monday night food

Now that Allan is working long hours on Friday, Saturday and Sunday, and I'm trying to use those as my main work days, too, we've gotten in the habit of going out for dinner on Monday nights. I've been really into discovering good food out here in Mississauga, with the help of Chowhounders and wmtc readers.

Not long ago, Lone Primate and M@ told us where to get dim sum, and great Chinese food in general, close to home. So last night we went to the big Chinese shopping plaza on Dundas near Cawthra, instantly recognizable by the huge pagoda-like arch over the entrance.

The food was excellent. I was thrilled to find Chinatown-quality food, serious menus and typical dim sum banquet halls a short drive from home. I knew it had to be out here somewhere. There are far too many Chinese Canadians living in Mississauga for there not to be really good food. Same goes for great Indian food, which we had last week (although further away).

Port Credit is great for pubs and casual bar-type food, and there's an excellent Greek restaurant and some pretty good Thai. But my heritage - Jewish New Yorker - demands I eat excellent Chinese food on a regular basis.

The only thing we haven't found nearby is very good sushi. The sushi in our immediate neighbourhood is alright, but the restaurant seems to be in a permanent state of disarray, with one beleaguered sushi chef who is always at least 45 minutes behind. I've passed one or two other places, and several Chowhounders recommended a place on The Queensway. Although Toronto is apparently full of great sushi, it would be nice to find some close to home.

We timed dinner to be home in time for Corner Gas, but it wasn't on. I've been taping re-runs on the Comedy Network on Friday nights, I think from the second season. We're totally hooked.

Comments

  1. Marnie20 December 2005 at 06:26

    CTV's running Corner Gas every night this week, at seven, I think. Can't help you with the sushi.

    ReplyDelete
  2. laura k20 December 2005 at 06:56

    At 7! We looked for it at 8.

    Comedy Network is doing a Corner Gas mini-marathon on Xmas eve. They're showing three or four episodes back to back.

    ReplyDelete
  3. M@20 December 2005 at 08:43

    I'm glad the recommendation worked out!

    As for sushi, it's been a while since we lived in Mississauga. However, there is a place called Sushi Tei at Creditview and Burnhamthorpe (4040 Creditview is the plaza's address). The food was always good to excellent and the prices were very good too. I have read some reviews complaining about the service but the food seems to still be regarded fairly well. It may be a bit of a hike for you though -- it's west of Mavis so not really in your end of town I think.

    I too have heard about a great place on the Queensway (from a friend whose judgement I trust) and I suspect it might be the same one. Hope to hear your review if you find it!

    ReplyDelete
  4. Unknown20 December 2005 at 08:57

    I find it so odd as well that Sushi here in Vancouver is as rampant or more rampant than Starbucks. It's great because there are many cheap and good eats but still it's a bit odd. Greek and Mexican however are much harder to come by.

    ReplyDelete
  5. Wrye20 December 2005 at 09:32

    Not odd, really, BC has a substantial enormous Japanese-Canadian population, and is an enormous magnet for Japanese tourists. Plus, fresh seafood!

    ReplyDelete
  6. Lisa20 December 2005 at 15:46

    Toronto woman trying to convince members of Saskatchewan small town to sign up for her Pilates classes: “Don’t you WANT to unify your body and soul?”

    Brent Butt (deadpan): “Well, I wouldn’t want to put my eggs all in one basket”

    Or something to that effect. Very funny show. I'm glad that you guys like it.

    Lisa

    ReplyDelete
  7. Beausejour21 December 2005 at 09:43

    There used to be a great sushi place on Bloor between Bathurst and ...one block east of Bathurst. Like I can remember the name - I can't even remember the corss street!

    But you can't go wrong with Chowhound. My girlfriend is a pasty chef and we've never been let down with their suggestion in New York and San Francisoc -- I would think Toronto is the same.

    ReplyDelete
  8. laura k21 December 2005 at 10:12

    There's tons of good sushi in Toronto. I was talking specifically about Mississauga.

    I always used Chowhound in NY, and it continues to be very helpful for the GTA.

    ReplyDelete
  9. Beausejour21 December 2005 at 10:47

    Correction -- my girlfriend is a pastry chef - she's not pasty at all...

    ReplyDelete
  10. Echomouse21 December 2005 at 10:50

    Well you're officially more Canadian than I am, and I was born and raised here. LOL I have yet to watch Corner Gas!

    However, I do follow Rick Mercer almost religiously. If you want a treat, check him out on the CBC on Tuesday nights. You can view past clips from his show on the cbc.ca website too :)

    OH WAIT even better treat for Christmas!!! You simply HAVE to catch the Beachcombers Christmas Special coming up this Sunday night! It will be a hoot :)

    ReplyDelete
  11. Echomouse21 December 2005 at 10:52

    Forgot to say, my little brothers live in Toronto but way downtown..near the CN Tower. But they are very informed about good restaurants. I'll ask them if they know of a good sushi place in or near Mississauga, since Little Brother #2 works there ;)

    ReplyDelete
  12. laura k21 December 2005 at 11:09

    However, I do follow Rick Mercer almost religiously. If you want a treat, check him out on the CBC on Tuesday nights. You can view past clips from his show on the cbc.ca website too :)

    Sorry Echo Mouse, you're way behind on this one. Rick Mercer's been discussed ad nauseum on this blog. Do a "search this blog" for his name. My opinions will disappoint you.

    And just to clarify, it's sushi in Mississauga we're looking for. Toronto is near. We're looking for local. Thanks!

    ReplyDelete
  13. Unknown21 December 2005 at 12:25

    ooh, Beachcombers. I can hardly wait! I'll be back in the GTA for the weekend from Atlanta. What a treat to see my favourite Relic moments. No sushi at Molly's Reach though.

    ReplyDelete
  14. Marnie21 December 2005 at 14:14

    Don't hold your breath for those Relic moments. It's just the latest Beachcombers movie (unless there's another special I don't know about), and it's, well, crap, with very few of the old regulars to prop it up.

    Yeah, I watched it the first time around, but only because I'd recently been to Gibsons Landing and stood in front of Molly's Reach, and I wanted to see if I recognized any of the scenery. It wasn't worth it.

    ReplyDelete
  15. laura k21 December 2005 at 15:29

    What are you guys talking about?

    I'm like the nerdy outcast in the school cafeteria who doesn't know any of the gossip. :)

    ReplyDelete
  16. laura k21 December 2005 at 19:34

    Ooo, I'm gonna be cool, the cheerleaders like me!!!

    Thanks for letting me in on the secret, Marnie. Sounds eminently missable for one without the pre-requisite history.

    Kind of like a transit strike. :/

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

sharia

This morning I see that Dalton McGuinty, Premier of Ontario, is banning the Muslim religious court known as sharia . This ends months of debate about whether sharia would be legal and binding in Ontario. I'm quoting at length from the story in today's Toronto Star because many US readers are likely not up on this. In a surprise announcement that caught both supporters and opponents of sharia law off guard, Premier Dalton McGuinty says he will move quickly to ban all religious arbitration in the province. McGuinty made the announcement in a telephone interview with The Canadian Press yesterday after months of debate and controversy surrounding use of Islamic sharia law in family arbitration. "I've come to the conclusion that the debate has gone on long enough," the premier told the news agency. "There will be no sharia law in Ontario. There will be no religious arbitration in Ontario. There will be one law for all Ontarians." The announcement prompted t...
Read more

can of worms

I'm opening a sticky subject here, my need to understand causing me to throw caution to the wind. It's about Alberta. Alberta vs. the rest of the Canada. The Globe And Mail runs something about Alberta's gripes every day, and I try to follow along. If it weren't for wmtc's resident Albertan , and the ensuing arguments in comments, I would've had no warning. It's not something Americans know about. As is, observing for more than a year, I have only the smallest of clues. Here's what I know. Please pardon my ignorance and oversimplification, but I have to start somewhere. The province of Alberta is rich, because it has oil. The province of Alberta is conservative, relative to the rest of Canada. Hmm. Funny how those two go together. Because of its great oil wealth, Alberta revenue helps fund services in the rest of Canada. (These are transfer payments?) Apparently many Albertans resent this. They want to keep Alberta's money in Alberta. They don't...
Read more

low confidence

I'm excited about today's no-confidence vote . Only three months after moving here, we'll get to see a government fall, a campaign, and an election, in a system very different from what we're accustomed to. Even the expression "the government will fall" strikes us as oddly dramatic and revolutionary. My sense of current Canadian politics, for what it's worth, tells me that very little will change from the upcoming election. I'd be surprised if the Liberals didn't win. So it's kind of cool to see this happening without a lot at stake. On a semi-tangential note, have I mentioned I'm completely down with "Corner Gas"? Excellent show; I love the deadpan humour. (Great website, too; check it out .) So was that really Finance Minister Ralph Goodale ragging on Brent Butt's camera last Saturday night?
Read more