Showing posts with label maki roll. Show all posts
Showing posts with label maki roll. Show all posts

Black + Blue for dinner (Toronto)

A lot has changed since I first visited Black + Blue during their opening month in 2023. Toronto’s Financial District was booming on a Tuesday evening; the restaurant’s dining room, upstairs, and patio was filled. It’s summer and people were out and wanting to spend.

I was back for a special TL Insider wagyu tasting menu ($125 for 4 courses, side dishes, and three drinks). This post includes regular menu prices beside dishes, where available. Maybe because the dinner was a Toronto Life event and preceded by Executive chef Morgan Bellis, but the food was delicious.

To begin, the special menu simplified the carpaccio ($26) to a “Harry’s Bar” version. The thinly sliced wagyu was simply adorned with a mustard aioli, pepper, and shaved parmesan. Gone were the pickled shimeji mushrooms, crispy shallots, and fried capers that were too salty and overpowering. Instead, I could taste the meat’s sweetness and the seasoning was enough to flavour and the carpaccio and enjoy it without bread. Chef Bellis should consider adding this version to their menu.

The prized beef was also used in the Japanese A5 wagyu roll ($34), stuffed inside and also as slices on top. Combined with avocado, cucumber, and crispy shallots, the roll was tasty on its own, with a bit of the gochujang (?) glaze, or soy sauce. Although, it would be even better with an acid element… perhaps the pickled shimeji mushroom?

As the trio of 3oz striploins arrived at the table, diners started to buzz with excitement. And to my surprise, the medium rare doneness was what I generally expect (pink with a slightly rare centre). Has Black + Blue received enough complaints and send backs that they cooked their steaks longer to meet the Torontonian palette?

We’re advised to start with the Canadian beef before moving onto the Australian and ending with the Japanese. In fairness, the Canadian contender was not wagyu, rather a prime striploin ($84 for a 14 oz) hence it’s understandable why it’s leaner than the other two pieces. Additionally, it was cooked more, which also didn’t help with the beef’s tenderness. Still, if I had received this as a striploin (and not expecting wagyu), I wouldn’t complain.  

Black + Blue should consider adding the Australian wagyu striploin to the menu - it was my preference for the evening. It was well marbled, juicy and flavourful without being overwhelming. You could easily go through 3oz of this without feeling glutinous.

Meanwhile, the Japanese A5 wagyu striploin ($31 per oz) was just too fatty. The outer seared sections were rich like butter, but once you cut into the centre it’s like having chewy blubber. The striploin needed to be cut into strips or smaller cubes and seared off to give it a caramelized crust. As it stood, it’s like having bacon that’s not crispy enough.

To accompany the steaks, we were treated to a trio of sauces ($15) that I found weren’t required (béarnaise, truffle jus, gochujang mayo) and a host of side dishes. Of the sides, the wagyu fried rice ($32) is normally found on their menu. The Japanese A5 wagyu toned done as it’s cut into small pieces, its fat mixing into the rice and egg. If that weren’t flavourful enough, it’s further enhanced with garlic, scallions, and chili oil for heat. I could easily visit just to have a bowl of the rice with a side salad.

To conclude, a special dessert created by their pastry chef from Vancouver. The mandarin orange, made with crème anglaise and white chocolate, was filled with a refreshing clementine jam and really looked like a fruit, dimples and all. Sitting on sponge cake and a toffee cracker, all the elements paired nicely forming a great bright ending to the heavy meal.

Kudos to Black + Blue for their improvements. Meanwhile, their service was just as welcoming and efficient, despite the restaurant

In a nutshell... 
  • Must order: Australian wagyu (if available), wagyu fried rice
  • Just skip: Japanese A5 wagyu (unless you specifically request it be cooked in strips)

Overall mark - 8 out of 10

Want to become a Toronto Life Member? If this event sounded great, don't miss out on the fun. Toronto Life is providing Gastro World readers a $25 off discount code to become a member!

Just use discount code GASTROWORLD at the Toronto Life Member checkout and the discount will be automatically applied.
Email me if you join and let me know the next event you'll be attending. Maybe we can meet in person!

How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 130 King Street West


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____________________________
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!


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Issmi Japanese Restaurant (Toronto)


In a neighbourhood filled with sushi eateries, it’s difficult for Issmi Japanese Restaurant to stand out. They offer a menu filled with variety, affordable prices, decent food, and friendly service; yet, in the Lawrence Village area this isn’t enough to be busy. I guess you can add ‘ease of securing a table without a reservation’ to the benefits of dining at Issmi.

The meal’s highlight was the rice paper roll ($20), a great option for those watching their carb intake as salad greens fill in for sushi rice. Stuffed with crab salad, spicy tuna, and shrimp tempura it’s a surprisingly hearty and creates enough flavours that it didn’t taste too healthy.

Pair the maki with an avocado salad ($9) and miso soup ($3) and you’ve got yourself a complete meal. I’m glad Issmi doesn’t skimp on the avocado, there’s plenty of it fanned across the simple green salad tossed with Issmi’s sesame and soy house dressing. And while the miso soup wasn’t overly exciting, it’s also not an expensive add on, arriving nice and hot.

There are also several sushi dishes that don’t break the bank. The Matsu sushi ($25) contains a well stuffed dynamite roll that rival most in the neighbourhood and 10 pieces of nigiri. The nigiri was where Issmi falters a bit: the rice not seasoned enough and some of the fish felt a touch dry. Still, these are just slight nuances that could easily be overlooked.

In another neighbourhood, Issmi would likely be a strong contender for becoming a local go-to. Unfortunately, they’re operating in a competitive area where there are some exceptional choices. In a pinch, when my favourites are closed or fully reserved, I’ll remember Issmi. For a backup, they’re a great safe option.   

In a nutshell... 
  • Must order: rice paper roll
  • Just skip: nothing of note

Overall mark - 7 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 1984 Avenue Road


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!


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Project Fish (Toronto) for delivery

Note: Prices in post are based on regular menu prices and may be higher when using delivery services

Sushi isn’t really known to be comfort food - in fact, it’s what I turn to when I’m needing a ‘lighter meal’. Still, there is one type of sushi that I would consider to be comfort food and that’s when it’s prepared aburi-style: rice topped with protein and a generous layer of mayonnaise that is blasted with a blowtorch so that the mayo seeps into the protein. Usually, it’s finished off with one or two ingredients to give it that final flavour and garnish.

Comfort sushi is what you’ll find at Project Fish. Their oshi aburi served as a single order or part of a platter. At first glance, I wouldn’t have thought jalapenos would pair nicely with salmon, but in the salmon oshi ($14) it adds a bit of crunch and peppery bite that cuts through the otherwise rich fatty salmon. I could have done without the cracked black pepper, which adds a gritty hard texture and would suggest sumac, a spice that’s zesty but could melt into the background, as an alternative.

The small platter ($38) is a great option if you like variety.  There’s three pieces of the salmon oshi and that evening also included:

  • Saba oshi - cured mackerel simply adorned with miso aioli. It’s decent, but some pickled or fresh green scallion would have brought it to another level.
  • Basil shrimp oshi – while you can’t really taste the herb amongst the all the other ingredients, I did like the chopped black olives that complimented the sweet shrimp with a salty finish.
  • More aburi shrimp arrives in an unpressed form. Although it looks really like the oshi, Project Fish adds truffle oil into the mayo to create a decadent bite.
  • All the rich flavours are balanced off with simple salmon nigri, a spicy cooked fish roll that has quite the powerful kick of heat, and pieces of lightly sweetened tamago that could even double as dessert.

With 23 pieces of sushi and a small container of edamame, the small platter could almost feed two if you are not too hungry - add on another roll, appetizer, or oshi if you’d like a more fulsome meal. Plus, I love that fact that it comes in an environmentally friendly paper box instead of all that plastic that needs to be thrown away.

The Neo Tokyo roll ($18) tempted my husband but wasn’t a hit for me. I’m not sure why they added ‘Tokyo’ to the name … with the sweet and slightly spicy gochujang sauce slathered over it, I would have thought ‘Neo Seoul’ roll would have worked better. Or perhaps even ‘Neo Dallas’ roll as it seemed borne from an eclectic diverse neighbourhood from the American south: there’s the Korean gochujang sauce but also a spicy jalapeño relish, and possibly even habanero mixed with the tobiko so that you get a spicy kick.

There was just too much of surimi or fake crab meat salad and not enough other ingredients to round out the maki. The tempura bits should have added crunch but were soggy with all the condiments and I couldn’t taste any of the cucumber that was mentioned on the menu. Overall, it was just too saucy and soft for my taste.

Oh well, sometimes you can’t win them all. Luckily with our overzealous ordering there was so much food that I didn’t need the Neo Tokyo roll to leave me fully comforted and satisfied.  

Overall mark - 7.5 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 16 Park Home Avenue
 Website: 
 Delivery: store delivery, Uber, Doordash, Skip the Dishes
Referral Discount Codes
 Support the blog by using my referral code
 UberEats: use eats-ju6ta to get $5 off a $15 order 
 SkipTheDishes: click link to get $5 off a $15 order
 DoorDash: click link to get $20 off

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 order again
  • 6 - decent for delivery and takeout, but there's better
  • 7 - this is good, for delivery and takeout
  • 8 - great for delivery and takeout, it's almost like you're in a restaurant
  • 9 -  wow, it's like I'm eating at a restaurant
  • 10 - I'd happily order this for delivery or takeout instead of dining in any day!


Is That It? I Want More!

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The Sushi Bar (Toronto) for delivery

Note: Prices in post are based on regular menu prices and may be higher when using delivery services

Having had delivery at least weekly since the start of the lockdown, my first encounter with a messed-up order is with The Sushi Bar. Seafood was what we were craving so we settled on four maki and two grilled fish items. Unfortunately, the more substantial hot items didn’t arrive; what a let down when you’re looking forward to grilled black cod and hamachi kama.

At least the rolls were decent. Sushi Bar’s spicy tuna ($7) was stuffed with big chunks of fish, rather than a pulverized paste. If the sauce were spicier and the cucumber cut julienned thinner, it would have been even better as the maki tasted a bit like cream cheese tuna with a prominent cucumber finish. The salmon tartare ($7) was closer to a traditional spicy roll, where the fish is chopped up and mixed tempura flakes and spicy mayo. I did like the bits of green onion incorporated into the mixture, which gave it a nice hit of freshness.

Of all the maki served that evening, the green dragon roll ($15) was the tastiest. It’s essentially a dynamite roll layered with salmon and topped with rice puffs, salmon roe, and green onion. While it looks like there were a lot of garnishes, everything worked together nicely in terms of textures and tastes.

Had I thought to recall my previous experiences with The Sushi Bar, I would have skipped the plain dynamite roll ($9). The shrimp is pre-cooked from earlier in the day so it’s too soft and cold for my liking. With the green dragon roll, at least it’s topped with other ingredients to hide the lacklustre centre.

Whomever packs up the purchases really needs to work on the condiment/cutlery to food ratio. Our order arrived with a full container of wasabi and ginger, but only half a container of soy sauce, an amount sufficient for one person. Luckily, we had a couple of packages left from another restaurant so that we could skimp together enough for the meal.

Surely, soy sauce would have been the cheapest thing to provide. If anything, they could save money by not providing four pairs of chopsticks with an order of four rolls, especially after a customer requests no cutlery.

Perhaps if the experience started off better, I could have overlooked the lack of soy sauce and wasted chopsticks. But, when you were really looking forward to black cod and grilled fish and it doesn’t arrive, everything after that feels disappointing  

Overall mark - 6.5 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 3365 Yonge Street
 Delivery: Uber
Referral Discount Codes
 Support the blog by using my referral code
 UberEats: use eats-ju6ta to get $5 off a $15 order 


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 order again
  • 6 - decent for delivery and takeout, but there's better
  • 7 - this is good, for delivery and takeout
  • 8 - great for delivery and takeout, it's almost like you're in a restaurant
  • 9 -  wow, it's like I'm eating at a restaurant
  • 10 - I'd happily order this for delivery or takeout instead of dining in any day!


Is That It? I Want More!

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The Sushi Bar (Toronto)


The Sushi Bar’s name isn’t distinctive; in fact, it’s not even accurate, since their menu extends way beyond sushi. They’re actually an izakaya … but I guess The Izakaya Bar would be confusing to those not versed in Japanese cuisine and redundant. So, we’ll go with The Sushi Bar.


While the sushi is decent, it’s not their strongest dish. We tried the special of the day, an aji ($8), and it’s not something I’ll re-order. Having had my fair share of horse mackerel, the fish was cut too large making it impossible to eat in one mouthful, which meant you had to bite through the chewy meat. Moreover, it wasn’t meticulously cleaned so the strong fishy essence remains. There weren’t even enough condiments to cover it up: the dot of green onion was insufficient and the fish could benefit from a swipe of a sweet soy reduction (the regular soy sauce is simply too salty).


Their maki rolls are better, the Red Dragon ($15) was beautifully presented with vibrant salmon slices topped with tempura bits, fish roe, and green onion – although the roll would be more appropriately named as Orange Dragon. Sadly, it looked better than it tasted. It was a bit chewy and seemed like the rice, nori, and shrimp tempura portion was prepared ahead of time and the roll assembled later; or maybe the rice simply lacked rice vinegar and the tempura batter's consistency too thick.


Of all the sushi, the spicy salmon ($6) was a hit: I loved the big chunks of salmon and the spicy mayo seems to be mixed with a tiny bit of cream cheese to give it a thick silky finish.


The tuna tataki ($11) starts off strong with beautifully sliced seared tuna sashimi with grated ginger garnishes on top. The bed of radish and carrot salad was also shredded to a delicate texture. Yet, it was so bland for tataki, merely a bit of citrus and drops of soy. The tuna rub could be more pronounced or at least add more ponzu to everything. The only saving grace was the freshness of the tuna.


Thankfully, the chicken yaki udon ($13.50) was tastier, the thick chewy noodles glistening with sauce and when mixed with the nori simply delicious. The chicken and vegetables could be cut thinner so it combines better with the noodles and eaten together – a small fault I can overlook.   


By far the best dish of the evening was the black cod ($10). It arrives without an ounce of sauce, but the fish is so well marinated that it floods the mouth with a lovely salty sweet essence – sauce be damned! Flaky, moist, and beautifully prepared, on return visits I’m having an order of black cod with a bowl of noodles in soup.


Although they’re no Uncle Tetsu, The Sushi Bar’s Japanese cheese cake ($4.50) was a satisfying finish – not as buttery, but incorporates a stronger cheese taste since it’s denser. Of course, cheese cake is also a dessert that’s often found in izakayas than sushi bars, but we’ve already established – it’s an izakaya.



Overall mark - 7 out of 10


How To Find Them
 Location: Toronto, Canada
 Address: 3365 Yonge Street

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:

The Sushi Bar Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

CLOSED: Maki My Way (Toronto)


Started in 2015, Maki My Way currently operates two locations in downtown Toronto in the Theatre and Financial districts. Amongst the busy theatre row restaurants, this establishment is definitely more low-key and their quick-service concept is ideal for those who want a fast affordable meal.

If you couldn’t tell by their name, Maki My Way creates customizable rolls where customers choose not only the ingredients inside the maki but also the sauces, garnishes, and wrapper as well. Starting at $8.50 for a set number of choices (one protein, two vegetables, two garnishes, and two sauces), additional items above the standard are about $0.50 apiece.

We created a light summer roll made with Cajun albacore tuna (additional $1.50), asparagus, avocado, tempura bits, and masago all wrapped in a soya sheet that’s a lighter alternative to seaweed. Rob, founder of Maki My Way, finds the soya wrapper also absorbs the other ingredient’s flavours more. The crunch of the asparagus was essential against the otherwise softer ingredients and I was pleased with our creation, the highlight of the meal.


Despite not waiting long, the kitchen brought over an order of edamame ($2.50) to tide us over. They were nice and hot covered in enough salt for flavour, without leaving me thirsty.


Personally, I found these were a better way to start than the chicken karage ($5.50); if white meat is used, it needs to be marinated as the chicken was a little tough and dry. Luckily, there was a liberal dousing of mayonnaise based sauce on top that helped rehydrate the appetizer.


For $9.50 there was a hefty portion of springy yakisoba noodles tossed in a sweet teriyaki glaze and an equally sizeable pork katsu on top. Although well flavoured, similar to the karage, the katsu was overdone so the pork bordering dry and chewy. Personally, I think the noodles would have been better with slivers of meat instead, since the stir fried noodles itself were very good with all the vegetables (asparagus, broccoli, red peppers, and carrots).


The environmentalist side of me was a little disappointed to see disposable containers being used even for dine-in customers. Understandably, it helps simplify operations but with the amount of people visiting even during our lunch meal, the throw-away containers do a great disservice to Earth.

Cutting down on waste is key, as this fall, Maki My Way may be expanding after Rob visits  Dragon’s Den to pitch a franchise deal. He noted he’s taking the next step as customers who visit their King locations often ask when they can order customized maki closer to home. For picky eaters or those with food aversions, being able to choose what to add to a roll is a great idea. Good luck facing the dragons in the den.  

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: 293 King 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: