Tasting T.O. with Jeffrey Danson

Based out of Toronto, comedian/food enthusiast Jeffrey Danson travels across North America performing stand-up and eating at select restaurants in effort to raise awareness towards laughter and the idea that tasting and cherishing food is more important than just consuming it.

While gaining a growing reputation as a respected food writer, Jeffrey has started to venture out into food styling, along with involvement in a family-based importing/exporting business. "I’ve mastered the art of eating at a restaurant," he says, "and it’s time I take what I’ve learned to please people’s eyes. Fine food has fueled me to learn more about the process of what happens from the source to the table."

Where do you head when you need something cheap & cheerful for lunch?

A couple places come to my food-filled mind when asked this simple yet difficult question.

Café Doria (1094 Yonge Street) has a great patio and is perfect for a light Italian lunch or casual dinner. The sandwiches, lasagnas, salads, crispy pizzas, authentic espressos and coffees make Italy seem close. However, the Rosedale moms don’t compare to the Italian bellas that run the streets in Italy.

Another gem that I like to frequent is The Grilled Cheese (66 1/2 Nassau Avenue) in Kensington Market. Ever since lunch hours with the Flinstones and the Jetsons, grilled cheese has been a go-to at lunch. Funky staff making the best grilled cheese in the city serve the golden sandwiches to foodies like me who don’t know how to grow up. All I can say is get the classic with bacon. You won’t regret it.

What restaurant comes to mind when you’ve got something special to celebrate?

Scaramouche (1 Benvenuto Place) is one of my favorite restaurants in the city and there’s no better place to celebrate life and fine food. Knowledgeable, comforting staff serves perfectly prepared produce, which makes me contemplate starting a house account after every meal. No matter how many new restaurants open in Toronto, classic dishes like succulent calamari and the warming atmosphere at Scaramouche will forever reign supreme.

And a reliable stand-by for a casual dinner?

Despite only being open for just over a year, the wonderful, unhealthy but tantalizing Southern style smokehouse The Stockyards (699 St. Clair Avenue West) is quickly becoming an institution. Slow smoked ribs and whole smoked chickens running on Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays bring the dreams of Torontonian meat lovers to fruition with every order. And awesome dishes like buttermilk-soaked fried chicken served with freshly cut fries, crunchy creamy coleslaw and hot sauce bring joy to my life on a constant basis.

One of my favorite Japanese spots is Japango Sushi (122 Elizabeth Street), just off Dundas West. They have a crispy spicy tuna maki that will flabbergast you with its deliciousness, not to mention some of the best butterfish nigiri in the game. Long story short: you can’t make reservations, however the sushi is so tasteful that you’ll feel like a dumbbell eating sushi anywhere else other than maybe Yamato (24 Bellair Street) in Yorkville, which has amazing green garlic butter for the tapanyaki dishes.

I also can’t get enough of the brunch at Hoof Café (928 Dundas Street West). Make sure you ask for the mini donuts, and remember that everything from the foie gras French toast, to the baby suckling pig Eggs Benedict, to the chocolate waffles with caramelized bananas and bacon will have you converted to a regular quicker than I can say “Grandma, can I have another latke?”

What are some of your favourite food shops to stock up on anything from the staples to the splurges?

Alright, this is going to take a minute. I think its easiest if I just make a list of my favorite specialty shops in the city:

Gryfe's (3421 Bathurst Street) - bagels
Ezra's Pound (238 Dupont Street) - croissants & chocolate caramel sea salt brownies
Wychwood Barns Farmers Market
Brick Works Farmers Market
Harbord Bakery (115 Harbord Street)
Olliffe (1097A Yonge Street) - selected meats
Pisces Gourmet Seafood (1097 Yonge Street) - selected fish/seafood
City Fish (2929 Dufferin Street) - selected fish/seafood
The Epicure Shop (473 Parliament Street) - house blend coffee
Rahier Patisserie (1586 Bayview Avenue) - pastries
Alex Farm Products (377 Danforth Avenue & other locations) - selected cheese
Dave Young Fruit Market (494 Eglinton Avenue West) - fruits and vegetables
Pusatari's (1539 Avenue Road & 57 Yorkville Avenue) - general groceries

Those sum up the majority of the specialty shops and markets I frequent.

On those nights where you barely have the energy to turn on the stove, where do you call for delivery or take-out?

I don’t usually do delivery. However, Lee Garden (331 Spadina Avenue) provides satisfaction for all my craving of Chinese food, while local gems like Burger Shack (233 Eglinton Avenue West) offer the best quality fast service food in the game, with everything from chicken souvlaki dinners to homemade banquet burgers, milkshakes, freshly cut fries and great memories especially late at night.

For liquid refreshment (alcoholic or otherwise), where do you go?

Whenever I feel like treating my palate to an afternoon pint, I’ll usually roll to the Danforth to one of my favorites, Allen’s (143 Danforth Avenue). The wide selection of European beers combined with a summer breeze on the tree-covered patio creates an optimal setting for a food enthusiast like myself. I know this question is about drinks, but I can’t help but mention the food. Everything on the menu from the burger (my go-to), to the chicken wings, to the braised lamb shank served on a bed of mashed potatoes with Guinness gravy is simply awesome.

At night, I like to frequent the Thompson Hotel (550 Wellington Street West), Ultra (314 Queen Street West), Cheval (606 King Street West) along with other venues that combine funky, classy and comfortable décor with a respectable good-looking crowd and quality live music. Other than that, I’m usually taking shots of tequila gold and drinking beers at comedy clubs.

What’s coming up?

My website/blog will be featuring 30+ restaurant reviews from restaurants in Montreal, Chicago, New York and Toronto over the next short period. Keep a look-out for a short comedy film being made by Toronto film director Joseph Zentil and myself. Canadian and American University comedy tours are in the works, along with an assortment of acting opportunities that I’m eager to tackle like a thief trying to steal an old woman’s purse.

Tasting T.O. is a regular feature where we ask local artists, writers, musicians, food nerds and other personalities about their favourite places to eat and drink in the city. If you or someone you know would like to be featured in an upcoming installment - especially if you have an upcoming event, gig, release, etc. to promote - please get in touch.