tahini – Michael Eats

Brunch with a Twist at Madame Levant

Published on November 3, 2021 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 821 Gerrard Street East, Toronto
Website: https://www.madamelevant.com/

Madame Levant is a brunch spot with an interesting gimmick; most of the menu consists of brunch classics “with a Levantine twist.”

Actually, maybe using the word “gimmick” to describe what they’re serving here is unfair. Based on the two dishes I tried, Madame Levant manages to combine brunch standbys and Middle Eastern ingredients in a way that feels completely organic.

First up was the Halawa Pancakes, which the menu describes as “GF flour blend pancakes served with orange blossom tahini maple syrup & topped with pistachios and ward (dried flower petals).”

Halawa — a sweet, tahini-based dessert — and pancakes turn out to be a great combo, and the floral notes you get from the orange blossom and flower petals complements it perfectly. I feel like I need all of my maple syrup to be infused with tahini from now on; it adds a richness and a mildly nutty flavour that really amps up its deliciousness.

The pancakes are gluten free, but aside from a slightly denser texture than the norm, they’re very good.

I also tried the Sujuk Scrambled: “beef sausages finished with pomegranate molasses, 3 soft scrambled eggs, with a side of hummus, pita, & olives.”

This one’s pretty basic, but when you’re dealing with good ingredients that are well prepared, sometimes simpler is better. The sausage is tasty and the eggs are nicely creamy. Hummus and eggs aren’t a combination that I would have thought of, but it works. Nothing here knocked my socks off, but it’s a solid dish.

A Decent Falafel Sandwich at The Haifa Room

Published on September 19, 2021September 19, 2021 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 224 Ossington Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://www.instagram.com/thehaifaroom/

The Haifa Room has been up and running for a bit more than a month, and while the dining room isn’t open quite yet, they do have a take-out window where you can get a variety of sandwiches.

I went with the falafel sandwich: “Falafel, tahina, hummus, z’hug, cucumber and tomato salad, marinated red cabbage, parsley, onions, and pickles.”

I asked them to hold the onion, but otherwise got it as is.

It’s a solid sandwich, though nothing about it particularly blew me away. The falafel itself is crispy and flavourful, with a nice fluffy interior that’s almost creamy (it might have been a tad undercooked, but it was tasty regardless). And the healthy amount of parsley they top it with is a nice touch, adding a herby punch that complements the falafel quite well.

None of the other toppings particularly stand out, however, and I missed the red pickled turnips that you typically find in a sandwich like this; there were copious amounts of tahini and hummus, and in the absence of something with some zip, it felt overly rich and a bit one-note in its flavour. It did have pickle slices, but they weren’t assertive enough to add much of anything.

(The menu also says the sandwich is topped with z’hug, a herby Yemenite hot sauce, but I didn’t see or taste anything even remotely hot-sauce-like in the sandwich.)

The vaguely stale pita bread probably didn’t help, which came out of a bag and tasted like it came out of a bag.

I feel like I’m complaining a lot for something I actually quite enjoyed, but pretty much everything here is one small step away from being very good, so it’s easy to notice the flaws that are holding it back.

The Sad Decline of Paramount

Published on November 12, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1290 Crestlawn Drive, Mississauga
Website: http://www.paramountfinefoods.com/

You’ll notice that I only have the one photo from Paramount, of a partially eaten take-out box of a dozen falafel. I wasn’t planning on blogging about this one, but I think I kinda have to?

Paramount makes me sad. The one I visited, in an industrial area of Mississauga, is actually the first location of the now omnipresent chain. Back before they started expanding, it was a fantastic restaurant — easily some of the best Middle Eastern food in the GTA. Every time I went there, the place was absolutely slammed. It was so good, and people couldn’t get enough of it.

Then, of course, they started expanding, and the quality started to go downhill. Slowly at first, but the decline was unmistakable. The crowds thinned out, but it was still popular enough.

The last time I was there, maybe about a year ago, the food was clearly inferior to its highs in the pre-expansion days, but it was still pretty decent.

I just went to pick up an order of a dozen falafel, and the place was an absolute ghost town. It’s easy enough to see why; it was quite possibly the worst falafel that I’ve ever had. It was dense and dry, with an unpleasantly crumbly texture that sucks all the moisture out of your mouth. It tasted wrong and stale despite being fresh from the fryer.

As for the weirdly sour tahini sauce and the bland pita bread, the less said the better.

I think I’m done with Paramount, and considering how good it used to be, that makes me sad.

Tasty Middle Eastern Food at Azkadenya

Published on August 23, 2019August 23, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 235 Queen Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.azkadenya.ca/

I’ll admit that I didn’t have particularly high expectations for Azkadenya, a “mezza diner” with locations all over the Middle East. Aside from the fact that it’s a chain restaurant, the slick decor and quirky dishes made me think it would be style over substance.

Well, don’t judge a book by its cover, I guess? This place was actually quite good, though the restaurant is clearly at its best when it sticks with the classics and doesn’t mess around too much.

We started with the hummus, which is creamy and tasty. It didn’t quite knock my socks off, but it’s a solid bowl of hummus. It helps that it comes topped with healthy amount of good quality olive oil, with a bottle available on the table to top it up (which you should absolutely do — hummus and EVOO are best friends and should never be apart).

Actually, I should mention the multiple bottles at the table — there’s olive oil, a couple of tasty hot sauces, a tahini sauce, and something labeled “sour but sweet” that I completely forgot to try (I know, what’s wrong with me?).

Servers are constantly walking around to replenish your supply of pita bread — they bake these things fresh in what appears to be a wood-burning oven, so yeah, they’re quite good.

Next up was the falafel, which comes in an order of eight. This was easily the highlight of the meal. They’re nicely spiced and not too big, which gives you the perfect ratio of crispy exterior to fluffy interior (too many places make huge, almost tennis-ball-sized falafel, and the crisp-to-fluffy ratio is all wrong). They’re also not dry in the middle, which is another common issue with falafel in the GTA. They’re really good.

Then there was the beef “shawarma.” I’m putting that in quotes because, I’m sorry, but this isn’t shawarma. It comes essentially looking like a kabob (though the beef is sliced, even if it doesn’t look that way). It’s a fun gimmick, and the presentation is certainly striking, but it’s not shawarma. It tastes nothing like shawarma.

Still, it’s tasty enough for what it is. The meat is tender and nicely marinated. Once you put it in a pita with some of the condiments (it comes with pickles, tahini sauce, garlic sauce, and tomatoes) it’s quite satisfying.

Last up was the kunafah pops, which takes the traditional Middle Eastern dessert and turns it into little deep-fried balls. Like the shawarma, this was the restaurant being a bit too clever for their own good. All of the textures are wrong — the exterior is a bit too crunchy, the cheesy interior doesn’t quite have the gooeyness you’re looking for, and it has a mild oily flavour from the fryer. It certainly wasn’t the worst thing I’ve ever eaten, but traditional kunafah would have been vastly superior.

A Couple More Delicious Flavours at Nani’s Gelato

Published on August 14, 2019 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: It’s a truck; check Instagram to see where they’re parked
Website: https://www.nanisgelato.com

Did I go right back to Nani’s Gelato after trying it for the first time the other day? Why yes, yes I did. What can I say; it’s really good.

This time I was able to try two flavours — pistachio, and tahini and black sesame. Both were absolutely outstanding.

Pistachio is a classic gelato flavour, and Nani’s knocks it out of the park. It has a vibrant pistachio flavour that, unlike so many other places, actually tastes like real pistachio — not pistachio flavouring.

The tahini and black sesame is just as good, with a toasty, intense tahini flavour, and a restrained amount of sweetness that lets the nutty sesame flavour shine through.

I really hope this place opens a permanent location soon, because I think it’s easily a contender for the best gelato in the city.