food – Page 4 – Michael Eats

Tasty Shawarma at Shelby’s

Published on January 6, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1289 Marlborough Court, Oakville
Website: https://www.shelbys.ca/

I could have sworn I had already written about Shelby’s for this blog, but when I went to look for the post, I couldn’t find it. It turns out I actually blogged about Tahini’s, not Shelby’s.

In my defense, the two chains are quite similar: both are chains with a similar name and logo, and both serve a similar menu of saj-wrapped shawarma topped with a pomegranate-infused sauce.

Also: both are surprisingly tasty. Shelby’s, despite being a chain with a couple dozen locations, probably outclasses a decent amount of the independent shawarma joints in the GTA.

I ordered the Shelby’s Wrap: “freshly baked saj bread stuffed with lettuce mix, fries, pickles, turnips, tomatoes, sumac onions, tahini, hummus, and regular or spicy garlic.” I got it with beef and lamb shawarma, spicy garlic, and skipped the onions.

It’s a great wrap, with the slightly chewy and nicely toasted saj wrap being a nice vehicle for the generous amount of tasty meat and veggies/sauces. It’s mildly spicy, zippy and garlicky (my wrap didn’t say it came with pomegranate molasses, but I’m pretty sure I tasted its slightly tart flavour, which worked well), and the shawarma is tender, with a decent amount of crispy bits. I didn’t get much lamb flavour, but the whole thing was tasty enough that this didn’t really matter.

A Tasty, Beefy Sandwich at Giragi

Published on January 4, 2026 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

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

Wellington Market at the Well was already one of the better food courts in the city, but the recent expansion — with places like Bear Steak Sandwiches, Chen Chen’s Nashville Hot Chicken, and The Carvery — makes it hard to beat.

Giragi is another one of the newer places in the food court. It’s an offshoot of Taline, a Michelin-noted restaurant, and yeah, they clearly know what they’re doing.

They serve a variety of meats (and falafel) that you can get in a sandwich or a bowl. I went with the davar (beef) which comes topped with “pickled cucumber, hummus, pevaz, toum, chilli, cilantro, parsley.”

It’s a great sandwich. The first bite is pretty much just sauce, but once you get past that, it’s absolutely crammed with good quality beef. It’s basically a steak sandwich with Armenian flavours, and it’s quite delicious.

That beef, in particular, is just right — it’s cut into fairly sizey chunks, but they’re all tender enough, with rosy pink meat within, that this totally works. They also have a very distinctly smoky flavour from the grill. I liked it a whole lot.

Quick Bites: Louf, Luca Pizza, Sidra BBQ & Grill

Published on December 28, 2025December 28, 2025 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Hummus bil lahma from Louf

Louf is a Palestinian restaurant near Casa Loma (it’s probably the closest I’ve been to Casa Loma since I was a kid). I went at brunch and tried a few things, though the only dish that really jumped out at me was the hummus bil lahma (“chickpeas, tahina, lemon, ghee, beef, spices, pine nuts”). It’s a solid bowl of hummus, with a satisfyingly zippy, cumin-tinged flavour. And the braised beef on top is perfectly tender. It’s a great combo.

Cheese pizza from Luca Pizza

Luca Pizza frequently comes up in discussions of the best pizza in Mississauga, and I guess I kind of get it. The place opened in 1975, and it looks like not much has changed in there in the intervening decades; it’s definitely got a bunch of old-school charm. And the pizza kind of reminds me of what a place like Pizza Pizza would be serving, if Pizza Pizza weren’t terrible. It’s cheap, cheesy, and filling. I also liked that the crust had a nice exterior crispiness. But I have to imagine that the people calling this the best pizza in the city are coming with a big dose of nostalgia — without that, it’s hard to fully overlook the canned-tasting sauce or the bland crust (it’s the kind of crust that makes you realize why dipping sauce with pizza became a thing). Still, while I’m not going to rush back, it was pretty satisfying for what it was.

Lamb shawarma wrap from Sidra BBQ & Grill

Mostly, I wanted to try Sidra — a shawarma joint in Oakville — thanks to the presence of lamb among their shawarma selections. My understanding is that lamb shawarma is actually quite common in the Middle East, but it’s weirdly rare in the GTA (and if you do find it, it’ll likely be mixed with beef). Sadly, I don’t think the lamb shawarma here was cooked on a vertical spit, which does kind of defeat the point (there were zero crispy bits), and the seasoning was probably a bit too aggressively applied. Still, it was a bunch of tasty, relatively tender lamb in a wrap, so yeah, I enjoyed it. Probably not worth going out of your way for, but if you’re in Oakville already, sure, why not?

Good Quality Gelato at Il Gelato Di Carlotta

Published on December 27, 2025 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 17 Lock Street, St. Catharines
Website: https://www.gelatodicarlotta.com/

Il Gelato Di Carlotta is a delightful gelato shop that started out in Niagara on the Lake, but has since expanded, with several locations in the area (apparently they used to have one in Vaughan Mills, but currently, the closest one to the GTA would be in Oakville).

The flavours pretty much just stick to the classics (stuff like pistachio, stracciatella, hazelnut, etc.) — this isn’t the most exciting thing ever, but hey, they’re classics for a reason.

I went with gianduia (chocolate and hazelnuts — Nutella, basically), and yeah, they know what they’re doing. The gelato is incredibly smooth and creamy, and I don’t think I need to tell you that the combo of chocolate and hazelnuts is a winner. I wish the sweetness were dialed back a notch or two, but it’s otherwise so delicious that it’s easy enough to overlook.

I should note that I checked out the Oakville location a couple of months after this visit and tried the pistachio gelato bar, and was somewhat less impressed — most pressingly, the pistachio gelato had very little pistachio flavour, and was completely overwhelmed by the chocolate exterior.

Lee’s Stonemill Rice Roll is a Food Court Gem

Published on December 21, 2025 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1000 Burnhamthorpe Road West, Mississauga (inside Yuan Ming Supermarket)
Website: https://www.leesriceroll.com/

Lee’s Stonemill Rice Roll is a great food court eatery that specializes in — you guessed it — rice rolls. The rice roll plates here mostly cost seven or eight bucks, which made me think they were going to be way smaller than they were. It’s a great deal.

I tried the house minced pork and egg rice roll, the beef brisket rice roll, and an order of the scallion pancakes.

Both rice rolls were really tasty, particularly with some chili oil drizzled on top. The dish features thick rice noodles topped with various meats, with the noodles having a nice chewiness that complements the meaty toppings quite well (both the minced pork and the ultra-tender brisket were great).

The scallion pancakes were a bit dense, but still quite enjoyable — and at $4.25 for a decent amount, a solid deal.