Pam's Roti, Hot Italian Sausages, Golden Cook Caribbean & more -- The Top 5 Food Posts of 2019

A few days ago we posted our annual review of the top posts of the year (in terms of hits) Fare Evasion Frauds, NDP Debacles, Racism in Canada & more -- 2019 on The Left Chapter. As any regular reader of this blog knows, The Left Chapter also has many food related posts.

This year saw many recipes including some more offbeat ones like The Sputnik -- Salami and Fried Egg Sandwich w. Green Chili Pickle, the Montreal Smoked Meat, Lime Pickle and Avocado Naan Wrap and Spicy Peanut Butter and Dill Pickle Sandwiches.


We continued our always popular vintage cookbook series with posts such as 1941's Wilson's Meat Cookery w. Oyster Pie, Chicken Gumbo, Deviled Broiled Pig's Feet & more and Great Meatless Meals w. Mediterranean Lemon Soup, Potato Kugel, Savory Onion Quiche & more. 

Some recipes such as Spicy Sausage and Beef Meatballs with Homestyle Tomato Sauce and Peruvian Inspired BBQ Chicken made it very close to the top five.

I want to thank everyone who contributed recipes to the blog and to our readership for such a great year and I look forward to what 2020 brings.

Here, without further ado, are the top five food related posts for 2019:

1) Pam's Roti w. Goat and Veggie Roti, Samosas, Pakoras and more

2) Hot Italian Sausages with Onions and Peppers

3) Golden Cook Caribbean Restaurant Reinvents Itself in New Toronto

4) Light and Crisp Steak and Vegetable Lettuce Rolls

5) Slow Cooker Curried Lamb Shoulder Chops w. Garlic & Onion

Thanks again for a great fourth year.

Do you have a left point-of-view or opinion, a recipe or a story you want to share?

Send them to The Left Chapter via theleftchapter@outlook.com!

See also: Trini Gardens, Kothur, Zippy Pickle Soup & more -- The Top 5 Food Posts of 2018

Golden Cook Caribbean Restaurant Reinvents Itself in New Toronto

Golden Cook Caribbean Restaurant and West Indian Store has been a fixture on the Lake Shore Blvd. strip of the south Etobicoke neighbourhood of New Toronto for many years.

Located just west of Islington Ave., it has always had good food, but until very recently you could only enjoy this as takeout. The spot consisted of a service counter and then a couple of aisles of assorted West Indian groceries and sauces.

After shutting down for a few weeks it has now reopened with a new dining area so that you can enjoy the fall-off-the-bone oxtail, the delicious goat and all the other dishes they have to offer dine in.

They do still have a grocery section as well so you can pick up some extras on the way out.

The oxtail in gravy is better than ever. Incredibly moist it can be had, as is true with all the dishes,  with plain rice or rice-and-peas.

The goat dinner is to my mind really a house specialty. It has their own unique saucing and is some of the best curried goat around. 

 Ackee and Saltfish is a Caribbean classic that is seen by many as Jamaica's national dish, and Golden Cook's version does not disappoint with its blend of salty and fruit flavours.

Some fried plantain on the side. Golden Cook also makes terrific dumplings.

A good menu is often a focused one and Golden Cook does all of its staples very well. Over years of trying what was on offer I have never had a dish that was a miss. 

All of the main dishes that we had ran from $10 for small to a high end of $17 for the large oxtail. The portions are very generous and service is quick and friendly.

Golden Cook is located at 2955 Lake Shore Boulevard W just west of Islington Ave. It is open Monday to Friday 10 am - 7 pm and Saturday and Sunday 9 am to 6 pm  (416) 259-3003. It is on the 501 streetcar line and just steps from the end of the Islington South bus route. 

Mitzie's Jerk in Etobicoke -- Home of the Ultimate Oxtail Sandwich!

Mitzie's Jerk is an all around terrific Jamaican take-out restaurant that is just east of Islington (and the Islington subway station) on Bloor St. W. in Etobicoke.

There is lots to love at Mitzie's. As the name implies, they make excellent jerk chicken which is what often springs to mind when you think of jerk. But they also make a delicious jerk pork that is simply mouth-watering and nicely seasoned.

Both the jerk chicken and jerk pork can be had as dinners served with rice (or rice and peas) and coleslaw (chicken is $10.50 small and $13.50 large while the jerk pork is $12.50 small and $15.50 large) or as rotis ($12 chicken / $13 pork).

Mitzie's rotis and dinners generally are all worth trying. The goat is moist and tender in a curry sauce and the oxtail is fall off the bone as you want it to be. (oxtail and goat dinners are $12.50 small and $15.50 large while the goat roti is $13).

Oxtail Dinner

Mitzie's also makes a great veggie roti for $10.50.

Veggie Roti

If you are having trouble making up your mind Mitzie's has a very cool "Mix-Up" option where you can all the meats from jerk to oxtail to goat, etc. in small portions served with the rice (or rice and peas) and coleslaw. A woman at the counter described this to me as a "buffet in a box". This runs $15.50 for a small and $18.50 for a large.

But Mitzie's also has a unique and really incredible menu option that makes a trip to it all the more worthwhile.

These are "Kristle's Ultimate Sandwiches" and they are awesome. The idea is to take the jerk chicken, curried goat, pork or oxtail and serve them, boneless, on a fresh large-sized bun.

OMG...Boneless Oxtail on a Bun!!!

Seriously, boneless Caribbean style oxtail on a bun!

The Ultimate Sandwiches are $10.75 each and they are huge. Great concept really well executed.

Mitzie's Jerk is located at 3337 Bloor St W in Etobicoke. It is just a couple of blocks east of the Islington subway station. 647-345-0077. They are open 11 am to either 9 or 10 pm from Monday to Saturday (closed Sunday). See their website for more information. 

See also: Ali's West Indian Roti Shop w. Fiery House Scotch Bonnet Hot Sauce

See also: Michael's West Indian Flavor: Perfect Oxtail in New Toronto

Charlie's Caribbean Cuisine: West Indian-Chinese Fusion in Mississauga

Charlie's Caribbean Cuisine is a really terrific West Indian-Chinese fusion style restaurant on Hurontario St. in Mississauga.

Charlie's does so many things so well. There are a number of standouts on the menu. In fact I have yet to eat anything from Charlie's that was not top-notch.

Notable dishes include the Fried Red Snapper which is a fish served whole that has been seasoned to give it a nice Caribbean flavour and that is then deep-fried giving it a terrific texture ($10.99 on its own or $12.99 with rice). Charlie's is known for its rotis but vegetarians will love the incredible Mixed Vegtable Roti that includes curried chickpeas, pumpkin, curried potatoes, long beans, spinach and okra! ($9.99) The Pepper Shrimp ($10.99) and Chili Chicken ($9.99) are perennial favourites as are the fusion Chow Mein dishes.

Special Jerk Chicken Low Mein - $10.49

This is a must get dish at Charlie's. Perfect, moist jerk chicken is served atop absolutely delicious noodles with vegetables and chicken. Just fantastic. 

Fried Shrimp Wontons - $7.99

A crowd pleasing appetizer nicely prepared. 

Curried Goat (Bone-In) - $8.99

A classic executed very well and served with rice or rice and peas. You can order it large (+$2.00) and/or with extra meat (+$3.00)  as I did above. A boneless version is available for a dollar more.

Charlie's Special Mixed Fried Rice - $10.49

Another great fusion dish, it is fried rice with chicken, beef and shrimp that is topped with pieces of Caribbean style fried chicken.

Oxtail - $10.99

As any regular reader of this blog knows, I love oxtail! Charlie's makes a terrific one, exceptionally moist, served with rice or rice and peas. Large size and/or extra meat are, again, an option.

\

Fried Plantain - $2.00

Do you want some fried plantain added to your dish for $2.00? Yes...yes I do!

Chicken Wings (10 pcs) $8.99

They make terrific wings with an assortment of saucing options. The Spicy Sauce packs real punch and is full of flavour.

Charlie's Caribbean Cuisine is located at 3055 Hurontario Street just north of Dundas St. 905-949-0663. They have a website with their full menu and a Facebook page. They are open 7 days a week and they are licensed. If you live within the delivery area, delivery is available from skipthedishes.com

See also: Butter Chicken Roti -- Fiery Spicy & Delicious Indian Rotis on Queen W.

See also: Michael's West Indian Flavor: Perfect Oxtail in New Toronto

Vena's Roti on Bloor St. -- "Best Roti in Town"

The otherwise unassuming take out joint, Vena's Roti has a window sized neon sign that greets you when you arrive proclaiming that it serves the "Best Roti in Town"!

Is it true? While that is certainly a big claim to make in a city the size of Toronto, unlike "The World's Best Coffee" claim in the movie Elf, in the case of Vena's it is not just hyperbole. If they do not serve "the best", a very subjective opinion anyway, they serve among the best West Indian style rotis and for a very good price.

Vena's is a classic "hole-in-the-wall" lunch counter style eatery. With only a couple of tables at which to dine in, when going be sure to have a take-out back up plan. 

But the food is excellent and, not surprisingly given the sign, the rotis are a genuine stand-out. 

What makes them special begins with the roti itself which is among the best I have ever had. 

Then, of course, is the West Indian style saucing and perfectly cooked ingredients. Very moist goat or chicken, beef and shrimp options, and a delicious veggie roti with spinach, chick peas, potato and squash. They are all fantastic. The meat rotis can be had with just potato or with some other ingredients like okra for an extra charge. 

If you are a fan of spice, the homemade scotch bonnet sauce is a

Veggie Roti

must. While deceptively watery in texture it packs a real punch in terms of both heat and flavour. 

All the dishes range from $9-12 with some daily specials as an option. Vena's only takes cash though, so keep that in mind.

Vena's is located at  1263 Bloor Street West, Toronto (just east of the Lansdowne subway station), and is open seven days a week from 10am to 7pm. 416-532-3665

Vena's has done important charitable work in the community

The goat and potato roti

See also: Michael's West Indian Flavor: Perfect Oxtail in New Toronto

See also: Swatow Restaurant -- Shrimp Dumpling Noodle Soup & more in the heart of Toronto

Michael's West Indian Flavor: Perfect Oxtail in New Toronto

In true take-out counter spot style, Michael's West Indian Flavor is simplicity itself. A small spot, it has the food counter, a small counter you can stand at if you want to eat inside, and a very small menu of three regular dishes that is expanded with other options depending on the day.

But this basic simplicity belies the tremendous complexity of flavour of their dishes, all of which are some of the best West Indian food I have had in Toronto (and I have had a lot of it!). 

Jamaican style Oxtail, Curried Goat or Stewed Chicken with rice or rice and peas are always on the chalkboard menu, while Jerk Chicken and Spicy Fried Chicken are regularly available as well.

Michael's incredible oxtail

Everything is perfectly done, and I have tried the lot multiple times. The goat, chicken and oxtail are always done bone-in, with a different saucing for each, and are dreamily moist and fall-off-the bone cooked. I have spent years trying to duplicate the oxtail gravy at Michael's. It is simply fantastic. If you are lucky you will get a piece of seeded Scotch Bonnet hot pepper "skin" in your dish

All dishes can be had with an optional creamy slaw. They are also all available small, medium or large (and the large is really large) and range from $5-$12. They all come with rice or rice and peas as well. 


If it is a nice day you can take your food and enjoy it at one of the neigbourhood's many parks. Colonel Sam Smith Park, one of Toronto's waterfront gems, is a short walk to the west. Michael's is also on the 501 Queen streetcar line. They are located at 3067 Lake Shore Blvd. W., which is about 4 blocks west of Islington Ave.

See also: Swatow Restaurant -- Shrimp Dumpling Noodle Soup & more in the heart of Toronto

See also: Going for Toronto's best chicken wings with Irish Socialist leader Joe Higgins