Ho Hum

Friday evening was the last night for my Toronto trip. I thought about catching Rachel Bobbitt at The Garrison or an early show at Comedy Bar (my last visit was just before the pandemic arrived). But still feeling sleepy from Thursday, I grabbed a quick dinner, spent maybe 1 hour on social media, then called it a night.

There were many Asian restaurants along Yonge and the surrounding areas. In fact, they probably outnumber other types of food (even if you group restaurants into "European" cuisine, etc.) 7 to 1 and had a mostly Asian clientele. I wonder if these customers also lived nearby in the new condos that have sprung up?

I settled for a quick take-out at Hoki Poke. But my veggie bowl ($15.70) was a mediocre example of the genre. It wasn't as heavy as my last poke at Ahi Poke (in Montreal) but just as boring to eat: mostly rice, a thin bed of spinach, and a sprinkling of edamame, seaweed, and radish. The main topping was soft, tasteless tofu. Usually restaurants use a firm tofu, perhaps even with a crispy crust. I should have gotten dinner at Shiba Poke (with its delicious 14 ingredients set) while getting pastries at Barbershop earlier in the day. They had a second location just down the street from that bakery. In fact, I thought about it while waiting for the streetcar across from Shiba. But I remembered Hoki from one of my walks and decided to give it a chance.

Around Every Corner

On my trip to Toronto, because of heavy dinners at Lao Lao and Pho Hanoi, I made an effort to run the next morning. Thursday was quite chilly so it was a short 30-minute jog. I ran along Gloucester St. and observed new buildings alongside older homes. Amazingly, at Jarvis and Earl, I saw a sign for a condo development. The townhouses it will replace were a mere 24 years old since they were built only in 1999. When I reached Sherbourne, I ventured into the dense apartment complexes I had seen before either walking on Sherbourne or travelling on buses along Parliament St. through Cabbagetown. They were just as depressing and derelict up close as from afar. But rich and poor live (or used to) cheek-to-jowl in Toronto. Because a stone's throw away just off Bloor St. was Castle Frank crescent. Hidden away in this cul-de-sac was some finely appointed homes. And next to it was the grand Rosedale Heights School of the Arts.

For my more pleasant Friday morning run, I took an hour and approximately the same route with minor variations. Some old-school businesses were hanging on along Howard St. despite development all around. When I crossed the Bloor Viaduct over the Don Valley, I fantasized about running on top of the stone railing. With tightly-spaced steel rods installed in 2003 (named The Luminous Veil) to prevent suicide jumps, there was no chance of falling. The Danforth and Greektown was mostly empty this early, though commuters were starting to head to the subway stations.

I have also been doing long walks, too. So later on Friday, I headed to the Dovercourt and Ossington area along Wellesley. I got a bit turned around in the Queen's Park area and the ongoing construction of King's Circle on the University of Toronto campus. I finally made it to Harbord to continue my walk. There was plenty of construction along there as well including the entire closure of Palmerston Blvd for new water mains. After I picked up some pastries from Barbershop, I hopped onto a streetcar heading back the other way.

I took transit because I wanted to grab lunch at a new restaurant called The Cottage Cheese. This fine-dining Indian bistro was at the original location of Urban Herbivore. I've eaten at the latter countless times and have also taken advantage of their outdoor bench for people-watching during Pedestrian Sundays.

The first two dishes were excellent. The complimentary raisin and corn fritter had a light airy chew. The Shashlik Paneer Tikka ($16) comprised of thick paneer (cottage cheese), bell peppers, and pineapple that have been all roasted in a tandoori oven. This gave the cheese and peppers a smoky crust while the pineapple oozed juicy sweetness. Combined that with chutney and a sprinkling of masala powder and this appetizer was quite satisfying.

Unfortunately, the entrée was a let-down. My veggie biryani ($18) was covered by naan bread. The server then proceeded to slice it open. So the biryani wasn't actually cooked inside an entire naan "bowl", which would have been quite a feat. But interesting gimmick aside, there were several problems with the dish. Despite this place's aspiration, the flatbread wasn't fluffy and tasty. It didn't compared to the humble Lahore Grill, my yardstick for quality naan. Also, the byriani was too wet and a bit bland. It lacked enough cardamon seed (and other spices) for good flavouring.

There have been attempts at upscale Indian including Aravind and Amaya. The Cottage Cheese wasn't at their level, let alone the ne plus ultra of Chef Debu Saha. The owner-chef will have to up their game if they want to succeed. One interesting note: their music playlist sounded familiar from the first few tunes. Then as my lunch continued, I realized it was all songs that went viral on Tik Tok.

Play That Punky Music

Finally up around 8 pm from a semi-doze, probably caused by a mild heatstroke, I walked to Little Italy to see some new bands ($14 online). Along the way, I wondered why I enjoyed walking in Toronto at that moment and also earlier in the day. First, the cars were relatively "quieter" because of the lower speed limits. But the "variety" of noise: construction, people, and so on were somehow less grating than the constant hum of speeding cars. When you want a bit of peace and quiet, you can turn onto a less busy street (like I did several times). Unlike the more-or-less grid layout of Toronto, Ottawa had no such alternatives unless you take a significant detour through its meandering suburban roads.

I entered The Monarch Tavern (last visited in 2021 just before my departure) as Spirit Desire was already into their first song. I can no longer fault Dan Burke and his perennially late shows. My last one also started at a reasonable time. The band played a garage-punk style (Sweater Song part 2) with a bit of sweetness (Bug Song). They were noisier than on bandcamp with the main vocal duties taken over by the bassist. Since the original singer was also a woman, I didn't know if that changed the dynamics of the set. Spirit Desire was a fun act to start the evening.

In my opinion, Gossamer Blue was mostly carried by its bassist and drummer. Its noisy shoegaze plus sad-sack indie vibe would have palled quickly for me. But the muscular and almost funky rhythm section kept my interest. It also got some head-banging from the crowd.

I didn't stay for headliner Kali Horse since I was off for a late dinner. Throughout the evening, I wondered how the scruffy young crowd were making it in Toronto. Did they live at home, or out on the edge in Scarborough and Etobicoke, or perhaps sharing a "well-loved" downtown apartment with 4 roommates?

Most restaurants were closing up but I knew that Pho Hanoi near College and Brunswick was opened (from 4 p.m. to 4 a.m.). This was a second venture of a friend of a friend. Their late-night hours was a hit in Mississauga with shift workers and club kids. I've been asked to visit the new location but I wanted to drop by without the awkwardness of being an invited guest.

The restaurant had only 1 occupied table when I arrived at 11 p.m. But from the constant influx of food delivery workers, Pho Hanoi did brisk business with take-out. Throughout my stay, it slowly filled with locals and university students. Probably the crowd from nearby Nest dance club and Sneaky Dee's will show up in the wee hours.

Pho Hanoi's hours was a good strategy because I don't think it can compete with nearby competitors like Isshin Ramen. My medium pho ($14.95) was big and had a lot of noodles and beef. When you add the sides like basil and bean sprouts, it was definitely a filling meal. But the broth lacked richness and the meat was bland. This sort of ubiquitous and pedestrian pho has been eclipsed by most ramen shops. Oddly enough, the owners didn't think much Ca Phe Rang, which blew me away with its flavour.

Bright Days Are Here

Thursday morning, I went to Bloorcourt to visit my attentive-but-overcharges dentist. Since there was some time before my appointment, I visited the No Frills at Dufferin Mall for groceries not available in Ottawa. The former high school named Kent School was finally boarded up for renovation. Its foundation was surrounded by scaffolding as excavation equipment have dug down several stories for the entire block at Bloor and Dufferin. Afterwards, I soaked up some sun at Dufferin Grove. There weren't so many students from nearby St. Helen's during all those lunches I ate here in 2021. But now they have flooded the park to play soccer, Frisbee, volleyball, or just to hang out.

Heading up to my dental appointment, I noticed a for sale sign at my dream home at 462 Gladstone St. It was a converted house with 4 separate units (8 bedrooms in total). I wanted an apartment for myself and rent out the rest. In 2003, it sold for $720K. Unfortunately, I couldn't afford the down payment back then. But a mortgage payment of $3185/month could have been easily covered by rental income (and without gouging the tenants). In 2023, it was listed for $3.88M. At $14K/month for mortgage payments, each "bedroom" would have to yield $1800. That doesn't even cover property and income taxes or maintenance and repair. Insane real estate prices don't just affect home owners but renters, too.

After my dental cleaning, I strolled along Bloor until Shaw St. I stopped off at Eweknit to buy some yarn for my nieces. Doubling back, I was looking for my friend but her restaurant was closed until May 26. I guess she finally took a vacation. I got a vegetarian slice ($5) at my favourite 241 Pizza location. It was fresh from the oven so I inhaled it instead of keeping some for dinner. Even so, I felt that there was still a bit of room for something extra. The sunshine made me hungrier than usual.

So I decided to keep walking to Bloordale for a beef patty from the Queen of Patties. But she was as slow as ever (it has always been poor customer management). Second choice: I crossed the street for Dosa Mahal. Masala fries would be overkill so I opted for potato-stuffed baked roti (2 for $3.99). They went great with the mint chutney. Despite how expensive Toronto has become, there were still places (which are becoming rare) to get lunch for under $10. Case in point, King's Chef chinese restaurant has been replaced by Green Bamboo.

When I got back to my hotel room, I realized all that sun had sapped my energy. My face was red (but not quite a sunburn) and my body was shedding heat. I wrapped up a few work items and then it was time to lie down and chill.

Lao and Clear

I haven't done much except remote work, spend hours on the clock app, and play some chess online. I was a bit bummed out that I missed several shows in Toronto: Yamato Drummers (Apr 13), Bikini Kill (Apr 14), Teishi (Apr 15) and U.S. Girls (Apr 28). I had tickets to those gigs with the one for Bikini Kill bought at Rotate This way back in 2019. But I was flip-flopping about whether or not to stay with my friend. By the time I decided that she was too stressed over her new business to entertain guests, last-minute hotel prices were through the roof.

For Mother's Day, I stopped off at Quelque Chose and got macaron (a box of 6 costs $16) for my elderly relative as well as my mom. My relative was really showing all of her 95 years. She was noticeably frailer than 6 months ago and seemed despondent. House-bound since her fall, she was no longer strong enough to visit her friends for their regular card games.

My sibling and their daughters came by on Sunday to help my mom buy some Spring flowers. We then stopped off at Harvey's. One of my nieces has a nut allergy so chain restaurants was a safer bet. My veggie burger was bland but the onion rings were crispy. Nobody loved the macaron (too sweet) with the lavender one tasting like "air freshener" according to my youngest niece.

On Wednesday, I headed to Toronto for a few days. After I dropped off my stuff (the room wasn't as nice as my previous stays), I went to the nearby Lao Lao Bar. This new eatery has been getting buzz for its food and backstories. It was located on St. Joseph, a small side street where I saw a show at the Canadian Music Centre. The décor was oh-so-hip in a perfect blend of Eastern and Western styles. It was a large space but packed with a buzzy crowd.

I ordered the tapioca dumplings/Sakoo Yat Sai ($16) and a duck laab ($25). The dishes seemed pricey but it turned out the portions were quite large. So the cost ratio was decent and better yet, the food was excellent. The dumplings were chewy and slightly sweet like giant boba balls. They were stuffed with earthy shiitake mushrooms. Fresh mint completed the nice flavour profile. The laab was balanced and not too acidic. It was a step up from the usual offering but the duck did feel a bit gamey by the end. But it's true that hunger is the best seasoning and there was too much food for one person. Lao Lao is a great restaurant that I would visit regularly if I still lived in Toronto.