Ossington – Page 2 – Michael Eats

Tasty Korean Fusion at Oddseoul

Published on August 25, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 90 Ossington Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://www.instagram.com/90oddseoul/

I know some people are down on the whole small plates format, but I like it. It’s always nice to try a variety of stuff. I guess the main complaint is that you wind up paying more for less food, but that’s not an issue here; with a couple of exceptions, pretty much everything on the menu is in the low- to mid-teens, and the portions are surprisingly generous.

I tried a few things. First up is the spicy scallion and avocado slaw: “mixed greens, cabbage, pickled chilies, bell peppers, crispy shallots, sweet and spicy sesame dressing.” This was a fantastic salad — it’s got a great variety of textures (crispy, crunchy, and creamy) a zippy dressing, and nice pops of acidity from the pickled chilies.

Up next was the squash poutine: “tempura squash, cheese curds, curried gravy, roasted kimchi, pickled onions.” This has very few poutine-like properties (the gooey cheese is fully liquefied, the gravy — while delicious — tastes nothing like a traditional gravy, and the squash can’t really be compared to fries), but whatever it is, it’s very tasty. I wish the squash were a bit crispier, but I’d happily order this again.

The loosey (“Korean Big Mac, served on Texas toast”) was the closest thing to a miss, and even it was tasty enough. The beef was too tightly packed and a bit tough, and none of the flavours struck me as particularly Korean or McDonald’s-esque. Still, it’s a decent enough burger.

Last but not least was the bulgogi cheesesteak (“sliced marinated steak, American cheese, sambal mayo, toasted baguette”). Crossing bulgogi and a Philly cheesesteak is actually kind of ingenious, and the bulgogi here is super tasty. I wish it had been a bit cheesier (it had one thin slice of partially melted American), but it’s still a great sandwich.

Tasty Fried Chicken at Ghost Chicken

Published on June 7, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 74 Ossington Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://ghostchicken.ca/

I think you could make the argument that the city has too many places that specialize in fried chicken sandwiches. I’m not saying I would, but someone could make that argument.

My counterpoint: fried chicken sandwiches are delicious and there should be a restaurant selling them on every block.

Ghost Chicken serves a variety of chicken sandwiches, along with wings, chicken strips, and a handful of sides. I went with the Nashville: “fried chicken thigh, Nashville spice blend & oil, sweet pickles, choice of heat: medium, hot, fire.”

It’s a solid fried chicken sandwich. It’s nice and crispy, generously sized, and the chicken itself is pleasantly juicy. The slightly sweet, fresh bun suits it well.

I wish it were a bit more flavourful, though. The chicken is a bit underseasoned, and even the pickles don’t add the zinginess you’re hoping for (I think maybe they weren’t quite pickled enough? They tasted mostly like soft cucumber slices). I ordered the “fire” level of spiciness, and while it did have somewhat of a kick, it didn’t put any sweat on my brow.

Still, it’s generally a well-prepared fried chicken sandwich; it’s hard to go wrong there, even if the flavours could have been amped up a bit.

Great Banh Mi at Saigon Snacks

Published on May 7, 2024 by Michael Nusair2 Comments

Location: 139 Ossington Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://saigonsnacks.ca/

Saigon Snacks is a great little shop that serves a handful of banh mi sandwiches, along with a bunch of sweet coffee and tea concoctions. I fear that it might not be trendy enough to survive on this particular stretch of Ossington, which would be a damn shame, because their sandwiches are top notch.

You can choose from grilled pork, grilled chicken, fish cake, cold cuts, and tofu. The sandwich comes filled with pickled daikon, cucumber, cilantro, mayo, pate, and two types of chilis.

I went with the grilled pork, which was generously applied, tender, and very flavourful. I was a bit concerned when I saw the bread, which is short and squat and looks a bit ciabatta-esque; but no, this is a legit banh mi (and clearly very fresh), with a great delicate layer of exterior crispiness.

And the balance of flavours — creaminess from the mayo, crunch and zinginess from the veggies, and pops of heat from the peppers — is just right.

It’s a classic banh mi prepared with a sure hand and great ingredients. Which brings me back to my “is it trendy enough?” concern. I really hope so, because it’s seriously good.

Tasty Greek Brunch at Bar Koukla

Published on April 10, 2024April 10, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 88 Ossington Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://mamakas.ca/bar-koukla/

I visited Bar Koukla for brunch recently, and it was thoroughly delicious. But then this place is an offshoot of Mamakas Taverna, which I like quite a lot, so I probably shouldn’t be surprised.

I tried the patates arnaki, which features tender braised lamb served with Greek-style roasted potatoes and a yogurt sauce.

Every element here is so good — the lamb is tasty and super tender, the perfectly cooked potatoes are infused with an almost meaty flavour, and the yogurt adds a nice zippiness that cuts through the richness of the meat and potatoes. It’s a great dish.

My only complaint about the place actually has nothing to do with the food — I don’t think I’ve ever mentioned the furniture at a restaurant, but the saggy, backless chairs here are absurdly unpleasant to sit on. They’re so flagrantly uncomfortable that I have to imagine that this is a purposeful choice to encourage diners to leave faster to improve turnover. It’s a sour note on an otherwise stellar meal.

Quick Bites: Barbershop Patisserie, Bloom Cafe, Bang Bang

Published on December 9, 2023October 17, 2025 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Raspberry almond bread budding from Barbershop Patisserie

I’m a big fan of Barbershop Patisserie; I’m also a big fan of bread pudding, but alas, the bread pudding at Barbershop isn’t quite as amazing as you’d hope. It’s perfectly tasty (I don’t think Barbershop is capable of making something that’s outright bad), but it has basically no custard flavour, and the level of sweetness is so restrained that it borders on bland. Still, the combo of the almonds and the tart raspberry is a big winner, and it certainly wasn’t unpleasant to eat.

Vanilla Cream Puff from Bloom Cafe

I recently mentioned that the delightful Choux Lab actually reminded me quite a bit of Beard Papa, a Japanese cream puff chain that left the GTA a few years ago, taking a little piece of my heart with it. Well Bloom Cafe is even more Beard Papa-esque; they specialize in the exact type of Japanese cream puffs they used to sell at Beard Papa. Alas, I’ll have to stick with Choux Lab to fill the Beard-Papa-sized hole in my heart (and stomach) — the cream puff here could have been tasty, but it was obviously filled way too far in advance, and was pretty soggy. It didn’t help that it was filled with what tasted like plain sweetened whipped cream instead of delicious custardy cream like BP.

Pumpkin / Cookie Butter from Bang Bang

Let’s end things on a more positive note. I’ve written about Bang Bang many, many times on this blog, so I’ll keep this brief. Bang Bang: still great! The flavour I recently had, which combines pumpkin and Biscoff cookie butter, is legitimately among the best scoops of ice cream that I’ve ever had. The two flavours work so well together, and the ice cream itself is amazingly rich and creamy.