Beach Solar Laundromat

10/26/2026

Monk's Coat Rack, beside Beach Solar Laundromat.

Two years ago, I put up a coat rack outside my store. People donate used coats. People in need receive a coat. More than 300 coats have found new owners. Two years later, the weather is turning colder and people are in need.

If you have an old coat you're thinking of replacing this year, please consider putting the old one up on the Monk's Coat Rack at 2240A Queen St E. It's open to receive 7/24/365.

The details on who, why, when and where were covered well by CTV when I put up the coat rack. You can find a link to their story on my homepage www.BeachSolarLaundromat.ca

And if you're a store that would like to put up a coat rack, please get in touch. It's easy, cheap and does good. Hat's off to www.NoBonesAboutIt.ca at 155 Main St at Gerrard.

10/15/2026

Another great backstory shared by Neville Park Press. Help spread the good news by hitting, "Share".

Neville Park Press presents XOLA BY THE SHORE

Malinali Fernandez grew up experienced the breadth and depth of her home country of Mexico, enjoying how its cuisine varied from place to place. For Malinali’s complete story of her Xola Mexican Restaurant, please go to the Downloads section of BEACH TAPESTRY THREADS at https://nevilleparkpress.ca/

Malinali’s summers were spent in Mexico City with her grandparents. Her parents moved with their work, so her school semesters were held in nearby Puebla or in more remote regions, such as Veracruz and Chiapas province. Sampling the delicious diversity of food whetted her appetite so much that when she and husband Francisco moved to Canada twenty years ago, she started working in a Mexican restaurant on the Danforth.

The Beach Village was hands-down their choice of home for their growing family. As the years went by, Malinali wanted more and more to work as well as mother in her home area, even though the Danforth was close. Then one day, while having ice cream at Ed’s Real Scoop on the north-west corner of Beech and Queen, she noticed that the space next door was empty. At once she called her sister and husband to come and look at it with her. “This was it,” she says with relish. “This is the space where I can make my dreams of creative cheffing come true!”

Though the recipe for such a task includes hard work and effort, she accomplished just that. Xola opened its doors in 2013. The name is indigenous Mexican, though no one knows exactly how it was pronounced hundreds of years ago. Malinali pronounces it “Shola”, and she tells me that the meaning most dear to her heart is: “place close to the water”.

For the rest of Malinali’s story of her Xola Mexican Restaurant, please go to the Downloads section of BEACH TAPESTRY THREADS at https://nevilleparkpress.ca/

© 2026 Marion Wyse ~ previously published in Beach Metro Community News

09/28/2026

Leather treatment.

I don't often get to post a "before and after" picture as dramatic as this.

The leather pants (photo used with permission of pants' owner) were one of seven leather garments brought to the shop with extreme mold. Two other dry cleaning shops had rejected the work outright.

At Monk's, we saturated with ozone in our proprietary ozone cabinet (Yep, we built it) achieving a saturation of 1200 ppm-min. Once the mold cells could be presumed dead, the dead mold was wiped away with a damp cloth and leather cleaner. The photo shows the wipe-away phase, left leg done, right leg up next.

If we can do this with leather that other dry cleaning shops won’t touch, imagine what we can do with a man’s shirt ($4.50) or a lady’s blouse (also $4.50)?

The back story of Monk's and Beach Solar was recently published by www.NevilleParkPress.ca. You can read our story, and the story behind other Beach businesses, on their web site. The website article also links the full transcript of our interview with them, if you want even more info.

If you're a Beach business with a back story to share, get in touch with them.

09/19/2026

Happy launch to Neville Park Press!

During the first tour I was given of Beach Solar Laundromat, owner Alex Winch turned to me after I asked “How did you know to do this?” and responded with a smile: “There’s no manual for a laundromat!” There’s no manual for his life either. He makes it up as he goes along.

Born in Edmonton and raised in Burlington, Alex came to Bay Street in 1985 after graduating from Queen’s Engineering Physics. How did he come to Beach Solar Laundromat and Monk’s Fine Fabric Care? “That’s a long story.” Yes it certainly is. This is the distilled version. The geek version is @: https://www.beachsolarlaundromat.ca/alex-winch-interview-2026-06-10-oro/

In 1985, Alex became a very successful Bay Street technology analyst. Four years later his boss disagreed with some of his valuations so he independently continued researching Canadian companies, starting a hedge fund in 1990 and expanding to a New York City office. In 1994, The Beach Village called him home: “Walking along Queen, shopkeepers were overwhelmingly friendly and legitimate. That weighed the balance between neighbourhoods where my partner and I looked.” In 1995, he retired on performance fees to enjoy his new neighbourhood.

But Garth Drabinsky sued Alex after he wrote a letter to Forbes rebutting a claim Drabinsky made in an article that Livent’s books were accurate. Facing deep pockets, Alex agreed to publish apologies, cover shorts, and a three-year silence. “It was unjust, but I saved my nest egg from a fight my lawyers said we couldn’t win.” Drabinsky was charged and jailed soon after, but the Livent shareholders Alex had wanted to protect, lost.

Alex had invested in a Californian company running casinos at a loss, so he volunteered to help improve returns. Elected to the board and then made chair, he was quickly asked to resign when recommendations he was making for governance changes angered everyone else. He left, but then met with shareholders who agreed to a hostile proxy fight and gave him authority to battle for them, which they won. The board was changed over and the company reported a profit the next quarter.

Pivoting gladly away from that world, in 2002 Alex paid cash for bricks & mortar on Queen Street East: “I wanted to get my arms around my investment and have 100% control. The building had a laundromat, vacant store, and upstairs apartment, held together with chewing gum and duct tape ~ the perfect project for me.”

Why perfect? His research days into other peoples’ startups had prepared him for what lay ahead. “Running a small business is a non-stop sequence of addressing issues. When you first get started, every transaction or interaction is an issue requiring your attention. As you grow, and iterate, only the exceptions to the norm will require your attention. Your day will still be happily filled.”

Alex’s idea for his first problem-solving project came from having designed and installed a solar shower in the wilds of Muskoka for family. For his business, he went professional to commission a solar thermal roof installation ~ the fun schematic is on Beach Solar’s wall ~ and rebranded as Beach Solar Laundromat. “I bought and upgraded a community utility that could be a service. My machines see heavy use evenings and weekends. Weekday Wash & Fold staff could keep machines busy and assist walk-ins.”

And so it goes! To finish the story of Alex Winch’s Beach Solar Laundromat / Monk’s Fine Fabrics, please go to www.https:nevilleparkpress.ca and check Beach Tapestry Threads Downloads.

© 2026 Marion Wyse

07/07/2026

Great article Meaghan. And thank you for being our very first customer for picknup and delivery laundry service.

What moved the needle? When I learned to treat laundry and dinner prep like business decisions.

06/15/2026

$4.50 Shirts.

* We can dry clean or launder, and press to perfection,
* presented on hangers or folded for travel in a suitcase,
* Lady's blouse or men's dress shirt, same price
* Drop off and pick up from our store at 2240A Queen St E or delivered to your home.

For example,
10 Shirts or blouses at $4.50 each = $45
1 round trip delivery = $7.95
1 HST = $6.88
Total $59.83

06/08/2026

A couple of weeks ago, Nancy Pearson came from BC and worked in our shop for a couple of days. She is a recognized Laundromat expert, and we were both keen to share best practices and suggestions. This is a post she made on her FB blog, The Great Laundromat Adventure
Our "new" ozone process for eliminating odors has been operational for almost a year now, deconstructing odours at the molecular level linked to carbon (mold, mildew, smoke), sulfur (body odours, sweat) and nitrogen (animal p*e). We continue to explore new applications for odour destruction.
We look forward to continuing to serve, and to welcoming Nancy back again on her next visit to Toronto.

05/07/2026

Thursday Night Prom Prep at Mira's and Monk's,
Thursdays through June 11, 6 pm to 9 pm, 2240 Queen Street East

https://youtube.com/shorts/tdw1qlzVbvc?feature=share

04/30/2026

Prom Season Update: Mira's Consignment Shop, next door to Monk's, will be open Thursday nights through June 11 for Prom Shopping.

Find a dress at Mira's, and have Antonea Kabelaki the wizard with a needle, update it or alter it at Monk's.

We serve Riverdale, Leslieville, Danforth, the Beach and Birchcliffe.

Thursday nights, starting April 30 and through June 11
6 pm to 9 pm
2240A Queen Street East
416-686-8401

(This post is shareable from the Beach Solar Laundromat FB page)

04/29/2026

Prom season is coming up, and Monk's is on your team.

For the next 6 Thursdays, starting Thursday April 30, we'll stay open from 6 to 9 pm for measurements and alterations.

Internationally renowned magician with a needle, Antonea Kabelaki, former technical designer and garment engineer at Roots, will be on site to measure, modify and make your dress or suit come to perfect life.

Upcycling is a passion project for Antonea. If you find the almost perfect item at a thrift store, we can modify, ozone saturate and dry clean it to perfection.

We're also open on these nights to regular fittings and adjustments, that aren't prom related.

Prom nights at Monk's
6 pm to 9 pm
Thursday nights April 30 through June 11
2240A Queen St E

(This post is shareable from Beach Solar Laundromat's page)