’s band play and they rocked the smile off of Buddha’s face like no one’s business.
It’s a basic place. Not much to say other than that really. Bottled beer mostly, not a whole lot of option there. BUT! They have really cool lights and lamps in the place that will make you feel strangely at home.

If an event that I am remotely interested in happens to be taking place at the Smiling Buddha, I get downright giddy. Why? Because it stands a matter of feet, in a straight line, from my front door. We’s neighbours.
I never would have guessed that anything I wanted to go to would be happening there, but I get even more freaked out when *other people* choose to have their things happen there. This little bar whose karaōke I used to try and ignore when I was trying to sleep. Not that it happens super often, but as Melissa said, a few pretty cool dance parties and some friends’ bands gigs from time to time, all give me a good excuse not to have an excuse to flake out on the event in question (as I have been known to do). It is a pretty cute and *little* bar/​dance floor/​stage? (more like a platform) to call home.
There is nothing awesomer than being able to have access to your own alcohol while you’re out.

I’ve been to a couple dance parties here and had a great time. It’s a tiny bar in a sketchy strip of Parkdale, totally unassuming on the outside to the point that you may walk by it without noticing.
They’ve got a couple booths in the front which are good for casual drinks or for coat-​stashing if you’re heading to the dance floor. The bartenders are sweet and attentive, and the booze is cheap.
As with most bars, your night here will only be as good as what’s going on. I’ve never been here for a casual drink, but I’ve been to a couple sparsely populated parties, which were far less fun than when the place was packed.
The one downfall of this place is their 100 person capacity. If you know it’s going to be a busy night, get there early or expect to be denied.