Need a head start on the CNE? Chef Anthony Rose has you covered. He dove into the wildest and wackiest food creations across the city to find out which ones are worthwhile to get your fix of funky food before heading to the fair.
Winner: Delicious doughnuts
Stack Restaurant, 3265 Yonge St., $8
โThis is delicious,โ says Anthony Rose after his first bite into the house-made doughnuts topped with chocolate sauce, vanilla glaze, icing sugar, whipped cream and candy sprinkles. โSomething like this should be a mess, and it is a mess,โ he says. โThis is my favourite by far.โ
Nacho typical bag of chips
Junked Food Co., 1256 Dundas St. W., $8.95
โThank you for the salad,โ Rose says jokingly as his paleo diet is suffering with all the junk food heโs eating. โThe chips are fantastic, and this is a mess,โ he says, of the aptly named hot mess smash bag, but he also says he would like the house-made sauces to be more distinguishable.
Not your average ring
Olde Yorke Fish & Chips, 96 Laird Dr., $4.95
โThe batter itself is kind of nice and crispy and fairly good,โ says Rose of the deep-fried pineapple rings that are topped with a scoop of vanilla ice cream. โThe pineapple doesnโt have a lot of flavour, though, and itโs a bit stringy.โ
Deep-fried lollipops with a twistย
Holy Chuck, 1450 Yonge St., $4.99
โMy guess is they took Nutella, scooped it and froze it,โ says Rose as he examines the three deep-fried Nutella lollipops served with fresh whipped cream. โI think itโs a cool idea. You canโt go wrong with Nutella. The Nutella is delicious, but the rest is a bit greasy.โ
A sweet start to the day
Uncle Bettyโs, 2590 Yonge St., $6
โI do like the egg and cheese combo,โ says Rose of the house-made doughnut stuffed with egg and cheese. โI think that eggs and cheese are beautiful together, but unfortunately the doughnut is reminding me of a bad experience I had with a Krispy Kreme burger.โ
When avocado meets sโmoresย
โMuncheez Creperie, 7181 Yonge St., Unit 21, $7.49
โThis is surprisingly good,โ says Rose of the crepe stuffed with avocado, marshmallows and Nutella. โI enjoy the avocado, itโs got Nutella, and I get the marshmallow flavour, but I just wish there was more of it.โ
Peanut butter jelly time
I Went To Philly, 997 Eglinton Ave. W., $5.65
โThe topping tastes almost like a crushed-up cereal of some sort,โ says Rose. โI was excited for a deep-fried peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but I can mostly just taste the oil and not the other flavours.โ
A burger inspired by the kingย
Dangerous Danโs, 714 Queen St. E., $6.40
โEwwwww,โ says Rose as he finds out this beef burger is topped with bacon, fried banana and peanut butter. Itโs a take on the classic Elvis sandwich. โAll the flavours are definitely there. Bacon is one of my favourite things in the world, and I do love peanut butter with it,โ he says.
