Toronto, for the Very First Time

Here comes the second post from my brain.  A few of us went to Toronto last weekend for a number of reasons, not the least of which was the Toronto Island Festival, featuring Pavement, Broken Social Scene, Band of Horses, Beach House, and Timber Timbre (whom we missed).  It was a great show.  And, much to my satisfaction, it also featured an impressive display of clouds and an astonishing, screen-saver worthy sunset (see photo).  We also ate like animals there, but since I have no photos of the food, I’ve included a photo of the sunset.  Ah, pretty…

So, I’ll do a quick rundown of the (spectacular) eating we did, but want to start with what was, for me, the clear highlight and the food that calls for a return to Toronto very, very soon.  That is the boneless chicken roti from Caribbean Roti Palace, which was featured in a post by jayrhu (our Toronto expert) last year.  Oh-my-fucking-god it was good.  Just looking at the pictures makes me all antsy.  The place clearly gets respect from the locals.

Carousel Bakery (Toronto)

Home of a pretty damn good peameal bacon sandwich.  I think this is what people in the US refer to as Canadian bacon.

Peameal bacon is a slightly pickled/cured piece of pork loin that is rolled in peameal.  Its then sliced and cooked up on a griddle.  And, its damn good.  Carousel Bakery is at the St. Lawrence Market.  They make a pretty solid peameal bacon sandwich on a pillowy roll.  They also have whole grilled jalapeno peppers which you can throw in there.

I had a medical exam for my greencard nearby this morning so afterward I swung by on my way up to my office.  I skipped the peppers but I did put some very spicy (in the front of the nose wasabi kind of way) maple mustard. Here are some photos.

 

Coffee (Toronto)

OK, two things about this post.  First, these are by no means my discoveries.  Second, I am not a coffee snob — my tastes run rather pedestrian actually.  Nonetheless, both places have truly excellent coffee.  So, if you find yourself in Toronto’s downtown here are two great spots.  Their quality is obvious from the  thick crema which persists even on the shameful Americano’s I order.

Manic Coffee (426 College Street): service is fast and efficient.  And, they were on the frontier of coffee technology before Starbucks made is move.

 

 

 

Roti Palace (Toronto)

In Toronto again.  Had lunch at another of my favorite spots — Roti Palace.  Like South Asian-style roti, Caribbean-style roti (the one I grew up with) is a thin, soft, and doughy skin made from chickpea flower and is usually cooked on a griddle then dusted with ground splitpea.  It resembles a crêpe.  The skin best when served right after making (of course).  Its then filled with various meat and vegetable stews.  I usually get  boneless chicken curry or goat. 

Roti Palace makes their roti skins just prior to serving.  The filling comes out hot.  And, they have a pretty solid scotch bonnet pepper sauce for heat.  It’s pretty amazing. 

  

Black Camel (Yonge, Toronto)

Great little sandwich shop and cafe: Black Camel. I’ve walked by this place many times and hadn’t stopped in until the smells from inside crossed my path. I thought it was just a coffee shop. Wrong. They make excellent, truly excellent sandwiches. I had the Pulled BBQ Pork Shoulder sandwich with caramelized onions and their own BBQ sauce. The buns are made from some egg-based dough. It went down nicely with a beer. I happened to have a Mill St. (local) brew at home. Great lunch — very reasonably priced. Check out the website.

Tien Thanh (Ossington, Toronto)

Took a trip to Tien Thanh this afternoon: simple, beautiful meal as always. Sorry the photos are such trash. I had BBQ pork chops and spicy Pho. Not sure whether the latter is a traditional dish, but they use a broth different than the one common to most Pho. The spicy broth is very spicy and aromatic. Thick with chile oil and scented with lemongrass, it has a nice red hue. Of course it comes with rare beef and I like to get tripe in addition to the usual rice noodles.

Crafting bites is a chore but worth the effort. Here is what I’ve found works well (learned from observation, trial-and-error ): lay down some sprouts on the spoon, bruise a piece of fresh Thai basil, load on some noodles, top with meat, fill with broth, and then hit it with lime juice. Eat. Enjoy. I usually spend the first 15 minutes eating this way until I toss it in and just eat from the bowl without discipline. Should say, the pork chops were pretty boss too. The smell of the caramelizing meat as they cook comes through the kitchen. A classic dish — great way to start. Cooked meat done right is hard to beat. Even some bone to gnaw on.

Toronto Gems: series to follow

There are many restaurants in Toronto.  The city is often celebrated for this fact.  But, there are too many places that prize novelty and advanced-technique over fundamentals (culprits: Rain, Lee, Thuet).  I’m going to post a series on what I consider “Toronto Gems.”  Food cooked well…no bull.

Forthcoming: “Toronto Gems I: Phở debate”

There are two Phở places on Ossington Street.  Both are well-known and much-loved.  One (Rua Vang) gets much more attention and traffic than the other (Tien Thanh).  This article provides good backstory.  I’m going to focus on the food.  

More to come…