Restaurant Review – Page 63

Tasty Noodle Soup at Szechuan Noodle Bowl

Published on September 13, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 400 Dundas Street East, Mississauga
Website: https://szechuannoodlebowl.com/

Look, I’m a simple man. If you slap a bowl of freshly-made noodles in front of me, my level of happiness is going to go up by like a hundred percent. Szechuan Noodle Bowl — which, as the name implies, specializes in bowls of freshly-made noodles — makes me a happy man.

I ordered the Hand-Made Noodles, which comes spicy or non-spicy with your choice of topping (beef, ground pork, pork intestines, Chinese pickle, or chicken). I went spicy with ground pork, and yeah, it’s good.

Those noodles are great — they’re thick, chewy, and satisfying. The soup is mildly spicy and has a nice zippy flavour, and the generous amount of tasty ground pork complements it perfectly.

I wish there had been some chili oil on the table — the soup was spicy, but could have been kicked up a bit — but aside from that it was a top-notch bowl of noodles.

Tasty Korean Stew at Insadong

Published on September 8, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 4941 Dundas Street West, Etobicoke
Website: https://www.insadongrestaurant.com/

When you’re in the mood, there’s nothing that hits the spot quite like a hearty, flavourful, bubbling hot Korean stew.

(Well okay fine, as a person who generally doesn’t like food to be so hot that you’re at risk of burning yourself, I could do without the “bubbling hot” part — but since the hot stone bowl is part of the package, I guess I’ll allow it.)

I ordered the ugeojikug, which the menu describes as “cabbage hangover soup made in a beef broth with rice.”

It’s very good. The soup is absolutely crammed with cabbage and sliced beef, and the broth is slightly spicy and profoundly beefy. The beef was a bit on the tough side, but everything else is so tasty that this is never a particularly big deal. In particular, the soup itself has a very satisfying beefy flavour; they could have served that broth on its own and I would have left happy.

Quick Bites: Sarpa Restaurant, Burger Drops, El Pocho Antojitos Bar

Published on September 6, 2022February 15, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Franco Fries at Sarpa Restaurant

This place probably deserves more than a quick bite review, but it’s one of the many restaurants I visited while this blog was on hiatus, and this seems like it’s better than nothing. I tried a few things here, and everything was quite good, but the highlight was clearly the Franco Fries: “hand cut fries, parmesan cheese, truffle-honey essence.” This seems like an odd thing to order at an upscale Italian restaurant, but trust me — you need these fries in your life. The fries themselves are perfectly cooked, with a crispy exterior and creamy interior, but it’s that truffle-honey essence that really makes these things sing. I’m normally not crazy about anything with truffle oil (most truffle oils have never seen an actual truffle in their life), but this didn’t have that flavour at all; it was garlicky, a little bit sweet, and thoroughly addictive.

Burger and a chicken sandwich from Burger Drops

I tried a couple of things at Burger Drops. The first was the original burger, which features “griddled sweet onion, American cheese, house pickles, Drop sauce, toasted potato roll.” It’s a solid burger — the patty has a nice crust, a decent beefy flavour, and the toppings suit it well. It’s a bit on the dry side and nothing about it really jumped out at me, but it’s a tasty burger. If I had been reviewing it for my burger blog, I’d give it a solid three out of four. The other thing I tried was the chicken sandwich, which is odd, but tasty. The odd thing about it: it’s not a traditional fried chicken sandwich. Instead, it’s basically a gourmet McChicken, right down to the reconstituted chicken patty. It’s a fun novelty and a big step above its fast food inspiration, but I’m not sure that I’d ever elect to eat this over a standard fried chicken sandwich.

Chilaquiles at El Pocho Antojitos Bar

Chilaquiles is one of those dishes that really deserves to be a bigger deal. It’s such a simple dish: it’s just tortilla chips tossed in a zingy sauce. At El Pocho Antojitos Bar, it’s also topped with crema (I think? It’s been a while), cheese, and a fried egg. The sauce thoroughly coats the chips, softening them a bit, though they do still retain a bit of their crunch. It’s a thoroughly satisfying dish.

A Delicious Cold Cut Sandwich at Buon Giorno Caffe & Panini

Published on September 4, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1134 The Queensway, Etobicoke
Website: https://www.buongiornocaffe.ca/

There’s something magical about a meaty Italian sandwich, despite its simplicity. Just a whole bunch of cold cuts on bread? Too simple, right?

Wrong. Especially if it’s as good as it is here.

I was actually planning on ordering the hot veal sandwich, but when I went in, the guy behind the counter sold me on the cold cut sandwich on focaccia, which he said is a Thursday and Friday special. There was something about the way he described it, and his promise that I was “gonna love it!” had me convinced.

I think they describe it better on their website than I ever could:

This signature sandwich is only available on Fridays. That’s the day we take fresh Rosemary & Roasted Sweet Pepper Focaccia and stuff it with generous layers of Mortadella, Genoa Salami, Capocollo and Provolone and then smother it with hot Muffuletta just for fun. We’ll forgive you if you curse when you try this one. Our regulars have lovingly named this the “F@#*in Focaccia Sandwich”.

I know it seems like they’re overselling it, but you know what? I don’t think they are. The focaccia is perfectly soft and chewy, with some nice flavour from the rosemary and the peppers. The fat stack of cold cuts are all super tasty and really well balanced, the cheese adds a bit of creaminess, and the muffuletta gives it a nice zingy pop that cuts through the richness. It’s a top-notch sandwich.

Ketchup Ice Cream (and More!) at The Ex

Published on August 25, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 210 Princes’ Boulevard, Toronto
Website: https://theex.com/

The Ex! It’s back! And clearly I’m not the only person excited about this, because despite going in the middle of the week after work, the place was as crowded as I’ve ever seen it. Clearly, there’s a lot of pent-up demand for sketchy rides, junky food, and stores selling random knick-knacks.

Of course, I was there for the food, and yes, I tried the ketchup ice cream.

Two dollar spaghetti from Primo Spaghetti

This place has been around forever, though this was my first time actually trying it. It’s pretty much exactly what you’d think a two dollar serving of spaghetti at a carnival would be: the sauce tasted like the cheapest stuff you can buy at the supermarket, and the spaghetti was overcooked mush.

Deep fried perogies from The Perogy Chef

This is another place that’s been around forever; I’ve tried this one before and I knew it would be good, and indeed it was. The perogies are tender, tasty, and slightly crispy on their exterior, and they’re doused in an oily sauce and a bunch of sweet caramelized onions. The sour cream on the side adds a nice creamy zing that rounds things out quite well. It’s a tasty snack.

Flamin’ Hot Chicken Sandwich from Fried Chicken Sandwiches

This place promises a chicken sandwich that’s tossed in chipotle mayo and coated in Flamin’ Hot Cheetos. Alas, the Cheetos (or Cheeto crumbs, more accurately) are just mounded on top, which isn’t quite as fun from an appearance or a taste perspective. The whole thing is fine — it’s not the best fried chicken sandwich I’ve ever had, and it’s not the worst — but it barely has any Flamin’ Hot taste or texture.

Viet Burrito from Pho 88

This is less of a burrito and more of an overstuffed fresh roll, but it’s still pretty tasty; it’s crammed with noodles, various veggies, chicken, and a whole spring roll, and it’s wrapped in rice paper. It would have been nice if the peanut sauce were in the wrap instead of on the side (it’s a bit dry), but otherwise this was pretty good. It’s basically like a Vietnamese vermicelli noodle bowl, but crammed into a handheld package.

Fried cheese curds from the Midway

I wasn’t expecting it, but this might have been the best thing I ate at the Ex this year. The curds are gooey and tasty, and the super satisfying crispy exterior doesn’t overwhelm. It’s basically like a mozzarella stick, but better. There’s not much more to say about this one. It’s fried cheese. It’s great.

Ketchup ice cream from the Midway

Of course I tried the ketchup ice cream. How could I not? They also serve mustard ice cream; I was hoping to get both in a twist, but alas, that wasn’t an option. I suppose I could have ordered one of each, but one of these things costs twelve bucks and I wasn’t about to spend over twenty dollars on novelty ice cream. Anyway, it wasn’t bad! Would I eat it again? Absolutely not, but considering how disgusting this could have been, the fact that it’s actually pretty okay is kind of a miracle. It has an unmistakable but (and this is key) not overwhelming ketchup flavour, which combines surprisingly well with the ice cream. The ketchup flavour is present enough that you know exactly what you’re eating, but subtle enough to let the sweet ice cream be the star of the show. It’s not gross!