{"id":505291,"date":"2026-02-28T13:14:10","date_gmt":"2026-02-28T13:14:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/505291\/"},"modified":"2026-02-28T13:14:10","modified_gmt":"2026-02-28T13:14:10","slug":"inside-the-black-owned-hotel-in-dundas-west","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/505291\/","title":{"rendered":"Inside the Black-owned Hotel in Dundas West"},"content":{"rendered":"

In a city of soaring glass towers and predictable lobbies, Toronto\u2019s Ode hotel<\/a> offers a refreshing change.<\/p>\n

Tucked inside the Dundas West neighbourhood, this Black-owned family business is quite literally an \u201code\u201d to Toronto and its founding family, who came to Canada from Trinidad and Tobago.<\/p>\n

It all started back in December of 2021 after co-founder Tiffany Ramsubick launched the hotel at 1417 Dundas St. W. with her mother and three siblings.<\/p>\n

Although Ramsubick\u2019s parents previously owned the building before it officially opened as Ode, transforming the space into a reflection of its vibrant surroundings has truly put the hotel on the map.<\/p>\n

\"Ode<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The exterior of Ode Toronto on Dundas Street West.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ode Toronto<\/p>\n

Since its opening, it has been named as one of Vogue\u2019s favourite hotels in Toronto<\/a>, along with recognition in the New York Times<\/a>, despite the siblings\u2019 original backgrounds in law, engineering, the medical field, and coding.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy siblings and I saw an opportunity because of the neighbourhood that Ode is in. It\u2019s really, really evolved since my parents bought the building, and we wanted to evolve the building along with the neighbourhood,\u201d Ramsubick tells Toronto.com<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you come and stay at Ode, we really wanted you to get a feel for Toronto, which we think is one of the best cities in the world. That was our inspiration.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ode Toronto: \u2018From the light fixtures to the knobs on the doors\u2019<\/p>\n

\"Ode<\/p>\n

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The Black and Yellow room at Ode Toronto.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ode Hotel<\/p>\n

While most chains offer sameness at their hotel locations, guests will find the exact opposite at Ode. Upon arrival, visitors are met with a huge mural that encapsulates the entire exterior of the property.<\/p>\n

Inside, every one of its 10 rooms are all decorated differently, based on a colour. Each room has furniture made locally in Toronto, along with art created by artists in the city.<\/p>\n

\u201cFrom the light fixtures to the knobs on the door, everything is unique. The city is so diverse, and we wanted to reflect that diversity,\u201d said Ramsubick.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe wanted to have a place where everybody felt that they could be reflected. I think we have something for everyone because all our rooms are different.\u201d<\/p>\n

In the Gold room, overlooking Dundas Street West, guests will find paint to graphite artwork from Gillian Toliver. The Green room is jungle themed with a hand painted mural from Gabriella Lo. And the Grey room displays Jah Grey\u2019s intimate portrait of two lovers.<\/p>\n

\"Ode<\/p>\n

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Ode Toronto\u2019s Grey room.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ode Toronto<\/p>\n

And even though picking a favourite suite at Ode feels like choosing a favourite child for Ramsubick, the Black and Yellow room is a summertime front-runner and the Gold room brings a welcoming warmth to winter. However, the Green room is the most requested at the hotel.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a real immersive experience when you come into the room, you really feel like you\u2019re in an enchanted forest,\u201d\u00a0Ramsubick said.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to see it to believe it but it\u2019s a beautiful experience.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Ode<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n

The Green room at Ode Toronto.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ode Toronto<\/p>\n

Aside from the suites, the hotel also has a rooftop available to guests to stretch in the morning or enjoy a snack under the Toronto sun. And with more original art from local artists on the rooftop, it is also used an event space.<\/p>\n

Ode Toronto: \u2018Staying with family\u2019<\/p>\n

\"Ode<\/p>\n

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The family behind Ode Toronto.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Ode Toronto<\/p>\n

Regardless of which room a guest decides to stay in, they can expect to be welcomed into the space like family.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you come through the doors, you\u2019re greeted by my mom or you\u2019re greeted by one of my siblings,\u201d said Ramsubick.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think because of that focus on sameness that a lot of corporate chains have, that warmth and welcoming hospitality has been lost. So, just expect to really feel like you\u2019re staying with family when you come to Ode.\u201d<\/p>\n

And while the\u00a0Ramsubick family\u2019s current focus remains providing a warm welcome on Dundas West, their vision for the brand is only getting bigger.\u00a0Looking to the future, the family hopes to open a second spot.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cI really think the world is our oyster,\u201d\u00a0said Ramsubick. \u201cWe\u2019ve created something that people seem to love, and we love doing it. So, we would love to expand to another location and just keep building our brand.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"In a city of soaring glass towers and predictable lobbies, Toronto\u2019s Ode hotel offers a refreshing change. Tucked…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":505292,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[194291],"tags":[49,48,3302],"class_list":["post-505291","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-toronto","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-toronto"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505291","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=505291"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/505291\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/505292"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=505291"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=505291"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=505291"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}