30 years ago the Hotel Isabella was a dive bar that had live bands, so when the opportunity came through Groupon to stay there for a night, I thought I'd give it a try for nostagia's sake. Despite the renovations, it's still a dive, but without the live bands.
The check-in experience was very poor with the man on reception borderline rude to us. The room was barely better than a hostel with no features. The bathroom was meagre and not somewhere you'd want to shower. The breakfast was some boxes of cereal laid out on the bar, which we decided to decline and went out looking for a restaurant.
The location may be just off the Subway, but there's very little in the immediate area as far as shops or restaurants. While they can be found on the other side of Yonge Street, just a 10 minute walk away, this is not a great area to walk in late at night.
Toronto has a lot of wonderful neighbourhoods and great hotels to meet your budget. Please try somewhere else.