Toronto – Page 61 – Michael Eats

Carolina BBQ Quarter Pounder at McDonald’s

Published on December 13, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1001 Islington Avenue, Etobicoke
Website: https://www.mcdonalds.com/

This isn’t one of the more exciting new items on the McDonald’s menu — I can’t imagine anyone getting too worked up about it — but it sure, why not. May as well give it a shot.

The Carolina BBQ Quarter Pounder, as per the McDonald’s website: “100% Canadian quarter pound beef patty topped with sweet and tangy golden Carolina BBQ sauce, hickory smoked bacon strips, crispy onions, pickles, and two slices of processed cheddar cheese served on a toasted sesame bun.”

It’s basically a gussied up Quarter Pounder with Cheese, though that Carolina BBQ sauce does actually make it stand out somewhat.

That sauce is pretty decent; it’s arguably too sweet (it’s intense), but the sweetness is somewhat balanced out by a satisfying tanginess and smokiness. It’s a solid BBQ sauce. And while it would be too overpowering on a better hamburger, on a dry McDonald’s Quarter Pounder, it works.

The crispy onions and bacon are a good addition, though their flavour is mostly wiped out by that very intense BBQ sauce.

Weird (and Delicious!) Gelato at Mizzica Gelateria & Cafe

Published on December 11, 2022November 16, 2023 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 307 Queen Street West, Toronto
Website: https://www.instagram.com/mizzicagelato/

Mizzica recently opened a second location at Queen and John, and clearly they haven’t missed a step because the gelato I just tried was absolutely fantastic.

Actually, I think this flavour perfectly encapsulates Mizzica’s greatness. It’s a bit of an odd one, and almost certainly wouldn’t have been much more than an interesting novelty at any other gelato shop. Here, on the other hand, it was surprisingly delicious.

That flavour? Gorgonzola, mascarpone, and pistachio. Yes, that gorgonzola, the famous Italian blue cheese.

It’s honestly shocking how delicious it is. The gorgonzola flavour is actually quite pronounced, and yet it totally works as part of this sweet scoop of gelato. I couldn’t even tell you why or how. It shouldn’t. But it does.

The sweet pistachio paste that they top it with complements it perfectly, and the whole thing is luxuriously creamy and so much better than you’d imagine. With a lot of weird flavours like this, even when I like them, I think, well, I never need to have that again. But this was legitimately delicious. I could eat a million scoops of it.

A Tasty Dessert at Old Mill Pastry & Deli

Published on December 8, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 385 The West Mall, Etobicoke
Website: https://oldmillpastry.ca/

Old Mill Pastry & Deli is an unassuming little place that sells a bunch of European groceries, along with pastries like burek and the thing I tried, a delightful Turkish dessert called tulumba.

I wasn’t familiar with this particular dessert until I tried it here, and clearly I’ve been missing out because it’s delicious.

The closest thing I can compare it to is a churro; they’re both fried tube-like pastries with ridges along the outside.

But the tulumba is thicker and soaked in syrup — I guess it’s kind of like if a churro and a Greek doughnut (a.k.a. loukoumades) had a baby. It’s syrupy but not overly sweet, with an interior that’s heartier than a traditional doughnut with an almost custardy flavour, and an exterior that has a satisfying crunch that’s amped up by those ridges. I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I really enjoyed this.

Quick Bites: Bobbie Sue’s Mac + Cheese, Bang Bang, A&W

Published on December 1, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Blue Buffalo Chicken from Bobbie Sue’s Mac + Cheese

I’ve tried Bobbie Sue’s Mac + Cheese a couple of times and enjoyed it quite a lot. Alas, this visit wasn’t quite as stellar. I had the Blue Buffalo Chicken, which features chicken and Buffalo sauce mixed right in with the pasta, and crumbles of blue cheese on top. It’s a tasty combo, and it certainly wasn’t bad — but the pasta was overcooked, the whole thing was weirdly soupy, and it wasn’t evenly heated (the edges were piping hot, and the middle was surprisingly cold). Hopefully it was just an off day, because my last couple of visits were actually pretty special.

Beer and Brown Bread ice cream from Bang Bang

Beer and Brown Bread is a flavour that’s been popping up on Bang Bang’s menu for years, though for whatever reason I hadn’t tried it until now. It’s… weird! The ice cream itself is actually not that sweet, and captures the beer flavour with unnerving accuracy (it’s fairly bitter, like an IPA). It took me a while to warm up to it, but once you wrap your mind around it, it’s actually quite good. It’s also got somewhat crispy pieces of brown bread mixed in, which complements the beer flavour of the ice cream quite well.

Chocolate Turnover made with KitKat from A&W

Not much to say about this one — it’s a fried pie filled with chocolatey goo, with little crispy bits interspersed throughout. I feel like any fried pie is going to be tasty, and yeah, it’s good. The combo of the crispy exterior and crispy bits within adds some nice texture, and the chocolatey goo is satisfying. The whole thing is a bit too sweet and doesn’t quite have the punch of chocolate flavour that you’re hoping it might, but I still quite enjoyed it.

Tasty Australian Pastries at The Sydney Grind

Published on November 29, 2022November 29, 2022 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 2883 Lake Shore Boulevard West, Etobicoke
Website: https://www.thesydneygrind.com/

The Sydney Grind is a delightful Australian-themed coffee shop that serves a bunch of tasty-looking pastries. One of those pastries: the lamington, an Australian specialty that features yellow cake coated in chocolate and coconut.

It’s quite tasty. I mean, how could it not be? It’s just plain cake with chocolate and coconut — all tasty stuff.

Well, I guess you could mess it up by making a bad quality cake or using shoddy chocolate, but that’s clearly not the case here. The cake is tasty and moist, and the chocolate/coconut combo is expectedly delicious.