omurice – Michael Eats

Mogouyan classic beef noodles from Mogouyan Hand Pulled Noodle

Mogouyan Hand Pulled Noodle is a rapidly expanding chain that specializes in, as you might expect, hand-pulled noodles. Shocker, I know! I kept it simple with their namesake dish, which features a generous amount of noodles and sliced beef in a very basic chicken broth, with a decent amount of chili oil for additional flavour and spice. The noodles, sadly, were overcooked and a bit mushy, which is a shame since the chewy noodles are really the whole reason to eat this dish. Otherwise, this was totally fine — nothing about it jumped out at me, but it’s all solidly executed (aside from the aforementioned overcooked noodles) and tasty enough.

Momos from Loga’s Corner

I wanted to visit Loga’s Corner mostly because I had heard good things about their hot sauce. I actually got two, so I’m not sure which one is the one that people love (or maybe it’s both?), but both were nicely flavourful and had a nice kick. As for the momos themselves, I tried three: steamed lamb, steamed veg, and fried potato. The potato was probably the best of the three, with a satisfyingly crispy exterior and nicely creamy potato interior. The lamb was mostly quite good, but had more gristly bits than I would have liked (they were in pretty much every momo). All three definitely needed both of those sauces, particularly the veg, and had a much more muted flavour than you’d expect.

Tori Katsu Omurice from Cafe KenKaKu

Cafe KenKaKu is a delightful little Japanese place that serves a variety of sandwiches, udon, and omurice. I went with the omurice that comes with a side of katsu. I quite enjoyed it — in particular, the omelette was creamy and perfectly cooked, and the katsu was nice and crisp on its exterior and tender within. The omelette and the rice were both a bit underseasoned and bland, which was a shame (even pouring the curry sauce on top didn’t quite add as much flavour was you’d like), but it was all so well prepared that this is a minor complaint.

Location: 3160 Steeles Avenue East, Markham
Website: http://www.tanukirestaurant.com/

Tanuki is actually in the same location as the great Shiso Tree Cafe, which, sadly, shut down near the beginning of the pandemic. I kinda want to hate this place on principal, like, how dare you try to replace the Shiso Tree Cafe?? But you know what? Just based on this one visit, I think Tanuki might be just as good.

I came during their brunch service and tried the seared duck breast (“served medium rare, chimichurri, garlic chips”), along with the omurice (“soft omelette, chicken fried rice, shiitake, edamame, gravy”).

Both were very, very tasty. The duck breast was perfectly cooked; it was tender while still having a nice meaty bite, and while the skin wasn’t crispy, once I started eating, I didn’t miss it. The garlic chips give it that crispiness while also adding pops of flavour. It’s a great dish.

The omurice was just as good. Slicing the omlette open to reveal its eggy interior is thoroughly satisfying, and the creamy eggs complement the tasty fried rice quite nicely. That fried rice would have actually been perfectly fine on its own, with the mushroom/chicken combo being thoroughly delicious, nice pops of freshness from the edamame, the occasional bite of crispy rice, and some nice smokiness from the wok.

But once you add the perfectly cooked omelette, things really take off. The omelette is silky and creamy, with its richness only amped up by the gravy that comes on the side. Add a few spoonfuls of the zippy habanero sauce they have on the table, and you’re really in business.

Tag: omurice

Quick Bites: Mogouyan Hand Pulled Noodle, Loga’s Corner, Cafe KenKaKu

Tasty Japanese Food at Tanuki