Michael Eats

Big Tasty at McDonald’s

Published on October 27, 2026October 27, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 30 Courtneypark Drive East, Mississauga
Website: https://www.mcdonalds.com/ca/en-ca.html

The Big Tasty definitely exists. It’s a thing that is now on the menu at McDonald’s. You can eat it.

That’s about my max level of enthusiasm for this burger. It’s not bad, certainly, but there’s nothing about it that stands out in any particular way.

Here’s how McDonald’s describes it: “A 100% Canadian beef patty topped with smokey flavoured Big Tasty Sauce, two slices of white processed cheese, tomato slices, shredded lettuce and slivered onions.”

(And if that colourless description is anything to go by, even McDonald’s is unenthused about this particular burger.)

The most interesting thing I can say about it is that it has tomatoes in it, which you don’t typically find in McDonald’s burgers (they were pretty mushy and not great, which is probably why they’re not normally in McDonald’s burgers). Otherwise, this is basically an inferior Quarter Pounder with Cheese.

I think the Big Tasty sauce is the biggest culprit here — it’s fine, with pleasantly sweet/zesty flavour, but it’s very forgettable. Nothing about it stands out. I guess it has an extremely mild smokiness, but if the menu hadn’t mentioned that it’s “smokey flavoured,” I don’t think I would have noticed.

Still, the whole thing is inoffensive, I guess? I’m not upset I ate it. I’m not happy, either, but hey, they can’t all be winners.

Solid Thai Food at Thai Barn Na

Published on October 26, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 888 Dundas Street East, Mississauga
Website: https://www.thaibarnna.ca/

Thai Barn Na is a burgeoning Thai chain with locations in Etobicoke, Liberty Village, and Mississauga.

Often, if I’m not sure what to order at a restaurant, I’ll check out the section in Google maps where they highlight the dishes that come up the most often in reviews. I figure it’s probably a safe bet to order the most popular dish. When I visited, that was the khao soi.

I started with the shrimp donut cake (“crispy shrimp & fish cake, garlic and spices served with sweet chilli sauce”). I was a bit disappointed to find that this wasn’t actually a doughnut (not everything in a ring shape is a doughnut!), but rather a shrimp patty that’s shaped like a ring, breaded, and fried. Still, whatever it was, it was quite tasty, with a nice contrast between the crispy exterior and meaty interior.

You can get the khao soi (“soft and crispy egg noodles, golden curry, coconut milk, spring onion, red onion, crispy shallot, lime, pickled veg”) with tofu, chicken, beef, or shrimp. Chicken is traditional, so that’s what I went with.

It’s not the best version of this dish that I’ve ever had — the flavour doesn’t quite pop like it should, and the pieces of chicken were quite dry — but it’s still a great dish executed well, with a nice balance of textures from the chewy/crispy noodles, and a pleasantly rich soup.

Unique Eats at Japan Taco

Published on October 25, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 486 Front Street West, Toronto (inside Wellington Market)
Website: https://www.japantaco.ca/

Japan Taco started as one of those booths you see at various street festivals around the city, and eventually they were successful enough to open a couple of permanent locations. They’ve got one on Queen Street, and now, this one in The Well.

So what is a “Japan Taco”? It’s kind of like a cross between a poke bowl, onigiri, and a taco. It’s interesting.

I ordered the Miso Salmon, which features a sizable piece of miso-glazed salmon, mashed avocado, pickled radish (I think?), sushi rice, and a bunch of other stuff (I can’t find a description of this anywhere online, so I’m not 100% sure what was in there — it was a lot).

The nori shell is what makes this really distinctive. I sort of figured this would be similar to the lightly crispy nori in onigiri, but it has a hearty crisp-factor that I found to be surprising and delightful. And the intense crispiness remained right until the last bite, never sogging up. It has what appears to be panko on its exterior, so I guess it’s breaded and fried?

Otherwise, this was pretty satisfying, with a well-prepared piece of salmon and a bunch of other tasty stuff. The flavour could have been amped up a bit (maybe you’re meant to add soy sauce or dip it in something?), but otherwise I quite enjoyed it.

Quick Bites: Los Panchos Mexican Restaurant, Las Muns, Azhar Kitchen and Bar

Published on October 24, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Birria burrito and carnitas quesadilla from Los Panchos Mexican Restaurant

It’s been a few years since birria mania swept through Toronto, and it’s still going strong. Case in point: Los Panchos Mexican Restaurant has a whole birria section on their menu, where basically every Mexican staple you can think of has been birria-ified. I tried the birria burrito, and while there was no broth on the side, the beef was nice and tender. Nothing about it particularly popped, but I certainly didn’t dislike eating it. I also tried the carnitas quesadilla, and aside from the fact that the pork tasted slightly leftovery, it was a solid version of the dish. Both were crying out for some hot sauce, however — if any was available, I didn’t see it.

Spicy beef and poutine empanadas from Las Muns

I was intrigued by Las Muns, a Spanish empanada chain that has a bunch of locations in Europe, and is starting to expand in Canada. They have a variety of flavours — some classic, some quirky (stuff like Cajun shrimp and Thai chicken). I went with the spicy beef and poutine varieties, and they were both… fine, I guess? They taste more like something you might expect to find in the freezer section at Costco rather than a handmade empanada from a restaurant, but they were both inoffensive enough.

Za’atar fries and muhammara from Azhar Kitchen and Bar

Okay, let’s end this with some positivity. I checked out the happy hour menu at Azhar and tried a couple of things, and both were quite tasty. The za’atar fries weren’t the best fries I’ve ever had, but they were quite solid, with the generous amount of za’atar they were tossed in adding a nice zippy, herbal punch. That’s not the mention the lemon aioli that comes on the side, which was satisfyingly rich and creamy, with a nice brightness from the lemon to round things out. It’s a great dip. I also tried the muhammara (“roasted pepper, walnut, sourdough, pomegranate seed; one pita”), which was even better, with a nice chunky texture and a satisfying cumin-tinged flavour. And the freshly-baked pita on the side was a perfect complement.

Solid Korean Food at Gyodong Restaurant

Published on October 22, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1170 Burnhamthorpe Road West, Mississauga
Website: https://www.gyodong.ca/

Gyodong is a Korean restaurant that specializes in jjamppong (a spicy seafood noodle soup) and jjajangmyeon (black bean noodles). They’ve got a couple of locations (this one, in Mississauga, and one in the Koreatown area of Toronto near Christie Pits Park), so clearly, they’re doing okay.

I started with the kkanpung tteokbokki, which is like normal tteokbokki, but with a sweet, garlicky sauce subbed in for the usual spicy one. It’s intensely sweet, but with a nice garlicky punch that helps balance things out.

The rice cakes themselves were a bit soft, however — they were fried, which gave them a pleasantly crispy exterior, but the inside was overcooked and didn’t quite have the chewiness you’re looking for. The sauce was tasty enough that it mostly didn’t matter, but it was a shame.

As for the jjajangmyeon, it was quite good, with a deep savouriness from the black bean sauce that’s really satisfying.

Again, however, it was a bit overcooked — the noodles were softer than they should have been, which is a shame. But again, the sauce is tasty enough that I can’t say I’m too upset about it.