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Introducing: Kenzo Ramen, the newest contender in the Annex Japanese restaurant wars

The King of Kings is a spicy bowl of pork and ramen (Image: Gizelle Lau)

Does the Annex really need another budget-friendly Japanese restaurant? After all, the strip of Bloor Street is flooded with dozens of spots serving up cheap options for students: $4 all-day breakfasts at Futures Bakery, $6 lunch specials at Sushi on Bloor, pad Thai at Thai Basil… The list goes on.

We say yes, yes it does, and you can forget the 50-plus-item menus, cream cheese maki rolls and mediocre miso soups that characterize the neighbourhood’s dining options. At Kenzo Ramen, owners Daniel and Rose Park (she’s the chef) are perfecting authentic Japanese ramen, a skill that Rose learned in Hokkaido under one of the city’s best-known ramen chefs. It’s their second location; the first is at Dundas and Bay. Unlike most frozen and restaurant ramen, Kenzo uses homemade ingredients and no MSG; Daniel’s allergic—and besides, as he says, “It’s not good for you.”

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The Dish

Opening

October 22, 2010 | 2:27 pm

7 Comments

Introducing: Drake BBQ, a simplified Southern meat-a-thon on Queen West

Pulled pork (left) and brisket sandwiches

Just in time for the cold weather, the Drake Hotel has opened a barbecue pop-up shop in its old Scoops and Tees space. “In Canada, barbecue is associated with summer, but in the south they do it rain or shine,” says chef Anthony Rose. “I grew up in the south—southern Ontario, anyway. When I was a kid, my mom would start the barbecue in February.”

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The Dish

Restauran-TO

October 8, 2010 | 2:54 pm

2 Comments

A preview of The Drake’s pop-up barbecue and DIY sushi

Sang Kim teaches the hungry to make sushi (Image: Karon Liu)

While news of the Drake Hotel’s barbecue pop-up shop has been circulating around the city, the hotel’s restaurant has introduced something else that’s equally intriguing: make-your-own sushi. Known as temaki, this process involves a platter of sashimi, vegetables and garnishes presented in front of diners who each have a plate of nori and sushi rice to make their own rolls. “As far as I know, no one else is doing this in Canada,” says Sang Kim, the hotel’s director of food and beverages.

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The Dish

Opening

October 4, 2010 | 2:32 pm

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Drake Hotel to open barbecue pop-up shop

(Image: Google)

Screw autumn. And long live summer barbecues.

That’s the attitude of the Drake Hotel, which is in the process of transforming its Scoops and Tees shop into the Drake BBQ. Starting October 22, slow-cooked sandwiches will be served in this space, just two doors down from the hotel.

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The Hype

To-Do List

August 31, 2010 | 8:43 am

7 Comments

Sixteen things to do in Toronto before summer’s over

(Image: Benson Kua)

The leaves may be changing and drunken freshmen may be stumbling around the streets again, but summer isn’t officially over until September 22. Instead of whinging about the inevitable end of the warm weather, make full use of the remaining lazy, hazy days with our list of 16 things to watch, eat, do, see and buy before it’s time to break out the scarves and jackets.

1. Go to Sugar Beach. The Claude Cormier–designed park is the newest addition to Toronto’s ongoing waterfront rejuvenation project, with quartz-speckled sand, pink umbrellas and grassy knolls. The beach is nestled between the slick Corus Entertainment building and the Redpath Sugar Factory, and the Muskoka chairs are a good vantage point from which to contemplate Toronto’s past and present or work on a late-summer tan. Jarvis slip, lower Jarvis St. and Queens Quay E.

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The Goods

Good Stuff Cheap

August 26, 2010 | 11:52 am

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Get free stuff at Over the Rainbow’s 35th anniversary bash this weekend

To celebrate 35 years of upgrading Toronto’s jean selection beyond acid-wash Levi’s, Over the Rainbow is hosting a weekend giveaway festival for its faithful designer denim clientele. Head to the Yorkville boutique tomorrow and Saturday for lots of free stuff: cosmetics from Clean Start and DaLish, pizza, barbecue, candy apples, popcorn and a chance to win jeans from Paige.

Aug. 27, noon–5; Aug. 28, 11–5. 101 Yorkville Ave., 416-967-7448, rainbowjeans.com.

The Dish

From the Print Edition

August 23, 2010 | 12:51 pm

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The original surf and turf: how to make Cava’s macho paella

Chef Chris McDonald’s secret? Killer sofrito. Here’s the recipe

(Image: Edward Pond; illustration by Jack Dylan)

“Paella is the Spanish equivalent of North American barbecue: it’s cooked by men, over a fire, outdoors. I love that atavistic approach to food. The important thing to remember is that making paella is a commitment. You’re dumping everything into the pan and leaving it to cook. When it’s in, there’s no turning back. Thankfully, slightly scorched rice on the bottom just adds to the charm.”

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The Dish

From the Print Edition

August 4, 2010 | 12:08 pm

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Best of the City 2010: 14 picks for the top food in Toronto

Leaf fan: Matchbox Gardens grows rare and wonderful lettuces (Image: Jay Shuster)

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The Dish

From the Print Edition

August 4, 2010 | 12:07 pm

5 Comments

Best of the City 2010: our picks for the top brunches in uptown, midtown and downtown

Huevos Ahogados
Frida
999 Eglinton Ave. W., 416-787-2221

Jose Hadad, the chef at this Forest Hill restaurant, offers an authentic Mexican breakfast. Our favourite: fluffy scrambled eggs bathed in glittering, tart salsa verde with a dollop of rich house-made sour cream. On the side, cotija cheese, beans and tortilla. $13.

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The Dish

From the Print Edition

July 26, 2010 | 2:11 pm

7 Comments

A sticky situation: how to make Union’s finger-licking ribs

Chef Teo Paul describes his 20-year quest for the perfect ribs

(Photograph: Edward Pond; Illustration: Jack Dylan)

“Back in the ’80s, there was this place by our house, near Dupont and Davenport, called Mickey’s Ribs. The kitchen just did ribs to go. It took them an hour to make them, and they were expensive as hell—my dad would only get them as a special treat. They were unbelievably awesome. So for the past 20-odd years, I’ve been trying to recreate them. When I opened Union last year, I put side ribs on the menu and called them sticky ribs, because that’s want I wanted—that amazingly saucy, meaty, sticky goodness. But they weren’t sticky. For three months, the three other chefs and I talked about them every night. We played with the liquid ratios and tried different cooking times. Then, one night, because the oven was full, I put them on the bottom rack. That was the ticket. They worked perfectly. Here’s what you do.”

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The Hype

To-Do List

June 16, 2010 | 1:47 pm

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The Weekender: Beach Ribfest, Taste of Little Italy and six other things to do this weekend

Throw another rack on the barbie (Image: Jeff Karpala)

1. TSO GOES LATE NIGHT
Beethoven’s Ninth Symphony, a piece that reportedly had audience and orchestra alike weeping at its beauty during its 1824 premiere performance, is the star of this after-hours show, part of Luminato’s closing weekend. June 19. 11 p.m. $20–$69. Roy Thomson Hall, 60 Simcoe St., 416-872-4255, tso.ca.

2. TORONTO ISLAND CONCERT
After last year’s cancellation, the Olympic Island show is back, with headliners Broken Social Scene and Pavement sharing stage time with Band of Horses, Beach House and Timber Timbre. The first 250 people to show their NXNE wristbands at the mainland ferry ticket booths get in free. June 19. $49.50. Olympic Island, torontoislandconcert.com.

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The Goods

The Find

June 14, 2010 | 2:04 pm

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Father’s Day gift idea: a portable barbecue for $60

(Image: Bodum.com)

Bodum, best known for ingenious kitchen tools in Popsicle hues, has come out with its first barbecue. The charcoal-burning unit ($60) is picnic perfect—its lid fastens to the base for easy portability, and the handle is coated in silicone (oven mitts not required). Measuring just over a foot wide, it’s large enough for a round of burgers. The barbecue is still in short supply in Toronto, but Junors has the black version now with other colours on order.

Junors, Shops at Don Mills, 1090 Don Mills Rd., 416-385-3737.

The Dish

From the Print Edition

May 31, 2010 | 9:55 am

5 Comments

The Kimchee Effect: four dishes that deliver a Korean kick

Why fiery Korean flavours are getting even hotter By Eric Vellend

Manhattan’s punk rock chef, David Chang of Momofuku fame, has almost single-handedly turned kimchee into the new salsa. The pungent pickle is everywhere: topping burgers, spiking cocktails—it’s even gracing the odd charcuterie platter. And other elements of Korea’s bold, beguiling—and previously intimidating—flavours have followed kimchee’s march into the mainstream. Here, the top Toronto dishes that deliver a creative Korean kick.

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The Goods

From the Print Edition

May 25, 2010 | 9:30 am

2 Comments

Super Shopper: our monthly roundup of the city’s best loot

Click here to begin the slide show >>

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The Dish

DIY Gourmet

May 19, 2010 | 10:42 am

2 Comments

Barbecued meat causes cancer. How to avoid carcinogens but keep the flavour

That's all, folks: simply adding rosemary can reduce cancer-causing agents in charred meat (Image: Tambako the Jaguar)

There are still some things that don’t cause cancer (yet), but barbecued meat is not one of them. Charred flesh contains heterocyclic amines (HCAs), a toxic substance that bonds to DNA, causes genetic mutations, and has been linked to pancreatic, prostate, stomach and breast cancers. The good news is that HCAs can be greatly reduced—and flavours can be greatly boosted—by barbecuing old school.

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