Although this area is largely residential, there are a number of Portuguese stores on College and Dundas streets, which is why the area is called Little Portugal. Among these stores you can find bakeries, bookstores, cafes, art galleries, design and fashion stores, boutiques, fitness clubs, hotels, grocery stores and plenty of restaurants and bars. The majority of storefronts are Portuguese, however you can find Japanese and Brazilian restaurants among others in this neighbourhood.

One major attraction to this neighbourhood is McCormick Park and McCormick Recreation Centre and Arena. The Community Centre hosts community meetings and events such as bake sales and skating parties. The people of this area are very environmentally friendly and conscious, speaking of how to ensure their environment is clean during their meetings. They also have an “Adopt-A-Tree” program to ensure the park is healthy.

Beaconsfield Avenue, the main street in the neighbourhood, got its name after the British Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, who was appointed the title ‘Lord Beaconsfield’ by Queen Victoria. However, the history of this neighbourhood goes back to the Denison family in the early 1800’s, who were the main landholders in the area. Captain John Denison owned the Brookfield estate, a large area of the neighbourhood built in 1815. The estate was sold by Denison’s heirs and the streets as we know them now were built in its spot in the 1870’s, making Beaconsfield Avenue the main street.