sandwich – Page 12 – Michael Eats

Tasty Fried Chicken at Brock Sandwich

Published on July 25, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1260 Bloor Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.instagram.com/brocksandwich/

Note: Between the time I wrote this and posted it, Brock sandwich has, sadly, shut down (I’ve got a bit of a backlog). Whoops! Well, enjoy the review of a sandwich you cannot eat.

Brock Sandwich has a whole bunch of tasty looking sandwiches on their menu, though on this particular visit, I went with the Chicken Piri Piri: “fried chicken, charred onions, coleslaw, piri piri sauce.”

It’s a very good sandwich; the fried chicken is crispy and perfectly cooked, all of the toppings are thoroughly tasty, and the slightly crusty bun works perfectly with the other components of the sandwich.

My only real complaint is that as a fried chicken sandwich, it’s a bit busier than it needs to be. Between the charred onions (which are delicious, with a sweetness that’s cut by the mild smokiness from the charred bits), the zesty piri piri sauce, and the very zippy coleslaw, the fried chicken feels like a supporting player in its own sandwich. It’s a bit overwhelmed by other stuff.

Still, that is a very, very minor complaint; regardless of whether or not the fried chicken is the star, it’s impossible to deny that it’s a delicious sandwich.

Nashville Hot Chicken at Knockout Chicken

Published on July 23, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 207 Augusta Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://knockoutchickento.com/

Knockout Chicken has been serving up fried chicken sandwiches in Kensington Market for a few years now (they also have a location in Mississauga), and yeah, I can see why they have staying power. Their fried chicken is pretty solid.

They have a whole bunch of sandwiches on the menu, but the woman behind the counter said the Nashville Sandwich is the most popular (“Nashville-style fried chicken breast, homemade coleslaw, pickles, jalapenos, and chipotle aioli”), so that’s what I got.

It’s not the crispiest or the juiciest fried chicken I’ve ever had, but I enjoyed it. It’s got a decent kick to it, it’s nice and flavourful, and the slightly sweet bun suits it well. It’s got a bit more going on than you’d expect from Nashville hot chicken, but for the most part, it works.

My only real issue here is with the coleslaw, which tastes heavily of sour cream and is a bit one-note rich. I think the sandwich would have been improved with less (or none) of this stuff, but everything else was tasty enough that this wasn’t a huge deal.

Dave’s Genuine Deli at the Waterworks Food Hall

Published on July 14, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 50 Brandt Street, Toronto (inside the Waterworks Food Hall)
Website: https://www.davesgenuine.ca/

I’m a sucker for a good smoked meat deli sandwich, so it bums me out that there are so few great ones being served in the GTA. There’s SumiLicious and Centre Street Deli and… that’s about it?

Well, you can add one more sandwich to that list: Dave’s Genuine Deli. I actually went to the original location a year or so ago and the sandwich was just as good then, so they’re consistent, too.

They have a handful of sandwiches on the menu (including, intriguingly, a couple of southern-style BBQ sandwiches), but of course, I went with the smoked meat, which you can order as a quarter or half pound serving (I went quarter and kinda wished I went with half once I realized how good it was).

It’s so good — super tender, perfectly rendered fat, great spicing, and a very pronounced smoky flavour. That smokiness kind of reminds me of Caplansky’s in their glory days in the Monarch. Great bread, too. It’s a top-shelf smoked meat sandwich.

The only thing I’d change is that I’d order the mustard on the side next time. They were very heavy-handed with it, and on a lesser sandwich I’d be fine with that (it might even be necessary), but the quality of the meat was so good that the aggressive slathering of mustard overwhelmed its flavour and took away from it a bit. Still, that’s a very minor complaint for an otherwise phenomenal sandwich.

I also got an order of the fries, and they were great too, with a perfect crispy/creamy combo and a nice amount of salt.

Unique Sandwiches at Fattoush Sandwich Club

Published on July 9, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 253 Gerrard Street East, Toronto
Website: https://www.instagram.com/fattoushtoronto/

Fattoush Sandwich Club serves a bunch of Middle Eastern-inspired sandwiches (though, oddly enough, fattoush is a salad and not a sandwich, and does not feature in any of their sandwich offerings).

I tried a couple of sandwiches, and they were both quite tasty.

The first was the Smashed Beef: “Beef Mix, Pomegranate Molasses, Tahini.” This is sort of burger-esque, though the meat tastes more like kofta than like a burger patty (this is not a bad thing). The pomegranate molasses adds some sweet zippiness, and the tahini adds richness. It’s a solid sandwich.

I think I liked the Crispy Eggplant even better: “Eggplant, Siracha Toum, Tomato Confit.” As you can see from the photo, this is a substantially sloppier sandwich, with a whole bunch of lettuce and tasty sauces. But the real star of the show is the eggplant itself; when they say it’s crispy, it’s crispy. It’s breaded and fried, and it has a very pronounced crunchiness that holds up even to the very saucy sandwich. The contrast between the crunchy exterior and the creamy interior is thoroughly delicious.

Chinese Fast Food at Bingz Crispy Burger

Published on June 28, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 3401 Dufferin Street, North York (inside Yorkdale Mall)
Website: https://www.bingzcanada.com/

Bingz is a Chinese chain that sells a variety of sandwiches made with a crispy, flaky bun, along with a handful of side dishes.

I went with the signature pork, and it’s delightfully simple — it’s just braised pork shoulder on a bun. That’s it. Want any condiments? Go somewhere else!

It’s quite good. It’s very no-frills, but the pork is meaty, flavourful, and super tender. The crispy bun is a good mix of flaky/crispy and chewy, and suits the pork perfectly.

(Also, this probably goes without saying, but this thing is absolutely not a burger in any appreciable way, making the name a bit of a head-scratcher.)

And it’s only six bucks, which is actually a pretty great deal; they manage to cram a decent amount of meat into that thing. For something from a food court in a mall, it’s way better than it needs to be.