Michael Eats

Great Banh Mi at Saigon Snacks

Published on May 7, 2024 by Michael Nusair2 Comments

Location: 139 Ossington Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://saigonsnacks.ca/

Saigon Snacks is a great little shop that serves a handful of banh mi sandwiches, along with a bunch of sweet coffee and tea concoctions. I fear that it might not be trendy enough to survive on this particular stretch of Ossington, which would be a damn shame, because their sandwiches are top notch.

You can choose from grilled pork, grilled chicken, fish cake, cold cuts, and tofu. The sandwich comes filled with pickled daikon, cucumber, cilantro, mayo, pate, and two types of chilis.

I went with the grilled pork, which was generously applied, tender, and very flavourful. I was a bit concerned when I saw the bread, which is short and squat and looks a bit ciabatta-esque; but no, this is a legit banh mi (and clearly very fresh), with a great delicate layer of exterior crispiness.

And the balance of flavours — creaminess from the mayo, crunch and zinginess from the veggies, and pops of heat from the peppers — is just right.

It’s a classic banh mi prepared with a sure hand and great ingredients. Which brings me back to my “is it trendy enough?” concern. I really hope so, because it’s seriously good.

Apple Fritter Greatness at Better Days Coffee & Donuts

Published on May 5, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 963 Dovercourt Road, Toronto
Website: https://www.betterdaysdonuts.ca/

Better Days Coffee & Donuts is a delightful new doughnut shop on Dovercourt, and you know what? I’m not going to beat around the bush. The apple fritter here is the best I’ve ever had.

Better Days is inspired by the classics, with the owner telling Toronto Life that they won’t have any “stunt doughnuts” (i.e. social-media-friendly creations with elaborate toppings) on the menu. I enjoy a good stunt doughnut every now and then, but you can’t beat the classics.

And it doesn’t get more classic than an apple fritter, which is unbelievably good here. Again: it’s the best apple fritter I’ve ever had.

It’s just the perfect combo of a crispy/craggly exterior and a moist interior with enjoyably tender apple chunks interspersed throughout. It covered in a sweet glaze, but it’s never cloying, with a delicious balance of sweetness that feels just right. I could eat about a million of these. Strap me down into one of those Homer Simpson doughnut force-feeding machines, please.

I also tried the double chocolate, which was a delicious cake doughnut with a satisfying chocolatey punch. Nothing can compare to that glorious fritter, but it’s still clearly above average.

Sweet Chili Junior Chicken at McDonald’s

Published on April 18, 2024April 18, 2024 by Michael Nusair2 Comments

Location: 1001 Islington Avenue, Etobicoke
Website: https://www.mcdonalds.com/ca/en-ca.html

The Sweet Chili Junior Chicken is probably the least interesting of the three sandwiches on McDonald’s new Remix Menu, but I’ve tried the other two, so sure — why not?

McDonald’s describes this thing by saying “your tastebuds will be singing a whole new tune with a remixed Sweet Chili Junior Chicken made with Canadian-raised crispy seasoned chicken, topped with crunchy shredded lettuce, tangy sweet chili sauce and mayo-style sauce, all on a toasty bun.”

Spoiler alert: this did not make my tastebuds sing.

The problem is the sweet chili sauce. I really wish it were more chili, less sweet. It’s sweet. Like, dessert sweet. A sauce that sweet basically works as a dip for McNuggets, because you can control how much (or how little) you get in each mouthful. Here, where it’s just globbed into the sandwich, it’s too much. It’s overpowering.

Unless you really love that sauce, there’s zero reason to get this over a standard Junior Chicken.

A Delicious Wrap at Yaseen’s Shawarma

Published on April 13, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 5030 Maingate Drive, Mississauga
Website: https://yaseensshawarma.ca/

Shawarma is one of those foods that’s everywhere in the GTA. I doubt that you can go more than two or three blocks without coming across at least one shawarma joint in most parts of the city. And yeah, it makes sense — it’s fast, cheap, and reliably tasty.

That being said, even with as many options as there are in the GTA, Yaseen’s Shawarma stands out. I got the chicken saj wrap, which features chicken shawarma, zippy pickles, and a very generous amount of garlicky sauce.

If that sauce weren’t so tasty it might have been too much, but it was rich, garlicky, and delicious. I want to buy a tub of it.

The shawarma had a decent amount of crispy bits, and was nice and juicy. It also had an interesting citrusy flavour that helped cut through the richness of the chicken and the sauce (sumac? Lemon zest?).

And the saj flatbread its wrapped in was nice and fresh, and was toasted on its exterior, giving it a light but satisfying crispiness. It’s a great wrap.

Chicken Cheeseburger at McDonald’s

Published on April 11, 2024 by Michael Nusair1 Comment

Location: 1001 Islington Avenue, Etobicoke
Website: https://www.mcdonalds.com/ca/en-ca.html

I recently wrote about the Surf ‘N Turf Burger, which features a double cheeseburger and a Filet-o-Fish patty crammed into one thing. It’s part of McDonald’s new Remix Menu, which is all about cramming things together to see what happens.

The Chicken Cheeseburger is basically a Junior Chicken and a cheeseburger crammed together. McDonald’s describes it as “a combo of two classics featuring a crispy chicken patty made with Canadian-raised seasoned chicken and a juicy 100% Canadian beef patty, all topped with a slice of melty processed cheddar cheese, a tangy pickle, onions, ketchup and mustard on a toasty bun.”

Like the Surf ‘N Turf Burger, it’s fine. It’s more of a fun novelty than something you’d likely want to go back for, but it’s okay.

The combo of fish and beef in the Surf ‘N Turf Burger was vaguely off-putting, so I guess this one is a bit better in that there’s nothing befuddling about it. The slight crispiness and peppery flavour of the chicken patty complements the cheeseburger reasonably well. But the beef and the chicken both want to be the star — they can’t decide who should be a supporting player, so the whole thing feels a bit neither here nor there.