Around the World in 196 Plates

Country 015 – Taiwan (Mama Bear Taiwanese Cuisine)

Published on August 23, 2015August 23, 2015 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 324 Highway 7 East, Richmond Hill
Website: http://www.mamabeartaiwanesecuisine.ca

Unlike most of the countries I’ve written about so far for this blog, I’ve actually been to Taiwan. While I was there, one of the dishes I was looking forward to trying was minced pork rice. But when I got to the restaurant, it was packed, there was a surly-looking man behind the counter and a total lack of any pictures for me to point to. I wound up loitering for a couple of minutes before finally losing my nerve and leaving sad and pork-and-rice-less. Yes, trying to order food when you don’t speak a word of the language can be a challenge.

And now I’m sad all over again, because the version of this dish at Mama Bear Taiwanese Cuisine was pretty damn good — so I can only imagine how good the real deal in Taiwan must have been.

It doesn’t look like much, but with a surfeit of tender, perfectly cooked fatty pork in a richly flavourful, sweet sauce (served on a heaping mound of rice), it’s easy enough to see why it’s such a treasured dish in Taiwan.

We also ordered the Taiwanese-style popcorn chicken, which was crispy, juicy and well seasoned, and easily on par with the fried chicken I had in that country.

The oyster omelette, sadly, was like it came from a different kitchen altogether.

This was another dish that I tried in Taiwan, and the one I had there was almost transcendentally good, with super fresh, perfectly cooked oysters melding with the eggs in a way that was downright magical. Those eggs, which were lightly crispy on the outside (thanks to a judicious amount of starch mixed in) and soft and creamy on the inside, were among the best I’ve ever had. Served with some sweet sauce on the side to cut the briny richness of the oysters and the eggs, it was pretty much perfect.

I knew this omelette wasn’t going to be as good as that one, but man was it bad.

More starch than egg, the omelette was chewy, gummy, and crammed with overcooked oysters that tasted fishy and canned. And it was absolutely doused in a gloppy sauce — though in this case, the abundance of sauce was probably necessary to disguise the off taste of those oysters.

Country 014 – Belgium (Moo Frites)

Published on August 10, 2015August 10, 2015 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 178 Baldwin Street, Toronto
Website: https://www.facebook.com/moofrites

I know, I know — fries aren’t exactly exciting international fare. It seems kinda like a cop out for a blog dedicated to trying new things from every country in the world.

But French fries are generally thought to have been invented in Belgium, and Belgian fries are probably the first dish that springs to mind when you think of that country. So when I realized I was right near Moo Frites — a small storefront in Kensington Market devoted exclusively to the deep fried spuds — I figured I may as well give it a shot.

The simple menu consists of fries, a ridiculous amount of dipping sauces, and a handful of more elaborately topped fry concoctions. I went with a small order of fries (a pretty generous amount for $4.25) with frite sauce for dipping.

The fries were quite good; they were tasty, though if I were to rank them against all the French fries I’ve had in my life, they probably wouldn’t even make the top hundred.

Maybe hoping for best-of-all-time fries is an unreasonable expectation, but given that this is all they serve — and that they take their inspiration from what is reportedly the best place for fries on Earth — I was expecting the them to knock my socks off.

They were generally above average, though the exterior probably should have been a bit more crisp, and the interior a bit more fluffy. I definitely enjoyed them, but my socks remained firmly on my feet.

Maybe this is my fault. I didn’t notice until it was too late that, for a one dollar surcharge, they’ll cook your fries in beef fat. This would be the more authentically Belgian way of preparing them, so perhaps this would have pushed them over the edge from good to great.

As for the frite sauce, it’s a mayo-based sauce that’s described on the menu as containing capers, anchovies, and parsley. None of those flavours particularly punch through; it basically just tastes like tangy mayo. But it’s a good tangy mayo. I know dipping your fries in mayo is an alien concept to many, but it’s the bee’s knees, trust me.

Country 013 – Germany (Otto’s Berlin Doner)

Published on July 26, 2015 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 256 Augusta Avenue, Toronto
Website: http://ottosdoner.com/

I don’t know if doner is the first dish that springs to mind when you think of German cuisine (it’s definitely a thing, though), but I was in Kensington Market, stumbled across this place, and thought: Yeah. Why not?

As it turns out, it was only the restaurant’s second day in existence, which is much sooner than I’d typically write about a place — but since the food and service were both quite good, I’m going to assume (or hope) that they’ve managed to avoid the kinks that can gum up a brand new restaurant.

The menu is fairly simple, with a few different types of German doner, along with currywurst (Bratwurst topped with a sweet curry sauce) and a handful of sides. I went with the veal and lamb doner, because whenever I see lamb on a menu, I have a hard time saying no.

Packed with a generous amount of tasty, well seasoned meat that’s topped with a salad’s worth of fresh veggies (tomato, cucumber, lettuce, cabbage, and onions) and your choice of sauces (the man behind the register suggested yogurt and hot sauce), it’s probably not anything that anyone is going to get too excited over, but it’s a very good sandwich.

The bread is a highlight, and probably the most distinctive thing about it — it’s perfectly toasted, with a great, crispy exterior, and a fresh, fluffy interior. It’s much more substantial than the typical pita you’d get in a shawarma sandwich or a gyro, but it suits the doner perfectly.

The sauces probably should have been a bit more abundant (I got plenty of sauce-less mouthfuls), but aside from that it was a fine sandwich. Mighty fine.

My dining companions tried the halloumi doner — which featured breaded and fried pieces of halloumi cheese in place of the of meat — and were both quite impressed. I’ll have to try that one next time.

Country 012 – Jamaica (Mr. Jerk)

Published on July 12, 2015 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 3417 Derry Road East, Mississauga
Website: http://www.mrjerk.com/

I realized recently that though I’ve had jerk chicken quite a few times, I’ve never tried jerk pork. One quick “best jerk pork” search later, and I was off to the races.

I was pretty sure I was going to like this. I like jerk chicken, and I like pork, so unless they messed it up somehow, this was probably about as close to a sure thing as I was going to get for this blog.

They didn’t mess it up.

Actually, what’s the absolute polar opposite of messing something up? Messing something down? Because that’s what they did here. They messed this pork the hell down.

You know that scene in a movie where they give food to someone who hasn’t eaten in days, and he immediately starts shoveling it into his mouth with a speed and vigour that seems unwise? That was me eating this pork.

I took one bite, paused, and thought to myself, “wait, is this really that good?” I took another bite to confirm: yes, it really is that good. Then I was like a hungry grizzly bear, or like Garfield eating lasagna, or like I was worried that I’d wake up at any moment and discover that it was all just a dream.

Man, it was good. Unctuously tender, seriously flavourful, and gloriously, richly porky in all the best ways, it’s ample proof that sometimes the simplest things are the best.

It’s served on rice, which is nicely seasoned and studded with creamy, flavourful beans. It compliments the pork really well.

It wasn’t particularly spicy (I’d put it somewhere between mild and medium spice); I thought this was a fault at first. I like spicy food, and jerk and spice seemingly go hand-in-hand. But just like I wouldn’t tell Picasso what colours he should use in a painting, I’m not going to tell Mr. Jerk how spicy their pork should be. It was perfect the way it was; why mess with that?

And a lack of spiciness definitely doesn’t equate to a lack of flavour; the jerk spices are assertive enough to pack a punch, but they never overwhelm the pork’s natural flavours. The contrast between the lightly crispy, intensely flavourful exterior and the juicy, tender pork is crack-like in its addictiveness.

I should admit, however, that I think really well-prepared fatty pork is one of the best things on the planet (exhibit A: my over-the-top hyperbole about the pork hocks at Beast), so you might try this and think “what’s he going on about?”

It’s also very possible that this was a one-time-only deal — some kind of perfect storm of deliciousness that can’t be repeated — and that it’ll never be this good again. Because how could it be? I hope it is, but seriously: can this really be this good all the time?

Country 011 – Sri Lanka (Anantha Bhavan)

Published on June 28, 2015 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 4646 Heritage Hills Boulevard, Mississauga
Website: None

Apparently a mega-popular Sri Lankan street food, I’ll admit that I wasn’t even particularly familiar with kottu roti before trying it at Anantha Bhavan.

Sometimes you try a new dish, and it’s strange and unfamiliar; it’s good, but you can see why it might be considered an acquired taste. This was not one of those times.

I honestly think anyone would enjoy this — it’s essentially a South Asian version of hash. Consisting of pieces of roti (a flatbread) griddled with eggs, veggies, meat, and spices, it’s got all the crispy, starchy, eggy textures you expect from a hash, but thoroughly infused with floral Sri Lankan spices. It’s pure comfort food.

At Anantha Bhavan, you can get it vegetarian, with chicken, or with mutton. A quick Google search revealed mutton to be traditional, so that’s what I got. A couple of pieces of meat were a bit on the chewy side, but aside from that the morsels were tender and tasty.

It’s one of those dishes where once you start eating, you can’t stop. I was on my lunch break and didn’t particularly want to go back to work stuffed, so I thought I’d eat about half and save the rest for later. Easier said than done. And it’s a huge portion for seven bucks, so it’s a pretty good value, too.

How have I gone my whole life without having even heard of this, let alone tried it? How is this dish not a bigger deal? I don’t get it. I can only bemoan all those years spent kottu roti-less, like a sucker. Thanks a lot, society.

Country 010 – China (Magic Noodle)

Published on June 21, 2015 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 1383 16th Ave, Unit 4, Richmond Hill
Website: http://www.magicnoodle.ca/

I’m going to paraphrase a quote from The Social Network here: you know what’s better than noodles? Hand-pulled noodles.

There’s something about the addictively chewy texture of freshly-made noodles that really can’t be beat.

That’s not to mention the novelty of seeing them get made, which is on full display at Magic Noodle: stretching the dough, slamming it on the table, more stretching, more slamming, and the final, impressive act of noodlification. The dough is pulled, folded over, and then pulled again and again, until a fat lump of dough has been turned into one long noodle strand, seemingly by magic.

This makes hand-pulled noodles impossible to eat daintily; because you’re essentially dealing with one absurdly long noodle bunched up in a bowl, the only thing you can do is bring a bunch of noodles to your face, cram as much as you can into your mouth, and then bite down to allow the rest to fall back into the bowl. It’s a mess, but a delicious mess.

I ordered the House Special Hand Pulled Noodles, which featured a tasty, not overly salty broth (which was made even better when kicked up with the provided chili oil), a really generous amount of meat (a couple of different cuts of beef — both quite tender — as well as some tripe), cilantro and green onion, and a fried egg (which was way overcooked and easily the weak spot of the bowl).

And of course, those amazingly chewy noodles. You can tell they’re made by hand because they’re not quite uniformly thick throughout, which only adds to their unique texture and intensifies their appeal.

Expect to wait, too; I came on a Friday night, and the wait was long enough to necessitate one of those pagers that buzzes and lights up when your table is ready, like at a chain restaurant. I think it was about a twenty minute wait, which seems like a long time until you get your first taste of those noodles.

Countries 008 and 009 – Malaysia and Pakistan (Carassauga 2015)

Published on May 31, 2015 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: Various locations in Mississauga
Website: http://www.carassauga.com/

I sort of figured that Carassauga — a weekend-long cultural festival held in Mississauga every year — would provide ample fodder for this blog. Though food clearly isn’t the focus here, it’s fairly abundant.

And it’s a fun enough event, though you’re probably not going to learn anything particularly new about any of the cultures on offer (they were dancing to “Gangnam Style” in the Korea pavilion, if that tells you anything).

But yes, the food: the first (and best) item I tried was a veggie dumpling from the Malaysia pavilion. Closer to a fritter than any kind of dumpling I’ve ever tried, it was delightfully greasy, with a crispy exterior and a soft, chewy interior. It was filled with cabbage and carrots, and had a sprinkling of onions on the outside that were super crispy and tasty from the fryer.

It wasn’t hot at all (it was actually bordering on cold), but even still, it was surprisingly delicious. I was very tempted to immediately order another one, but I figured I should probably save room for other stuff.

We hit the Pakistan pavilion next, where I tried dali bhalle, a cold dish consisting of a cornbread-esque pastry doused in a fragrant yogurty sauce. There were also chunks of potato, chickpeas, and little fried bits of pastry.

It was a unique dish, that’s for sure. Typically, when you try a new food, there’s some point of reference to be had — but I really can’t think of anything else to compare this to.

I enjoyed it, even if it was a bit one-note. There wasn’t a whole lot of depth of flavour to the sauce, and the pastry, potatoes, and chick-peas were all similarly soft and crumbly. Some contrast in flavour or texture would have been welcome. As it stood, I got about half-way through and then dumped the rest in the trash. Not that it was bad; I was just getting a bit bored.

I tried a few other things — dumplings and rice cakes from Korea, a coconut-infused pastry from Jamaica, a Timbit-esque doughnut from Africa — but those two were probably the most noteworthy.

Country 007 – Mexico (Tenoch)

Published on May 18, 2015May 18, 2015 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 933 St. Clair Avenue West, Toronto
Website: http://tenochrestaurant.com/

I seem to be focusing disproportionately on Spanish-speaking countries so far. This is completely unintentional; I’ll have to try to mix it up for the next few countries. But first: Mexico.

I mostly wanted to try Tenoch to sample one of their tortas, a popular Mexican street food that basically entails cramming as much food as possible into a crusty roll.

We started, however, with the chorinachos, which finds delicious house-made tortilla chips layered with a crumbled, mild sausage (chorizo, I think), refried beans, sour cream, and enough melty cheese to feed a small family. Though it was immediately apparent that we had over-ordered (this imposing pile of food is more than enough to feed two very hungry people on its own), these nachos were so good that we were happy to overindulge.

Two sauces were provided: the first was a bright green mix of seriously spicy hot peppers and avocado, and the second a creamy brown hot sauce that was one of the tastiest sauces I’ve had in quite a while. It had a rich, smoky flavour and an addictively fiery spice-level. It was amazing.

I asked the waitress what it was, because seriously: I want to eat this all the time on everything. Sadly, the answer (the name of the pepper the sauce is made from) pretty much went in one ear and out the other. It was a lot of words, and it was Spanish, and I should have written it down but I didn’t, like an idiot. Anyway, they make the sauce in the restaurant, so it’s not like I could have gone to the supermarket and picked up a bottle.

Whatever that stuff was, it was profoundly delicious, and if you come here and they don’t give it to you, you need to ask for it. That might be tough without knowing what it’s called, but trust me, make it happen. You won’t regret it.

Next up was the main course: the Tenoch Torta, described on the menu as coming with “tomato, onion, beans, avocado, mayo, cheese, shredded roast chipotle pork, ham, milanesa, egg, pastrami, and wiener sausage.”

Yep, it’s all in there. Everything. Don’t even think about ordering this sandwich on your own. My dining companion and I split one, and each half on its own was the size of one enormous sandwich. When you first pick it up, the weight of it shocks you. It’s gigantic.

It’s also delicious, if a bit overstuffed (shocking, right?). There’s just so much food in there, and though it’s all tasty (the chipotle pulled pork stands out as a highlight), I think there’s probably a little bit too much stuff going on.

Just eating it was a challenge. There’s only so wide that you can open your mouth, and even taking your biggest, most exaggerated Guy-Fieri-style bite, you’re not going to be able to cram it all in there.

Like the nachos, this would have been more than enough to feed two hungry people, and like with the nachos, I was very happy to overindulge. This is top-shelf Mexican food. I can’t wait to go back.

Country 006 – Japan (Uncle Tetsu’s Japanese Cheesecake)

Published on April 26, 2015April 26, 2015 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 598 Bay Street, Toronto
Website: http://uncletetsu-ca.com/

Uncle Tetsu’s opened last month, and almost instantly became notorious for its perpetually long line-ups that snake out of the store from morning to night.

I didn’t particularly want to write about any of the usual suspects in Japanese cuisine (sushi, ramen, katsu, etc.). So why not stand in line for a ridiculous amount of time and see what the fuss was all about?

My would-be line-mate stood me up, so it was just me, the line, and tedium for a solid ninety minutes.

It was an interesting experience. Standing in that line, it quickly becomes apparent that you are now an object of curiosity, subject to countless bemused stares from gawking passersby.

There are the hushed questions: what’s that line for? followed by the obligatory chuckles and raised eyebrows when it’s revealed that yes, it’s for cheesecake.

There are the ersatz photographers commemorating your poor judgment for all eternity (I witnessed at least three people photographing the line, and those are just the ones I noticed).

And of course, there are the muttered grumblings of “this better be good” by those of us foolhardy enough to while away a Saturday afternoon standing in a barely-moving queue.

I also saw triumph: a man holding a tiny, shivering dog, greeting his cheesecake-clutching girlfriend with palpably emotional squeals of joy; a woman emerging from the store as if reborn, sighing with relief with a wrought exclamation of “ninety minutes!” Who was she talking to? Nobody. Everybody.

This isn’t just about cheesecake. It’s about the wait. The experience. You’re paying for the cheesecake, sure, but is that why people are flocking here? If you could just stroll into the shop and buy a cheesecake whenever you want, would people care?

Clearly, it’s not about dessert, or at least it isn’t just about that: it’s about the shared communion of the line. It’s about standing in the cold and inching forward slower than you thought possible. It’s about sweating in the cramped, claustrophobic heat of the store. It’s about doing something.

But yes, after all that, you do get a cheesecake. A tasty cheesecake?

It’s unique, particularly when it’s still warm from the oven. The fresh cake is very subtly sweet, with an airy souffle-like lightness and an almost custardy flavour that’s fairly irresistible.

It’s seriously eggy though; it’s almost like eating the lightest, fluffiest (and sweetest) omelette that you’ve ever had. It was a bit much for my taste, but then I’m not a huge fan of overwhelmingly eggy desserts in general.

Oddly, I couldn’t detect any cream cheese flavour at all — at least not when it was still hot and fresh. If you had given me a slice of that cheesecake blind and asked me to guess what it was, I never in a million years would have guessed cheesecake. Is it souffle? Some kind of custard cake? A weirdly sweet omelette?? My mind would have never gone to cheesecake; it is about as far removed from the dense, richly sweet New York variety as you can possibly get.

When it cools, however, it becomes more recognizable as a cheesecake; the texture congeals into something denser and less cloud-like, and the cream cheese flavour pokes through a little bit. It’s subtle, but it’s there.

In fact, subtle is a good word for this cake in general; nothing here is assertive. It’s light and fluffy, with an ethereal taste and texture that defies the boldness of flavour that you typically expect from a dish like this. A lot of desserts are full of flash and pizazz, like that needy coworker who just cannot stand it if you don’t like them. This cheesecake is the opposite of that.

It’s tasty. But was it mind-blowingly good? Was it terribly memorable in any way, other than the experience of getting it? Was it worth the insane line-up? No, no, and no. Does it matter?

One of the points of contention around Uncle Tetsu online is that, well, T&T sells ’em cheaper, and without the indignity of standing in line-up the approximate length of a Woody Allen movie (or on a busier day, a Judd Apatow movie).

This is true. I went to T&T so I could do a side-by-side comparison, and found individually-sized cheesecakes for $1.79, and larger ones (which are a little bit bigger than the Uncle Tetsu version) for $6.49. It’s cheaper, but not dramatically so (Tetsu’s version is $8.88).

The T&T version is denser, richer, and sweeter than what Uncle Tetsu is serving up. It doesn’t have the pillowy airiness of Tetsu, or the delicate complexity of flavour. It’s much closer to a traditional cheesecake. It’s also not nearly as off-puttingly eggy, which is a plus.

It’s different enough that I can conclusively put the T&T-as-an-Uncle-Tetsu-substitute talk to bed; if you want the Uncle Tetsu experience, you’re going to have to suffer through the line. T&T’s version is a different beast altogether.

That’s not to say it’s bad. The flavour is less nuanced and more one-note sweet, but if I’m being honest with myself, I enjoyed it more. It has less to offer, but it’s simpler, more familiar, and to my palate at least, easier to love.

Country 005 – Dominican Republic (Mi Tierra)

Published on April 12, 2015 by Michael NusairLeave a comment

Location: 828 Saint Clair Avenue West, Toronto
Website: None

I was watching the Dominican Republic-centric episode of No Reservations, and a hearty soup called sancocho was highlighted as that country’s quintessential dish. After a quick consultation with my good friend Google, I found myself at Mi Tierra — though it’s technically a Colombian restaurant, they’ve got the ‘cocho on the menu (what’s that? No one calls it ‘cocho? Okay fine. Your loss).

It’s alright, I guess. It’s perfectly tasty, but I have a hard time imagining anyone getting too hot and bothered over it (but again, like with my recent experience with doubles, it’s possible that I got a mediocre version of an otherwise great dish).

The base is a pretty basic chicken stock; it’s a nice clean broth, but there isn’t a whole lot of flavour there. It’s filled with some fairly sizable chunks of potato, plantain, cassava (which is like a starchier potato), oxtail, and roast-beef-esque chunks of meat.

It’ll certainly fill you up, though I wish there was a little bit more meat in there; there was only one piece of oxtail, which was really tender and probably the best thing in the bowl. There were maybe three or four chunks of beef, which were a bit dryer than I’d like, but otherwise pretty good. The rest was all potato and cassava and plantain. It was hearty and very filling, no doubt about it, but a little bit ho-hum. The dish primarily consists of starchy vegetables that all taste like starchy vegetables; there’s not much here that elevates them.

It came with a coleslaw-esque salad on the side, which had a bright, citrusy flavour, but which was a little bit too strong on the onion for my tastes (but I’m admittedly not a huge fan of raw onion).