Showing posts with label fried noodles. Show all posts
Showing posts with label fried noodles. Show all posts

Lotus Vegetarian Restaurant (Toronto)

Posted on Sunday, April 10, 2022 by

While vegetarian options have advanced slowly in Chinese cuisine, there has always been a meat-free menu at "Buddhist"-type restaurants that are usually also vegan friendly given the limited use of dairy (sometimes used in desserts) and eggs (generally only found in dishes like fried rice and dessert). Unfortunately, given their reliance on mock proteins and soy sauce seasoning, these establishments aren't great for gluten abstainers, but at least offers some choice for the plant-based community.

There are three dishes I always order at Chinese vegetarian restaurants, and they're all featured in this post. Firstly, is the assorted gluten ($8.99 for small), which is especially important to order at Lotus Vegetarian Restaurant as it will save you from becoming hangry. Maybe it's due to the after effects of COVID and being short staffed, but service is slow and over half an hour went by before the other dishes arrived. 


Within the gluten platter, the spongy puffs were served the traditional three ways: sweet and sour, curry, and soy sauce. While a little more subdued in it's flavour, especially the curry format, they were nice big pieces and a great texture. Usually, the sweet and sour puffs are my favourite, but Lotus' bean curd rolls stole the show as they were wrapped tightly to be easily picked up, but still incorporated with enough space between the sheets to give it a lovely moist layered texture. 

Despite arriving with a lovely golden brown crust, the four bean threads sheet roll ($4.59 for 2 pieces) was really soft - it almost seemed like the restaurant pan fried the rolls and steamed it to finish, rather than the other way around. It was disappointing as what makes this dish good is the crispy crust mixed with the saucy vegetables. Nonetheless, there were ample amounts of well-seasoned black fungus, carrots, bean sprouts, and mushrooms within the roll and the layers of bean sheets weren't too thick. If this was just crispy, this would have been perfect.


The last dish that is a must have for me at vegetarian restaurants is the stir fried noodles with mixed vegetables ($13.99) or loa hong giy noodles in Cantonese. Lotus takes the time to properly toast the egg noodles so there are plenty of crunchy pieces to contrast against the saucy vegetables. The gravy was spot on and the vegetables cooked through but left with crunch. This was well worth the wait.


While visiting at lunch, expect a tea charge of $1.50 per person as they serve dim sum during this time. Indeed, dim sum seemed to be a popular choice for patrons, which may be why it was taking us extra long to get our order. Your meal could be sped up if you only order the gluten platter and mixed vegetable fried noodles, choosing the rest of the meal from their dim sum menu instead. Otherwise, channel your inner zen and just be patient. We can all use a mindful break from being hurried. 

Overall mark - 7 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 3838 Midland Avenue


 Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!

Is That It? I Want More!

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Garleek Kitchen (Toronto)

Posted on Sunday, June 30, 2019 by
Garleek Kitchen momos

If you like intimate family run restaurants, Garleek Kitchen will definitely provide that cozy experience. The dining room consists of less than ten tables, and on a weekday visit, the entire operations was run by a single person - quite a feat to be host, waiter, and chef. To keep things simple, their menu is displayed on a television and cutlery & key condiments are found on the table.

Meanwhile, most of the time, the proprietor is in the kitchen, making everything to order including the momos. These dumplings are the delicious pouches I remember most from past Tibetan meals. With the option to steam, pan fry, or deep fry the dumplings, we tried them two ways – pan-fried and steamed.   

The chicken pan-fried momos ($8.99) definitely hit the spot. The toasted crust adding a nice contrast compared to the soft top of the dumpling. While the nub in the middle of the dough was a bit too thick, the white meat chicken filling was juicy and savoury. So good the spicy dipping sauces weren’t even required.


They were needed for the steam vegetables momo ($7.99). While the chunky chili sauce added heat and extra flavour, the dumplings could still use more salt. Nevertheless, the filling consisted of an interesting combination of vegetables, which Garleek should consider leaving some less cooked (everything was rather soft) so the texture will vary.


Nepalese chicken chow mein ($8.50) is made from thin chewy noodles cooked on a hot flattop so it develops a crust on some strands. Like Cantonese chow mein, there are the crispy and soft bits within the plate, but Garleek’s is less oily and isn’t topped with sauce allowing the noodles to remain crunchy. I loved the aromatic wok hay of the dish, but the chicken needs less time on the grill as it was overdone and dry.

Garleek Kitchen chicken chow mein Toronto

Despite running with only one person, Garleek provides attentive service. Along with the noodles, the chef brought out a chilled bottle of hot sauce and warned that it was “crazy spicy” – heed the warning but you’ll want to try some anyways. He also checked on us at regular intervals and was around when something was required. This warm intimate experience is what makes dining at small proprietors a great event.


Overall mark - 7 out of 10
How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 1500 Queen Street West

 Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!

Is That It? I Want More!

Other Gastro World posts similar to this:

Garleek Kitchen Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato


Soos (Toronto)

Posted on Saturday, June 08, 2019 by

Not everything at Soos will taste like traditional Malaysian food. But then, they’re not trying to feed you typical dishes. Instead, Soos aims to use Malaysian flavours and ingredients in a modern manner, bringing street food to a restaurant environment.

Malaysians are known for their curries, which tends to be eaten as a snack rather than a main course. It’s thinner but still filled with tons of spices and flavours, milder than Indian curries and contains less coconut than Thai.

The curry accompanying Soos roti ($9) uses a base of dhal (a yellow lentil curry) and tops it with crispy fried curry leaf for some extra zing. But, what makes this starter incredible is the hot, fluffy and flakey roti that arrives with it. The lovely toasted airiness makes it so good I could eat it plain and these are truthfully the best roti I’ve ever had. If you’re sharing, one is not enough… get an extra roti for $2.


Meanwhile, the pork belly pancakes ($13) is so rich and decadent that an order can even be shared amongst four people. A thick slab of pork belly, covered in a thick sticky sweet and vinegary soy, is well rendered so the layers of lard aren’t too dense. Yet, it doesn’t just melt-in-your-mouth either – as you bite into it there’s still a chewiness that allows you to savour the flavours.


The crispy taro root pancake the pork belly sits on is fairly delicate, the root vegetable made into a batter rather than the slivers used in “bird’s nest” type dishes. So while the pancake is crispy, there’s still a soft chewiness in the centre. Although enjoyable, the dish could really use something fresh on the side, the small bit of scallions on top isn’t enough.

Something like the prosperity tossed slaw ($16) could work. I don’t generally love salad, but their slaw has some serious flavours and textures. Made with over 20 ingredients there’s refreshing, crunchy, savoury, sweet, and spicy elements all melded into one. There’s also a restraint to their yuzu plum dressing, which adds acidity but doesn’t render the slaw too tangy. Instead, it leaves a savoury taste to the salad.


The dish I’ve ordered on multiple occasions is their laksa ($18). While it normally contains chicken and prawn, Soos can transform it into a vegetarian version by adding extra tofu puffs (great for soaking up the hot and spicy curry broth) and more vegetables - the crunchy leafy gai lan and meaty oyster mushrooms are a great combination in lieu of meat. And really, the laksa is really all about the aromatic spicy coconut broth. Don’t let a drop go to waste … in hindsight, it would be perfect for dipping. Reminder to self: get an order of roti with the laska.


As an aside for vegetarians: while Soos already has a selection of meatless items, if you visit on Tuesday and Wednesday (previously Monday), their sister restaurant Fat Choi offers an entirely plant-based menu.

In general, their noodles are tasty. The char kway teow ($17) spends plenty of time in the wok, the flat rice noodles tossed with soy and their house-made sambal chili sauce so it develops tons of flavour and emits a heavenly smell. The dish is finished with egg, chives, and crunchy bean sprouts all topped with four massive tiger prawns. Even though the noodles are spicy already, Soos provides more of the sambal on the side for those who can really handle the spice. If you don’t use this on the char kway teow save it for the other dishes. Love the sauce? You can even get a jar to go ($11).


A bit of sambal works really well with the rendang beef short ribs ($28) since the heat helps to cut through the richness of the meat. While the rendang curry is blended with spices and Asian aromatics (ginger and garlic), it’s not a spicy sauce. The short rib, like the pork belly, is tender but not braised to the point that it’s melting away, there’s a slightly chewy consistency that allows you to taste the beef.


I just wish the dish had more curry to go with all the jasmine rice and roti. Oh, and of course, you’ll want an extra order of roti to wrap around the beefy short ribs so order it at the beginning or wait the eight minutes (you’ll need the breather).

After all of Soos flavourful and filling dishes, if you’re still hungry, the pisang goreng ($10) is a decent dessert. After all, what’s more Malaysian than deep fried bananas? It’s a surprisingly sweet dessert for an Asian restaurant – the combination of burnt toffee ice cream and candied nuts may be too much. With the ice cream being so sweet, the nuts could simply be toasted. Better yet, a more neutral flavour ice cream (like coconut) would be an ideal choice and leave more of the banana flavours intact.


But then, you don’t come to Soos if you want tepid tasting dishes. Their menu is designed to bombard your taste buds with flavour! And through all the dips, broths, and sauces, the most important side kick is… of course … an extra order of roti. Just get it.

 Overall mark - 8 out of 10
How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 94 Ossington Avenue 

 Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!

Is That It? I Want More!

Other Gastro World posts similar to this:
Soos Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato


Graceful Vegetarian Restaurant (Toronto)

Posted on Saturday, December 15, 2018 by

Vegetables are getting their recognition amongst Toronto's new restaurants lately. Even if a restaurant isn't purely vegetarian, menus are starting to offer more meatless options. Coming from a Chinese background, it's surprising there’s been little advancement in our cuisine. Greens still seem to be a dish used to balance the meal and are generally simply stir fried.

Buddhist cuisine is probably the closest thing for a fully vegetarian Chinese option. Graceful Vegetarian Restaurant is a long standing restaurant that closed at Market Village and moved across the street on Steeles. Being one of my favourite Buddhist restaurants, I was excited to try the new location that's tucked in the corner of the bustling mall and not nearly as easy to find as their former home.

Graceful's assorted gluten platter ($10 for small) doesn't look impressive but is the best I've tasted in the city. Some elements are supposed to represent mock versions of barbeque platters, such as barbeque pork or fried intestines. Generally, each has a chewy soft texture and some sort of intense flavour: sweet, savoury, curry, or a combination of a couple of tastes. Thankfully, they are not too saucy so despite being piled beside each other on the dish, they all retain their own flavour. I particularly liked where certain elements of the dish are served warm.


The pan fried bean curd sheet rolls ($8.50) appeared deep fried rather than prepared in a pan, which helps to keep the bean curd sheet softer but doesn't give it that lovely golden sheen. Graceful doesn’t overdo it with the number of layers so the roll tastes delicate, especially with the saucy filling mixed with vermicelli, which helps soak up the sauce. If they added some more bamboo shoot or black fungus for crunch, these would be even better.


Surprisingly, the deep fried taro fish with sweet and sour sauce ($16.99) was available – many places require advanced notice for the dish. Graceful takes silky thick taro filling, shapes it into a fish, and encapsulates it in a thin fried crispy layer. To balance out the heavier dish, they add ginger slivers to the sweet and sour sauce and thin it out so that you can have more of it with the taro. Reserve this dish for at least six people as it can be quite filling.


While a lot of options at Graceful are fried or stir-fried, they show restraint with its oiliness. The fried rice in the Fu-kin chopped mock meat and seafood dish ($18.99) was fairly dry and the sauce provided just enough flavour without becoming too salty. I just missed the pieces of Chinese broccoli (gai lan) normally incorporated in the dish, which not only adds a nice shot of colour but also a bit of texture.


Out of all the dishes were ordered, the Law Han crispy egg noodles ($17.99) was the sole one that wasn’t a “mock” item. Combining crunchy black fungus, baby corn, chestnuts, mushrooms, bean sprouts, and other vegetables in a savoury brown sauce, it’s all topped on thin egg noodles. It’s a dish you want to tuck into right away if you like the noodles crispy (go for the edges) or you can wait a bit for the centre section if you enjoy them tender and soaked with sauce.


Compared to their Market Village location, it’s not a place you want to sit in for a long time. The ventilation could use an upgrade as the dining room reeks of cooking oil and it seems smaller so larger tables need a reservation to avoid being turned away (and we did see that happen).

Yet, everything tastes just like I remember. Normally, this would be a commendable feat. However, after sampling all the new amazing vegetarian options across Toronto, being the same isn’t good enough anymore. The menu seems dated and monotone; it would be nice to see them offer more items where the vegetable is the star instead of being the imitation version of a traditionally meat filled dish. In the world of innovate or be replaced, maybe even Chinese Buddhist restaurants need to step up their game. 

 Overall mark - 7 out of 10
How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 4675 Steeles Avenue East (inside the Splendid China Mall)

 Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!

Is That It? I Want More!

Other Gastro World posts similar to this:

Noodle & More (Toronto)

Posted on Sunday, November 04, 2018 by

Walk around Toronto and you’ll find tons of small restaurants that aren’t opened by “celebrity” chefs or widely covered in mainstream and social media. I’m intrigued about these establishments. Often the owner is also the chef and generally this is where you can taste real authentic non-fussy cuisine.

Since the restaurant is called Noodle & More, it’d be unwise to visit and not order noodles. We’re advised their stewed beef hand-ripped noodles ($13.99) is one of the most popular dishes. The broth is beef and soy sauce based with a light spicy note in the background, flavourful enough that you didn’t need to add anything else. While the diced beef were rather small pieces, they were well braised and tender. Yet, the standout was the hand-ripped noodles arriving as thick ribbons, almost like knife cut noodles but longer and slightly thinner. Surprisingly, they could withstand sitting in the soup for a decent period of time without getting too soft and doughy.


Unfortunately, I couldn’t say the same for the fried noodles with beef ($11.49), which was too soggy for me. The noodles were simply too thin compared to the sauce. Moreover, the dish needed something crunchier to contrast against the soft noodles; while there were bean sprouts and green onions, these were also cooked too long so didn’t add a textual contrast.


Combining the fried noodles with some of the stir fried vegetables with garlic ($9.99) helped. These were cooked nicely, the vegetables retaining a vibrant colour and crunch. It was also a surprisingly sizeable portion, which with all the other carbs helped balance the meal.

As the pan fried chicken, cabbage and mushroom dumplings ($10.49) arrived at the table, memories of making paper snowflakes in kindergarten flashed through my mind. Except, at Noodle & More the snowflake web is created from caramelized dumpling juices. By itself, the dumplings’ filling needed more seasoning, but once you dip them into the tableside condiments, it gets better.


Aside from the hand pulled noodles, the dumplings are also made in-house, which you can witness by the window. In fact, their sister restaurant (located on Dundas West) is known for these creations. It’s called … wait for it … Dumpling & More!


The savoury Chinese crepe ($6.50) needs to be eaten quickly or the crispy wonton cracker in the centre gets stale. From the areas that retained the crunch, it goes nicely against the thin egg omlette and lettuce, bits of green onion and cilantro add a freshness to the wrap. Hoisin sauce was smeared on the crepe for a bit of sweetness, but would be nice if more was provided on the side so eaters can add to taste.


For something really flavour, the malatang ($12.45) is great, if you’re in the mood for a spicy dish. A variety of vegetables are combined with tofu, black fungus and Spam in a bowl of chili laced broth. It’s not nearly as spicy as what you can find elsewhere, the heat mostly coming from chili oil rather than the Sichuan pepper that numbs and scorches. For me, it was the perfect level of spiciness as anything more would be inedible. The dish would be even better if there’s the option of adding noodles.


Truthfully, I’d probably never would have stopped by Noodle & More if it weren’t for the Eatibl app, which allows a user to book a reservation online. While this doesn’t sound revolutionary, but what makes an Eatibl reservation different is that depending on the time of the reservation, diners get a discount. For example, at Noodle & More, a 4pm seating means you’d benefit from a 20% discount, while other times 10-15% off the final bill. A great option for those who have non-standard routines (i.e. students) or are not picky about when they eat.


Otherwise, it’s just a great excuse to check out some of the little known Toronto restaurants. There’s tons to discover, some event at a steep discount.

 Overall mark - 7 out of 10
Disclaimer: The above meal was complimentary. Rest assured, as noted in my mission statement, I will always provide an honest opinion.
How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 402 Bloor Street West

 Follow me on twitter to chat, be notified about new posts and more - https://twitter.com/GastroWorldBlog
____________________________
Gastro World's Grading System
  • Anything under 5 - I really disliked and will never go back
  • 6 - decent restaurant but I likely won't return
  • 7 - decent restaurant and I will likely return
  • 8 - great restaurant that I'd be happy to recommend
  • 9 - fantastic restaurant that I would love to visit regularly and highly recommend
  • 10 - absolute perfection!

Is That It? I Want More!

Other Gastro World posts similar to this:

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