A place where you can feel at home

Article by: Fleur Boomsma

The whole name defines itself: Space. As you walk in, you realize how much space there is. The big windows, large wooden tables combined with the small and round marble tables describes it all. You can almost see it as an interior designer’s dream café because of its artistic touches and furniture. The open kitchen in the café makes it feel like you’re at home.

“Vibes speak louder than words,” very well said by the fashion designer Kevin Allwood. This is the brand and the café’s slogan; as it’s imprinted on the wall and menus. We were lucky to speak with the owner himself about his life, his brand, and the café itself.

The KA Space brand is co-owned by the Canadian-Jamaican designer Kevin Allwood and his wife Ashley King Allwood. Originally from Montreal, the couple moved to Toronto to set up their venture on Carlaw several years ago.

Kevin and Ashley are very mindful of their atmosphere and the café has essentially designed itself. The space is decorated with healing crystals, plants and of course (our favourite part), fresh bread and baked goods.

When Allwood walks into a place, he likes to feel that he’s not a number and that he matters as a customer. He likes to have room around him, enjoy natural lighting, and he definitely does not like clutter. This is his idea behind the design of the café.

“The whole point behind the design of this space was to create a place that had an open kitchen, a playroom for the children, and to give people the feeling that they have space,” Allwood said.

You can come in with your family to have brunch over the weekend or grab your laptop to get some work done during the day. The point is, you have room and it gives you the ability to relax.

You may find it surprising that this organic, vegan, and vegetarian place is reasonably priced. The café sources their ingredients from Sweets from the Earth (vegan) and Epi Breads (European-style stone baked bakeshop), and they even source their sea salt from Vancouver which is hand harvested.

The designer himself: Kevin Allwood / Photography credit: @MANUANDPASCAL

Kevin is also very conscious on what’s being put in the human body. He sees his body as a machine and you need to be healthy in order for it to function properly.

“When I eat, I don’t want to feel like I’m putting bad things in my body, so I really couldn't do that to somebody else,” Allwood says.

He also doesn’t like the labels of veganism and vegetarianism but says that’s what you have to use in order to communicate the truth.

So, looking at the menu options, you may see that everything is very simplified. Kevin went down the list of what a human’s basic needs are with regards to food. His favourite items on the menu happen to be the breakfast sandwich and the pink lychee cactus pear juice (trust us, this is a great combination).

Future vision for KA Space Café

Come and enjoy the avocado artisanal toast with tomato and sea salt at the KA Space Cafe / Photography credit: @MANUANDPASCAL

Kevin laughs when we asked about the café’s future, “it’s an interesting thing because the whole idea behind the place is very divine,” he says. The café can be replicated because it’s so structured.

Can he see himself opening up this kind of café in every city? His answer: definitely.

“I can see myself opening a few more here in the city and also stay within the context of veganism/vegetarianism.”

Location: 1183 Queen St East

Photography and Article written by Fleur Boomsma

After going through two maternity leaves, Amanda Munday understands what it’s like to work from home with children. That’s when she learned there was a demand for a parent-friendly workspace that also offers a full play-based-curriculum daycare.

She looked at ways that parents could be an asset to the economy. On Oct. 1, Munday opened up an office space that offers entrepreneurs part-time childcare.

Munday says “we often assume that because parents have to take care of young children that means that they’re less available for work, which is simply not true.” This is a great opportunity for you focus work what needs to be done, but at the same time not having to worry about your children.

The open workspace allows entrepreneurs and parents to work and inspire each other.

The name for the office space relates to working around the kids, other parents and working around their challenges. When you have the ability to work around other parents they can amplify your work to be stronger and better.

“I love the play on working around some of the obstacles we face as parents and the idea that the parent community is strong,” Munday said.

The office has two registered early childhood educators (ECE’s) on site that provide quality care. They’re able to support children between the ages of six months to five years old and school aged children during PA days, school holidays/breaks.

Location

The Workaround is located at 2080 Danforth Ave., right outside the Woodbine subway station. It used to be a bank. Now it provides 8,200 sq. ft. of workspace and the opportunity for parents to bring their children to a morning or afternoon daycare program.

Munday said this location is important because the area east of Pape has “only enough spaces for 28 per cent of the families to access high quality, licensed care.”

Parents are invited to work in the open space, whether it’s at the high or low-top tables, book meeting rooms (which are named after child books), make use of the kitchen, a podcast room, and a room that is located in the bank’s old vault where they’re able to relax in a hammock.

For most entrepreneurs and work-from-home parents, the busiest time on email is after 8:30 p.m., Munday found. That’s when parents put the kids to bed and get back online.

“If we can reduce that and help them [finish work] during the day and relax in the evening,” she said, “then that’s a better quality of life for everybody.”

What is the cost?

There is a monthly cost of $318/month, which gives you a seat in the common area. You can bring your children for $10/hour, which is a lot more affordable than daycare in Toronto.

Fun facts

The artwork is based around the parenting theme and are made by local, emerging artists.

Everything in the workspace is digital. The Workaround uses a web-based platform so members can register, buy memberships, book meeting rooms and reserve childcare. The idea is to make everything very light-weight for people to work here with no added stress.

If you want to find out more about the Workaround, please CLICK HERE.