BEST Onion Rings Ever... Part II

Back in August, I posted about the best onion rings I had ever had. They were from Craft Burger and they were tremendous. This past Friday, I ordered them again. Guess what... they sucked. The batter was not crispy and the ring was very very greasy. It was the limpest saddest thing I've ever seen... you had to hold it with two hands otherwise it would sag over and the onion would fall out.....

so the search is back on.....

On an unrelated note, the poutine was quite good. I can't rank it though because that is the first time I've ever had poutine. Later skater, kids are ringing my doorbell like it's out of style.. better go give them candy before they start egging my car.

TOP 4 SPICY LUNCHES ON BAY STREET

I’ve had a gripe about the lack of spicy food in food courts for years. Whenever a fast food joint comes up with a “spicy” menu item, it’s laughable. Adding a little extra blac
k pepper and a drop of Tabasco doesn’t make it spicy. The masses can’t handle spicy food, so Harvey’s can’t sell a mass amount of a spicy burger if it burns the fragile palettes of its clients. Even the fast food Thai and Indian places “Americanized” their hear levels. Well, damnit, that’s not good enough! There are people out there that want REAL spicy food!

Do I sound angry? Well, I was angry, until recently. As we’ve mentioned in our previous blogs, over the past couple years our fast food has become more “gourmet”. Processed foods are out, real foods are in. And thankfully, so are real spice levels! Vindaloo is finally spicy. Jalapenos are not always from a jar. And “chipotle” and “habanero” and not just marketing terms.

This phenomenon motivated me to write about my top 4 picks for the best spicy food on Bay St. The criteria was very simple. It must pack heat. It must be delicious. That’s about it. Please enjoy and I look forward to any comments on my choices or suggestions for other great hot spots.

4. Piazza Manna

(Exchange Tower; http://www.piazzamanna.com/%20locationsPiazzaManna.html): There are a few locationsof this Mom ‘n Pops type Italian takeout shop, but I have a strong preference for the one in the Exchange Tower. I get the veal sandwich with the hot peppers. The sandwich itself is very good. Fairly tender veal on a fresh Italian bun. Lotsa tomato sauce and your choice of toppings. Their sautéed hot peppers add quite a kick. Though inconsistent, ranging from spicy to searing, the chilies are immediately noticeable. More of a heat that stays in your mouth than travels through the body.




3. Burrito Boyz

(Adelaide St; http://www.burritoboyz.ca/): Walk a couple mins, wait in line for a long time and walk away with perhaps the best burrito in the city. The halibut burrito is really special, but the chicken is also good for the less adventurous. But I digress. This shop makes the list because of its habanero hot sauce. Oh man, this stuff is potent! For “hot”, you’ll get about 3 drops of it. If you want intense heat though, ask for at least 5 drops and it’ll knock you out! The heat is immediately noticeable on the tongue and hits your torso almost immediately. Love it!


2. Amaya Express

(First Canadian Place): Finally, the first truly good Indian food I’ve ever found in any food court. For $6.99, you get a healthy amount of food with an intense flavour punch. Pick your rice, main and veggie side. The beef vindaloo is out of this world. Super tender cubes of beef simmered in a wildly spicy curry. The heat level is absolutely perfect and continues to build on you. It’s a deep heat, the kind that you feel throughout your body and does not sting the mouth. This, to me, is a great example of comfort food and is incredibly satisfying.



1. Gandhi Roti

(Queen & Bathurst; http://www.desiconnection.ca/webmaster2/motherindia.htm): Ok, this technically is off Bay St., but it’s worth an exception. Gandhi Roti is Toronto’s best roti and up there if comparing the top Indian food in the city. They have a variety of meat and veg choices, all delicious and superbly rich, encased in a paper thin, fluffy roti. The portions are massive and eaten with a fork and knife. And the best part is that you can order anything mild, medium or hot. Oh wait, that’s actually not true… the BEST part is that “hot” will blow your head off and eat a hole in your stomach! Very, very few people can handle the hot. Seriously! I can handle spice and have eaten the hot a few times. Each time, I swear I’ll never do that to myself again. Like Amaya’s hot, it’s a deep heat that builds and leaves you with a nice warm feeling all over. If you want intense heat, get the medium. If you want insane heat, get the hot. If you can’t handle heat, do not DARE order anything above mild. My favourites are the chicken korma, butter chicken and chicken tikka masala.

Oxford Word of the Year for 2009: Locavore

Yep, it’s all the craze these days. Everyone’s eating local. Why buy an apple from Chile when you pick one off a tree from the farm up the street? And few embody it as much as Jamie Kennedy does. While his high end restaurant empire was showing signs of cracks, he began opening up locavorized, affordable lunch spots (“locavorized” - no, it’s not a word, but maybe Oxford will consider it a candidate for next year – I want all the cedit!).

Within walking distance to Bay St., there’s Hank’s. Who is Hank and why is it not called Jamie’s? I don’t know. Frankly, I don’t even care, I just care about getting good food. The menu at Hank’s has some regular items. A few sandwiches and a couple other, simple items. Additionally, each morning they post a blog (much like this blog, but not nearly as good) and introduce their daily specials of soups and a nice variety of salads. What’s locavorized about it? Well, pretty much everything. The meat is organic and from nearby farms. Same with the cheese. And same with the veggies. Kinda makes you feel good about supporting the local economy. The truth is, there’s so much more to this movement. The products used in the food are very high in quality, ultra fresh and super tasty.

I’m tempted to order the smoked lake fish sandwich, but I’m feeling carnivorous today. So the flank steak gets the nod: “Flank steak marinated in mint and lime, smoked sheep’s cheddar, jalapeno mayo, acidulated onions, local greens.” Sounds awesome! But when the sandwich arrives, a sense of disappointment comes over me, because it seems a little on the small side for $9.50+tax (pictured here is half of the full sandwich). I press on, unwrapping it and examining it before taking a large first bit. The disappointment quickly fades and turns into… for lack of a better description… Mmmmmmm. The sandwich is perfectly balanced. Just the right amount of each ingredient. And while each ingredient is great on its own, all the flavours work phenomenally well together. The bread tastes like it came out of the oven an hour ago (probably not too far from the truth… it’s multigrain sourdough from St John’s bakery down the street), dense and flavourful. The steak is tender and tangy. There’s a perfect amount of spice from the mayo and the cheese adds an extra layer of complexity. Absolutely delicious! I love it!

But there are a couple negatives. First, the price. I understand why it’s priced high and can’t say it’s unreasonable. If I ordered this at a restaurant on a Saturday, I would actually think it’s great value. But for a takeout lunch, it doesn’t pass the “under $10” test. And it doesn’t fill me for the rest of the day. If it were $8, I’d get it a lot more often. And second, Hank’s doesn’t serve the infamous Jamie Kennedy fries. Blasphemy!! The fries, available at his other locavorized lunch spot, Gilead Café, are without a doubt the best in the city. Not having access to them kinda pisses me off, but I can get over that.

http://hankstoronto.blogspot.com/
http://www.jamiekennedy.ca/PDFs/hanksmenu.pdf

Summer

Last Monday, while I was putting my white slacks and matching loafers in storage, I started to reflect on this past summer. Did we even have one?? I can't recall a single stretch where it actually felt like summer. More like a long spring..... Case in point, I did not water the lawn once this summer and my grass is still green (no lie). I turned on the air conditioner twice in the car and once at home and even then it wasn't absolutely necessary. Again, no lie.

I did not once smell summer. And because of that, I am supremely bummed right now. Although I will likely get over the disappointment of a lost summer, I am nervous that without the recharge from the long hot months I may not make it through the wicked winter. The only saving grace is that I have a few memories from a short trip I took a few weeks back. I will likely have to rely on those 10 days to get me through whatever mother nature throws at us in the coming months.... I just hope it is enough.

On a totally unrelated topic, our apologies for not keeping up with our posts. As a group I think some of us have been a bit uninspired lately, I know I have been. Others (I won't name names) have been sidelined with injuries suffered while gathering material for a food review. Still. No excuses. We will make an effort in the coming days to start posting again.

Black Camel: Consistently Fantastic!

Black Camel is a little café hidden away across the street from Rosedale station. So it’s not on Bay St., but it’s only a 10 minute camel ride, or, 7 minute subway ride for those that are hump averse or prefer the better way. And it’s well worth it. They have a very limited menu of five sandwiches and a few sides. My favourite is the brisket (I know what you’re thinking, but that cut comes from a cow, not a camel). The pulled pork (also not camel) comes a very close second. I haven’t tried the others, but the pulled chicken and veggie have each gotten rave reviews from my colleagues.

Mistakenly, many people try to compare this little café’s sandwiches to BBQ brisket/pulled pork sandwiches. Sure, you can compare them to Lou Dawg’s, Phil’s or many of Toronto’s mediocre BBQ smoke houses. But such a comparison would be both dead wrong with culinary standards and unfair to the comparison candidates. Why? Simply put, Black Camel does not own any BBQs or smokers. You see, a place like Phil’s smokes its brisket in a smoker for several hours. The meat becomes tender over this time and inherits the aroma and flavour of the smoke. Conversely, Black Camel braises its brisket over several hours in an oven. Believe me when I tell you that consistency is far easier to achieve in an oven than a smoker. The reward of true smoked meat, however, is greater. Unfortunately for Toronto, there are very few, if any, truly great BBQ joints (caveat: I have yet to try Stockyards).

So, off to the sandwich we go. The meat is piled heavily onto a soft-in-the-middle, yet slightly-crunchy-on-the-outside bun. The meat is just as tender as it is flavourful. The brisket is shredded, which allows it to maintain a nice meaty feel, yet almost melt away as you chew through it. The BBQ sauce is homemade from all natural ingredients and just the right amount is applied. And the fontina cheese adds just enough tang to bring everything together. A perfect sandwich? YES! Well, sort of yes. If I had to give it a ranking, I’d give it 4.62 camel humps out of 5 (isn’t that how many humps Alice the Camel had??). The sandwich gets 0.3 humps deducted for the bun being slightly soggy in some areas after a 10 minutes of transportation and 0.08 humps deducted for having some oil in the wrapper (as is evident in the picture… I honestly don’t know what this is, as the sandwich itself is not oily whatsoever). Oh wait, maybe it’s not oil, rather camel drool? Either way, it’s a deduction. If the sandwich was eaten fresh at the café, it would have gotten 4.92 out of 5.

One day, I’ll make a list of the best sandwiches. I don’t know what it will look like yet, but I do know one thing for sure – this delicious brisket will be somewhere at the top. And for $7 + tax (extra $0.90 for the cheese), it’s a wicked deal. http://www.blackcamel.ca/

How To Make A Proper Burger

The title of this blog is deceiving. The purpose is actually to review a burger I recently at from Craft Burger. As Nitro discussed in his post below, I too am a purist and ordered the cheeseburger combo with onion rings... err... the onion rings combo with cheeseburger. Either way you look at it, it got me wondering: Why is it so difficult for a city the size of Toronto to offer several proper burger joints? To find out, I thought I'd first share my thoughts on what a proper burger is.

There are two philosophies. One argues that the ground meat should include all kinds of things mixed in, such as onions, sauces, herbs and whatever cool things you can think of. The other argues that the burger should be pure – nothing but ground meat, salt and pepper – and the interesting flavours added via gourmet topping choices. I have tried both variations and am firmly a believer in the latter. Neither is no right or wrong, it’s just my preference. Lucky for me, in order to accommodate different tastes, the industry caters to my philosophy. This is how I make my burgers at home and here are the rules that I follow, which I trust are consistent with all burger purists’ views:

1. Start with high quality meat. If you doubt the ground meat, ask the butcher to grind up a chuck or sirloin in front of you. This will ensure that rule #3 below is safe. Oh, and don’t skimp on the fat, as this is what adds flavour and juiciness.

2. The meat should be very loosely hand formed into patties. This is perhaps the most important step! If you overmix it, the burger will be tough. Loose forming ensure juiciness and every piece will fall apart in your mouth as you take a bite.
3. It should be cooked somewhere between medium-rare to medium-well, depending on your preference. I like medium. Again, just my preference.

4. It must, must, must be cooked at high heat. This will result in a deliciously charred exterior and not overcook nor dry inside.

Sounds simple, no? I thought so too, until I started trying some of these so-called “gourmet” burger joints and realized that it was much more difficult than it sounds. Not to say the burgers are bad, because I really enjoy some of them, even if they don’t follow my rules. But they’re not “proper” burgers that would please a purist. Just like Pizza Nova makes great pizza for a pizza chain, but it’s certainly no true Italian pizza.

Now that I’ve gotten my griping out of the way, I’m clear to talk about my Craft Burger

gourmet burger! I followed rule #1, as they offered organic meat of good quality. Where it lost ground was in the rest of the rules. The texture of the burger tells me that the meat was certainly over mixed. It was cooked medium well, which I’m happy to accept. The char marks were a little too pronounced, so it was on the grill too long. This, combined with the over mixing, explains the dryness. Thing is, they go through hundreds of burgers a day. So how can you expect them to make each one so perfect? I don’t, but it sure would be nice for the prices they charge. On my burger, I got lettuce, tomatoes and smoked cheddar. The bun was great. Nice texture, toasted and soft enough to hold everything together nicely. Now for the best part – the cheese! The smoked cheddar, in contrast to the burger, was (somehow) super juicy, extremely flavourful and transformed my burger from a 6.7/10 to a 7.9/10. Wow! If I had a re-do, I’d ask for triple cheese and light on the meat! I’m thinking of dropping by there and picking up a block of smoked cheddar. You know, just to eat as a snack when I get hungry.

Oh yeah, and the onion rings were awesome. But that’s pretty obvious from the post below…

The BEST Onion Rings Period.

With the ever popular food snobbery movement showing no signs of subsiding, it is with a refreshing note that I publish this post on a food that is neither fresh, nor healthy, nor composed of "hard to pronounce" ingredients from exotic locales.

Today we ordered lunch from Craft Burgers in Toronto. Being a bit of a purist, I opted to get the traditional Cheeseburger combo with coke and onion rings on the side. After I finished the meal though, I realized that the description of the combo was inaccurate. It should have been called an Onion Ring Combo with a coke and cheeseburger on the side.

This is not meant to be a knock on the cheeseburger. It was good. But it wasn't perfect. The meat was a tad on the dry side which in the end got me full but left me generally uninspired. What was lacking in the cheeseburger though was certainly compensated by the onion rings. Those big rings were pure tastebud bliss. The batter crispy and dry, curiously and fabulously devoid of grease. So much so that they almost tasted like a healthy food! The inside was juicy with huge pieces of onion that just melted in the mouth. All of this was complimented by a zesty dipping sauce that had a perfect tinge of spice (I'm pretty sure the dipping sauce was for the rings, but I could be wrong). The onion rings were truly inspirational. I think the best I've ever tried. Even the two resident food snobs, Tuscan Tart and Habanero, were smitten by the zesty rings. Need I say more?

El Burrito Grande: Part 1, Freshwest

Check it out. Three years ago, burritos didn’t really exist in our food courts. Since then, the only way to describe how many burrito shops have popped up is: HOLY SH-T! Why wouldn’t these things be popular?

It’s a wrap with nothin’ but goodness inside. Your choice of meat, rice, beans, veggies, cheese and whatever else you want to stick in there. Ok, it’s far from authentic (a true burrito is just basically meat in a wrap, topped with salsa and cheese, with rice and beans on the side). No, these super massive burritos are eaten like a sandwich.

I love burritos. And when I fulfill my once-a-week craving, I take my choice very (very!) seriously. Today, I chose Freshwest Grill, one of the first on the scene. Why? Because it’s more convenient and closer than the superior Burrito Boyz and Quesada, cheaper than the usually superior Z-Teca, and better than some of the others around. (I will eventually post reviews on the others, that’s a promise!) Yeah, it’s middle of the pack, but look… you can’t eat lobster tails every day, otherwise I’d be eating Burrito Boyz all the time. Freshwest is good, at times very good, but never exceptional and yet to be worse than not-bad. So I walked to the TD food court and got in line…

They make it how you want. I got chicken (I’m not a fan of their steak) with everything, but purposely excluded the rice, burrito sauce and sour cream. These burritos truly are grande (I estimate 2+ lbs), so cutting out some extra fat and bloaty carbs makes it more digestible. Today, the refried beans were watery.

The salsa was watery. I had to ask twice for extra stupid sauce (their hot sauce). Otherwise, the stuff that went in looked fresh. I carried it back to work and took a bite. Unusually overly salty, but I keep going. Wow, it’s quite hot today! But it’s just a mouth hot, the kind that’s hot when you bite into it and stays in your mouth, getting hotter as you eat more; it’s not a deep heat, which builds throughout your entire body, and more preferable to me (I will also eventually post some info on spicy food, and that’s a promise, too!). By the time I get to the last third, every bite results in a gushing out of today’s excess wateriness from the beans and salsa. Some goes into my sleeve, some onto my desk, and a tiny bit into the bite that’s in my mouth. OH NO, gotta get the sauce out of my sleeve!!! Damn, that’s not so easy, and really pisses me off. Anyway, I do what I can to clean up and keep going… back to the blog! Eventually, I need to get a fork and eat the filling out of the burrito shell, or else I’ll look like a salsa covered fool by the time I’m done.

So here’s what I’ll say. At $8.25 tax-in, including $0.75 extra for guacamole, this burrito is well priced. You can choose an “inside-out” (without the shell) or a salad covered in burrito toppings. Either way, you get good value. The filling is good, but not as inspired as some of the other shops. If you put 87 octane into a race car, you can’t expect it to win the race. Salty salsas don’t cover up the fact that the chicken is somewhat bland on its own. But on the whole, it’s tasty nonetheless. Here’s a pro tip: you gotta get there before 11:45, or else you’re in line for a crazy long time. And you gotta ask them to toast it “well done”, or else it will be impossible to eat as a sandwich. Yeah, it’s messy, but it’s a burrito. It takes true talent to make one that doesn’t fall apart, and that’s rare to find (stay tuned when I discuss Burrito Boyz). I’m pretty satisfied today and hope that next time the wateriness and saltiness is corrected.

Ah, El Burrito Grande. ¡Hasta la semana próxima!

That Groggy Feeling......

It has happened to all of us before. That groggy feeling in the afternoon as you sit at your desk in your cubicle... there is a pile of work in front of you, a huge pile. But your energies (what's left of them) are focused elsewhere. Work is not on your mind. In fact, the only thing you are thinking about is whether your boss saw that last "head bob". The only reason you don't experience total paranoia is because you are so focused on trying to control the next head bob... which by the way is impossible.

This happens to me all the time. And the root cause?... a heavy lunch. By "heavy" I'm not referring to the poundage of lunch consumed.. although excess intake does contribute somewhat to the groggy. It isn't the root cause, however, because 3 pounds of salad will not give you the groggy. It might make you feel bloated and gassy but it will not give you the groggy. The groggy comes from certain foods that are just "heavy". It's hard to describe what "heavy" is, but we all know what foods have this quality. Ghandi roti is heavy. Grilled salmon is not. A large meat lovers pizza with mozzarella cheese in the crust is heavy. An oriental salad with mandarin oranges is not...

This leads me to the actual food review part of this post. Veal sandwiches. Before last Friday, I would have characterized a sloppy veal sandwich as heavy. I've tried veal sandwiches from different places in the foodcourts and they are quite good. But they are all heavy... and when you sit in the open like I do, heavy is not a good thing.

Last Friday, I was prodded to try a veal sandwich from Mustachio's which is located in the St. lawrence market. I was hesitant at first as I had stuff to do that afternoon, but my friends were persistent. So I ordered. 1 Veal sandwich with sauteed mushrooms and peppers.. all of this covered in extra sauce and cheese. I figured, if I have the veal I might as well go all the way.

The sandwich was amazing. I think one of the best that I've tried. Whoever constructed the sandwich must have had an architectural degree because the thing was well built. Typically when you load on the condiments and the extra sauce, the veal sandwich has a tendency to fall apart... at the very least sauce leaks out and splatters all over the keyboard. In the past, a veal sandwich for me was a minimum 15 napkin affair... this one... barely 2. No matter how I held the thing (ie two hands, one hand, forefinger and thumb...) the structural integrity of the sandwich never became compromised. In and of itself this would rank the st. lawrence veal sandwich as one of the best... but the sandwich tasted amazing as well. The sauce was tangy and savoury and the sauteed mushrooms were not overcooked and provided a distinct mushroom flavour that complimented the sauce and the veal. In fact, all of the different ingredients retained their independence yet combined to create a greater whole. The bun looked like the standard bun, but it was light. It looked dense but it wasn't. It felt very airy (?) yet it had the strength to maintain the borders of the sandwich and most importantly it didn't soak up the sauce.

So back to the groggy. The St. lawrence veal sandwich has all the makings of a heavy lunch. The portion is healthy and they pack in layers of veal mixed with melted cheese and sauce. Yet, it is quite the opposite. For reasons unknown, I didn't feel like I had a 2 pound cement block in my stomach after lunch and there were zero head bobs that afternoon! Victory!

Holy Smokes!

Had a special treat recently. A smoked meat sandwich and poutine from Caplansky’s. It was one of the last before they temporarily close and move to a new location Sep 1. Caplansky’s got to be quite well known around the city for the year that it’s been open. And its popularity has spawned about a million reviews, a billion blogs and certainly over a gazillion word of mouth praises. Go ahead, Google “Caplansky’s review” and the Google page counter on the bottom won’t be able to keep up.

Therefore, I’m not going to bore you with another review. Because, you don’t need me to tell you that the smoked meat is one-of-a-kind, tender, melt-in-your-mouth goodness that has a smokey flavour heavier even than any BBQ shop in Toronto. I certainly don’t need to mention that it compares favourably to the best smoked meat shops in the world, such as Katz’s and Shwartz’s. And it’s absolutely clear to everyone by now that this is the only true, authentic, purely home-made smoked meat in the city worth trying. Naturally, my sandwich was damn good. And the smoked meat poutine was like eating the same damn good sandwich, but with fries instead of the bread and with an extra healthy dose of half-melted cheese curds.

Instead of a review, this blog is about the strive to perfection. I’ve noticed that way too many restaurants, rather than trying to get better every day, just fall into the funk of complacency. Caplansky spent a significant amount of time perfecting his sandwich. He developed his own brine recipe. Determined how long the meet needs to brine for. Experimented countless hours with the amount of smoke, the length of time to smoke, the type of wood to use, and the perfect smoking temperature. Considering the meat smokes for roughly 14 hours at a low temperature (around 220 degrees), you can imagine how much of a difference 5 degrees can make. And believe me, from someone who’s attempted smoking meat, it takes a phenomenal amount of skill and experience to get the routine right, sandwich after sandwich, day after day. And throughout the year, the recipe has been tweaked. The fries have become tastier and crispier. And the meat has become more consistent.

That’s not say that it’s always perfect. It’s not a cookie cutter cold cut sandwich that comes pre-packaged and is assembled as you wait. Everything is made from scratch, so sometimes it’s a little different than other times. One time, it was… well, there’s no other way to put it… just not good. It was difficult to bite through, not the supple meat that we were used to. So we called the man behind the smoker. He tried the meat himself, apologized and gave us a credit for the entire order, fries and all. But even more surprisingly, he refused customers for several hours, refusing to serve food that wasn’t to his liking. That’s obviously someone that takes pride in what he does. And there are other places that do the same. But for every one that takes pride in their food, there are ten that are there to simply earn a buck. If you care about who earns your well-earned money, then take note of what you’re buying and make sure you pay for what’s worth paying for. We are trying to do our part to help by candidly providing our feedback in this blog. And that’s why my $7 will always find it’s way to a Caplansky’s type establishment. (No, it’s not on Bay St., but they’re great at large group orders if you have someone that can pick them up on occasion.)

Chicken Souvlaki Dinner for Breakfast??????

Yesterday morning I decided to change it up a bit and walked to work via the underground concourse in the financial district. It was a typical walk. Head slightly cocked down to express to all passers-by how tired I was and eyes up.. so I wouldn't bump into anything. Typical walk until I got to the BCE Place Foodcourt, that is.

For those of you that don't know, there's a Jimmy the Greek in that foodcourt. I didn't know that. Never been there.

It is your standard Jimmy the Greek.

But this one was open. At 7:45am!!!! What the? What is going on, I thought. They must just be getting ready for the day, right? Cutting lettuce, roasting potatoes, tending to the gyros (what kind of meat is that anyway??). Right?... It was at that moment that I noticed a white speck in my periphery. Could it be?? Holy %$#!@.. some guy was actually at the cash buying something! He had the standard Jimmy the Greek styrofoam container in his hand. What was he buying? Can you eat chicken souvlaki for breakfast??

My life hasn't been the same since.

Evolution of the Fast Fresh Sandwich

Take 2 minutes and think about how the humble sandwich has evolved within our food courts. Years ago, a sandwich meant ham ‘n cheese with mayo on white bread. Mr. Sub started making enormous sandwiches with a variety of cold cuts. And then Subway came on the scene with slightly higher quality ingredients and freshly baked bread. Quiznos took the sub one notch higher with the toasted concept. And added an astronomically high price tag to boot.

A couple years ago, all of the above was automatically kicked down to a lower league when the “gourmet sandwich” craze took over. Fast Fresh Foods opened up in a food court. What? A small sandwich with a half handful of lightly dressed spring mix salad for $7.50? No way, that can’t be worth it. And then Sandwich Box came along. Eventually, everyone started offering “grilled” or “pressed” or some sort of value added feature to allow them to charge and extra $1.50. And ultimately, Petite Thuet offered up their super-ultra-over-the-top-gourmet sandwiches. So reads the blog post below. And so begins my review of Fast Fresh Foods (FFF) in Commerce Court.

First, let us examine whether the name serves it justice. Fast? When the spot first opened, long lines were the norm. But now, the honeymoon is over and the crowds have moved on. A few short minutes in line and a couple minutes waiting for the sandwich to be grilled is relatively fast. Fresh? Sure. The varieties of bread are mostly from Ace Bakery and are consistently fresh – nice crispy outside and soft chewy inside, stepped up a level once it’s grilled. Meats and cheese are consistently fresh as well. The veggie toppings, however, have lost some of their glamour over the years. What used to be a beautiful and flavourful arugula option is now just dull and slightly limp lettuce. The peppers don’t have the fresh and vibrant colours that they used to. And the side salad has become mediocre at best, just something there to add perceived healthfulness for those concerned. But relative to food court standards, this is absolutely fresh. Food? By Michael Pollan’s own standards, definitely. The chicken is sliced off an actual chicken breast, not an overly manufactured and artificially flavoured Subway-style patty that is identical in size to the last 4,000 served. And the cheese is actual cheese, not modified with plastics and chemicals to have a shelf life of 64 weeks. And the vegetables are made from produce that has been grilled, sautéed, caramelized or otherwise had its flavour enhanced naturally.

I like that you can custom create your own sandwich. Although at times that can get confusing to the point where an inexperienced sandwicher may potentially create a Frankenstein-like monster whose parts taste a whole lot better eaten separately than combined. The sandwich I ate today was good. Frances roll with garlic aioli, chicken, brie, hot peppers and tomatoes. It is fairly consistently very good, at times excellent. Rarely just ok, although this particular experience happened to be that rare case. For $8.48 (tax-in), that compares favourably to, say, a large “gourmet” Subway sandwich at $8.99. It’s not as big, but it’s certainly big enough for a complete lunch. I always had a hard time understanding how one could digest an entire 12” monster loaf for lunch, forget about all the toppings that go inside. And the quality of ingredients more than makes up for any lack of size. FFF compares less favourably to an “ultra-gourmet” sandwich at Petite Thuet for $7-8 (tax-in, but no side salad). These comparisons are all value-based. Thing is, all of this is like comparing last week’s economic numbers to the political environment in South Africa. The sub shops are in a lower league of processed food. And Thuet is in a higher league of gourmet excellence. For what it is, FFF is very good. It’s certainly no Thuet, but many layers of shoulders above the old-fashioned, traditional ham ‘n cheese sandwich.

A Comment On Overindulgence / An Overindulgent Comment

Our culture's nascent obsession with food is a funny little phenomenon. Not too many years ago, one would be considered quite an eccentric for knowing the difference between a sous-vide and a ceviche or that a terrine has absolutely nothing in common with a tajine. For whatever reason though, our cultures epicurean underbelly has been exposed and a sort of food mania has taken over the western world. With this has come a commercial explosion of all things food. One area in particular that has caught my interest is the aptly named ‘fine foods store’ industry. These little boutique establishments are easily recognizable by their upscale yet homely appearance meant to give the patron the impression that they are experiencing the bucolic splendor of a bona-fide cottage industry but without being subjected to the rural milieu that the affluent urbanite would otherwise look upon with contempt. They generally pride themselves in being ‘local’. Every overpriced jar of jam or container of soup will have the artisan’s hand-written initials on it and the merchant behind the counter will likely be anxious to dive into whatever pre-scripted back story he’s concocted about the serendipitous circumstances that brought him to find this home-made pesto to end all home-made pestos. They are pretentious, egregiously priced and obnoxiously fabulous.

It goes without saying that I love these kinds of stores and an old faithful just popped up right outside our front door. Petite Thuet already has a very successful incarnation in the heart of Rosedale but this newly opened spot at Yonge and King is primed to take the coveted downtown lunch crowd by storm. I went for the first time just the other day and happened upon their $11 sandwich and salad ‘special’. They offer a range of other prepared take-away style options but, being a devote lover of all things bread, I had to stay true to what I know best. I choose the lobster on a roll with a beet salad and, with great restraint, exited the store without loading my pockets with (and emptying my wallet on) pre-packaged sopressata and foie gras. Once back to my desk, I took that memorable first bite. The roll was so fresh and buttery it was almost desert-like in its mouth feel. I was immediately filled with that wonderful feeling of guilt that seems to take hold when you know the thing your eating tastes far too good not to be doing irreparable damage to your cardiovascular system. The lobster filling was creamy and flavorful but it could have been a plain mayonnaise sandwich for all I cared. The bread was all that mattered to me. As expected, the beet salad was not much more than advertised (in fact, I found the dressing a little on the acidic side) but the roll made it all worth it. Next time I go into Petite Thuet, I’m going to ask the nice fellow behind the counter about the bread and maybe inquire as to whether he’s stumbled across some nice stinky cheese to go with it. Maybe he’s recently been to the eastern townships of Quebec and met some cheese maker down on his luck but with an uncanny eye for fermentation. Maybe he’s a cheese maker himself. Whatever the case may be, I’m sure he’ll undoubtedly have lots to say and, quite frankly, I’ll be all ears.

Ugly Duckling Tomatoes

I got a request to make a post about tomatoes, which is timely, given that the first of the seasonal heirlooms are just appearing. An heirloom tomato, sometimes referred to as an "ugly tomato" by supermarkets that don't know any better, is a pure-bred variety. The standard tomatoes that you find in supermarkets are typically hybridized to look red, round and appealing. Eating these tomatoes is like listening to Britney Spears. They’ve been manufactured for the masses and lack any meaningful flavour or originality.

But not heirlooms. No, heirlooms are like listening to The Rolling Stones. Unplugged. Live. And in a tiny club that fits only 100 people. They have been passed down for generations, showing scars, bursting with flavour and reminding us of what tomatoes really are all about.And just like good music, they come in countless varieties.

Studying some of these, I find it impossible to understand how anyone can call these fruits “ugly”. Yes, some have very evident scars (which are a sign of high sugar content and thin skin). And some are strangely coloured. But that’s not because they’ve been dropped or have been on the losing end of a knife fight with some rogue potatoes. It’s because that’s the way they naturally are. You have your green zebras, black princes, yellow brandywine, roses, cherokee purples, and the list goes on longer than the Lord of the Rings trilogy. Some are large, some are small. Some are round, some eggplant shaped and others looks like demented accordions. And just as you would think, each has its own vivid flavour and texture.

If you’re a fan of tomatoes, try comparing these high-octane varieties to a regular tomato on the same plate and you’ll never go back! The best place to get them is at a farmers market directly from a farmer. Some supermarkets carry them, but given their short shelf life (once they ripen, they need to be eaten within a day), it can be hard to find good ones there. I prefer to eat them raw with some salt, olive oil and aged balsamic vinegar. Mmmm.

Chicken Souvlaki Dinner for Lunch

In the interest of furthering science, for the past 6 months I've eaten "chicken souvlaki dinner" from Jimmy the Greek a minimum of 3 times a week (all lunches) alternating between the 1st Canadian Place location and the one in Scotia Plaza. That translates to a minimum of 36 servings from each of the locations. Broken down into its components, that is a total of 72 skewers of chicken, 288 pieces of roasted potatoes and a load of rice and greek salad.

Here are my findings......

Ok, I'm joking. Not about the number of servings that I've eaten in the past 6 months (that part is actually true), but the part about furthering science. My intention was not to conduct some ridiculous natural experiment, far from it. I'm just a creature of habit (aka lazy and unimaginative) and thought that chicken souvlaki was a good lunch choice as it is tasty and is about as well balanced as you can find in the food courts.

One of the benefits of eating one particular dish from two different restaurants repeatedly over a period of time is that you are able to form a very informed impression of the quality of food, service, etc., for each particular location as well as a comparison of the two. So here are my real findings.......

Overall
The components of the dish at both locations is almost identical, as is the price (just shy of $10, including a can of pop). Overall, I give the dish two thumbs up or 5 stars. I have no idea whether it tastes like authentic greek food since I've never eaten the dish in Greece, regardless, it is good. Ingredients are always fresh (especially the salad) and the chicken is cooked to perfection. If you are in the mood for chicken souvlaki you will be pleased with what you get at both locations. As a side note, and subject to the proviso below with respect to the roasted potatoes, I found that the level of consistency in the food was very high. The dish tasted the same day in, day out. This is pretty amazing when you think about it. In my view, the only other restaurant that can boast the same level of consistency is McDonald's.

Comparison of the Food
As noted above, the dishes are very similar; however, over time I did notice several subtle differences that are fairly significant.

The roasted potatoes. The roasted potatoes at the Scotia Plaza location (SP) are standard roasted potatoes, cut in random shapes and boiled (?) with various seasonings (I have no idea what they are) to the point where the skin just starts to peel off. They are tasty and so soft that you barely have to chew. Random shapes are not a feature of the potatoes at the 1st Canadian Place location (FCP). The roasted potatoes there are always the same shape. Wedges cut lengthwise down the potato. Similar seasonings are used for these potatotes, but I don't think they are boiled. It almost tastes like they may have been cooked in an oven (mybe after some light boiling?). This really brings out the taste in the potato and is superior to the one at SP. The one downside, is that occasionally you will get one or two wedges that are undercooked which results in a crunchy variant that is slightly displeasing to the palate. Risk and reward I guess.

The sauces. At both locations, the staff will ask you whether you want salad dressing, hot sauce and/or tzatziki. Generally speaking, I think the salad dressing is meant for the salad, the hot sauce for the rice and potatoes and the tzatziki for the chicken. At SP, that is generally where the sauces land.. and always in the right amount. At FCP, the sauces all get blended together and end up on everything. There is no shortage of sauce at FCP either as you will get a "healthy" squeeze of each bottle. I'm a bit of a sauce freak so I actually enjoy the overdose that is typically the norm at FCP... the one negative though is that the container is pretty greasy so be careful when you carry it back to the office. No such issue at SP.

Service
Fast and efficient. Both locations employ the assembly line concept first used by the Chinese Emperor Qin Shi Huangdi to build the terracotta warriors and later perfected by Henry Ford. There are essentially 3 staff that will assemble the meal. It starts with the person who takes the order and initiates the process with the styrofoam container (which is already pre-filled with salad). Next it goes to the person who handles the entree. They will throw in the rice and the potatoes and then with one swift move slide the pieces of chicken off the skewer into the container (so fast that you almost miss it). This person will also ask you if you want hot sauce and tzatziki. If you want both, just nod your head (even if you don't want it you'll get it on occassion... apparently it is easier to stop a golf swing midway then it is to stop the squeeze of the bottle...). Finally you are at the cashier who has already rung up the order and is waiting for your money.

Both locations are so efficient that long line-ups rarely have a chance to form.. and even if they do the wait time is not significant (making it the perfect lunch choice if you decide to go at noon). This is my favourite part... in and out.. no small talk... all business.

Epilogue
So that's my review. I had chicken souvlaki dinner for lunch again today. It was good.

Anatomy of Comfort Food

Beauty is in the eyes of the beholder....... and so is "comfort food". Ok. Not quite, but whether something is or isn't comfort food is purely subjective. For me, comfort food has to have certain characteristics.

Taste!
Obviously, it has to taste good. But in order to be comfort food, it has to go beyond that. Its taste cannot be tiresome, no matter how many times you eat it in one week. Its taste also has to transcend the physical boundaries of the food itself so that it makes your mouth water when you just think about it. Taste that exists separate from the food (this is integral as it underpins the very nature of comfort food which is something that provides emotional and mental support and escape)! There's lots of food out there that tastes good.. but comfort food has to have these additional qualities.

Ease of Use....
I always turn to comfort food when I'm feeling down mentally or when I'm compromised physically. In these situations, the last thing I want to be doing is cracking open shells, or pulling out seeds or making intricate incisions with a sharp knife. Comfort food has to be easy to eat and easy to chew. It has to have the perfect texture so that it can soothe the mouth at the same time that it is tingling the taste buds. If you can eat it with your hands, then all the better.

Versatility
Comfort food has to taste good when it is hot and cold and whether it is fresh or 1 day old.

My New Comfort Food
The catalogue of foods that I've acquired over my life that fit these criteria goes like this.... Kentucky Fried Chicken (ok, it contains bones and is not the easiest food to navigate as a result, but due to the Colonel's healthy use of grease the bones pretty much fall out when you pick up a piece of finger lick'n good), thinly sliced fried Kam (for those that are not familiar with Kam, it is a knockoff of Spam the tasty meat like substance that comes in a cool metal container that you open using the little wrench like tool that comes with every can) and Sapporo Ichiban instant ramen noodles, beef flavour. The best damn Japanese ramen noodles which oddly enough are not even from Japan (apparently they are made by a company in the US).

Recently, I have been able to add one more item to my catalogue of "go to's". Butter chicken roti (mild) from Gandhi Roti in Toronto. This stuff is the real deal. A healthy dollup of butter chicken and potatoes wrapped in a steamy soft roti and weighing in at what feels like 3 pounds.

Word has gotten out in the city that this is the best roti around, and for once I can say that this isn't all hype. This is truly good food. In addition to butter chicken, Ghandi offers roti's in many other variants with your choice of spice (from mild to hot). I don't know if the other menu items are good because I've only eaten the butter chicken (mild).

Butter chicken roti.. 5 out of 5 stars in my opinion... the only knock on butter chicken roti is that it doesn't smell like sweet roses when it has been sitting in your knapsack for over 8 hours.... but hey, nothing in life is perfect, right?

Someone once wrote that they hated "lunch indecision".... well if that someone voted for ghandi roti WE WOULDN'T HAVE LUNCH INDECISION!!!!

The lunch indecision

What's for lunch today? Every day presents the same dilemma. Having to decide what to eat with others with differing tastes makes the process even more frustrating. But at least the weather is finally starting to come around and that opens up many more possibilities for walking to get lunch.

There's the choice between close vs far. Healthy vs artery clogging. Light vs heavy. And of course, by the time the decision is made, it's too late to avoid the long lineups at all the good places. I hate the lunch indecision.

Introduction

So starts our first foray into "blogging". The premise of this blog will be simple yet important. Where are the good eats in Toronto? Essentially a food review from the perspective of 4 normal yet slightly deranged individuals. Since we have to eat lunch everyday, we suspect that we will have a lot of content for this site. To the extent that we run out of food reviews and recommendations we will fill the void with useless facts or thoughts. We hope you enjoy.

Nitro.