ribs – Michael Eats

Wacky Eats at The Ex

Published on September 1, 2025 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 210 Princes’ Boulevard, Toronto
Website: https://theex.com/

Another year, another batch of over-the-top carnival food from The Ex.

Butter Chicken Birria Tacos from Rick’s Good Eats

Rick’s Good Eats — which specializes in tasty Indian fusion — is always a safe bet, and yeah, these tacos were very good. They came looking a bit flat and sad (and small, considering they cost about twenty bucks with tax and tip), but they’re actually quite delicious, with some tasty butter chicken inside and a whole bunch of gooey cheese. Not cheap, but hey, it’s The Ex. Everything’s a bit overpriced.

Poutine Dumps from Super Noodle Company

Unfortunate name aside (I shouldn’t have to say this, but please don’t shorten dumplings to “dumps”), this was also quite good. The menu describes this as “homemade chicken dumplings, torched American cheese, coconut curry gravy, crispy shallots, garlic, fresh green onions & chili oil.” It’s not even remotely poutine-like (I never in a million years would have made that connection if you hadn’t told me), but whatever it is, it’s tasty. The combo of cheese and dumpling is vaguely pierogi-esque and quite satisfying, and everything else in the bowl is tasty.

Korean Fried Chicken Sandwich from Korean Fried Chicken

The chicken in the sandwich was pretty skimpy (it maybe filled half of the bun), but the chicken that was there was crispy, juicy, and covered in the usual Korean fried chicken sauce, which is always satisfying. The fries were a bit undercooked, however.

Rib Sandwich from Hogtown Ribs

Well, something had to be a dud, I suppose. I don’t know why I thought (or hoped, at least) that this would have actual rib meat rather than ground-up McRib-style patties, but yeah, of course it was the latter. And okay, fine, I can roll with a McRib — but the meat here had clearly been sitting in a warming tray for hours, with a chewy texture and that gamy flavour you get from pork that’s been reheated one time too many.

Chicken Nugget Cookie from Craig’s Cookies

Here’s a head-scratcher: the rib sandwich that seemed like a sure bet was a dud, and the chicken-nugget-stuffed cookie that should have been gross was… actually kind of good? This seems like it should be horrible, but it’s tasty for the same reasons that chicken and waffles are tasty — it has a very similar flavour, but in a convenient hand-held package. And the salty chicken nugget helps to balance out the sweetness of the cookie itself (which is always a bit more pronounced than I’d like at Craig’s Cookies). I was shocked by how much I liked this.

An Upscale McRib at Aloette

Published on November 8, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 171 East Liberty Street, Unit 127A, Toronto
Website: https://aloetterestaurant.com/

Aloette has recently added a few new things to their menu, including a McRib-esque rib sandwich, and yeah, obviously I’ve gotta try that.

The Ribette Sandwich, as per the menu: “Slow cooked pork ribs, coleslaw, pickles, pickled onions, BBQ sauce.”

Okay fine, it’s actually not much like a McRib, which features a ground pork patty and is only tangentially related to ribs. This one contains actual ribs (but with the bones conveniently removed), and it’s extremely tasty.

It’s not smoky at all, which is too bad, but it’s porky and tender, and features some nicely crispy/charred bits from the grill. It’s slathered in a deliciously sweet and tangy BBQ sauce, and topped with pickles and pickled onions, which do a great job of adding some crunch and cutting through the richness of the fatty pork.

It also comes with a little tub of zingy coleslaw that you’re supposed to add to the sandwich yourself; BBQ sandwich + coleslaw is always a great combo, and yeah, it works quite well here.

It’s served on a fluffy, lightly chewy bun that holds up nicely to the saucy sandwich. It’s great.

I also tried the fries, which are crispy, fluffy, and perfectly cooked. Good stuff.

Decent Ribs at Brickyard BBQ

Published on September 2, 2021September 2, 2021 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 120 North Queen Street, Etobicoke
Website: https://www.brickyardbbq.ca/

Brickyard BBQ is a ribfest vendor with a permanent location (or semi-permanent at least — I can’t imagine they’ll still be around once winter hits), so if you’re in the mood for a mini ribfest experience, it should hit the spot. There’s even a Tiny Tom’s truck parked across from it, but alas, it was closed when I visited.

They have the usual assortment of ribs, pulled pork, and chicken, though ribs are obviously their specialty (they have a huge sign boasting about their “legendary ‘double-smoked’ ribs”). I ordered a third rack with coleslaw and baked beans on the side (rice and peas is also a choice).

It was fine. I’ve never had ribs from a ribfest that particularly blew me away, and these were far from the best ribfest ribs I’ve had (how many times can I say ribs in a sentence?? Ribs ribs ribs). They weren’t smoky at all, and they had a mildly leftovery flavour, but mostly they were decent enough. The texture was okay, with a nice bite that wasn’t overly tough.

The most noteworthy thing about them was the sauce they had slathered them in — the spicing was quite unique, with a really distinctive flavour that was unlike any BBQ sauce I’ve had before. It’s different enough to be off-putting at first, though it mostly grew on me.

As for the sides, the baked beans had the same distinctive flavour as the sauce, but were otherwise quite good — hearty and not too sweet. And the coleslaw, oddly enough, was the highlight. It’s a pretty by-the-numbers creamy coleslaw, but it’s well executed and tasty (hey, not every dish needs to reinvent the wheel).

Solid Texas BBQ at Adamson Barbecue

Published on May 1, 2020 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 15195 Yonge Street, Aurora
Website: https://adamsonbarbecue.com/

Though restaurants serving Texas-style BBQ have become a dime a dozen in the GTA, Adamson was among the first in that trend, and if you ask pretty much anybody, they’re the best.

I tried it once a couple of years ago, and I’ll admit that I wasn’t convinced. I found the food to be tasty enough, but it was hampered by some fairly serious issues (most pressingly: a complete lack of smoky flavour, improperly sliced brisket, and mediocre pulled pork).

Well, I just tried their new Aurora location, and it was (mostly) a much, much better experience.

I will say that ordering take-out is probably not the best way to go (though it is, for obvious reasons, the only way to go right now). When you pre-order on their website, all the meats come tightly wrapped in butcher paper, and the whole thing is sealed in a foil take-out container. You also can’t specify a pick-up time other than before or after 4:00 PM. This means that the meat effectively continues to cook in the tray, and is a bit more dry than it should be by the time you eat it.

Even still, it was quite tasty. I tried basically everything on the menu: beef brisket, spare ribs, turkey breast, pulled pork, and a couple of sausages (bratwurst and jalapeno cheddar).

The brisket is their claim to fame, and yeah, it’s very good. It could have been more tender (see: the aforementioned take-out issue), but it was otherwise top-shelf brisket. It was quite smoky, it had a good amount of tender fat (the fat wasn’t quite as well rendered as you’d like, but that’s a minor complaint — it was mostly very creamy), and the bark was really tasty. Texas-style barbecue is traditionally seasoned with just salt and pepper, and while it tasted like there might have been a bit more going on here, it was quite good.

Everything else was (mostly) really tasty. The turkey was smoky and tender, the ribs had a great texture and more of that delightful smoke flavour (though they did taste a bit over-brined), and both sausages were top-notch, particularly the jalapeno cheddar.

The pulled pork was even worse than I remembered it, however. It was incredibly dry, it had zero smoky flavour, and it had that underlying gaminess that you only get from pork that’s been reheated one time too many. I’d be absolutely shocked if it was cooked the same day I ate it.

I also tried the baked beans and the coleslaw, and while neither was anything to get too excited about (the baked beans tasted more like some kind of bean stew than like traditional baked beans), but they were both tasty enough.

Decent BBQ at Beauty Barbecue & Smokehouse

Published on September 3, 2018 by Michael Nusair3 Comments

Location: 2901 Bayview Avenue, North York
Website: https://www.beautybbq.com/

Judging by Toronto’s restaurants, really great barbecue must be the toughest thing to get right. Because there are a lot of BBQ joints in the GTA, and very, very few of them are much better than okay.

You can add Beauty Barbecue & Smokehouse to the “okay” list. It’s fine. I didn’t dislike eating there. It’s certainly not great, but I’ve had worse barbecue in the city.

I tried three things and a couple of sides: smoked + roasted pork shoulder, Torontreal smoked meat, and baby back ribs, along with grilled cornbread and kale coleslaw. I was really hoping to try the brisket; alas, it was sold out.

The pork shoulder was the oddest of the bunch. It didn’t even vaguely resemble the pulled pork you might be expecting from a barbecue joint. Instead, it was thinly sliced and tasted more like porchetta than something you’d find in the American south, with an overwhelmingly herby, rosemary-tinged flavour. I suspect it hadn’t seen a smoker in many hours (if not days) as it had zero smokiness and a mildly gamy reheated pork flavour.

The Torontreal smoked meat was a definite upgrade over the pork. Though it can’t compete with the best smoked meat in the city, it was nicely spiced and had a surprisingly smoky flavour. But the meat was tough and the fat was vaguely rubbery. Despite the fact that it was sliced very thinly, it was disconcertingly difficult to cut with a plastic knife.

The ribs were the best of the bunch. They had a good level of smoke and a nice texture — tender, but with a bit of bite. Something about them wasn’t quite clicking (I think maybe the rub?), but the vinegary-sweet sauce was tasty, and it was overall a quality rack of ribs.

As for the two sides, they were both solid. Neither particularly stood out, but the coleslaw was nice and zingy, and the cornbread was sweet, buttery, and satisfying.