First visit to Ginger at Carlton & Parliament

[MajorComplainer]

Major Complainer:



It's rather funny for you to make such a blanket statement, considering you don't know anything about our ethnicity, much less whether we necessarily demand authenicity in every one of our meals. The rest of what you've said is illustrative of your general arrogance and dare I say, prejudice?

AoD

My bad. I didn't realized you peeps were not looking for authentic asian foods. Oopsie. Sorry, keep eating those delicious Ginger, Green Mango and Co. Bring your out of town friends there too, I'm sure they will LOVE as much as you do.

It's rather funny for someone who claims to know about "our ethnicity" yet can't even tell what is good asian food, what is crappy asian food, lol. Oops, did I just say crappy? I mean "delicious" food.

 

[MajorComplainer]

Looking beyond the MajorComplainer-isms, it makes sense--to a degree.

Still, even if I'm not prone to pretending it's "authentic", I don't mind a little Ho-Lee Chow now and then, at least as a cheap, inoffensive throwaway. Or rather, I *wouldn't*, were I prone to ordering takeout in the first place.

And regarding "non-genuine"; hey, I don't mind the nth-rate indigenous and corrupted now and again. Just look at Quebec relative to France...

At least you know what is good and what is not that good...unlike many others...lol

 

[scarberiankhatru]

The best Asian food I've had has either been made by friends' parents or in Great Mall of China eateries (mainly Markham & Scarborough) that don't have names or menus in English - so I couldn't tell you which ones they are or what I actually ate there (or didn't eat, due to picking out the octopus and bamboo shoots). Barring the occasional good fusion meal like at Monsoon, I've never had good Asian food downtown. I grew up eating the real deal so I must agree that western-style food like Ho Lee Chow is completely inedible...except for delicious fortune cookies.

Nothing personal scarberian, but I'm not crazy about complaints about complaints about complaints, like your post, whereas complaints about complaints about complaints about complaints, like this post, are just my cup of tea.

42

Me and Major will take the odd, you and aod can take the even. Who will take the "this thread is off topic!" whining?

 

[AlvinofDiaspar]

It's rather funny for someone who claims to know about "our ethnicity" yet can't even tell what is good asian food, what is crappy asian food, lol.

Thankfully, I can still tell whether someone is a pleasant Asian person.

AoD

 

[Hydrogen]

They are what the asians called "cheating white folks with their lousy food".

See, this is what I don't understand. All the Asians get together and collude to produce crappy food for poor, unsuspecting white folks, and no one ever notices it happening.

Funny, that.

 

[MajorComplainer]

See, this is what I don't understand. All the Asians get together and collude to produce crappy food for poor, unsuspecting white folks, and no one ever notices it happening.

Funny, that.

Judging from this board, no, not many have noticed.

 

[Urban Shocker]

My partner and his Chinese friends used to call it Ho-Lee-Shit.

This westerner had great Chinese home-cooked food for 18 years, and knows what is good and what isn't.

 

[AndreaPalladio]

See, this is what I don't understand. All the Asians get together and collude to produce crappy food for poor, unsuspecting white folks, and no one ever notices it happening.

Funny, that.

Or sometimes we just don't care. I love Lai Wah Heen, and I get take out from Spring Rolls too. Just as I've eaten at Chez Panisse, and McDonalds. Just not on the same day. It is possible to enjoy quality without being a compete snob, Comrade Generalissimo.

 

[Bogtrotter]

The menu was great, and the prices very reasonable. My kids absolutely loved the open air dining experience, with people, buses, etc. going by. My wife liked the road racket less, and wants to come back when they've closed the garage-door like windows. Ginger is a definite positive contribution to Cabbagetown's business area.

Nice to hear things are moving a bit more upmarket in the dining dept in this area. I have to say my worst dining experience ever in TO was in cabbagetown at this really rundown looking chinese place. We were starving and felt like some good old westernized chinese buffet food- luke warms weiners in caramel sauce, chicken balls drippings in sickly dragon's blood etc- yes we wanted it all and good gawd we got it and more as we both felt compeltely ill afterwards. I think things had been sitting around for awhile, I should think the gelatinous film on some of the dishes would have been a clue not to eat. Not quite food poisoned but we came close I would say.

I like some of the green mango dishes, they don't always have to be authentic to be tasty in my book.

 

[Urban Shocker]

Back in the '70's and '80's, Greek restaurants on the Danforth used to be almost as bad as restaurants in Greece, what with the thrice reheated Moussaka, stewed vegetables and all.

Low-rise squalor to the south, high-rise squalor to the west, a graveyard to the north, white collar criminals lurking inside every second sandblasted villa on his street, and nary a decent eatery in the whole disfunctional neighbourhood. Poor Beez.

 

[Admiral Beez]

Nice to hear things are moving a bit more upmarket in the dining dept in this area. I have to say my worst dining experience ever in TO was in cabbagetown at this really rundown looking chinese place. We were starving and felt like some good old westernized chinese buffet food- luke warms weiners in caramel sauce, chicken balls drippings in sickly dragon's blood etc- yes we wanted it all and good gawd we got it and more as we both felt compeltely ill afterwards. I think things had been sitting around for awhile, I should think the gelatinous film on some of the dishes would have been a clue not to eat. Not quite food poisoned but we came close I would say.

There's a great Chinese food restaurant now on Carleton across from Ginger called, IIRC China Gourmet.

The only dissappointing meal I've had in Cabbagetown was at Town Grill, which was very expensive and no more better than what I could have had at Pear Tree for half the price with better atmosphere.

 

[Pep'rJack]

Or sometimes we just don't care. I love Lai Wah Heen, and I get take out from Spring Rolls too. Just as I've eaten at Chez Panisse, and McDonalds. Just not on the same day. It is possible to enjoy quality without being a compete snob

Completely agree.

Low-rise squalor to the south, high-rise squalor to the west, a graveyard to the north, white collar criminals lurking inside every second sandblasted villa on his street, and nary a decent eatery in the whole disfunctional neighbourhood. Poor Beez.

LOL.

luke warms weiners in caramel sauce

Yikes.

Pear Tree

Delightful solarium/garden in the back - nice brunch spot.

There's a great Chinese food restaurant now on Carleton across from Ginger called, IIRC China Gourmet.

I'm gonna give that a try. Chinese food in general remains something of a mystery to me. For many years now I've been searching for its oft-promised wonders in several promising places (HK, NY, Vancouver, TO, etc), and have always been somewhat disappointed. Numerous times I've been taken to places by Chinese people promising the real delicious deal, but have come away less bedazzled than I'd hoped for. I've tried upscale, dives, suburban malls, and so forth. It's odd - this is not a 'problem' with any other kind of generally praised cuisine I can think of (Thai, Ethiopian, Persian, Peruvian, whatever). There's *got* to be great Chinese food out there somewhere outside of China - anyone who can steer me to glory, China-style, will become a rock star in my world. Suggestions? What's the best Chinese food you've ever had? Best in TO? (I've tried Lai Wah Heen, btw.)

 

[RJR123]

The same challenge exists with Mexican food in Toronto. For all of our vaulted multiculturalism, it's hard to find a truly delicious Mexican restaurant in Toronto.

You should put your request on www.chowhound.com and see what people come back with (although I bet there have already been multiple threads on there on this subject).

 

[adma]

Okay. I was anticipating a reference to edible cardboard in this thread, given that it was active today. Guess there wasn't...

 

[Hydrogen]

But there is a reference to luke warm weiners in caramel sauce. It ain't edible cardboard, but it is worthy of mention.