Mackenzie Saleh Associate Lifestyle Editor

What is Sneaky Dee’s?

Sneaky Dee’s is an infamous Tex-Mex dive bar/club. Decorated in layers of graffiti and open from 11 a.m. to 3 a.m. every day, this iconic venue has a wide variety of foods, including breakfast burritos and eight different kinds of nachos! On the first floor, you can find the restaurant, and on the second floor, you can find the stage, dance floor, and bar, perfect for hosting their five-dollar Friday emo nights, karaoke Mondays, and trivia Wednesdays.

Mainstream influence: Toronto Fringe Festival and Scott Pilgrim

Sneaky Dee’s was first established in 1987 at 562 Bloor Street. It was open 24 hours, with the dance floor located in the basement. Then, in 1989, Sneaky Dee’s moved to 431 College St., where it still stands to this day.

Before they moved, Sneaky Dee’s hosted the first iteration of the Toronto Fringe Festival in 1989 in their basement. Additionally, being such a Toronto staple, Sneaky Dee’s also appeared in the Scott Pilgrim comics and in the live-action movie in 2010!

The shutdown and redevelopment project

Back in 2020, a development plan was proposed to demolish the properties at 419-431 College St., east of Bathurst Street to make way for high-rise buildings. As a result, a “Save Sneaky Dee’s” movement was created during this time to halt this redevelopment plan by impassioned members of the community.

For six years, the developer (Goldberg Group) had been making changes to their original proposal, going from a 13-storey building to a 15-storey building while the public outcry continued. To mediate this conflict, the City of Toronto organized a community consultation meeting in May of 2026 to give community members the chance to speak to the city officials.

Many community members showed up with white “Save Sneaky Dee’s” pins and voiced their disagreement with the proposal.

The Goldberg Group tried to defuse the uproar by saying they included a section in the blueprints for a 3,173-square-foot bar and music venue that they reserved for Sneaky Dee’s.

Two weeks before the July meeting where the Toronto and East York Community Council would have likely approved the development plan, members of the movement uncovered inconsistencies in the proposal. They discovered that the developer did not own all five properties listed in the development plan. Councillor Dianne Saxe then started investigating and uncovered that the developer labelled the discrepancy as an error in their application; however, they assured her that the Royal Bank gave them “oral consent” to develop the property.

Coun. Dianne Saxe contacted senior representatives at the Royal Bank of Canada to confirm. In their email, RBC replied that they had not consented to green-lighting this development plan, and that they would reject any redesignation plans.

Soon after, Goldberg Group submitted a letter to the council withdrawing its application for the strip’s redevelopment, and the July meeting never happened.

Thanks to the community’s diligent detective work, Sneaky Dee’s continues its legacy of selling cheap nachos and enticing all members of the community to this day: those into great food, karaoke, trivia, and those who love to celebrate Toronto’s punk and grunge scenes. If you haven’t gone yet, this venue is definitely worth it, especially on a Friday.