Food Roundup

The Stop, a community food centre that promotes healthy fresh food even at food banks, had a Iron Chef style cooking contest to raise money for charity at C5. For $20, I was able to sample about 10 different appetizers prepared by 2 competing teams: Jamie Kennedy, Anthony Davis (The Roosevelt Room), Jason Inniss (Amuse-Bouche) vs. Ted Corrado (C5), Luis Valenzuela (Torito Tapas Bar), and Bertrand Alepee (Amuse-Bouche) and Chris Brown (The Stop).

There were some tasty dishes ... including several Eastern Europeans, South Asians, a Molly Parker look-a-like, and a Mia Kirshner circa Exotica twin. Haha. The food ... not so much. If it was made by a friend (i.e., a home-cook), it'd be pretty good. But for professional chefs, it was disappointing. My guess is that making about 500 appetizers per team is akin to running a catering as opposed to a true cooking show-down and I've yet eaten any good catered food. Secondly, a video shown prior to the cook-off seemed to imply that they got their ingredients from Fiesta Farms. You'd probably want to source, at the very least, the main ingredients of your dish from somewhere other than the aisle of a typical grocery store. But I suppose at $20 for charity, you've got to compromise somewhere.

Guu is a 5 restaurant Japanese Izakaya chain in Vancouver that has opened its first restaurant in Toronto. The attendant foodie/Asian din means that if you don't get there by 5:30, you'll probably have to wait in line. The noise doesn't stop when you get inside as the shouted greeting by the staff to every new arrival (and possibly on every order too), and the communal bar and tables encourage the noise level to stay well above conversation level. The published reviews have been mixed although all are positive. I tried, and enjoyed, Tontoro (grilled pork cheek with yuzu pepper), Gyutangue (braised beef tongue), and kabocha korokke (pumpkin croquette). I wasn't as fond of the chicken, salmon natto, or agedashi tofu.

It's a fun and social atmosphere but if you can't get in or want to wait a bit on Guu here's some other non-sushi Japanese places: Kenzo Ramen makes killer noodle soups and takoyaki (octopus balls). Any pork here is mouth-wateringly tender. Manpuku is no foodie destination but it's cheap and cheerful. I recommend the tsukemono (Japanese pickled veggies) + onigiri + a bowl of wakame udon. But really, stuff is so cheap there so just order everything on the menu (don't forget to turn over for more food-ness) and the special menu until you find something you like. For even tastier tsukemono and other Japanese Izakaya munchies, especially vegetarian options, try hole-in-the-wall Rikishi. You could even order sushi there. It's a cut above the stuff you'd find along Bloor in the Annex, but it's no Kaji.

Amaya is possibly Toronto's first high-end Indian restaurant. I went there for their Goan Festival $35 prix-fixe menu. If the location at Bayview and Eglinton doesn't give away their aspiration, the nice bar, red patterned wall-paper, and uniformed, attentive, and attractive waitstaff should do it. For $106 for two, which is twice as much as I've ever paid for an South Asian meal, came Goan-spiced crab cakes and shrimp-stuffed poppadums, gulping golguppas (round pastry ball stuffed with spices) and mango sorbet, lamb shakuti and a tamarind-based fish curry/stew, and finally bebinca (layered coconut cake) with vanilla ice cream and a spicy chocolate concoction with almond cookies. Both the shakuti and crab cakes were barely spicy, despite all exhortation and warnings from the staff. The poppadum was a little too soft and soggy, even though they had to wrap it around the shrimp. Best of all was the fish curry. A nice spiciness, though I would have turned up the heat a tad more, and a touch of tanginess. I can't recall anything about the fish, though. Overall, not really worth it for price. I applaud them for going high-end; ethnic, non-european food shouldn't be stuck in the food ghetto forever. But unless their standard menu is significantly better, it'll probably be my only visit to Amaya.

Young Thailand has opened up two locations in the College/Spadina and King/Strachan. How can you go wrong: $7.95 for lunch special, $11.95-$13.95 for dinner special! And not just your basic green/red curry but spicy lamb or duck! Don't be fool by the cheap neon sign and its run-down neighbours, the College/Spadina is all wood tables, padded benches, and soft sconces. In other words, like Spring Rolls and every other Asian eatery in the last 5 years. But at least it's not plastic table covers and hard seats.

If you're not dining alone, consider ditching the specials and "splurging" for the appetizer platter and other dishes on the extensive menu. Though I recently pooh-poohed somebody for their ethnocentric prejudice ("I only go to Japanese restaurants run by Japanese"), disappointing experiences at Thai places on Queen, College, and Bloor staffed by non-Thai has me breathing a sigh of relief upon hearing the waitress passing on orders to the chef in Thai. Or Laotian ... close enough!