Toronto has built some award-winning toilets, but does it have the whole package?
It turns out Toronto?s washrooms aren?t all crap, either, as two are shortlisted for the annual Canada?s Best Restroom award.
After finding and rewarding treasured washrooms in the United States for 11 years, restroom supplier Cintas is on its third annual search for Canada?s best place to, um, rest.
The two shortlisted loos ? modern and sleek at Earls on King St., and boudoir chic at This is London on Richmond St. ? face tough national competition, including a fancy Victoria porta-potty. The other finalists are a professional skills centre in Quebec and Vancouver?s Georgian Court Hotel.
What wins the judge?s approval? After a peak level of clean, style wipes out sanitation.
Earls? caters to the trendy and germ-wary. A wave of a hand and water flows automatically from the taps. Simply rising from the throne drains it all away. There are also disposable seat covers.
Heavy wooden stall doors ensure privacy. But for customers like 7-year-old Savannah Rose, the winning feature is the bright red ?occupied? that appears once a stall is locked, ?because then people know,? she said.
Dim lights relax and flatter, and the soap ? Fruits & Passion?s coriander and olive tree for the ladies, lime and cypress for the gents ? smells yummy. These loos even come with menus, though expired: the wallpaper is the restaurant?s menu from the ?80s, back when a top sirloin steak with garlic bread cost only $9.95. Also, there is abundant toilet paper. Staff check regularly.
The loo at This is London is less washroom, more restroom, with a lounge space in the club?s women?s quarters softly lit by chandeliers surrounded by pipes ? relics from the space?s industrial past. There?s a pink DJ booth to blast beats, lots of large mirrors, a space to get dolled up by the on-site hair and makeup artist, and ? lest we forget the room?s most basic purpose ? 12 pretty pink stalls. The toilet paper is soft. It matches the lovely lavatory?s design, frilly flowers and all.
?It?s the quintessential Marie-Antoinette powder room,? said the club?s spokesperson, Melissa Leshem.
People tend to hang out there, she said. ?Guys at the table are like, ?Where you been??? The girls, she said, tell them the party?s upstairs, in the washroom.
Patrons can vote for their favourite at www.bestrestroom.com until Oct. 12. The winner will be announced in November. Organizers are already accepting nominations for next year?s King of Thrones.
As for the prize: There is none, besides a plaque and the pride of knowing you?ve got a room full of cool cans.
Past Canadian winners and shortlisted loos
2011 winner: Toronto's e11even
2011 top nominees:
Allstream Centre, Toronto
David Morris Fine Cars, Edmonton
H?tel Le Germain Montr?al
Ottawa Convention Centre
2010 winner: The Cactus Club Caf?,
Vancouver
2010 top nominees:
Spice Route Asian Bistro and Bar, Toronto
The Shangri-La Hotel, Vancouver
Mildred's Temple Kitchen, Toronto
Metro Toronto Convention Centre
Votes for this year's best restroom can be cast at www.bestrestroom.com.
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