TORONTO holds a very dear place in my heart - my formative years in North America had been either in or close to this city. Although I picked up my English and my passport in Vancouver as a kid, any one from BC could tell in a heartbeat I wasn't a west coaster.
Having been to both New York and LA, I still firmly believe that Toronto is easily the best city for food hopping, and not without reason. For visitors and locals alike, there is an abundance of choices that are easily accessible. You get the food density of NYC without having to pay 25$ for a cocktail. You get the ethnic variety of food of LA without driving as the only option. Don't be fooled by the lack of legacy compared to the NYC and LA, the competition in Toronto is fierce and anything that doesn't work out doesn't survive long.
I can go on about why and what is good to eat in Toronto, but the truth is I have only visited the city proper for a total of five days since I moved to San Francisco in 2018. Five days! That's including the three days I was there last week. Totally catching the 景物依舊 人事已非 (The views and physical things are the same, but the people and stores aren't) vibe. I was never physically lost, but I definitely felt I lost belonging there. I could have been (emotionally) lost and hungry, but I made sure I was just lost.
That being said, I want to take this opportunity to go through some of the food in Toronto and maybe the whole Canada, and why these are things I tend to go back for when I visit Motherland #2. (Taiwan #1)
You can get great POUTINE in Montreal, but good poutine is everywhere in Toronto. Fries have to be crispy, covered in thick gravy that's hot enough to melt the squeaky cheese curds, which should be fresh and never been refrigerated. Aside from some occasional toppings, I file poutine under simple food that shouldn't be attempted to elevated. There used to be a poutinerie just off the east side of the Bay Bridge. During COVID they would deliver your orders with a hockey stick. That place was decked out with Canadiens jersey but I always chuckle thinking that they were serving us Leafs and Canucks fans.
A&W CANADA divorced its American sibling back in 1972 (well actually, we got sold off), and ended up being the second largest chain in maple land. Might be controversial to equate their burgers to today's In-n-Out, but their burgers are pretty no-frills, not as greasy as their golden arc competitors, and the menu is relatively simple. But more importantly, if you dine in and order their root beer, you get to have it in a frozen glass mug. The glass will be so cold the foam will be frozen and slowly raise above the rim of the mug.
SHAWARMA is so good in Toronto. I had a chicken shawarma for my first meal when I moved to Toronto, so I'm fucking biased. Canada took in many Lebanese during the Lebanese Civil War, and surely enough they set up shop once they set foot. I can't believe in SF no one uses Toum, which is basically garlic aioli for shawarmas. When they spread it on the inside of a pita, then dump all the meat on it, you know you're in it for a good time. Pickles and pickled turnip is default to cut the grease, and along with some lettuce, tomatoes, and onions. Some places would have Tabbouleh-like parsley salad that they throw into the pita as well. If you're ever scouting out for a shawarma in Toronto, make sure:
- Meat is actually from a vertical spit. Sometimes they would pre-shred the meat and reheat it on the grill, which is fine. As long as they're not from some non-vertical spit source
- They split a pita open so it turns into a pocket to fill everything in, as opposed to a gyro style wrap where they just, well, wrap it up
- They have at the very least, Toum. Tzatziki is as common, followed by tahini. Some places use Sriracha for hot sauce and they should be banned. When they ask if you wanted any of the four sauces, the answer is Yes.
ONTARIO CRAFT BEER scene is a hidden gen. I think there are two main factors, both anecdotal. The first one is that we don't suffer from the west coast IPA fandom (as much). Every brewery will always have an IPA, but many are known for their non-IPA offerings. The second is again, the accessibility. LCBO (Liquor Control Board of Ontario) and The Beer Store (TBS) were the only two places that you could purchase beer for a very long time, but now you can get them in some major grocery chains. Because the distribution was held by the government for the most part, the profit incentive is lesser of a priority. This means that LCBO and TBS can take on more risk and bring on more variety. I fondly remember always buying six tallboys each visit: two piss beer (Lablatt Bleu, which then turned into PBR), two go-to craft beers, and two new ones that tickled my fancy. My beer game totally peaked in 2018. In contrast, in the cities I've lived in the US, corner stores and bodegas only carry beer that sell, which meant only popular beers were stocked. Smaller, more creative beer selections are instead housed in artisan stores or bars with a markup. If you'd like a list of recommendations, allow me to introduce you to my friend that a) lives in Ontario and b) drinks beer.
JERK CHICKEN and other Caribbean cuisine has a strong hold in Toronto. At one point in the early 2000's, Caribbeans accounted for 2% of all Canadian population, most of them Jamaican. That means jerk chicken is everywhere! My first exposure to oxtail soup was also from a Jerk Chicken house, one that mama at the store fed me dearly. Such an underrated comfort food for me. It pains me that in the entire silicon valley only two results come back when you search for jerk chicken, both of which are no longer in operation.
Speaking of chicken, CHICKEN McNUGGETS are expensive in Canada but they blow American nuggets out of the water. No amount of influence will make freedom nuggets better. I used to think the sweet and sour sauce is also better, but I went down a rabbit hole years ago and learned that McDonald's sauce packets are made world wide and actually shipped according to what made sense logistically. In Taiwan I got packets that were made in difference parts of the world in the same meal.
There were a few places I returned for nostalgia - Hong Kong Bistro continues to hold the reign for best Hong Kong style cafe in North America. Word is that the head chef used to be a saucier in Hong Kong, so his sauces are to die for. There are a few SIT DOWN DIM SUM restaurants in Chinatown where dim sum is carted around with aunties yelling in your face to get something from their cart. There are happy hours where most dishes are all one discounted price, so if you're travelling there be sure to take advantage of that. Golden Diner is a greasy-spoon Greek diner that I used to eat. Their fries were so hot it melted the styrofoam container, and their burgers gives me chest pain. But their Greek roasted potatoes, my oh my, has the best balance of tenderness, and tastes of broth, oregano, thyme, and lemon.
I wasn't able to hit all the spots I wanted, but that's because I left room to try new places, which I will be saving it for the next newsletter. Cheers!
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