spicy – Page 14 – Michael Eats

Veal Sandwich Greatness at Uno Mustachio

Published on November 13, 2018October 17, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 95 Front Street East (inside the St. Lawrence Market)
Website: http://www.unomustachio.com/

I’m not sure exactly how long I’ve been eating sandwiches at Uno Mustachio, but it’s been at least a couple of decades, if not longer.

Actually, “sandwiches” isn’t right. Sandwich.

As far as I’m concerned, there’s only one thing to order at Uno Mustachio: the veal and eggplant sandwich. The other sandwiches and pastas they have on the menu might be delicious; I’ll never know. I don’t go there nearly often enough to mess around. Veal and eggplant for life.

It’s a simple enough sandwich: a fried veal cutlet, a couple of slices of fried eggplant, sauteed onions, peppers, and mushrooms, a generous ladle of tomato sauce, and some hot peppers if you feel like kicking it up a few notches. It’s all served on a crusty roll that does a great job of holding up to the very messy sandwich without falling apart.

It’s as delicious now as the day I started going there.

You can get fried veal sandwiches all over the city, but (and maybe this is my nostalgia talking), Uno Mustachio is the king. All of the components are so well prepared, and they all complement each other so well.

The simple but rich tomato sauce is great, and — this is key — they apply it to the top and bottom of the sandwich instead of dunking the fried components right in. This allows the sandwich to be nice and saucy, but prevents the crispy fried bits from sogging up.

The creamy eggplant complements the meaty veal perfectly, and the whole thing feels so well balanced despite how hefty and messy it is. It’s easily one of the best sandwiches in the city.

Tasty Greek Wraps at Oh My Gyro!

Published on November 9, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 155 John Street, Toronto
Website: http://ohmygyro.ca/

Oh My Gyro serves what’s probably one of the better gyros in the city, though it’s a pretty clear case of “too much of a good thing.”

I got the chicken gyros wrap (you can also get beef doner, chicken souvlaki, or falafel), which comes crammed with chicken, tomato, tzatziki, garlic sauce, and hot sauce (and onions, which I elected to skip).

Seriously: it’s a hefty wrap. The photo makes it look pretty normal, but it was filled with a dense reserve of chicken, probably about the size of my forearm. It must have weighed about a pound.

It’s good quality stuff — the chicken is super tender, with a good amount of crispy bits (I probably could have used more, but then you can never have enough crispy bits). This might have been my imagination, but it had a slightly lamby flavour, like they had mixed lamb fat in with the chicken. Whatever it was, it was good stuff.

But there was a little bit too much of it. It made the wrap ridiculously difficult to eat without making a huge mess, and the balance of flavours was a bit off. The wrap only cost about eight bucks, and would have still been a great deal with about half the amount of meat.

That’s a fairly minor complaint, though. Everything about this wrap worked really well — the herby flavour, the delicious garlicky sauces, the zippy hot sauce (I went with extra hot, and it wasn’t kidding around), the fresh tomatoes, and the soft and chewy pita bread. Even the fries worked really well — I’m normally not a huge fan of fries in a sandwich, but these were fresh and tasty, and complimented the wrap’s other flavours perfectly.

Sandwich Perfection at Tortería San Cosme

Published on November 8, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 181 Baldwin Street, Toronto
Website: http://www.sancosme.ca/

I recently mentioned that the sandwich at Egg Bae was fine, but that it was a bit one-note; the flavours and textures were all monotonous, and it was kinda boring to eat.

The Conchinita torta from San Cosme is the exact opposite of that. It’s an almost absurdly well-balanced sandwich.

It was my first time back there since it opened; it was very good then, and it’s even better now. The torta I just had was dangerously close to sandwich perfection.

The sandwich comes with pulled pork, refried beans, habanero onions, and fried plantains.

It’s ridiculously good. All the elements work together in such perfect harmony. There’s the tangy pork (which is super tender, but still has some texture) and the creamy beans, which balance perfectly with the mild sweetness of the plantain. The pickled onions add crunch, and their vinegary bite helps to cut the richness from the pork and beans.

Then there’s the crispiness from the fried plantains, not to mention the amazing bread, which is lightly crispy on its exterior and delightfully fluffy inside.

It’s kind of absurd how good the sandwich is. The contrasting flavours and textures are like a perfectly orchestrated symphony.

And it’s made even better with the house-made pickled jalapenos they have on the counter. These things are so good, with an assertive crunch, a vinegary bite, and a mild spiciness. You assume the sandwich can’t get better than it already is, then you add a few of those, and yeah — somehow it gets even more delicious.

Fried Chicken Perfection at Heirloom

Published on October 30, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: It’s a truck, so check Twitter or their website
Website: https://www.heirloomtoronto.com/

Either my memory is wrong or the food at the Heirloom food truck has seriously improved, because I have a vague recollection of trying their fried chicken sandwich a few years ago and not being particularly impressed.

I just had the Szechuan fried chicken sandwich, and holy guacamole, it was so good.

Heirloom’s menu describes this as “brined chicken thigh, homemade Szechuan sauce, pickled cucumber, bean sprout, organic peanut, scallion aioli, brioche bun.”

My only real complaint is that the chicken was a bit dry; though the menu claims they’re using thigh meat, I’m fairly certain it was actually breast. Either way, it was slightly overcooked and a bit less juicy than it should have been.

Other than that? Crazy good.

The exterior crisp-factor was perfect, with a profound level of crunchiness that’s never overbearing.

And let’s face it: there are very few things in life more satisfying than biting into a perfectly crispy piece of fried chicken.

The sandwich is saucy as hell (it’s impossible to eat without getting sauce all over your hands and face), but it absolutely works.

The Szechuan sauce is sweet, savoury, garlicky, and a little bit spicy (this is a minor complaint, but I wish it were a bit spicier. It’s basically a mild tingle). It’s absolutely fantastic, and the big peanut chunks give it a nice nutty crunchiness.

The richness of the aioli works great with the flavour-packed sauce, and the pickled veggies help to cut through the overall heaviness of the sandwich.

The whole thing is an absolute assault of assertive flavours and textures, but it’s so well balanced. It’s easily one of the best fried chicken sandwiches I’ve had in a while.

Ultra-Chewy Noodles at Potato Noodle Soup of Bai

Published on October 1, 2018 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 4350 Steeles Avenue East, Markham
Website: None

I’ve had a lot of noodles over the course of my life, but — until now — I don’t think I’d ever tried potato noodles.

As the name implies, potato noodles are made with potato starch, which gives them a much, much chewier consistency than the norm.

Though I’ve heard good things about the cold noodles Potato Noodle Soup of Bai, I decided to go with the noodle soup — mostly because “noodle soup” is right there in the name.

I got the plain potato noodle soup, which comes with noodles, meatballs, fish balls, half an egg, and various odds and ends in a fiery broth.

The noodles are really interesting. There’s a Korean dish called jjolmyeon that features noodles that are so incredibly chewy you have to cut them with scissors before you start eating. These kind of reminded me of a thicker, slightly less chewy version of those.

The broth was a bit saltier than I’d like, but it was otherwise quite tasty, with a spicy kick and an almost creamy richness that you only get from a stock that’s been simmered for a long, long time.

The whole thing was fairly tasty, though with Sun’s Kitchen just a few steps away, I don’t know that I’d ever eat here again.