nori – Michael Eats

Location: 1378 Queen Street East, Toronto
Website: https://www.tatsuros.com/

I like Tatsuro’s a whole lot. I’d heard good things, and I figured I’d like it, but it kinda knocked my socks off.

They serve pasta and brunch with a Japanese flair; I stuck to the pasta side of the menu, and based on the level of quality, I’ll clearly have to come back to try their brunch.

There was a Japanese pasta spot in Markham called Shiso Tree Cafe that, sadly, closed a few years back; since then, I’ve had a Shiso-Tree-Cafe-sized hole in my heart. That hole has finally been filled.

I started with the nori fries (“nori seasoning, spicy mayo”). These were quite tasty; the fries were nicely cooked, the nori sprinkled on top works really well, and the spicy mayo on the side is enjoyably zippy.

For my main, I had the Wafu Carbonara (“bacon, ponzu, onsen egg, parmesan”), and yikes, it was so good.

It was incredibly, incredibly rich — with the richness only being amped up by the silky onsen egg they put on top. It basically melts into the sauce when you mix it up, and really cranks up the dish’s creaminess.

By all accounts it should be too heavy and rich, but there’s a nice lightness you get from the citrusy ponzu that really cuts through the heaviness and makes the dish sing. Legitimately one of the best bowls of pasta I’ve had in a long time.

I also tried the Curry Bolognese (“beef + pork curry, pickled onion, fried shallot, cilantro”), which takes the flavours of Bolognese and Japanese curry and crams them together in a way that’s surprisingly delightful.

Location: 3160 Steeles Avenue East, Markham
Website: https://www.facebook.com/ShisoTree/

Italian/Japanese fusion might sound odd on paper, but aside from the fact that Italian restaurants are actually quite popular in Japan, Shiso Tree Cafe is amazing. All you need is one bite of their food to put any doubts to bed.

I tried a couple of starters: the tera-goma tebasaki (perfectly cooked chicken wings with a crunchy exterior and an addictively sweet glaze) and the tarutaru fries (amazing fries with homemade tartar sauce for dipping). But their pasta is the real reason to come here.

I had the nori tsukudani: “braised nori sauce, onsen tamago, ikura, scallops, mentsuyu.”

It was so good, with the vibrant Japanese flavours making it really stand out from your average bowl of pasta.

The braised nori sauce tasted exactly how you’d hope it would: like nori, but in sauce form. There’s something a bit odd (and very delightful) about taking such a familiar flavour and putting it in a new context.

And the onsen tamago (which is kind of like a silkier version of a poached egg, with a white that’s just barely set) was the perfect compliment. It essentially liquefies into the pasta, coating the noodles and giving them an eggy richness.

The sweet, perfectly-cooked scallops match really well with the seaweed-infused sauce, and the greens add crunchy pops of freshness. The pasta itself is, as you’d hope, perfectly al dente.

It’s certainly an unusual bowl of pasta, but it’s one where all of the flavours have been so perfectly considered. It’s amazing.

I finished with the chestnut creme brulee, which was a fairly ingenious spin on a classic dessert; the rich chestnut flavour complimented the custard perfectly, and the crackily torched sugar on top was as satisfying as ever.

Tag: nori

Outstanding Japanese/Italian Fusion at Tatsuro’s

Delicious and Unique pasta at Shiso Tree Cafe