Friday Night Bites

Camel burger

I returned to the eateries housed in shipping containers at Dundas and Bathurst. The community centre's website promised a Night Market every Friday night with free shows by the folks from the Fringe Festival. Apparently it happened last week but I was unable to find any evidence of it tonight. But it wasn't a total loss, for there were other food to try from these vendors.

From the Tunisian spot Le Casbah, I grabbed a camel burger ($9). It came with mildly sweet home-made ketchup (honey, cinnamon, fresh tomatoes) and fresh lettuce. The cook added free of charge caramelized onions and also comped me a mint lemonade drink. Camel is a tender but strongly flavoured; it tasted like "wild" lamb. An interesting meat, but not something I would order regularly.

Banana spring rolls

Then it was off to Kanto for some filipino dishes. I was too full for the lechon (fried pork belly) or the other complete meals. I saw that they offered balut (half-fertilized duck egg). But since I haven't eaten that fare since I was a child, I told the vendor I'll have to mentally prepare myself for such an adventurous dish. Maybe next time. I ended up getting turon (6 for $2), bite-sized plaintain wrapped in spring roll, deep-fried, and covered with sugary caramel. Such a great snack, but you'll have to watch out for burnt tongues.

Grilled cheese sandwich

Finally I had a grilled cheese sandwich ($5) from Montfort, a local cheese producer from Stratford. They also sell take-away cheese and sausages. I chose a stronger cheddar for my sandwich. Along with some dijon mustard, caramelized onions and saute mushrooms, this simple dish was ironically the most delicious treat I've had here.