GTA – Page 117 – Michael Eats

Amazing Khao Soi at Khao San Road

Published on November 6, 2018November 6, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 11 Charlotte Street, Toronto
Website: http://www.khaosanroad.ca/

The Khao Soi at Khao San Road is improbably good. It’s the type of dish where you have your first mouthful and think “wait… is this as delicious as I think it is?” Then you take another mouthful, and yeah: it really is that good.

Khao soi is a Thai noodle soup that features a super rich curry broth topped with crispy fried noodles for texture.

The version at Khao San Road is outstanding. That restaurant is one of those places with a perpetual line out the door; once you try the food, it’s easy enough to see why.

The curry-infused soup — made indulgently rich thanks to creamy coconut milk — is so damn satisfying.

There’s nothing subtle about it; it’s an absolute flavour bomb, but with a complexity that ensures it never feels one-note or overwhelming, despite how assertive the flavours are.

I had it with chicken, which complimented it quite well; you can also get tofu, beef, or shrimp.

The combination of the crispy noodles on top, the chewy noodles in the bowl, and the ultra-creamy soup is seriously addictive. It’s ridiculously good.

Outstanding (if untraditional) Philly Cheesesteaks at Illstyl3 Sammies

Published on November 5, 2018November 5, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 300 Richmond Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.facebook.com/Illstyl3-Sammies-227723081025310/

I’ve mentioned before that it’s surprisingly difficult to find a classic Philly cheesesteak in the city (i.e. just steak, onions, and Cheese Wiz or provolone on a roll).

But if every cheesesteak could be as delicious as what they’re serving at Illstyl3 Sammies, then classic shmassic. Because it’s far from traditional, but exceptionally delicious.

And it’s classic enough. The steak, the onions, and the gooey provolone are all perfect. In particular, the steak is exactly as it should be — it’s super tender, and has enough of a beefy taste to assert itself even among the very assertive flavours of the sandwich.

Specifically, they liberally season the beef with some kind of spice blend (the fennel stands out the most, but there’s definitely a lot going on here), and they add in hot peppers along with the onions. They also top the sandwich with a zesty house-made hot sauce that adds a ton of flavour and a very mild spiciness.

The taste is very far from a classic cheesesteak, but it’s got the three things you’re hoping for: it’s beefy, cheesy, and delicious.

My only real complaint is that the roll was a bit on the dry side, but other than that this was a top-shelf sammich.

Top-Notch Gelato at Piccolina Gelato

Published on November 2, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 85 Portland Street, Toronto
Website: https://piccolina-gelato-e-altra-roba.business.site/

Piccolina Gelato is a tiny little ice cream shop (it’s about the size of a large walk-in closet) that sells gelato and soft serve ice cream.

Maybe it’s because it’s such a small and unassuming space, but my expectations weren’t particularly high.

I was pretty blown away by how good it was.

I had the chocolate hazelnut, and man, it was good. It was maybe a touch too sweet, but aside from that it was first-class gelato.

The texture was amazing — it was rich, silky, and incredibly creamy. It was profoundly satisfying, and certainly, right up there with the best in the city in that regard.

The flavour was almost as good. It had a very assertive chocolate/hazelnut flavour that was quite Nutella-esque. It also had a very generous amount of nut pieces and chocolate chips that helped to amp up the flavour and the texture.

Honestly, aside from the sweetness thing (a minor complaint), everything about it was great. I really, really enjoyed it.

Fried Chicken Breakfast Sandwich at Porchetta & Co.

Published on November 1, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 130 King Street West, Toronto
Website: http://porchettaco.com/

The Exchange Tower location of Porchetta & Co. is a bit different from the other ones — it opens early, and it has a breakfast menu. This menu includes a buttermilk fried chicken sandwich.

Fried chicken in the morning? Yes please.

Sadly, it’s not quite as great as you’d hope, but it’s fried chicken, an egg, and gooey cheese. Of course it tastes good. How could that combo not taste good?

Like all of the fried chicken at Porchetta & Co., the chicken here is perfectly cooked, with a satisfyingly crispy exterior. It’s dipped in hot honey, with a very strong emphasis on the honey. It’s sweet. I wish there were a bit more spice, and maybe some vinegar to cut the sweetness, because it’s tasty, but it’s a bit cloying.

The egg was overcooked, with a chalky yolk — but other than that, the sandwich was solid. The cheese was nice and melty, and the buttery toasted English muffin was the perfect vehicle for the chicken, egg, and cheese.

Quality Salads at Flock

Published on October 31, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 330 Adelaide Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.eatflock.com/

If you’re downtown and you’re looking for something quick and relatively healthy, you could probably do worse than Flock. Though I’m not crazy about their much-ballyhooed chicken sandwich (its texture is one-note soft, and it generally doesn’t taste much better than something I could throw together at home from leftovers), I just tried one of their salads and found it quite satisfying.

I got the Frenchy Flock (“Mixed Greens & Arugula, Vine Beans, Crispy Onions, Roasted Cauliflower, French Lentils, Sweet Peppers, Cucumber, Cherry Tomatoes, Hard Boiled Egg, Yellow Zucchini with Roasted Tomato/Olive/Caper Vinaigrette”) and had it topped with pulled chicken.

Yes, it’s a lot of stuff. And it’s a quality salad; the veggies are all nice and fresh, and the zippy vinaigrette suited it well. The pulled chicken was above average, and did a good job of making the salad feel like a full meal.

But the roasted cauliflower was overcooked and mushy, and the egg was chalky and dry, which was unfortunate. Also unfortunate: with the chicken add-on, it came up to about $17.50. That’s almost hilariously expensive for a salad that, though tasty, isn’t substantially better than the pre-packed salads you can get at a nicer supermarket (which cost about half as much).