Tag: street vendor

Quick Bites: Street vendor hot dog, Bao Bar, Ed’s Real Scoop

Published on by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Street vendor hot dog
Hot dog from street vendor at King and John

Street vendor hot dogs have mostly disappeared from the city, which is too bad; they’re certainly not gourmet, but when you need a quick bite, they’re pretty tasty.  I actually made a short film about street vendor hot dogs back in 2007, so yeah, I like them.  This particular one wasn’t the best I’ve had (the secret of a good street vendor dog is to grill it until it’s got a crispy exterior and a smoky, charred flavour, and that didn’t happen here), but for five bucks for a quick meal, it’s hard to complain.

Great Chicken and Crackle Belly baos from Bao Bar
Great Chicken and Crackle Belly baos from Bao Bar

I think part of the reason I don’t want to dwell on negativity on this blog is that it’s very possible to catch an otherwise good restaurant on a bad day.  So rather than trash a place that doesn’t deserve it, I feel like it’s a better idea to just focus on the places I like.  That being said, I tried a couple of the baos at this place, and nothing about them — not the bread, the meats, or the sauces — was even remotely good (I should note that “great chicken” is the name of the dish, and certainly not my description of it).  But then Bao Bar is generally fairly well regarded online, so maybe it was just a bad day.

Pumpkin and sweet cream from Ed's Real Scoop
Pumpkin and sweet cream from Ed’s Real Scoop

I have a love/hate relationship with Ed’s Real Scoop (well, love/hate is a bit strong… love/like I guess?); when it’s good, it’s very good.  But I find it to be the most inconsistent of the better ice cream shops in the GTA.  But here’s them at their best: on this particular visit I had pumpkin and sweet cream, and both were fantastic.  The pumpkin had a really satisfying pumpkin pie flavour, and the sweet cream (which is reliably the best flavour here) was as delicious as usual.  Having them together is basically like pumpkin pie with whipped cream on top.  It’s a boffo combination.

Upgraded Street Meat at Nobs’

Published on by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Nobs'Location: 505 University Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://www.instagram.com/nobsofficial/

Nobs’ is a street vendor with a really interesting setup; it looks like a hot dog cart, but you won’t find a dog or a sausage on the menu.  Instead, they serve a variety of meaty sandwiches (and mushroom for the vegetarians) that are cooked sous vide and finished on the grill.  Ideally, this means that the meat will be perfectly cooked, with a nice smoky crust from the fire.

And yeah, that’s what happened.

I ordered the AAA Canadian Blade Steak Sandwich, which comes topped with greens, chimichurri, mayo, and pickled onions.

Nobs'

The steak was perfectly tender, with a good amount of exterior texture from the grill.  The rest of the sandwich is quite tasty, too, with the vibrant, garlicky chimichurri matching well with the creamy mayo.

The bread is also great — it’s fresh, with a nice crispy exterior, and enough heft to hold up to the very substantial sandwich.

But the flavours are overwhelming.  In particular, the garlic in the chimichurri packs an absolute wallop.  It’s intense.  It’s delicious, mind you, but it’s basically all you can taste.  The beef is mostly just there for texture; the flavour is completely annihilated.

The whole thing is really good; I just wish I could have tasted more of the steak (or any of the steak).