New cafe in Toronto's queer village offers a 'healing' space

In the heart of Toronto's vibrant Church-Wellesley Village, known for its bustling clubs and restaurants, a new establishment is offering a different kind of gathering place. Understory Cafe, a cafe and wine bar, has opened its doors, aiming to provide a serene and welcoming environment for the city's queer community.

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Having a space that is quieter, having a space that feels like home when you walk in, you’re going into someone’s living room, essentially.

Co-owned by transgender couple Rowan Jetté Knox and Dani Gaede, the cafe is designed to feel like a "home" or "someone's living room." Gaede, who lost her advertising job, and Knox, who is active in LGBTQ2S+ advocacy, decided to create a space that caters to those who may not seek out clubbing or heavy drinking. Their goal was to establish a venue where people could simply come together and connect.

The name "understory" was chosen to reflect the layer of vegetation beneath a forest's main canopy, a place where "diversity thrives and all of this life comes together to make something more than itself out of the spotlight of the sun." This metaphor extends to the cafe's aesthetic, which features earthy tones and a plant-covered ceiling, intended to evoke the healing and peaceful atmosphere of a forest.

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For people that maybe don’t want to go out clubbing, who don’t drink as much, who really just want a place to come together with people.

Every staff member at Understory Cafe identifies as part of the queer community, ensuring that patrons can see themselves reflected in the people serving them. Knox highlighted the current lack of safety and peace felt by many queer individuals, stating, "I was very bullied growing up. I didn’t have a lot of friends, and I always felt very alone, so for me, it’s important having a space where people feel they can just come in as themselves and be safe and be seen and be welcomed."

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That’s where diversity thrives and all of this life comes together to make something more than itself out of the spotlight of the sun. And we thought that is the perfect metaphor for being queer. So, we instantly got this idea: we wanted to bring the space alive as though it was nature.

Beyond offering a comfortable atmosphere, the cafe actively fosters community through various events, including meet-a-friend nights, book launches, and poetry readings. Gaede observed that the cafe has become a place where "people sit at these tables and strike up new friendships, start just chatting with the person next to them," countering the trend of social isolation.

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When we’re in a forest, it’s very healing, it’s very peaceful, and it naturally calms the nervous system, so we wanted people to come in and feel like they are in the understory, they are part of the understory.