Mississauga – Page 7 – Michael Eats

An Enjoyable Sandwich at Henry’s Fish & Chips

Published on November 12, 2024November 12, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 833 Westlock Road, Mississauga
Website: https://www.facebook.com/p/Henrys-Fish-Chips-100070019051515/

I’ll admit that I mostly wanted to try Henry’s Fish & Chips because I was driving by and thought, hey, that looks delightfully old-school. And yeah: it is indeed delightfully old-school. The place has been around since 1987; if you’ve been kicking around for that many decades, clearly, you’re doing something right.

Also delightfully old-school: the prices. I got the cod on a bun, which came up to about nine bucks for a fairy substantial sandwich. The chips start at about two bucks, and the small coleslaw cost 66 cents. And if you’re really looking for a deal, one of the fish options is basa — you can get basa, chips, and a can of soda for just under seven bucks.

And the fish is quite good, though I’d definitely order the classic fish and chips over the sandwich next time; the bread is a bit too crusty and substantial, and the fish is so tasty that it just isn’t necessary.

Everything is fried to order, and the fish was nice and flaky and had a crispy, but — and this is key — not overly substantial exterior.

The fries were quite good too, with a great crispy/creamy balance. I saw a few other people ordering the poutine, and yeah, I’m sure that’s tasty.

I should note that the place is pretty tiny inside, with just a couple of small counters if you want to eat in.

A Solid Sandwich at Banh Mi Tan Dinh

Published on November 11, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 3415 Dixie Road, Mississauga
Website: https://www.instagram.com/banhmitandinh/

If you’re craving a banh mi in this particular area of Mississauga, you’re all set — within a five minute drive of this place, there’s Banh Mi Saigon, Banh Mi Ba Le, Banh Mi Nguyet Minh, and Bot Chien Saigon. I’ve been to all of them at this point, and some are definitely better than others, but honestly? You can’t go wrong with any of them. There isn’t a dud in the bunch.

I ordered the same assorted cold cuts banh mi that I always get, and it’s a very good version of a classic sandwich.

The bread itself is a bit on the dry side, which holds it back from greatness somewhat, but otherwise everything is right where it should be, with a nice assortment of meaty cold cuts, creamy pate and mayo, and zippy pickled veggies.

I wish there were a bit more pate, but then I wish that of pretty much every banh mi I eat — I’m starting to wonder if most banh mi shops are being stingy with the pate, or if I just like my sandwich to be pate-heavy.

They asked if I wanted hot peppers, and yeah, of course. I could have used a few more, but the peppers that are there add some nice pops of spiciness to the sandwich.

Quick Bites: Crumbl, Tom’s Dairy Freeze, Lola’s

Published on November 10, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Chocolate chip cookie from Crumbl

Crumbl is an American cookie chain that opened in Mississauga earlier last year with a ton of hype. I actually tried to go around when they opened, and the line was so intense that I wound up skipping it altogether. Things have calmed down quite a bit (the place was empty on my recent visit), so I was finally able to try the chocolate chip cookie (they have a rotating menu of six cookies, but the chocolate chip is what made them famous). The cookie seemed like it should have been pretty decent; it’s not too sweet, and it’s clearly made with good quality chocolate. But the cookie was way, way underbaked, with a pronounced raw flour flavour and a middle that was more gummy than chewy. I’m assuming this was partially on purpose, to create a softer cookie, but they clearly went a bit too far (it probably doesn’t help that the cookie is enormous, which makes it harder to underbake without having a fully raw middle).

I should note that I originally wrote this a few months ago (I have a bit of a backlog). I recently tried Crumbl’s second location in Mississauga, around Dixie and Dundas, hoping that the first cookie was just a mistake — surely it’s not supposed to be that underbaked? I had the exact same experience. I also overheard a family in line raving about how much they love the cookies here, so clearly this place has its fans. I am not one of them.

Strawberry sundae from Tom’s Dairy Freeze

I just checked — this will be my seventh time featuring Tom’s Dairy Freeze on this blog, and you know what? I regret nothing. The place continues to serve the city’s best soft serve, so why shouldn’t I write about it on a semi-regular basis? It’s my duty. I got the strawberry sundae on this particular visit, and it was, of course, delicious. I find the sauces here tend not to be nearly as good as the ice cream itself, but this one was great — in particular, the huge chunks of strawberry complemented the creamy ice cream perfectly.

Chocolate gelato from Lola’s Gelato

Speaking of amazing ice cream, every time I check out Lola’s, I’m like “is this the best gelato in the city??” Certainly, they’re neck-and-neck with Mizzica (Nani’s used to be a contender, but my last few visits have been surprisingly poor). I got plain old chocolate on this particular visit, and while it was maybe a touch too sweet, it had a great chocolate flavour and the texture was perfect: super rich and creamy, and served at the right temperature (e.g. not as hard as a brick).

Delicious Jamaican Food at Potluck Caribbean Cuisine

Published on October 23, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1707 Britannia Road East, Mississauga
Website: https://potluckrestaurant.ca/

I wasn’t expecting a whole lot from Potluck Caribbean Cuisine — I mostly checked it out because it’s close to my work, and it kinda blew me away.

It’s popular, that’s for sure. I showed up at around 4:15pm on a weekday and the place was shockingly busy for such a random time. It seemed odd, but then I ate the food and oh, okay, I get it.

I was hoping to order the jerk chicken, but they were out of dark meat, so I went with the BBQ chicken instead. You have your choice of sides; I got rice and peas (which they top with oxtail gravy), and coleslaw.

The chicken comes doused in a ketchupy BBQ sauce, and at first I thought it was too sweet (it’s a bit intense), but it grew on me. It’s especially good when you combine it with the rice and peas, which are nicely seasoned and feature perfectly creamy beans; it’s one of the best versions of the dish that I’ve ever had. The combo of the sweet sauce and the savoury rice is thoroughly delightful.

I got the “small” size, which is a comical designation considering that the overstuffed container is crammed with what has to be a couple of pounds of food. At 13 bucks, it’s a fantastic deal.

Ruffles Crunch Teen Burger at A&W

Published on October 1, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1130 Dundas Street East, Mississauga
Website: https://web.aw.ca/

The Ruffles Crunch Teen Burger at A&W is a standard A&W bacon cheeseburger with a bunch of chips in it. The end.

Oh, I guess I should write more? I’ll write a bit more. But that pretty much covers it.

The burger, as per A&W’s website: “A perfectly seasoned grass-fed beef patty topped with Ruffles Cheddar & Sour Cream chips, lettuce, onions, tomato, bacon, cheddar cheese and a creamy garlic and jalapeño aioli, served on a freshly toasted sesame seed bun.”

It’s not bad. The fat stack of Ruffles adds a decent amount of crunch and some nice zippiness from the seasoning. They make for a decent burger topping, but I think it’s unlikely anyone will walk away from thing thinking that chips should be on all burgers. There’s a reason chips aren’t on all burgers. They’re a bit overwhelming as a topping.

I’ll admit that I didn’t even realize the sauce was supposed to be a creamy garlic and jalapeño aioli until I started writing this review. There wasn’t really enough there for any of the flavours to stand out; it tasted like plain mayo to me.

The rest of the burger is what it is. The patty was a bit dry, but it’s tasty enough. It’s fine. The whole thing is fine. It’s a fast food burger with chips in it. It’s not one of those things where you’re like “wow, this is so much better than I was imagining!” It’s exactly what you’re imagining.