Little DaiLo: Singaporean Hawker Popup

Where? Little DaiLo (Downtown, Toronto, Ontario, Canada)

When? Wednesday January 16, 2019

Who? Alfia, Chi and Colin

Food Style? Inauthentic Singaporean Hawker

DaiLo (literally "big brother", or in colloquial Cantonese, "big boss") is a restaurant near College and Bathurst. Chef Nick Liu combines Chinese fare with French-inspired cooking to produce elevated dim sum-style dishes to suit the western palate.

That was the first warning sign. I should have done my research before committing to this rather expensive popup event at the Assembly Chef's Hall. I have never been a fan of "Chinese fusion"; it is usually just an excuse to charge five times the price for little or no difference to the taste at all. However, I couldn't pass up an opportunity to get my hands on some Singaporean food, especially given the lack of good Malaysian in Toronto.

The second warning sign was after Chef Liu introduced himself and spoke a little about why he wanted to do a Singaporean hawker-style popup. He spent three weeks in Singapore and was introduced to the unique cuisine, and decided to take it home and share it with Toronto. Three weeks. That is not enough time to understand the complexity of Singaporean cuisine, and this became more and more evident as the night went on.

First Course

Nasi lemak with fried smelt, chicken wings and pork skewers
"Nasi" means rice. "Lemak" means rich, as in the richness of the coconut milk when it is added to rice. Together, this forms the national dish of Malaysia, Nasi lemak, which is traditionally served with a variety of sides, such as sambal, a boiled egg, ikan bilis (fried anchovies), curry chicken, roasted peanuts, cucumber and many more. Imagine my disgust when Chef Liu's interpretation had no rice whatsoever. You can't call a dish Nasi lemak and not serve rice. It is the fundamental ingredient in this dish. If he had called it literally anything else, it might have been okay - the flavours were fine, the wings were crispy, the sambal could have used a little bit more spice, the skewers had a nice coconut fragrance to it - but if there's no nasi in Nasi lemak, then it's not a Nasi lemak. It's like having spaghetti bolognese without the pasta, or escargot without the snail.

Second Course

Hainanese chicken rice
If Nasi lemak is Malaysia's national dish, then Hainanese chicken rice is Singapore's. Can Chef Liu insult two countries with one meal? The chicken is juicy and tender, but it's lacking flavour. It needs to be poached in chicken broth so that the saltiness of the liquid seeps into the meat; instead, this has been sous vide with aromatic spices like ginger, garlic, star anise and scallion. It's not bad, but it's definitely not authentic. The sauces are supposed to make this dish great, but instead I'm staring longingly at the chopped chili at the restaurant next door. Our wine pairing was a Gunderloch Riesling from Germany.

Third Course

Singaporean chili crab
Traditionally served in a massive bowl with tons of delicious sauce that is perfect for soaking up with some fried bread rolls, the chili crab is one of my favourite things about Singaporean cuisine, and the last time I had it was at the No Signboard Seafood Restaurant. This dish is probably the best looking and best tasting of the night. The salad is stunning, great acidity from the pomelo cutting through the salty rich crab sauce. The noodles help absorb the sauce and accentuate the crispiness of the crab batter. The crab is soft and tender, and tastes great, no doubt about it. It’s definitely one of those get-your-hands-dirty meal; if your table is too clean, you haven’t had fun.

Dessert

Banana coconut pancake with white rabbit candy ice cream and coconut caramel
A very sweet dessert to end the meal. Too sweet. I like the toasted coconut but the flavour balance was off. We were supposed to be served something else but there was a last minute change to the menu, and quite frankly, I'm glad the night was over.

All in all, this was an inauthentic experience. I would have been happy if he didn’t call it Singaporean. It was good food, but it fell far short of expectation, and for the price we paid, it was most definitely not worth it. It missed the mark and didn’t understand what makes Singaporean food Singaporean.

Posted by Jeremy at 5:22pm on Wednesday December 25, 2019 :: 0 comments ::

Grill Meats Beer

Where? Grill Meats Beer (Wellington CBD, Wellington, New Zealand) Map Menu

When? Saturday December 22, 2018

Who? Me

Food Style? Meat

Eating at GMB always puts a smile on my face. They’re my go to for most things meat - for everything else meat, there’s El Matador just down the road. I actually wanted to try Lucky Burger tonight, I had heard so many good things from several different people, but unfortunately they were closed due to a power outage. No problem, I jumped at the chance to try a little bit of Burger Wellington, which I have missed dearly, by getting GMB’s finalist entry, the Piggy McPigface.

Burger

Piggy McPigface: Beef, candied bacon, bacon marmalade, bacon aioli, pork crackling, feta whip and rocket
Wow. Just wow. Full of flavour, juicy, smokey, salty, creamy, balanced with that little bit of rocket and radish. The pork crackling makes me grin with delight, and I express my heartfelt appreciation of this masterpiece to the waitress. The yogurt is a smart addition, helping to bind all the strong bacon and pork flavours. It’s messy to eat but I do not care how uncouth I look because this is simply delicious.

Posted by Jeremy at 4:22am on Wednesday December 25, 2019 :: 0 comments ::

Ryu's Noodle Bar

Where? Ryu's Noodle Bar (Playter Estates, Toronto, Ontario, Canada) Map Menu

When? Sunday September 30, 2018

Who? Me

Food Style? Japanese Ramen

This small, humble ramen bar skyrocketed to fame after being allowed to open a food stall in the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum in Yokohama, Japan. Only two foreign-owned stores are permitted in this location, which surely speaks volumes for the calibre of food here. It’s a stone’s throw from Broadview Station at the gateway to the Danforth, and in this cold blustery weather, there’s no better meal than a delicious bowl of hot soup with noodles and plenty of pork on the top. What makes this ramen different is that the broth is made with Ontario’s finest chicken, a departure from the traditional pork bone broth. Let’s see how this compares.

My eye is drawn to the Pork Blaster, which has a generous serving of eight slices of pork. Only 10 of these are available each day and there are two left. It’s a done deal!

Mains

Pork Blaster: 8 slices of pork chashu with a flavourful seasoned egg on top of bean sprouts
The bowl arrives and that wonderful full-bodied aroma of ramen soup fills the air around me. The pork is super soft and melts like butter in my mouth. The broth is rich and hearty, and instantly warms me up; it’s sweet and almost has a hint of corn flavour. My only criticism is that the egg is cold, but dunking it in the soup makes everything all good with the world again. At $20.50, this is definitely one of the more expensive ramens I’ve ever had, but I’m full from the immense amount of pork and that beautiful soup.

Posted by Jeremy at 4:15am on Wednesday December 25, 2019 :: 0 comments ::

Aztec's Mine

Where? Aztec's Mine (High Park, Toronto, Ontario, Canada) Map Menu

When? Saturday September 29, 2018

Who? Me

Food Style? Mexican

Right by High Park is a small Mexican restaurant called Aztec’s Mine. It smells like meat and spices inside, and on a cold autumn day in Toronto, a bit of spice is just what I need. I hope they deliver.

I went for the enchiladas de mole. Mole is not a common sauce you find in New Zealand Mexican establishments; it might be too exotic, but this region of the world is known for their chocolate and it’s no wonder that they’ve made an enchilada sauce out of it.

Mains

Enchiladas de Mole: Corn tortillas with a shredded chicken filling, with a traditional chocolate-mole sauce
It smells interesting. There’s definitely that rich chocolate aroma but it tastes savoury and I’m not convinced it goes that well with the chicken, cheese and onions on the plate. A few more tries and I’m more accustomed to the flavour combination, but I’m not completely sold. I think I prefer the enchiladas rojas or verde. However, the hot sauce packs a punch and sends me straight for my glass of water. Nice!

Posted by Jeremy at 3:33am on Wednesday December 25, 2019 :: 0 comments ::

Sansotei

Where? Sansotei (Downtown, Toronto, Ontario, Canada) Map Menu

When? Friday September 21, 2018

Who? Me

Food Style? Japanese Ramen

Toronto's favourite ramen place right in the heart of the city is always busy and it’s common to see lines outside this small cosy restaurant near Dundas and University. As summer has officially ended and I have to put a hoodie on when I go outside, it’s finally acceptable to have hot soup and noodles for dinner.

Mains

Shoyu Ramen with egg, bamboo shoot and green onion
I’ve gone for the Shoyu ramen with extra chashu, or pork belly. The broth is rich and meaty, full of umami flavour. It hits the spot on this mild spring day. You can even taste some of the smokiness from the beautifully charred pork. The bamboo adds a nice crunchiness, contrasting with the creamy egg, whose yolk is barely solid - a perfect texture.

That was excellent. Don't forget that it's acceptable, even encouraged, to slurp your noodles!

Posted by Jeremy at 3:07pm on Tuesday December 24, 2019 :: 0 comments ::