Michael Eats

Top-Notch Sandwiches at Vilda’s

Published on October 23, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 209 Dovercourt Road, Toronto
Website: https://www.vildastoronto.com/

Sandwiches! I think I’ve mentioned in the past that there are a few dishes that I think are the perfect food. A margherita pizza, for one. A great bowl of ramen. And of course, you’d have to add sandwiches to that list — but is that cheating? A margherita pizza is a pretty specific thing, but with all the different combos of bread and fillings, a sandwich can be about a billion different things.

Still, who doesn’t love a sandwich, particularly when they’re as great as they are at Vilda’s?

(That’s mostly a rhetorical question, but if you’ve legitimately never had a sandwich that you loved, then there might be something medically wrong with you. Go see a doctor.)

I tried a couple at Vilda’s: the Duca di Zucchine, and the Tuna à la Mediterranean. Both were very good, but the Duca di Zucchine (which the menu describes as “Hard-roasted, lemon-marinated zucchini ribbons. A vibrant spread of garlic scapes and tahini. Parmesan cheese! Bacon AND mint?! Together? Yes.”) was the highlight. The combo of the tender zucchini, the crispy/meaty bacon and the zingy vibrancy of the various sauces was extremely delicious.

The Tuna à la Mediterranean (“Cut up artichokes, whipped tuna, melted cheddar, olive-dressed butter lettuce and mayo”) was a bit less impressive, but still quite tasty. This one tasted more like something I might be able to make at home (or more accurately, something I think I could make at home, but could never actually make at this level of deliciousness). It was also a bit odd in that it was ostensibly a tuna melt, but featured cheese that was completely unmelted. You’d think that this would be an issue, but it was delicious regardless. It’s hard to go wrong with the combo of the creamy tuna spread and the crispy freshness of the veggies, not to mention the great bread.

Tasty Sweet Buns at Akko Cake House

Published on October 20, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 4040 Creditview Road #1, Mississauga
Website: None

Akko Cake House is a bit oddly named. They do have a handful of cakes at the front, but mostly, this is a fairly standard Chinese bakery with a whole bunch of sweet and savoury buns and tarts.

I tried a few sweet buns: coconut, custard, and walnut.

The pastry itself was quite good — it was fresh, a little bit sweet, and super fluffy.

I was intrigued about the walnut variety; I don’t recall ever seeing a walnut bun before, and I’ve certainly never tried one. It was fairly subtle, however, with a very thin layer of walnut paste and a few walnut chunks. It tasted more like a plain bun with a mild walnut flavour.

The custard was about what you’d expect. It was sweet, creamy, and tasty.

The coconut bun was where it was at. The generous filling was really tasty, with a nice coconut flavour. It also has a surprisingly strong hit of salt that does a great job of rounding out the sweetness. It’s really good. The bakery was packed (the line was to the door when I left), and with buns that good, it’s easy enough to see why.

A Great Chicken Sandwich at Black Camel

Published on October 16, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 4 Crescent Road, Toronto
Website: https://www.blackcamel.ca/

Black Camel is mostly known for their meaty sandwiches (though their roasted veggie sandwich is no slouch); the brisket and the pulled pork are the specialties, and both are great. I went with the roasted pulled chicken on this visit, and hey, what do you know — it’s great.

One of the distinctive things about this shop is that there aren’t really any pre-set sandwiches; you customize your meat, your sauce, and toppings (which cost 95 cents a pop). I went with the suggestion of the woman behind the counter, which was the basil pesto mayo and roasted red peppers.

It’s a top notch sandwich. The chicken is nice and tender and has a satisfying roasty flavour, the silky roasted peppers add some nice pops of sweetness, and the rich mayo holds it all together. That’s not to mention the bun, which is soft and fresh and holds up nicely to the meaty filling.

I think the chicken is either mostly or entirely white meat, which is a shame; a bit more moisture and flavour from some dark meat would have been nice. And the basil pesto mayo mostly just tasted like plain mayonnaise, and could have used a bit more zip. But mostly, it’s a great sandwich from a consistently great restaurant.

Tasty Frozen Custard at The Loop Creamery

Published on October 13, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 3795 Lakeshore Boulevard West, Etobicoke
Website: https://www.loopcreamery.com/

I (sort of) tried this place back in 2018, when they had frozen custard on the menu at Woodfire Sandwich Co, an offshoot of Woody’s Burgers. Alas, the sandwich place is no more, but the ice cream has been bumped up to its own thing (though it’s now inside Woody’s Burgers).

As I mentioned in my previous post, frozen custard (which is basically just standard ice cream with an added richness and flavour from egg yolks) is weirdly hard to find in the city. So the fact that The Loop Creamery exists at all makes me happy.

And it’s quite tasty. I think it’s actually improved since 2018; the ice cream is rich and creamy, with a mild but satisfying custard flavour. It’s quite good.

I went with the Old School, which is just peanuts and caramel in a vanilla base. The peanuts had gotten a bit soft in the ice cream, but it was otherwise quite tasty, with the rich custard base working very well with the ribbons of sweet caramel.

Decent Noodle Soup at Beefing With 7

Published on October 11, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1177 Central Parkway West, Unit 9, Mississauga
Website: https://www.facebook.com/BeefingWith7.Mississauga/

Beefing with 7 is a Hong Kong-style restaurant with a few locations throughout the GTA (and an absolutely baffling name — there’s no indication on the menu or the restaurant’s website about what “7” refers to).

I had the signature beef brisket noodle soup, and it’s perfectly tasty, though it’s nothing you need to jump in your car and go out of your way for.

Still, I don’t have any complaints — the broth has a clean beefy flavour, the simply-spiced brisket is tender, and the firm noodles are satisfying. There are also several optional add-ons, which might not be a bad idea; the bowl is tasty, but could probably use some jazzing up.

There is, however, a bowl of tasty chili oil on the table, which is a must. It adds a nice kick and a bit more depth of flavour to the very straightforward bowl of noodle soup.