New York – Michael Eats

Amazing Sandwiches at Charlie the Butcher in Buffalo

Published on February 9, 2025 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: https://www.charliethebutcher.com/
Website: 1065 Wehrle Drive, Buffalo, NY

You’ll have to drive to Buffalo for this one, but you know what? It’s worth it.

If you’re not familiar with a beef on weck (which is a Buffalo thing that is, sadly, unavailable in the GTA, though please correct me if I’m wrong about that), it’s a pretty simple roast beef sandwich. What makes it so magical is the kummelweck roll it’s served on, which features a generous sprinkling of chunky salt and caraway seeds.

You wouldn’t think the salt/caraway combo would add all that much, but it gives the sandwich a ton of personality.

The version at Charlie the Butcher comes piled high with good quality medium-rare roast beef, some jus to moisten the bun, and a little cup of horseradish on the side.

It’s simple enough that if any element were lacking, the whole sandwich would fall apart, but I’ve been getting sandwiches from this place for years, and it’s consistently great. It’s beefy and delicious. Top 10 sandwich contender for sure.

Tasty New York Pizza at Prince Street Pizza

Published on November 16, 2023 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 472 Front Street West, Toronto
Website: https://princestreetpizza.ca/

Prince Street Pizza is a New York pizza joint that specializes in square, Sicilian-style slices that recently opened in Toronto with a whole bunch of hype. The lines were reportedly around the block.

Thankfully, things seem to have settled down a bit (there was a short line when I went, but nothing too bad). The place is takeout only, but if you go around the corner to the shopping area at The Well, there are some outdoor tables to be had.

It turns out the excitement over the place is quite warranted; it’s very good.

They have a variety of more traditional slices, along with the square ones they’re known for. I went with the Spicy Spring, which is their signature slice.

This particular pizza is basically just no-frills pepperoni, but every element is right where it should be: the slightly spicy pepperoni is thoroughly tasty (and it’s the type that curls up into little grease goblets — the king of pepperoni), the quality of the sauce and the cheese is top notch, and the crust is great.

The crust here is greasy enough that it essentially fries on the bottom, and yeah. Yeah, that’s the way to do it. It’s crispy, chewy, and has a great flavour.

While I liked that the slice wasn’t too overloaded with cheese, my only real complaint is that this meant that a lot of the pepperoni didn’t have anything to stick to, and fell off as soon as I picked up the slice. But if that’s the biggest complaint about a slice of pizza, you know you’re in good shape.

Frozen Custard at Anderson’s in Buffalo

Published on April 21, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 6075 Main Street, Buffalo, NY
Website: https://andersonscustard.com/

Here’s a question: why isn’t frozen custard a thing in Toronto? It’s so good, and its absence makes me simultaneously sad and infuriated, because why? It makes no sense!

For the uninitiated, frozen custard is basically like ice cream but better. It’s made with egg yolks along with the traditional ice cream ingredients, which gives the final product a richer, more velvety texture and an irresistibly custardy flavour.

There used to be a frozen custard joint in the city called Jedd’s, but aside from the fact that it was never very good, it closed down. Recently, a place called Rita’s opened near Kensington Market, but based on one sampling (which was right when it opened, so I should probably give them another shot), it just tasted like regular soft serve.

So — for now, at least — all frozen custard cravings need to be satisfied via a road trip to Buffalo. Though the frozen custard at Anderson’s isn’t exactly the best I’ve ever had, it’s rich and creamy, and it has a really nice custard flavour. It’ll do.

Cheesy Fried Goodness at the Cracker Barrel in Buffalo

Published on April 21, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 6643 Transit Road, Buffalo, NY
Website: https://www.crackerbarrel.com/

When I was a kid, my family and I used to go to Florida every summer. We’d always drive there, and a stop at the Cracker Barrel was a must. It’s not exactly gourmet, but if you’re craving greasy southern comfort food, it nicely fits the bill.

Their current special is something called Southern Bowls; I went with the Sausage, Grits Cakes n’ Green Tomato Gravy Bowl, which I couldn’t resist. I mean, read this description from their menu and tell me you don’t immediately want to eat it:

Enjoy a fresh take on Southern flavors with two deep-fried stone ground pimento cheese grits cakes and our Sweet Pepper n’ Red Skin Hash topped with sausage patties, two scrambled eggs, and shredded Colby cheese all smothered in our green tomato gravy with a sprinkling of fresh parsley.

Yeah.

And it’s pretty much exactly what you’d think it would be from that description. None of the individual components stand out as being particularly great, but they all kind of meld together into one cheesy, creamy, delicious mess. In particular, the zingy green tomato gravy does a great job of adding a pop of vibrant flavour, and cutting through the richness of the eggs and the cheese and the grits.