take out – Page 3 – Michael Eats

Tasty Detroit-Style Pizza at Renaissance Pizza

Published on July 3, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 809 Dundas Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.renaissancepizza.ca/

Did Toronto need another Detroit-style pizzeria? No, probably not. But does it really matter when the pizza being served is delicious? Again, no, it does not.

They have a bunch of tasty-looking pizzas on the menu at Renaissance, from the traditional (pepperoni, fennel sausage) to the not-so-traditional (tandoori paneer, duck confit). But if you’re ordering by the slice, you’ve got two options: cheese or pepperoni. I went with pepperoni.

It’s a great slice of pizza. As is traditional with Detroit pizza, the sauce comes on top of the cheese; interestingly, it’s applied post-bake and is (I think) completely uncooked, giving it a vibrant, garlickly freshness that contrasts nicely with the heavy cheese and greasy crust.

It also has that classic Detroit-style crispy cheese all along the edges, which is as delightful as ever.

My only issue is that I think it’s possible Detroit-style pizza shouldn’t be served by the slice; in this case, at least, the bottom of the pizza lost its delightful crispiness, which is a big part of what makes this type of pizza so great.

Every other element here was so tasty that this wasn’t a deal-breaker, but I’d definitely just order a whole pizza next time, rather than risk getting another soggy slice.

Tasty Eats at Gushi Fried Chicken

Published on June 26, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 707 Dundas Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.eatgushi.com/

There are a bunch of great options in Market 707, a collection of street vendors that operate out of shipping containers near Kensington Market. I’ve previously tried (and loved) Marq’s Chicago Beef, and I think the fried chicken at Gushi is just as good.

I ordered the original Gushi chicken meal, which comes with a generous amount of karaage (Japanese fried chicken made from bite-sized pieces of thigh meat) on top of purple rice, topped with spicy mayo.

The fried chicken is stellar. It’s super crispy, nicely seasoned, and features perfectly cooked chicken. It’s incredibly satisfying, and works very well with the sticky purple rice.

The only thing I would change is that I’d probably ask for the spicy mayo to be on the side next time. It’s quite tasty — and its zippy flavour complements the fried chicken very well — but there’s a lot of it. It’s a bit overwhelming. The chicken is so tasty on its own that such a thorough deluge of heavy sauce is probably overkill.

A Solid Sandwich at Banh Mi Boys

Published on June 24, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 392 Queen Street West, Toronto
Website: https://banhmiboys.com/

Remember Banh Mi Boys? They opened back in 2011, and were thoroughly amazing. They were one of my favourite places for a quick bite downtown. But then they expanded and, like with so many places, the quality went downhill. After a couple of particularly iffy sandwiches, I stopped going altogether.

But it’s been a few years, and I figured it was time to give them another shot. And hey, what do you know — they’re pretty good again. I don’t know if they’ll ever hit the highs of their early days, but it was a really solid sandwich.

I had the five spice pork belly banh mi, and yeah, it was tasty. The pork was slightly tough and the flavours don’t quite pop like they used to (and the spice level was sadly anemic, despite asking for it hot), but this was otherwise a satisfying banh mi. The bread was nice and fresh, and the abundant pickled veggies do a good job of cutting through the richness of the pork.

Satisfying French Tacos at Brick ‘N’ Cheese

Published on June 9, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 678 College Street, Toronto
Website: https://brickncheese.com/

Brick ‘N’ Cheese specializes in French tacos, which is basically a French burrito that’s crammed with meat and pressed flat in a panini press.

There used to be a great restaurant in the city called Mister Frenchy that served these things; alas, that place shut down. So if you’re looking for a French taco in the GTA, I think Brick ‘N’ Cheese might be the only game in town.

The menu at Brick ‘N’ Cheese is pretty customizable; you can either make your own creation by picking from an assortment of meats and sauces, or you get get one of six of what they call “premade bricks.” I went with the original premade brick: “extra lean ground beef & chicken, ketchup, cheddar, and pickles” (the menu doesn’t mention it, but there are fries in there as well).

Nothing about it particularly blew my mind, but it’s a satisfying wrap. It’s meaty, cheesy, and rich. I couldn’t help but compare it to the French taco I had at Mister Frenchy, which was greatly enhanced by a delicious, zippy sauce that helped to cut through the richness of the wrap. I wish they had something like that here (and the fries tasted like stale fries that had been dunked in oil prior to assembling the wrap, which meant that they were roughly a trillion times hotter than the other fillings), but this was otherwise a solid wrap.

Tasty Fried Chicken at Ghost Chicken

Published on June 7, 2024 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 74 Ossington Avenue, Toronto
Website: https://ghostchicken.ca/

I think you could make the argument that the city has too many places that specialize in fried chicken sandwiches. I’m not saying I would, but someone could make that argument.

My counterpoint: fried chicken sandwiches are delicious and there should be a restaurant selling them on every block.

Ghost Chicken serves a variety of chicken sandwiches, along with wings, chicken strips, and a handful of sides. I went with the Nashville: “fried chicken thigh, Nashville spice blend & oil, sweet pickles, choice of heat: medium, hot, fire.”

It’s a solid fried chicken sandwich. It’s nice and crispy, generously sized, and the chicken itself is pleasantly juicy. The slightly sweet, fresh bun suits it well.

I wish it were a bit more flavourful, though. The chicken is a bit underseasoned, and even the pickles don’t add the zinginess you’re hoping for (I think maybe they weren’t quite pickled enough? They tasted mostly like soft cucumber slices). I ordered the “fire” level of spiciness, and while it did have somewhat of a kick, it didn’t put any sweat on my brow.

Still, it’s generally a well-prepared fried chicken sandwich; it’s hard to go wrong there, even if the flavours could have been amped up a bit.