French – Michael Eats

Quick Bites: Churnt Up, Nord Lyon, Canada’s Wonderland

Published on July 27, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Cinnamon Toast Crunch ice cream at Churnt Up

I decided recently that if I eat something I don’t particularly enjoy, I’m not going to write all that much about it — I think there’s enough negativity in the world, and I’d rather spend my energy focusing on stuff I like rather than stuff I don’t. That being said, I’ll say that Cinnamon Toast Crunch is a great flavour for ice cream, and I’ll leave it at that.

Strawberry croissant at Nord Lyon

The strawberry croissant at Nord Lyon is named after the bakery; it’s always a safe bet to order a restaurant’s namesake dish, and in this case, the croissant has a nice buttery flavour and a healthy amount of sweet strawberry jam. It was pretty stale when I tried it, but maybe you’ll have better luck?

Funnel cake at Canada’s Wonderland

It turns out that Canada’s Wonderland is actually pretty boring for food — at least half of the eateries are locations of Pizza Pizza or Subway, and the rest all serve stuff like burgers and chicken strips, with almost none of the over-the-top carnival-style fun you might expect. But! They still serve funnel cakes — topped with soft serve and a chunky strawberry sauce — and they’re just as good as you remember. No… better. If there’s a better combo than fresh fried dough, creamy ice cream, and sweet strawberry sauce, I’d like to hear about it.

Top-Notch Pastries at Bomou Artisanal Bakery

Published on July 6, 2022July 6, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1636 Bayview Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://www.bomou.ca/

Though I’m not entirely sure that this stretch of Bayview particularly needed another fancy French bakery (Patisserie la Cigogne is just a few stores down, and Rahier Patisserie is, according to Google, a one minute walk away), but sure, why not? If the area can sustain multiple French patisseries, then go for it, particularly if the pastries are as tasty as they seem to be here.

I tried a couple of things. The first was a ham and cheese quiche in a croissant-like crust. I don’t think anyone is going to lose their mind over this one, but aside from the pastry being a bit soggy, it’s rich and creamy, and it has a good amount of ham and cheese.

I also tried the pistachio croissant, which was a clear winner — the croissant was buttery, flaky, and delicious, and the generous pistachio filling was sweet without being overwhelming.

My only complaint is that it didn’t have a particularly strong pistachio flavour (I’m guessing there’s a mix of almonds and pistachios), but the combo of the top-notch croissant and nutty filling was so tasty that it doesn’t particularly matter.

A Middling Breakfast at Cafe Crepe

Published on February 27, 2020February 27, 2020 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 246 Queen Street West, Toronto
Website: https://cafecrepe.com/

Cafe Crepe does surprisingly well; I recently showed up at 9:30 on a Saturday morning, expecting it to be mostly empty, and the place was absolutely packed. People, apparently, love crepes.

And the crepe itself is solid. Everything else, on the other hand…

I ordered the Cafe Crepe Speciale, which comes with three eggs that are theoretically cooked how you like them, “with bacon or sausage & your choice of crêpe: sugar butter, lemon sugar or cinnamon sugar.”

I went with a lemon sugar crepe, sausage, and eggs cooked over easy.

I briefly considered mentioning something when the waitress plopped down a plate of scrambled eggs, but the prospect of eating in shifts with my dining companion wasn’t particularly compelling.

It was fine? I guess? The scrambled eggs were slightly overcooked and completely underseasoned (if they had any salt, I couldn’t taste it), but decent enough. And the sausage was something resembling chorizo rather than the breakfast sausage you’re expecting, but it’s tasty enough.

As for the crepe, it’s actually very good — it’s nice and fresh, with a texture that does a great job of balancing tenderness and bite. But it’s absolutely doused in sugar (it’s both on top of and inside the crepe), and the lemon (which was also copiously applied) tasted off; I’m pretty sure it was actually ReaLemon or something similar.

It wasn’t a bad breakfast, but it probably makes more sense to order a crepe that’s harder to mess up, like Nutella and banana.

A Simple but Tasty Sandwich at Cluny

Published on November 13, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 35 Tank House Lane, Toronto
Website: https://clunybistro.com/

Cluny is a French bistro in the Distillery District that also has an attached bakery where they sell various pastries and sandwiches.

The bakery has the requisite sweets, of course, along with a handful of tasty looking sandwiches and savoury pastries (the quiche looked good, as did the tourtiere). I went with the ham and brie sandwich.

I got it toasted, though I think untoasted might be the better option. Toasting gets the bread a little too crunchified, and melts the fat in the ham, making the sandwich a drippy, greasy mess.

Even so, it’s a tasty sandwich. The bread, even in its over-crunched form, is top-notch, and the speck ham and brie work nicely together. It’s a simple sandwich, but if you’re dealing with high quality ingredients that compliment each other well, further ornamentation is unnecessary.

Simultaneous Love and Hate at Blackbird Baking Co.

Published on July 23, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 172 Baldwin Street, Toronto
Website: https://blackbirdbakingco.com/

You win some and you lose some.

I just tried the almond croissant from Blackbird Baking Co. On one hand, the croissant itself is fantastic; it’s lightly crispy on the outside, satisfyingly buttery, and has an absolutely perfect texture. The exterior crispiness is maybe a bit too subtle, but for the most part it’s one of the better croissants I’ve had in the city.

But the almond part of this almond croissant is disappointingly anemic. Almond croissants are traditionally stuffed and topped with almond paste; the paste on top gets crispy and caramelized, and the paste inside is gooey and sweet.

That’s how it’s supposed to be, at least. Here, on the other hand, the layer on top was so thin that it may as well not have even been there, and it was filled with a crumbly, dry almond mixture that had almost no sweetness. It’s not at all what it’s supposed to be.

I get wanting to put your own spin on a classic, but if you’re going to do that, maybe make sure that your new creation actually tastes good?

Still, the croissant itself is so amazing that it basically doesn’t matter. Just don’t expect anything particularly sweet or almondy.