Michael Eats

Tasty Noodle Soup at Ramen Takao

Published on April 19, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 111 Richmond Street West, Toronto (inside Chef’s Hall)
Website: https://www.instagram.com/ramen_takao/

Ramen Takao is a ramen joint in the Chef’s Hall; it’s a collaboration between Ramen Isshin and Ryu’s Ramen. I like both of those places quite a lot, so that seemed like a good sign.

They call their spicy miso ramen their signature dish (“bean sprouts / seasoned egg / spicy negi / pork belly”), so that’s what I went with.

It’s a very good bowl of ramen. Spicy ramen isn’t generally my first choice, but the spice level here is fairly well tuned — it’s got a nice kick, but it isn’t so aggressive that it overwhelms the other flavours in the bowl.

And the broth is quite flavourful, with a nice creamy richness and a satisfying meaty/seafoody flavour.

Everything else here is quite good; in particular, it’s topped with crispy tempura bits, which do a great job of adding some texture to the bowl.

As for the noodles, they’re right where you want them to be, with a perfect level of chewy heft.

Amazing Pizza at Beast Pizza

Published on April 18, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 96 Tecumseth Street, Toronto
Website: https://thebeastrestaurant.com/

I was a big fan of Beast way back in the day — it was one of my earliest reviews on this blog, and I actually wrote about the Beastwich on Serious Eats (alas, that post is long gone) — so it’s weird it took me this long to check out Beast Pizza.

I’m happy to say that Beast has not lost a step over the years. I’m honestly a bit shocked that it doesn’t come up more often when the best pizza in the city is being discussed (though I guess the fact that they’re only open for dinner and don’t do slices probably doesn’t help).

I started with the smoked trout pate: “Applewood smoked Ontario trout pate topped w/ pickled chilies and chives. Served w/ our house-made pizza dough bread.” This was pretty fantastic — it’s rich and creamy with a mild smokiness, and a nice flavour from the trout. The fresh bread that comes on the side is great. It’s a stellar appetizer.

But of course, the pizza is the reason to come here.

I went with the meatball: “red sauce, mozzarella, meatballs, fennel jam, and arugula.”

Every element here is just right; the meatballs are tender and packed with flavour, the fennel jam adds some nice pops of sweetness that doesn’t overwhelm, and the pepperiness of the arugula rounds things out.

But as good as all the flavours are here, it’s the crust that makes this a best-in-the-city contender. The contrast between the seriously crispy exterior and fluffy interior is the stuff dreams are made of. It also has a good amount of flavour, and enough chewiness to keep things interesting. It’s so good.

Quick Bites: Heirloom Food Truck, Sleepy Pete’s, Han Kki

Published on April 17, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

General Tao Pork Belly Sandwich from Heirloom Food Truck

I’m sure there are people out there who can say no to a crispy pork belly sandwich; I am not one of those people. The General Tao Pork Belly Sandwich, as per Heirloom’s menu: “crispy pork belly, homemade General Tao sauce, pickled sesame cabbage slaw, cilantro, chipotle aioli, brioche bun.” It’s a ridiculously messy sandwich (it’s a bit overstuffed), but the combo of the sweet sauce and the zippy slaw is a tasty one, that’s for sure. The pork belly wasn’t particularly crispy and was a bit tough, but otherwise this was a solid sandwich (figuratively — it was kinda falling apart as I ate it).

Biscuits and Gravy from Sleepy Pete’s

When I ordered the biscuits and gravy at Sleepy Pete’s (“Chicken sausage & bacon gravy, chives”), I wasn’t sure what it was. A sandwich? Or a biscuit with gravy on the side? It turns out: neither! It’s a biscuit covered in gravy, and it’s so abundantly doused that it’s basically gravy soup. Please note: I’m complaining. When I got this, I was like, well, there’s no way I’m eating all this gravy. Spoiler alert: I ate all the gravy. It was maybe the best sausage gravy I’ve ever had, with a seriously rich flavour and a generous amount of tasty sausage and bacon interspersed throughout. I got it with the jalapeno biscuit, which has a nice spicy pop that stands up nicely to the deluge of gravy.

Pork Bone Soup from Han Kki

Mostly, nothing about the bowl of pork bone soup I had at Han Kki particularly stands out — it was thoroughly tasty, but nothing mind-blowing. I will say, however, that the pork they used might have been the meatiest I’ve ever seen in this dish. And it was all perfectly cooked and super tender. Every time I thought I must have depleted all the pork in the bowl, I found some more. It was quite delightful.

Delicious Gelato at Moss Park Espresso

Published on April 16, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 185 Queen Street East, Toronto
Website: https://www.instagram.com/mossparkespresso/

A random coffee shop in a vaguely sketchy part of town seems like an odd place to find some of the better gelato in the city, but that’s exactly what you’ll find at Moss Park Espresso.

They only had a handful of flavours on offer when I visited; mostly standard-issue stuff. I went with the pistachio — always a good test of a gelato joint’s quality.

And this place? They passed that test with flying colours. It’s great quality gelato — it’s super creamy, with a really nice flavour that’s clearly from actual pistachios, not pistachio extract. And I appreciate that they serve it at the perfect temperature, which highlights the great flavour and creaminess.

It also comes in a glass bowl with silverware — I noted this in my On Third Thought review, but there’s something about eating ice cream out of a real bowl (rather than the standard paper cup) that’s surprisingly delightful.

Solid Mexican Food at Los Compass Tacos

Published on April 15, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 140 Spadina Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://www.loscompastacos.com/

Los Compass Tacos has a setup that’s quite Gus Tacos-esque — they have a variety of proteins (al pastor, grilled steak, grilled chicken, and cactus) that you can get in various configurations (tacos, burritos, quesadillas, etc.).

Tacos is right there in the name, so that’s what I got.

I ordered one al pastor, and one asada (grilled steak). You can pick from a corn or flour tortilla; I went with corn for the al pastor, and flour for the asada.

Both were quite good. In particular, the al pastor was nicely marinated and quite tender, with a satisfying punch of sweetness from the grilled pineapple.

The steak was maybe a bit lacking in flavour (I probably should have availed myself of the sauce bar off to the side of the restaurant, but since both tacos came sauced, I figured I’d try them as-is), but was otherwise quite satisfying, with a nice smoky flavour from the grill.
Neither taco knocked my socks off, but both were quite satisfying.

I actually wound up coming back to try the pollo (grilled chicken) burrito, and… I think the tacos are the thing to get here. It wasn’t bad, but it was a bit plain and one-note salty (the fact that I asked for no onions and got onions certainly didn’t enhance my enjoyment of this thing).