Canteen — Restaurant in Toronto

I'm from Singapore so the Southeast Asian dishes here are very close to my heart. That said, I know it's hard to get 100% authenticity all the way in Canada so I'll try not to be TOO nitpicky. Here we go...

Nasi lemak: The star of the show. The egg threw me off a little (I'm more used to seeing it cooked sunnyside up), but everything else was on point. I loved the ikan bilis, peanuts and pandan rice and the whole dish tasted like how I remember it back home. The fried chicken was very crispy despite being covered with sambal sauce. The sambal packed a punch, so be careful if you're not a fan of heat!

Chao Gui Diao: This was a bang on reproduction of the original dish in terms of presentation and flavors. I was surprised they went all the way in with pork lard and didn't skimp with the shrimp. The only disappointment was the texture of the noodles - I felt they were too thick and it got exhausting to eat after awhile.

Chicken rice: My all-time favorite dish! Happy to report that despite the unsettling yellowness of the rice and chicken, it was pretty tasty. The rice didn't taste as aromatic (maybe they didn't cook it in chicken broth?) and the chicken slices weren't as tender as the original, but it was good overall.

Hokkien noodles: This one was a letdown. I know it's KL style, but I was expecting a lighter version with thinner noodles that wasn't so drenched in sweet soy sauce. It almost felt like eating Shanghainese noodles....

Back in the day, I used to be a regular at this cozy little joint known for serving up a nice bowl of fish head pickled green noodle soup. It was my goto comfort food, a dish that never failed to warm my heart. But then came the age of COVID-19, and with it, a change that I hadn't anticipated.

The last few times I visited, I couldn't help but notice that something had shifted in the kitchen. The soup, once a harmonious blend of flavors, had lost its former glory. The fish head, once tender and succulent, now seemed lackluster, and the broth lacked the zesty punch it once had. I couldn't quite put my finger on it, but it was evident that the quality had taken a nosedive.

I've been left wondering whether they hired a new chef or if the pandemic has made it challenging to source the freshest ingredients. It's a pity to see such a beloved dish falter like this.

Despite the disappointment, I haven't entirely given up on the place. I'm holding out hope that they'll bounce back, that the fish head pickled green noodle soup will once again reign supreme. Maybe I'll muster the courage to give it another try down the road, hoping to recapture those flavors that used to bring me so much joy.

Until then, I'll cherish the memories of those flavorful bowls of soup, hoping for brighter days...

As a Singaporean, I was recommended to try the Malaysian food at this “cash-only” eatery from the “secret menu” by many other fellow Singaporeans/Malaysians.

The Nasi Lemak set comes with 2 halves of a hard boiled egg, chicken sambal, cucumbers and ikan bilis with peanuts, along with a choice of drink. This was probably the best Nasi Lemak in Canada with its spicy sambal, probably even better than many of the average Nasi Lemak back in my hometown.

The char kway teow was done well with its wok hei and decent portion of shrimps provided, yet it wasn’t oily with the noodles not sticking together, a common issue with the kway teow equivalent noodles that we find here.

The total bill for Nasi lemak set with the char kway teow came to just under $30, which fed 2 people easily, a very reasonable price with today’s inflation, especially for a cuisine that is very sparse in North America.

I will definitely return again for the Nasi Lemak, although it would have been great if they offered a pescatarian alternative for the chicken sambal just like the norm back at home but I understand the constraints of serving a relatively rare cuisine in a restaurant setting. I also look forward to trying their other dishes from the “secret menu” such as the Ikan bakar and the...