Michael Eats

Tasty Vegan Doughnuts at Bloomer’s

Published on August 19, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1510 Drew Road, Mississauga
Website: https://www.bloomersto.com/

Every time I go to a vegan bakery, or a vegan ice cream shop, or a vegan [insert dessert that absolutely should not be vegan here], I think, well, this is going to be bad. And then, more often than not, it’s not bad!

(Though nothing will ever surprise me more than the deliciousness of the the vegan ice cream at Honey’s. It’s ice cream. Ice cream. How is a vegan version that creamy?? It’s sorcery.)

I just tried the rose pistachio doughnut at Bloomer’s, a popular vegan doughnut shop with several locations around the GTA, and I was surprised by how good it was. You’d never guess it was vegan if someone gave it to you blind.

It’s maybe a touch too sweet, but the pistachio/rosewater combination is thoroughly delicious (and the rosewater flavour is more pronounced than you’d think).

The doughnut itself is top notch — it’s not too airy or too dense, with a nice chewiness that doesn’t overwhelm. I wish it had a bit more of a yeasty flavour, but that’s a relatively minor complaint.

Delicious Slices at Mac’s Pizza

Published on August 10, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 759 Dovercourt Road, Toronto
Website: https://www.macspizza.ca/

It’s getting easier and easier to find great slices of pizza in the city — in and around the core, at least. Once you get further into the outskirts and the suburbs, good slice shops get few and far between (at least in the west end — does great pizza exist in Etobicoke or Mississauga? If it does, I haven’t found it!).

I’ve tried a couple of slices at Mac’s. The first was the Lemonhead: “lemon pepper cream, black peper, zest, wedge.”

Who knew that lemon could be so delicious on a pizza? I certainly wouldn’t have guessed, but the zippy lemon does a great job of balancing out the rich slice.

I also sampled the angry pep, which is more traditional: “pep, jalapeno, hot honey, basil.” It’s quite tasty. The pepperoni / hot honey combo seems to be getting more and more ubiquitous, and justifiably so; it’s a tasty combo. And the mild kick you get from the jalapenos complements the slice quite well.

The pizza itself is definitely above average, with a nice balance between the lightly crispy exterior and the chewy interior. It’s quite good.

Great Taiyaki at Red Bean Waffle House

Published on August 9, 2024August 9, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 100 Steeles Avenue West, Thornhill
Website: https://www.instagram.com/redbeanwaffle/

Note: It looks like this place has closed down between me writing and posting this. Highly unfortunate!

The Red Bean Waffle House in Thornhill sells various cakes and savoury snacks, but they specialize in taiyaki — fish-shaped waffles that come stuffed with either red bean or custard.

I’m sure the custard is good, but come on — it’s right there in the name. You’ve gotta get the red bean.

The red bean filling here is actually slightly different than the usual. Its texture is creamier, and it tastes like maybe they’ve mixed in some custard with the red bean. I’m not sure if that’s actually the case, but whatever they’re doing, it’s quite tasty. It also has a satisfyingly restrained level of sweetness.

The waffle part, too, is a bit different from the usual: it’s slightly thinner and crispier, which works quite well with the creamy filling. It’s a very satisfying dessert.

Tasty Grilled Burgers at Elijah’s Automatic

Published on August 7, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 821 The Queensway, Etobicoke
Website: https://elijahsautomatic.com/

I was actually quite excited to try Elijah’s Automatic, the newest venture from Shant Mardirosian of Burger’s Priest fame. It’s been a while, but when Burger’s Priest first opened and had just the one location on the east end, it was something special. Their burgers were upsettingly good. Basically perfect. That’s not to mention the fact that they pretty much single-handedly ushered in the smashed burger trend that swept through the GTA over the last decade or so.

A new burger place from the brains behind that operation? Yeah, that’s exciting.

Smartly, Elijah’s Automatic isn’t making the griddled burgers you can get at roughly a billion other burger joints in the city; they’re grilling them. It’s kinda funny that, pre-Burger’s Priest, it was hard to find a non-fast-food burger that wasn’t grilled. Now it seems like a delightful change of pace.

I ordered the Automatic with Cheese (“Two flame broiled beef patties with cheddar cheese, pickle, charred onion, mustard and ketchup”) and the beef fat fries.

It’s a solid burger. And when they say it’s grilled, it’s grilled. The smoky, charred flavour is actually a bit overwhelming. I think this style of burger might be better suited to one big patty rather than two smaller ones, which would provide a better balance between the flavour of the beef and the flavour from the grill.

It’s a shame; this article says they’re using dry-aged ribeye fat to give the burgers more flavour, but you’d never know. All you can taste is the grill.

That’s not an unsatisfying flavour, of course. I enjoyed it. My burger blog is basically defunct at this point, but if I were reviewing this there, I’d give it a solid three out of four. It’s slightly on the dry side and probably a bit too finely ground, but it’s quite pleasant. It’s more along the lines of a fast food burger on a good day than something you should go out of your way for, but it’s a tasty burger.

As for the fries, they’re battered, which isn’t my favourite style of fry, but for what they are, they’re very good.

An Amazing Croissant at La La Bakeshop

Published on August 6, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 3272 Midland Avenue, Scarborough
Website: https://www.lalabakeshop.ca/

La La Bakeshop is a thoroughly delightful bakery that melds French and Vietnamese flavours, mostly through its assortment of Asian-inspired croissants (though they do have several other cakes and desserts, and everything looked great).

I went with the condensed milk croissant, which certainly isn’t a taste combo that I would have thought of. But oh man. It was insanely delicious.

Mostly, it’s the croissant. There are roughly a billion bakeries in the GTA where you can find a croissant, but most of them aren’t much better than okay. Frequently, the texture isn’t quite right, or they’re not buttery enough, or they’re not fresh enough, or they’re just… not good.

The croissant here was remarkable. Perfect texture — it’s super flaky and crispy, with just the right level of tenderness and heft on its interior. Great buttery flavour. Legitimately one of the best croissants I’ve had in the GTA.

It’s filled with a pretty generous amount of gooey, oozy condensed milk, and you’d think it would be too sweet, but somehow, it isn’t. The croissant and the condensed milk work so well together that I’m shocked I’ve never seen this combination before. It would be a tasty combo with even a lesser croissant, but with a croissant of this quality? It’s a contender for the best pastry in the GTA.