restaurant – Page 13 – Michael Eats

Solid Ice Cream at Put A Cone On It

Published on December 6, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 633 Bloor Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.putaconeonit.com/

Ice cream is the best. And while what they’re serving at Put A Cone On It probably isn’t going to knock anyone’s socks off, it’s above average ice cream. Which means that, yes: it’s the best.

Plus, they make their own ice cream, which is always nice. There’s nothing more disheartening than going to an ice cream shop only to realize that they’re serving commercial stuff like Kawartha or Nestle. I can buy that at the supermarket. Get out of here with that.

They have a handful of dairy and non-dairy flavours available; I tried the roasted banana, which is one of the dairy options.

It’s quite tasty. True to its name, it has a very pronounced banana flavour that almost reminded me of banana bread, only with a more amplified fruity flavour.

The texture was ever-so-slightly icy, and it could have been richer, but it was quite good. Like I said: it probably won’t be your favourite ice cream in the city, but you’re definitely going to enjoy eating it.

Surprisingly Tasty Vegan Cinnamon Rolls at Cinnaholic

Published on December 4, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 319 Danforth Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://www.cinnaholic.ca/

The cinnamon roll from Cinnaholic is shockingly good. Not that it’s the best cinnamon roll I’ve ever had, but it’s vegan. You’re bracing for the worst when you hear that a traditionally dairy-heavy dessert has been made vegan. How could that possibly end well?

Cinnaholic, somehow, pulls it off.

It’s an interesting set-up; they have a few dozen different frosting and topping choices (if there’s a dessert topping you can think of, they probably offer it here). I wanted to see what the deal was with the roll itself, so I went as simple as possible with the “Classic Old Skool Roll,” which is topped only with vanilla frosting.

I won’t lie: I was expecting it to be dense and dry and weird, but it was pleasantly light and fluffy, with a nice cinnamon flavour and a great level of sweetness. It’s very, very sweet, but it’s not quite the throat-burning assault of sugar that you’ll get with something like Cinnabon.

The frosting is quite tasty, too — it’s rich and creamy, but also incredibly soft and light. I have no idea how they achieve that texture without dairy (I’m assuming margarine is involved), but whatever it is, it tastes pretty darn good.

That’s the surprising thing about it. Yes, it’s vegan, but it’s not good for a vegan dessert; it’s good, period.

Fake Burgers and Real Onion Rings at Fresh

Published on November 30, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 90 Eglinton Avenue East, Toronto
Website: https://freshrestaurants.ca/

The original plan was to review the veggie burger from Fresh for my burger blog. But then I actually ate it, and to be honest… I didn’t want to.

It’s not a burger. They call it a burger, and it basically looks like a burger, but the taste and the texture both contain zero hamburger-like properties. I only post a review on Tasty Burgers every couple of weeks, and it just didn’t feel right wasting one on something that absolutely, positively isn’t a hamburger.

We started with the much-lauded onion rings, which are frequently called the best in the city. And yeah, they’re good — maybe not best-in-the-city good, but they’re quite tasty. They actually reminded me a lot of what they serve at A&W — they’re similarly hearty, with a crispy breaded exterior encasing a perfectly cooked onion.

They were slightly underseasoned, however, and a little bit greasier than you’d like (which is particularly odd given the restaurant’s health food pedigree). I think I like A&W’s version slightly more, especially given how crazy expensive the ones at Fresh are (eight bucks for five substantial rings).

As for the “burger,” I ordered the banquet burger, which features fake bacon and fake cheese on a fake hamburger patty.

It’s fine. It’s actually not bad for what it is, but as I mentioned earlier, it’s not going to satisfy anyone’s hamburger cravings. The taste and texture are quite falafel-esque (but without the crispy exterior). Like most veggie burgers, it’s on the mushy side — a problem that’s compounded by how incredibly dense the wheaty bun is. It’s so unforgivingly brick-like that it’s actually quite difficult to eat, but I got through it.

The fake cheese is basically a thick, salty paste, and the fake bacon literally could not have tasted less like bacon. It was sweet and vaguely plantain-like. It wasn’t bad, but comparing it to bacon is absurd.

Quality Pasta (and Even Better Dessert) at Terroni

Published on November 28, 2018November 28, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1095 Yonge Street, Toronto
Website: http://www.terroni.com/

I didn’t think it was possible to be offended by a bread plate, but Terroni proved me wrong.

The bread plate at Terroni costs six dollars. And fine — I understand that restaurant margins are dangerously thin, and that charging for bread is increasingly becoming a thing.

The issue is that the plate comes with three tiny, dried-out slices of over-toasted white bread with a few drops of olive oil sprinkled on, four pieces of taralli (which is essentially an Italian breadstick), a small handful of olives, and… that’s it. No butter, no olive oil, just mediocre bread and a few olives. For six bucks. Get the hell out of here with that.

Thankfully, the rest of the meal was much better.

I had the Garganelli Geppetto, which is a pasta dish that comes with “dandelions, homemade spicy italian sausage, fontina, parmigiano, extra-virgin olive oil.”

A dish like this is a bit of a tightrope walk — the “sauce” is essentially oil, so it’s going to be somewhat greasy by default. But this one goes a bit too far, and feels oilier than it should be.

Still, it’s a tasty dish — the sausage is above average and has a mild spicy bite; the cheese adds a good amount of saltiness and a mild funk, not to mention some gooey meltiness; and the pasta itself is perfectly cooked and satisfying. It’s good stuff.

I can’t remember the name of the dessert and I can’t find it on the menu online, but it was essentially a croissant filled with Nutella, hazelnut gelato, and whipped cream. It was easily the highlight of the meal. It was shockingly delicious; the Nutella and the creamy gelato (which adds even more hazelnut flavour) go amazingly well together, and the tasty croissant is a perfect vehicle.

Ice cream cones are officially dead to me — I want all my ice cream in a croissant from now on.

Tasty Pizza at Goodfellas Wood Oven Pizza

Published on November 27, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 209 Queen Street South, Mississauga
Website: http://www.goodfellaspizza.ca/

I mentioned, in my review of Pi Co., that I think a Margherita pizza is one of the world’s few perfect foods. I’m at the point now where if I see a Margherita pizza on a menu, I pretty much have to order it.

Aside from the fact that it’s great (don’t even argue about that unless you want me to challenge you to a old-fashioned duel), it’s the easiest way to gauge the quality of a pizza joint.

There’s no hiding behind fancy toppings or sauces; it’s just crust, plain tomato sauce, mozzarella, olive oil, and basil. You have to know your way around a pizza (and a pizza oven), or you’re probably going to mess it up.

And Goodfellas definitely passes the Margherita test, though I will admit that I got very concerned when I saw the waiter bringing a neighbouring table a pizza with a crust that looked flat, colourless, and horrible. I was ready to dive out the nearest window and then run until my legs gave out from under me — but then I heard a reference to gluten-free, and all was right again.

If you can’t (or won’t) eat gluten, maybe don’t eat pizza? Don’t ruin something great for yourself by eating whatever the hell that was. It looked truly dire.

Thankfully, the actual, non-gluten-free pizza is pretty great. The proportion of cheese and sauce is just right, and the crust is top notch (ah, sweet sweet gluten). It was slightly over-charred in spots and maybe a touch too dense, but it was still very tasty.

It had just the right amount of crispiness without being too crunchy, and a satisfying chewiness that contrasts very nicely with the sauce and the cheese. Like all Margherita pizzas, it’s simple, but hard to resist.