The Rex Hotel Jazz & Blues Bar

What is The Rex Hotel Jazz & Blues Bar? Anchoring 194 Queen Street West since the 1950s—and dedicated to nightly live sets since the late 1980s under the Ross family—The Rex stands as Toronto’s preeminent, unpretentious temple of jazz and blues. The street-level space pairs warm, low amber lighting and vintage wood accents with a tight front stage, lined with classic diner booths, communal cocktail tables, and a long wooden bar where musicians, locals, and students rub shoulders. A modest curbside patio opens in the summer, but the heart and soul remain indoors where brass, upright bass, and drums ring out multiple sets a day.

The Rex Hotel Jazz & Blues Bar Menu & What to Order Unlike sterile seated concert venues, The Rex operates a full-service kitchen turning out straightforward, satisfying comfort pub food engineered to fuel you through two sets. The signature B-Rex Burger, stacked with sauteed mushrooms and melted Swiss cheese alongside a basket of hot fries, is a longtime audience favourite, while towering plates of tri-colour nachos and crispy wings keep table-sharing easy during drum solos. Lighter and plant-based cravings are handled by a hearty Mediterranean platter of falafel, hummus, and warm pita, easily washed down with fresh pints of local Ontario craft draught or classic well highballs.

Know Before You Go Seating runs on a strict first-come, first-served basis without standard table reservations, though advance tickets bought online for evening headline shows guarantee entry into your selected zone. Afternoon matinees and early evening sets are pay-what-you-can, so bring cash to feed the tip bucket when it circulates around the tables. The venue sits just two minutes west of Osgoode subway station, making public transit the quickest way to arrive before sets fill the room to standing capacity.