Doge Corner

I haven't had much fibre in the last few days. The vegan food from Mama Tofu were light on leafy greens. Meanwhile, the restaurants in this neighbourhood offered burgers, pizzas, and Caribbean food (e.g., jerk chicken, oxtail). So on Thursday, I hopped on a bus heading to The Junction. It was a shorter ride than from Bloorcourt depending on traffic.

I was keeping a promise I made to the owner of filipino joint Kanto. Unfortunately, they were in the kitchen. The person managing the counter and cash register was apathetic. So without access to a menu and with unhelpful staff, I left. There weren't too many other choices for fresh vegetables whether dumpling house (Tumi), sushi (Momotaro), or Indian (Hakka Heaven).

So I jumped on another bus and made my way to the subway. It was a quick stop to High Park station because I was looking for my second choice: Shiba Poke. But it was on Kennedy Ave at Runnymede not at Kennedy Park Dr near the park. No matter, it was a chance to walk along an area of Bloor St. W I haven't visited in years.

Shiba Poke was a tiny spot directly facing the entrance to the subway station. There was enough room for the kitchen and a two-seat bench by the window. The mural portrayed the epynomous and cute Japanese dogs cavorting in space. The menu had 2 options: Korean-style boba and Hawaiian Poke bowls. 

I ordered the Kaiken Bowl ($15.25). Since this was a themed store by the owners of the Poop Cafe and Unicorn Cafe, the rice was shaped like a Shiba. My bowl came with pan-fried tofu as the protein. Otherwise, all mains here had the same 14 ingredients including pineapple, chickpeas, furakake, and various nuts. It was a tasty meal and I would eat it every day because it likely contains all the nutrients. I don't usually have this variety of veggies at home.

The name tweaked a vague recollection. It turns out that as I was preparing to leave the Dufferin Grove area last fall, I did see renovations for a Shiba Poke at College and Dovercourt at the location of an accounting/tax business.