ice cream sandwich – Michael Eats

Tasty Ice Cream Sandwiches at Dainties Macaron

Published on February 26, 2023 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 235 Spadina Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://www.instagram.com/daintiesmacaron/

Dainties has just two things on their menu: standard macarons with a Korean bent, and macaron ice cream sandwiches. I tried one of the ice cream sandwiches, and not surprisingly, it’s tasty. It turns out that when you specialize in just one thing, you can do it very, very well.

They have a bunch of traditional flavours like vanilla and pistachio, along with more Korean/Asian-infused flavours. I went with black sesame, and I enjoyed it thoroughly.

I’m not sure where they source their ice cream from (or if they make it themselves), but it’s clearly good stuff — it’s nice and creamy, and the flavour is aces. The nutty, somewhat earthy flavour of the black sesame complements the sweet cookies perfectly. And those macaron cookies are great; the combo of the chewy cookies and the rich ice cream is a clear winner.

The only issue: they serve it way, way, way (way way way) too cold. I could barely even bite through it at first. I waited something like 10 minutes and it was still a bit too firm, but I only have so much willpower when I’ve got a delicious ice cream sandwich in my hands.

A Disappointing Meal at Dreyfus

Published on February 13, 2020 by Michael Nusair1 Comment

Location: 96 Harbord Street, Toronto
Website: https://www.facebook.com/Dreyfus-Toronto-382976892314156/

Dreyfus’ main claim to fame is that it was opened by an alumnus of Joe Beef, a seriously acclaimed Montreal bistro (among many, many accolades, it was recently called Canada’s second best restaurant). I’ve never tried that place, so this seemed like the next best thing.

The menu consists of various small, shareable plates with big price tags; cheap eats this isn’t, but then every now and then you need to break the bank and try some top-notch food. Or at least, that was the idea.

The menu is entirely French, which means that effectively, there is no menu — the waiter tells you about every dish, and then you have to remember it all; not ideal for a place that requires you to order multiple dishes. That whole conceit is a bit overly precious, but if the food is great, who cares?

Yeah, about that.

Nothing is outright bad, I’ll give it that, but for what they’re charging, the food is very much a mixed bag.

There were some highlights, however. There was a dish that featured endives topped with tender roast pork shoulder that was particularly delicious. The endive was doused in a tasty, Russian-style dressing and was basically a variation on a wedge salad, and the thickly-sliced pork was meaty and tender.

The croque cubano — essentially an open-faced Cubano that you can eat in a couple of bites — was crispy, meaty, zesty, and satisfying.

And the ice cream sandwich featured top-notch ice cream sandwiched between two chewy, delicious cookies.

Everything else was a bit iffy. The steak tartare was fine, but it was way overseasoned and had zero beefy flavour.

I can’t remember what the croquette was even supposed to be; the vaguely yogurty interior was basically just a thick, tasteless sludge.

This squash dish topped with Jersey Royal cheese should have been tasty, but the cheese was haphazardly applied, and most of the squash was undercooked and crunchy.

The mackerel seemed okay, but it was absolutely doused in an overly vinegary sauce that completely overwhelmed the fish.

The madelines were basically tasty, but they were overcooked and dry, and the sauce that comes on the side was overly sweet (the sugar that was haphazardly dumped into the container probably didn’t help).

The Glorious Return of the Chipwich

Published on October 8, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Purchased at: Wegman’s, 675 Alberta Drive, Amherst NY
Website: https://theoriginalchipwich.com/

Remember the Chipwich? Because I certainly do! In my childhood it felt like it would be a part of my life forever, but then it became harder and harder to find, and it was eventually taken off the market altogether.

Well, it’s back! Alas, it’s still not available in Canada (sorry if I got your hopes up), but if you’re willing to drive to Buffalo (because we all know that driving to Buffalo for an ice cream sandwich is a totally reasonable thing to do), it’s easy enough to find.

And yes: it’s just as glorious as I remembered. No… more glorious.

It’s pretty simple — it’s vanilla ice cream sandwiched between two chocolate chunk cookies, and rolled in mini chocolate chips.

No, it’s not gourmet, but the contrast between the soft cookies, the creamy ice cream, and the great crunch you get from the chocolate chips is pretty magical. I was prepared for this to be more about the nostalgia than anything else, but it’s actually quite tasty.