downtown – Michael Eats

Unique Eats at Japan Taco

Published on October 25, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 486 Front Street West, Toronto (inside Wellington Market)
Website: https://www.japantaco.ca/

Japan Taco started as one of those booths you see at various street festivals around the city, and eventually they were successful enough to open a couple of permanent locations. They’ve got one on Queen Street, and now, this one in The Well.

So what is a “Japan Taco”? It’s kind of like a cross between a poke bowl, onigiri, and a taco. It’s interesting.

I ordered the Miso Salmon, which features a sizable piece of miso-glazed salmon, mashed avocado, pickled radish (I think?), sushi rice, and a bunch of other stuff (I can’t find a description of this anywhere online, so I’m not 100% sure what was in there — it was a lot).

The nori shell is what makes this really distinctive. I sort of figured this would be similar to the lightly crispy nori in onigiri, but it has a hearty crisp-factor that I found to be surprising and delightful. And the intense crispiness remained right until the last bite, never sogging up. It has what appears to be panko on its exterior, so I guess it’s breaded and fried?

Otherwise, this was pretty satisfying, with a well-prepared piece of salmon and a bunch of other tasty stuff. The flavour could have been amped up a bit (maybe you’re meant to add soy sauce or dip it in something?), but otherwise I quite enjoyed it.

Delicious Wraps at Little Baba

Published on August 2, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 75 Portland Street Main, Toronto
Website: https://littlebaba.com/

Little Baba is a casual spinoff of a Michelin-recommended Lebanese restaurant called Amal, specializing in various Middle Eastern wraps and plates (that they call Baba boxes). A casual restaurant with a Michelin connection? Sure, I’m intrigued enough to check that out.

I wound up trying a couple of their wraps: tenderloin (“pita, hummus, parsley, onion, pickles, grilled veggie salsa”) and kefta (“pita, hummus, pickles, grilled veggie salsa”).

Both wraps feature a grilled piece of meat wrapped in toasted pita bread, and both are quite tasty.

That grilling really does make a difference, bringing both sandwiches a nice smoky flavour. And both pieces of meat are perfectly cooked — the tenderloin, in particular, is cooked to a nice rosy medium and is impressively tender, with a tasty beefy flavour.

The kefta is quite good as well, with a good amount of spicing and a nice tender texture.

As for the other flavours, there’s a nice zippiness to both wraps that’s quite satisfying. Both were a bit oniony for my tastes, but then I’m not a fan of raw onion, so most people will likely disagree.

A Decent Breakfast Sandwich at Eggslut

Published on June 23, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 545 King Street West, Toronto
Website: https://eggslut.ca/

Hot take alert: whenever I eat a trendy breakfast sandwich in the GTA, I always ask myself the same question — is this better than a McMuffin? An alarming number of times, the answer is no. No, this fancy breakfast sandwich that costs several times as much as a McMuffin… does not actually taste better than a McMuffin.

Eggslut opened in Toronto recently to a whole bunch of hype. The most popular sandwich on the menu seems to be the Fairfax, so that’s what I went with: “cage-free soft scrambled eggs and chives, cheddar cheese, caramelized onions and sriracha mayo in a warm brioche bun.”

It’s fine. The soft scrambled eggs are perfectly cooked, with a luxuriously rich, creamy texture. The sweetness from the caramelized onions and pillowy brioche bun helps to balance out the saltiness of the eggs. It’s tasty.

But the bun is so, so soft, and in the absence of anything that isn’t squishy in the sandwich, the texture is one-note mush.

Contrast this with a Sausage ‘N Egg McMuffin, where you get a nice balance of textures — light crunch and chewiness from the toasted muffin, softness from the egg and cheese, and meatiness from the sausage. The Fairfax is clearly using better quality ingredients and cheffy technique, but the McMuffin is more satisfying.

(Not to mention that the McMuffin costs about five bucks, whereas this costs fifteen and absolutely does not feel worth the splurge.)

I should mention that I also tried the French Toast Sticks (“house-made brioche French toast dusted with cinnamon sugar and served with maple custard”), and they were actually pretty amazing. The French toast is pleasantly custardy, with a perfectly crispy exterior and a nice punch of flavour from the cinnamon and sugar. The creamy custard on the side complements it perfectly.

It’s kinda hilarious that the menu calls this a side (it’s straight-up dessert), but whatever you call it, it’s delicious.

Tasty Thai Food at Kao Kang

Published on May 17, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 486 Front Street West, Toronto (inside Wellington Market)
Website: https://kaokang.ca/

Kao Kang, which is part of The Well’s recent expansion, is a spinoff of Koh Lipe, a Michelin-noted Thai restaurant downtown.

Michelin-adjacent eats in a food court? Yeah, sign me up.

The guy behind the counter noted that the pad gra prao (“holy basil, chili, green bean, garlic, fried egg on rice”) is their most popular dish, so that’s what I went with. You can get it with either chicken or beef; I went with beef.

I enjoyed it. Was it the best version of this dish that I’ve ever had? No, absolutely not. But it’s still a food court. Let’s temper our expectations here.

It’s very, very sweet, and is kinda lacking in the umami punch that you typically get from this dish. It’s a bit one-note in its flavour, but is thoroughly pleasant, with a mild spicy kick and a perfectly cooked fried egg on top. I don’t think I’d order it again, but I’m not mad I ate it.

Tasty Noodle Soup at Ramen Takao

Published on April 19, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 111 Richmond Street West, Toronto (inside Chef’s Hall)
Website: https://www.instagram.com/ramen_takao/

Ramen Takao is a ramen joint in the Chef’s Hall; it’s a collaboration between Ramen Isshin and Ryu’s Ramen. I like both of those places quite a lot, so that seemed like a good sign.

They call their spicy miso ramen their signature dish (“bean sprouts / seasoned egg / spicy negi / pork belly”), so that’s what I went with.

It’s a very good bowl of ramen. Spicy ramen isn’t generally my first choice, but the spice level here is fairly well tuned — it’s got a nice kick, but it isn’t so aggressive that it overwhelms the other flavours in the bowl.

And the broth is quite flavourful, with a nice creamy richness and a satisfying meaty/seafoody flavour.

Everything else here is quite good; in particular, it’s topped with crispy tempura bits, which do a great job of adding some texture to the bowl.

As for the noodles, they’re right where you want them to be, with a perfect level of chewy heft.