chocolate – Page 4 – Michael Eats

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.

A Delicious Almond Croissant at Castle and Coal

Published on November 24, 2023 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 108 Dovercourt Road, Toronto
Website: https://castleandcoal.ca/

I have a hard time saying no to an almond croissant. There’s something about the combo of a crispy, fluffy, buttery croissant with the creamy, sweet almond paste that’s kind of magical.

The version of Castle and Coal also has chocolate in it (it’s basically a cross between a traditional almond croissant and a pain au chocolate), and sure, why not? Add chocolate to every dessert. I have a hard time thinking of a dessert that wouldn’t be enhanced by adding chocolate.

The croissant itself doesn’t quite have the level of exterior crispiness that you’re hoping for, but it’s otherwise right where you want it to be. The very generous amount of almond paste almost borders on too sweet, but never crosses that line (and the addition of dark chocolate, aside from complementing it quite well, does a good job of balancing out the sweetness of the filling).

Quick Bites: Chica’s Chicken, SumiLicious, Honey’s

Published on November 1, 2023 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

The O.G. Sandwich from Chica’s Chicken

The Nashville hot chicken sandwich at Chica’s is very different than it used to be. I should note that it’s still juicy, crispy, and abundantly flavourful. It’s easily one of the best fried chicken sandwiches in the city. But it used to be among the best fried chicken I’ve ever had, and it’s not quite there at the moment. It’s also noticeably smaller than it used to be — I’m going to guess that it’s about one third of the size? If you look at a photo of what it used to look like, and then compare it to the photo above, the difference is stark. Chica’s used to sell a smaller sandwich called the “Small Fry,” which they clearly got rid of because it is not possible to sell a sandwich smaller than what they’re currently serving. I also ordered it at the max level of heat, “hot AF,” and while it was quite spicy, it’s not at the blow-your-head-off level of heat that it used to be. Still! I need to reiterate that it’s very, very good. A step down from the best fried chicken I’ve ever had is still pretty damn good.

Smoked meat sandwich at SumiLicious

I haven’t been back to SumiLicious since it opened in 2018; it’s since been recognized by no less than the Michelin guide, and I was curious to see how it’s held up. Well, it was glorious then, and it’s just as glorious now. I mean, just look at the photo. Look at it. It’s easily the best smoked meat in the city. I actually had Schwartz’s in Montreal relatively recently, and while I think that place is still the king (the spicing there is a bit more satisfying), SumiLicious is pretty close.

Chocolate matzo toffee crunch ice cream from Honey’s

I’ve written about Honey’s before, and how shocked I was that a place that serves entirely vegan scoops of ice cream could be so thoroughly delicious. Well, it’s still mystifyingly good. Seriously, how can vegan ice cream be this creamy?? I will say that the more you eat it, the more you notice the absence of the expected dairy/creamy flavour, but aside from that, the texture and flavour is dead on. I’m pretty positive that if you went out and did a blind taste test, 99 percent of people would have no idea that what they’re serving here is vegan. As for this particular flavour, it was quite good — the matzo has a mild crunch from the toffee, and a nice restrained sweetness that works very well with the chocolate.

A Creamy Pastry at Marvelous by Fred

Published on March 13, 2023 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 224 Queen Street West, Toronto
Website: https://marvelousbyfredtoronto-order.ca/

Marvelous by Fred is a French bakery chain with a bunch of locations in Europe, the States, and, in the last couple of years, Canada. They have a handful of tasty looking desserts and sandwiches, but their specialty is the Merveilleux, a tasty combo of whipped cream and meringue.

They serve a few different varieties of this, but the classic is the dark chocolate, which the store describes as “dark chocolate whipped cream & dark chocolate shavings.”

It’s good. Obviously it’s good — it’s just a big pile of crispy meringue chunks held together by chocolate-infused whipped cream, and then covered in shaved dark chocolate and topped with more cream. You literally cannot go wrong with that. How could you?

It’s not mind-blowing, though. I know that its creation is likely more involved than it tastes, but it kinda feels like I could mix together meringue, whipped cream, and chocolate at home and wind up with largely the same result.

I’m almost certainly not giving the bakery enough credit, but I can’t say I’ve ever thought that about literally any dessert from a French bakery, so there’s that.

Unique Doughnuts at Isabella’s Mochi Donut Boutique

Published on February 23, 2023 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 4 St. Patrick Street, Toronto
Website: https://isabellasdonuts.com/

A mochi doughnut, for the unaware, is basically a regular doughnut, but with the addition of rice flour. This gives it a delightfully chewy texture that works better than you might expect. Even if you don’t like mochi, it’s worth a shot — the chewiness is definitely there, but it’s not particularly aggressive.

They have nine flavours at Isabella’s; they all looked tasty, but I went with the s’mores (“chocolate, toasted meringue, graham crackers”).

It’s really good. The chocolate glaze has a nice chocolatey flavour that isn’t too sweet, and while the fluffy toasted meringue isn’t super marshmallowy, it’s tasty and complements the chocolate well. I don’t think the graham cracker crumbs made much of a difference, but it’s tasty either way.

As for the doughnut itself, yeah, it’s good. The chewiness is just enough to set it apart from a standard doughnut, but not so much that it feels overwhelming. It’s really satisfying.