Takumi Japanese BBQ - North York

Takumi Japanese BBQ is located at 125 Ravel Road in North York, Toronto's central-north borough, at the corner of Leslie and Finch, so is transit-accessible as is on two bus lines. We've already reviewed the other location of this small chain. We went for weekend lunch. Thankfully, reusable chopsticks are present. Diners are also provided with a small strip of beef fat to lubricate the grill so things don't stick to it which is a good idea other places could implement. I ordered tea, but it came with a plastic tea bag unfortunately even though I'd pre-confirmed, so sent it back and ended up with pop. Plastic tea bags are confirmed to put micro/nano-plastic particles into the tea so I refuse to use them. AYCD pop is $2.50.

We both commented immediately on the miso soup which is not like it's done anywhere else... it's darker and has a different flavour; possibly just a different regional style of it? It wasn’t bad, but not as sarvouy and thus not as enjoyable as original miso. Ponzu sauce is available and the only other place I've had it was the other location of this chain; it’s delicious and has a nice tangy citrus flavour, probably lime. Turns out it’s a classic and popular sauce in Japan then goes well with many dishes, but for some reason isn’t used my here. The seasoning mix was very good and as usual heavy on the cumin. Barbecue sauce was delicious with plenty of flavour. Be watchful of the cooking time as the barbecue is actually too good, and can burn the food if not careful.

We both loved the gyoza, which Mishy said was the best ever, and I agree they were among the top I’ve had. They are clearly made on premises rather than being from frozen and were delicious, and the sauce was wonderful. Spicy cabbage slaw was fantastic, especially with the unique sauce and so much so that we end up ordering seconds. Mishy you even ordered seconds on the steamed rice as she loved it so much. Poke bowl was rather plain with a little sauce but at least was made with very fresh vegetables and rice. It is not vegetarian but has some salmon in it.

Marinade beef short rib is a huge piece of meat about a foot long, and was excellent with plenty of flavour. Mishy said all of the meats were fantastic including the pork which she is usually not a big fan of, but she said with the seasoning it had, it was just like beef. Kimchi was alright but had a different flavour and as usual had capsaicin that kicked in after a minute or so and ruined all other flavours for several minutes afterwards. Chicken thighs and breast were excellent. Chicken wings were good, but make sure to cook them long enough. Miso squid is a nice take on calamari and was delicious, and I'm usually not much of a calamari fan. The sushi roll is called fougerite which is an odd name because it is a mineral... they are quite large rolls with a wasabi sauce and were delicious although watch out for the wasabi as it's just plain horseradish so it might make one sneeze.

It was $32.99 for weekend lunch. This is only slightly over the average, not enough to matter. There ere a couple of items with room for improvement, but enough that was excellent that it was still an enjoyable lunch, especially on a cold day!

Rating: 8.5 - 9 / 10 + 0 value adjustment (standard pricing) = 8.5 - 9 / 10

Simply Delicious (Indian)

Simply Delicious is located at 7850 Woodbine Ave., in Markham, about two-thirds of the way to Hwy. 407 n. of Steeles, in an office building. We went for weekend lunch. There were no other customers sadly when we arrived. I don't think they expected any either as were both in the kitchen and it seemed to be an imposition that any customers had arrived... I guess they primarily cater.

Mishy said that the chicken tikka masala(?) was good and I also liked it. The chicken tandoori was good although a bit dry. Chicken curry was also very good. The naan bread was excellent and we both loved it.  Mishy also loved the chana masala; I thought it was good although not exemplary. Unfortunately, some of the items from the buffet did not seem like they were warm enough. This definitely affected the spring rolls which lost a lot of flavour and they would probably be pretty good if they were warmed up enough.

Curried chicken with vegetables was excellent. Chicken biryani was quite good and just the right amount of heat. There were some of the rice dishes well and it was all right. Sag paneer was good even though tepid. Unfortunately nothing was labelled, except the chicken tandoori. 

For dessert, some kind of fruit in a sweet sauce was good. Gulub jamun was good but had some crystallization due to the temperature not being high enough, as noted above. Rasmalai was quite good although I don't think it will keep long. Weekend lunch was listed as $25 (weekday $19) on the signage, but we were only charged $20, which is an excellent price. We had no aftereffects from the buffet temperature, and it was a good lunch especially for the price, but in this out-of-the-way almost surreally odd location I don’t see how Simply Delicious’ buffet will persevere.

Rating: 7 -7.5 / 10 + 1.5 value adjustment = 8.5 - 9 / 10

Gyu Hito Japanese BBQ

Gyu Hito Japanese BBQ is located in the plaza at 633 Silver Star Blvd. in north Scarborough, Toronto's eastern borough, near Midland and Steeles, accessible via the Midland bus route. I liked the interior which has high ceilings and latticework between tables. Amazingly, ordering was still old-school from a paper menu, and disposable chopsticks are used, so happily we brought our own. We went for weekend lunch. AYCD pop is available for $3. Unfortunately tea is $2.50... remember when it used to be included? At least it was refillable. Unfortunately when it arrived I realized it had a plastic tea bag, which I will never use if I have the choice because they are proven to put microplastic particles into the tea.. I have no idea why they are still legal. I can't fault this in the rating because of course it's not a food issue itself. Soy based sauce at table was sweet but had a lovely flavour.

Miso soup was fantastic, savoury, rich and not watery and we loved it especially on a -10 Celsius day. Mishy said the seaweed salad was excellent as it had more sesame oil than other places use. We both loved the green salad as it was very fresh, with green leaf lettuce, and had an excellent mild sweet dressing vinaigrette.

We both agreed that the bibimbap was among the best ever, if not the best, as it had many ingredients some of which were smoky and they all worked together very well, so was fantastic. Kimchi was quite good and also was not excessively hot, which is a welcome change from other places we’ve been to recently.

From the grill, shrimps were excellent with a wonderful buttery flavour. The corn bowl shared some of that nice buttery flavour as well. Chicken wings were quite good and I was surprised to find them available. Pork belly was good, although it was very fatty. Sweet soy beef belly was delicious, as were spicy shoyu beef strips. Short ribs were large pieces, quite thick and appealing, and were of course delicious.

For dessert there were Melona bars on the menu, but they were unavailable so the only dessert was Chapman's ice cream cups, which is at least better than nothing. Service was amazingly fast and everything was delivered almost as soon as we placed the order. It was $30.99 for weekend lunch which is pretty much average for this area nowadays. Gyu Hito was very good to excellent, and we had an very enjoyable lunch.

Rating: 9-9.5 / 10 + 0 value adjustment (standard pricing) = 9-9.5 / 10

Govardhan Thal (Indian)

Govardhan Thal is located at 840 Markham Road in Scarborough, Toronto's eastern borough, south of Ellesmere Road with a conveniently located bus stop. There is one all-day weekend buffet price. It serves Gujarati vegetarian cuisine; Gujarat is a western province of India with its own unique ethnic group and language. All of the tableware is stainless steel which I have never seen before. Nothing is labelled so I am unsure of identification. A buttermilk drink is included, although it is not sweet, but was still (surprisingly) enjoyable.

Bhaji were delicious and fresh. Pakora were excellent. Something ground, orange and slightly sweet and reminded me a little of turnip was delicious. Chana masala was excellent, but watch out as it's quite spicy and hot. Some seemingly-tomato puree nearby was quite good. Chickpea dough balls were very good. There were three kinds of bread during the meal; one was a flat naan bread, a darker orange and brown bread also flat, and a sweet pancake-like flatbread, and both of us loved them.

Something like spinach paneer but wasn't exactly was delicious, with a licorice-like flavour. Peas paneer was also very good and again a little hotter than other places I've been.

For dessert, rasamalai is available which is excellent and unexpected and it was delicious; Mishy loved it too. A yogurty dessert with a little cake in it was delicious. Orange dry cake dessert was delicious and very well-seasoned. Mango puree was fantastic, and probably the most mangoey thing I've ever eaten. The buffet selection is small and basic but done well.  Weekend buffet is $17.70 and this is an excellent price these days. It may not have the glamorous interior of other vegetarian places such as Brar’s, but for just over half the cost I’m willing to forgo the decor.

Rating: 10 / 10 + 1 value adjustment = 10 / 10 (maximum)

Yo Sushi (Japanese)

Yo Sushi is located at 103 King St. W., in Kitchener, which is approx. 100km SW of Toronto. It's a 10 min. walk from the Kitchener GO station so can be considered transit-accessible. We went for weekend lunch. $2.50 canned AYCD pop is available, which is a great and uncommon value. Yo has a brighter-coloured, modern interior. There were few other customers unfortunately. Reusable chopsticks are used thankfully. Soy at table was salty but flavourful and not stale. Ordering is old school, writing item numbers onto paper templates from the menu.

Miso soup was fantastic and we both loved it... Mishy indicated it was the best she’d had in a while. Wonton soup was very good with a well-seasoned subtle broth that was delicious. House salad was excellent and fresh with a very good house dressing. Mishy loved the spring rolls saying they were fresh and crispy, and I also enjoyed them. Beef and chicken teriyaki Mishy described as amazing, and I agree it was certainly delicious. Beef skewers were moist and delicious, not dried out like in many other places, and we both loved them. Chicken skewers were equally good. Cheese wontons were delicious fresh, not oily, and with enough cheese so were excellent. Beef udon not in soup was excellent, smokey, savoury and delicious with well-balanced seasoning. Pork cutlet AKA tonkatsu was very good fresh, with a tangy and delicious sauce, and even Mishy liked it and she's usually not a fan.

Philadelphia roll was excellent and fresh, with just enough cream cheese and salmon. Salmon, red snapper, spicy salmon and white tuna nigiri were all excellent and very fresh. As usual now, we bring our own real wasabi (or wasabi-based) which makes it all taste the better.

For dessert, mango ice cream was fresh and very good without freezer burn. Strawberry ice cream was delicious and unique in that it had strawberry syrup layers rather than it being a uniform pink. Chocolate cake square was fresh and good, and I think it was the same brand that makes all the little cake squares found in Toronto area AYCEs. 

Everything at Yo Sushi was very good to excellent, yet its Google rating is a pathetic 3.6/5 with comments indicating the food and service is terrible, there are pests, etc. I suspect that the ratings are being bombed by a competitor or equivalent, which is sort of the reason I established this blog in the first place: to provide an independent review that was unbiased and unswayable. Or, perhaps they were valid criticisms at one time but things have improved. Whatever the case, weekend lunch was $26.99 and this is a below-average cost as well, especially considering the canned AYCD pop. There wasn’t one thing wrong with our meal and at a reasonable price too.

Rating: 10 / 10 + 1 value adjustment = 10 / 10 (maximum)

Gyumanor Japanese BBQ

Gyumanor Japanese BBQ is located at 3229 Hwy. 7 in Markham,  Pop is $1.99 canned not AYCD Gyumanor has a modern dark interior, although the lighting is not dim. Soy-based sauce at table was too sweet for me, but Mishy loved it... it did however go well with the food. One thing I noticed is that there is no free Wi-Fi and the signal in this cellular building was very poor, which makes it very difficult to order as all the menus and ordering is digital through one’s smartphone. Reusable chopsticks are used thankfully. We went for weekend lunch.

Veg. salad was spring mix with a quite original dressing which tasted very authentic and we both loved it. Popcorn chicken was excellent with an orange sauce. Japanese beef rice was fantastic and we both really enjoyed it, and have not seen it on any other place; it had a wonderful wine-like sauce. Cubed pepper beef was like having a very good steak, so savoury and smoky and a thick generous cut of very good beef. The “original and secret” beef was also fantastic; very well-seasoned. I ordered “crispy radish cubes” but what arrive was not crispy but instead small cubes with terrifyingly hot kimchi sauce that burned my mouth and I could not finish it. I had to rinse the sauce off in a bowl I could not taste anything for several minutes afterwards. Kimchi also used this sauce of course, however I was prepared for this and only took mini-pieces of it that were not immersed in the sauce; still it was very hot and I couldn't taste anything afterwards. Pancakes were just the opposite and extremely mild, including the white sauce included. Cucumber and soy sauce was better than expected, as the soy sauce was well-seasoned. Cold noodles were enjoyable even though they seemed to be in dilute kimchi sauce.

Sweet potato fries were very good and well-seasoned. Fries were good and crisp. We both loved the bibimbap even though we had let it sit a bit too long and it was getting cold; it did have a bit of heat. Chicken nuggets were quite good using their sauce is probably just ketchup. Pork belly was excellent with the provided sauce and table seasoning, and thick cut was even better. I loved the seasoning and flavour of the sweet sausage, which are tiny complete sausages rather than slices.

Crab stick salad roll, torched salmon, roll, fresh mango sushi roll and salmon oshizushi were all good and, although not superlative, I was glad to have it, however they were not complimented by the oversweet soy sauce.

There are only two desserts: brown sugar jelly and pudding. Both of them were excellent... the jelly had lychee and raisins or similar, and the pudding was crème brûlée with a wonderful custard flavour. I didn't miss ice cream. It was $28.99 for weekend lunch whish is slightly cheaper than average; it was very enjoyable other than the excessive heat in the kimchi sauce, which I need to note as a subjective preference. (Does anyone actually like this? I guess so...)

Rating: 9 – 9.5 / 10