One of Toronto’s oldest and most popular Starbucks is shutting down for good

A Starbucks location that has for decades served as a stalwart landmark in one of Toronto’s busiest areas is shuttering permanently in the coming days, marking the sudden end of an era.

The ubiquitous Seattle-based coffee chain’s store at 250 Queen Street West, at the corner of John Street, was one of the very first to open in the city after Starbucks made its initial foray into Canada in the late 1980s.

Following the opening of its premiere international location in Vancouver in 1987, the brand came to Toronto in the mid-’90s with five locations that quickly expanded to more. (It now has nearly 1,500 across the country.)

At the corner of Queen and John Streets, the Starbucks was iconic, persisting through decades of change on Queen West.

This specific T.O. outpost has been a staple for visitors touring the Queen strip, for stars stopping by Much Music across the street during its heyday, and for the countless people who have lived and worked in the Entertainment District over the years.

Staff on-site when blogTO visited on the cafe’s second-last day in business on September 27 said it’s definitely considered one of the company’s more “historic” locations, even once housing Starbucks Canada’s corporate offices upstairs (something PR personnel have not yet confirmed to blogTO).

And while the team is sad to leave this location, thankfully, no one will be losing their job, as they will all be moving to a brand new spot that just opened across the street.

Signage in the location’s windows explains to customers that it will be wrapping up operations on Monday and moving across and down the street.

That larger and more modern Starbucks at 221 Queen Street West, which opened its doors last week, is presumably also the reason for the older restaurant’s closure.

The Queen and John cafe will be closed over the weekend, and will host its last day in operation on Monday, September 30, when it will shut down the day early, for one final time, at 3 p.m.

The newly-opened Starbucks at 221 Queen St. W appears to be replacing the smaller, older one at 250 Queen St. W.

blogTO has reached out to Starbucks Canada seeking comment on the closure and additional details about its history in the older building.