After a week of campaigning to get Tom Hanks to visit Toronto's Grinder Coffee, the A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood star finally made an appearance at the east end coffee shop.
Hanks showed up on Friday night (September 6) for a cup of coffee — but as the café was closing up for the night, unfortunately.
An employee named Tony was mopping up after locking the front door, so Hanks had to knock on the front glass door to get his attention.
Once the movie star was let in, Tony called owner Joelle Murray.
"I picked up the phone and it wasn't my staff, it was Tom Hanks," Murray told CBC. "So that was quite a surprise."
She added, "He was so funny and generous. He told me I was very clever, so that made my day, absolutely."
Hanks marks the second successful TIFF "stalking" for Grinder Coffee. Last year, after a similar campaign, Ryan Gosling dropped in for a drink.
The year prior, they tried to get Idris Elba to visit, but he never showed up.
See photos of Hanks' surprise visit below.
Hanks showed up on Friday night (September 6) for a cup of coffee — but as the café was closing up for the night, unfortunately.
An employee named Tony was mopping up after locking the front door, so Hanks had to knock on the front glass door to get his attention.
Once the movie star was let in, Tony called owner Joelle Murray.
"I picked up the phone and it wasn't my staff, it was Tom Hanks," Murray told CBC. "So that was quite a surprise."
She added, "He was so funny and generous. He told me I was very clever, so that made my day, absolutely."
Hanks marks the second successful TIFF "stalking" for Grinder Coffee. Last year, after a similar campaign, Ryan Gosling dropped in for a drink.
The year prior, they tried to get Idris Elba to visit, but he never showed up.
See photos of Hanks' surprise visit below.
