Exploring Toronto's St. Lawrence Market

The real deal: authentic Canadian peameal bacon sandwich

Only two ingredients are needed to make a peameal bacon sandwich, one of life's greatest edible pleasures: bacon and a soft roll. So why is it that this culinary masterpiece can only be found in Canada?


Fresh peameal bacon by the pound

It's hardly worth arguing over and just an excellent excuse to head to Toronto (which I must do for the annual Toronto International Film Festival) and b-line straight to St. Lawrence Market. One of the world's great markets, this vast gastronomic hub boasts hundreds of types of seafood, cheeses, oils, fruits, vegetables and international delicacies. It's also the market of choice for Toronto's top chefs, sitting on the original City Hall site.

And it's where you can find the famous, and many argue, best peameal bacon sandwich ($5.75) at Carousel Bakery. Just look for the lines.

What Americans call "Canadian bacon," as in the flaccid meat in an Egg McMuffin, has no resemblance to the real deal. It's lean, slow cured pork loin rolled in cornmeal. Once grilled, the coating add a lovely crunch to the sweet-salty bacon. Historically, the meal was originally ground yellow peas, which was used as a preservative. If I weren't flying home, I'd have bought a hunk of bacon in a heartbeat.

Fresh grilled salmon

Once fortified, meander along the two floors of eye opening, crave inducing goodies. Multiple gourmet bars lay out a superb array of Mediterranean staples: stuffed prosciutto rolls, grape leaves, olives, and all kinds of tapenades and spreads.

If you're ready for lunch, head to the back of the main floor to Buster's Sea Cove for the fresh "catch of the day." Part of the fun is taking a seat at the counter and watching the lively chefs in action. Your chances of snagging a prime spot are better on a weekday. Go for the grilled swordfish or fish + chips. Buster's also operates a year-round food truck serving lobster rolls and fish tacos.

Make sure to sample and stock up

The newer North Market is located across the street. This building houses up and coming food artisans including Toorshi Foods, a purveyor of delicious Armenian pickled vegetables. Owner Hratch Vartanian will gladly offer samples, which add zing to sandwiches (especially hummus) or in salads. They make great gourmet gifts too.

Speaking of pickles, I spotted local Brooklyn favorite, McClure's Pickles, at the market too. The best from around the world, indeed.


St. Lawrence Market
92 Front Street East
Tuesday - Thursday, 8am -6pm
Fridays, 8am - 7pm
Saturdays, 5am - 5pm

 

 

 

Biting into Mad Square Eats

Porchetta from The Piccolo Cafe

There's a feeding frenzy in the streets of Manhattan. Everywhere you look there's a new outdoor food festival or gourmet truck. A city favorite, Mad Square Eats (24th + Broadway), is in its final days through October 21st. So hurry up and bite into something new.

Popular market fixtures like Red Hook Lobster Pound, Sigmund Pretzelshop, and Momofuku Milk Bar are dishing up their signature specialties. If you can't get to Bushwick, Roberta's pizza is here.

Duck buns from Fatty Snack compete with Beijing ya buns (roast duck and shrimp, $4) from Hong Kong Street Cart. There's always a line at Calexico for the freshly prepared Cali-Mexican tacos including chipotle pork and pollo asada ($3). Asiadog gives the drab hot dog a cultural makeover. The tangy Ginny is dressed with kimchi and nori flakes ($4.50).

On a recent visit, the hungry carnivore in me headed straight to the Cannibal stall, Resto's new sister restaurant. The pork head Cuban sandwich sounded like a natural win. But it was heavy on the bread and pickle and skimped on the meat filling, making pulled pork head looked more like scattered crumbs of swine. And it was bland. A $10 let down. The garlic spiced burger from Graffiti/Metaphor, on the other hand, is aromatic and juicy.

On Saturday only, look out for the tantalizing whole lamb roasting on a spit. And while you're there, stock up on an array of exotic spices, flavored sugar and loose teas from newcomer Spices and Tease.

Dine around the world in the park

Asiadog's Ginny with kimchi

Beijing ya bun from Hong Kong Street Cart

Graffiti/Metaphor spiced burger

Spit roasted lamb - Saturdays only

Lavender sugar sounds divine

Where's the pig face?

Open through Oct 21
11am - 9pm

Food Rules at Hester Street Fair

Hungry for the Brooklyn Flea? Not so fast.

Hester Street Fair organizers kicked off Year Two with a spotlight on food and it's working. The Saturday-only market boasts nearly two dozen food vendors selling top-notch tacos, saucy veggie meatball sliders, and international treats such as poffertjes (mini Dutch pancakes) and Taiwanese shaved ice.

Speaking of ice, The Shaved Ice Factory was creating quite a stir with its mile high signature treat ($6). It's a mountain of shaved ice, drizzled with condensed milk, and a variety of popular Asian toppings including sweetened red beans, coconut jelly and fruit.

It's eye catching for sure. Not sure if my taste buds were up for it just yet. A NY Times photographer was busy shooting the sundaes on a recent Saturday. Let's see if the Taiwanese treat catches on.

A perfect lunch: brisket taco and Mexican corn

I opted for something savory to start. That meant a fine brisket taco ($4) and Mexican corn rolled in cotija cheese ($3) from Brooklyn Taco. That's the taco in Time Out's recent best 26 tacos in NYC. It's goooood. So's the corn. If all goes as planned, BK Taco will soon be a permanent fixture in nearby Essex Market.

The excellent empanadas ($3.50) from La Sonrisa are back again this year. It's exciting to see new temptations in the mix too. Standouts included Mighty Balls meatballs (and veggieballs), La Newyorkina fruity ice pops ($3) and Melt Bakery's red velvet whoopie pies ($4).

I loved meeting Mackenzie Smith of Herbin' Spoonful. She transformed her love of caramel into a handmade line of luscious sauce infused with herbs and spices like lavender and habanero. Ingenious. And she happily offers tastes.

Get your caramel fix at Herbin' Spoonful

What I really admire about the fair is that it's succeeding in being part of the community. It's surrounded by a buzzing playground, tennis courts and even a little lawn for relaxed picnicking. It fits right in without overwhelming. And the carefully curated offerings - edible and otherwise - make you yearn for Saturday even more now. There's even a ping-pong table.

Corner of Hester St + Essex, LES 

Saturdays 10 am - 6 pm through October 2011