I RECOGNIZE AMANDA Martinez’s hair immediately. Natural and bouncy, much like her personality, I can spot it a mile away as she strides toward the Linux Caffe at the corner of Christie and Harbord.
Slow jazz lingers in the air of the coffee shop as the gorgeous Latin musician enters the front door. We find immediate common ground in our love of baked goods and warm drinks on an ugly winter’s day.
“This place has such delicious food,” she says as she waves to the owner, who knows her as a dedicated regular. “Delicious and dangerous.”
With latte and cider in hand, we begin to discuss Martinez’s connection to the Toronto quarter that lies west of Clinton, on Bloor Street. Most famous for its slope-sided 21-acre park, the area has played host to Martinez for half a decade.
“It’s a really warm community of people,”she says.“I think that’s what I love most about it.”
She pauses for a moment and smiles. “Plus, I first met my husband Drew living in this area.”
Hearing about the couple’s coffee rendezvous turned late-night dinner turned marriage leads me to ask Martinez to weigh in on the art of the first date. I figure as the voice and brains behind an acclaimed Latin album entitled Amor, she’s qualified to give her two cents.
“You’ve got to start out at a place like this one,” she says of Linux. “The best thing about a coffee date is that you never know when you’re going to click with someone. If you go for a coffee, there’s no commitment, you can leave when you want.”
Coincidentally, it’s time for us to leave the café but certainly not for lack of connection. Like two old friends we set out in the slush to excavate the city’s most charished chasm.
Heading north toward our first destination we pass by Clinton’s, a black-bricked Toronto tavern tradition that stands large and proud on the corner of Bloor and Clinton.
“I always bump into people when I’m there., it’s a really great place to go after work, after a long day,” she says. “Of course they have great music; my husband [who plays bass guitar] has performed there. I always hear great new bands there.”
A few paces west bring us to the busy intersection of Christie and Bloor, where we duck into boutique store Top Half, the narrow walls of which are delicately lined with hip scarves, funky jewellery and comfy cardigans.
“I love going to little boutiques where there’s not tons and tons of stuff,” says Martinez.
A few steps further down the road brings us to a bleak grey building with foggy windows. We step into Wong’s Garden Centre and the reality of winter melts away.We’re faced with a veritable greenhouse of plants and flowers from the familiar to the exotic.
I love flowers,” she says. “I like them best when they’re unexpected, for no reason at all. “I find they can really help to lift a mood, especially during the winter.”
Agreeing to engage in one more spiritlifting winter activity, we cross the road and head into the area’s famous park for a short skate on the Christie Pits rink.
As we weave along the pathway toward the ice, Martinez speaks fondly of the surrounding scenery.
“My husband Drew took me skating here, and it was the first time in years. It was very romantic.”
En route, she points to the left and to the right, citing Tacos El Asador and Mexitaco Taqueria as her two favourite places to grab Latin American comfort food.
“The taco place is like my kitchen,” says Martinez.
“It was the first place I went when I moved. I walked in and told them that this is the place that I would come all the time, and they kind of rolled their eyes. But I became their best customer!”
When I look over at Martinez, she’s already lacing up her skates. Within seconds she hits the ice like a pro and even manages to strikes a few flamenco poses.
I can’t help but think that this moment of playful relaxation couldn’t come at a better time for the singer, whose schedule is jammed with performances and preparations for her upcoming world tour in promotion of Amor.
But here in Christie Pits, she takes a moment to appreciate the past and let the future be.
“It was such a nice chapter of my life,” she says looking out into the park. And somehow I can tell that no matter where she goes, she’ll always come back to it.
