647 253 8000  |   $12-16 Bowls

Having already reviewed (and enjoyed) Daisho, it was only natural that I stop in to Noodle Bar to sample what continues to draw lines of folks outside the Shangri-La hotel. 

We ended up waiting about 20 minutes on a Friday - not bad - and got to sample a few things off the menu. I won’t call this a complete review since we just didn’t try a lot, so consider this a mini-review.

Food

If you do any review reading about this place so far, you’ll start to see a consensus: ‘I came here with exceedingly high expectations, ordered the ramen, wasn’t blown away, and came away disappointed’. I’m not gonna argue with everyone, so I decided to sample some of the other menu elements.

The menu itself is pretty small with some buns (or baos), bowls, and extras. Since I’m a complete sucker for these fluffy steamed buns, that’s where I started.

We went the chicken versions (above), and thankfully they were some of the best I’ve ever had. I’d say they stack up well with Baohaus in NYC and those served at Chang’s Ssam Bar and Noodle Bar NYC. The texture is beautiful and fluffy, the chicken flavourful, and the crackling a special textural contrast. I’d highly recommend these.

Next up were the ginger scallion noodles (above), topped with shiitakes, cabbage, cucumber and a ton of scallions. A really clean, fresh, flavourful bowl for sure with noodles curled underneath. My friend really enjoyed it, but was hoping for broth of some kind to add another layer of flavour. Thankfully, the squirt bottle of awesome hot sauce was nearby.

My lunch main was the kimchi stew bowl with pork shoulder and rice cakes (above). I really enjoyed this dish with a bunch of hot sauce added to give it some spice. Match that spice with some of the sharpness from the kimchi and piece of tender shredded pork shoulder, and you’ve got a giant bowl of home.

Service and Ambience

I’ve already commented on the design of the three-storey edifice in another review, so I’ll describe the organized chaos you’re likely to walk into during weekday lunch. Almost all seating is communal, so be ready to rub elbows at the long wooden tables and bar. There’s some seating upstairs in Nikai while you’re waiting, but it’s not serving until dinner hour unfortunately.

As for service, I’d call it friendly and mostly efficient. They try to turn the tables quite quickly given the lunch rush, so you’ll get your food easily within 10-15 minutes. Our server did forget the beer we ordered, but small slips like that are likely to occur every now and then given the speed and noise level in the room.

The Reco?

Go to Sansotei or Kinton if killer ramen is your hankering. I know it’s called Noodle Bar, and everyone expects mind-blowing ramen, but I encourage you to check out some of the other options on this menu. I did, and I’ll definitely be back to check out a few more. I hope you do the same. Cheers.

Other Reviews? 
 Kiki’s BFF   |      foodpron

 Posted by: Jacob, Visited Oct 19, 2012

info@banhmiboys.com   |    $5 - $8 sandwiches

I’d be surprised if you haven’t heard someone mention Banh Mi Boys over the last month or so. It opened in December 2011, but has been closed for the past couple months for renovations. Post-reopening, lines have characterized the lunch hour here at Spadina and Queen West as people hustle to get their hands on some long-awaited banh mi. 

Food

The menu is composed of ten banh mi (BM) sandwiches, five tacos and five steamed baos (SB). Popular fillings include pork belly (BM/SB), squid (BM/taco), beef cheek(BM/SB) and duck confit (BM only). There’s also kimchi covered fries and and a yummy jicama papaya slaw offered as sides.

As a big fan of baos and banh mi, I decided I’d have one of each. I started with the five spice pork belly bao (above for $3.49). The belly was tender, maybe not quite as fatty as you might expect and the spice didn’t really stand out; nice pickled veggies and a room-temp steamed bun completed the snack. I wouldn’t rave, but I just love open-face baos so much that I’d easily eat this again.

Next I ordered the kalbi beef banh mi ($5.99, zoomed in above). The beef and accompanying sweet sauce had some decent flavour and a bit of a tang. The baguette wasn’t too thick, fluffy soft, and crusty on the outside - all good things. It’s also a nice size overall and would satisfy many people for lunch. 

I’d heard great things about the duck confit ($7.49, picture above), so I recommended it to my vietnamese friend who came along. She claimed it was banh mi ‘done right’. I had a bite too. Sometimes duck confit doesn’t really taste like duck and is kind of dry, but this was both moist and supremely duck-y. The onion chutney added some sweetness to contrast the pickled veggies and bunches of cilantro (in all BMs offered on the menu). 

I didn’t have the kimchi fries, but I’ve heard rave reviews from people I trust so I’d recommend it for sure.

Another side note: apparently banh mi often has pâté in it. I didn’t know this before my friend told me, but I hope that shows up on the menu at some point as an add-on. I’d take them up on it in a second.

Service and Ambience

The redesign has made the restaurant ‘nicer’, but with limited seating and lots of take out orders, it’s not a highlight. I think the real reason this place is popular is the unique concept, good execution and value. The prices are very competitive with a lot of take out options in the area and the food is clearly better quality.

One thing I’ll comment on service-wise is the speed. We showed up 11:45am on a Wednesday and ended up waiting about 20 minutes from lining up through to receiving food. Around 12:15pm, people just saw the line and left because they knew they’d be there forever. It’s worth the wait if you beat most people to the line, but I’m not so sure it’s worth 30+ mins unless you’re REALLY craving it.

The Reco?

As I said, the unique concept and value make this place a success. It’s niche food done pretty well, and there are enough options to keep you coming back without getting bored. It’s like if your favourite shawarma place had 20 legitimately interesting options. You’d go back too. 

Other reviews:
  NOW Toronto    |      blogTO 

 Posted by: Jacob, Visited Apr 4, 2012