page 14
arts and culture
Jurisfoodence: Kinton Ramen
DAN MOWAT-ROSE & LUKE
JOHNSTON
Contributors
This new column will document two 3L students’ explorations in the Toronto food scene,
with an eye to student budget concerns, good eating,
and a exposure to a
broad range of culinary experiences.
Since this is our first
Obiter submission,
we should probably
introduce ourselves.
Luke Johnston is a
mature student and
a tall, stoic germaphobe who lives on
the Danforth. Dan
Mowat-Rose is a dog
owner, retired bartender, and a sarcastic Alberta ex-pat
who resides in the
Junction.
Dan: Glad to have the first pick! The buzz
around this place the past year has been
immense, hopefully it lives up to the hype.
Luke: Typical hipster selection!
Dan: I object to your
use of ageist pejoratives to describe my
restaurant choice.
Luke: Fine. Where is
this place?
Dan: It’s an easy walk
west from the Queen’s
Park or St. Patrick
subway stations, on
Baldwin Street just
off of McCaul. Alternate routes include
the Dundas or College
streetcars.
Luke: My first stop is
always the Dine Safe
website. I see a pass,
but also a reported
violation for failure
to properly clean food
preparation surfaces.
I have a family. I don’t
know if I can participate in your fast-andloose lifestyle!
We are experienced
in hunting for inexpensive and generously portioned INTERIOR OF KINTON RAMEN, LOCATED
AT 51 BALDWIN STREET.
foodstuffs at unique
eating spots. The
Dan: In this case ignorance is indeed bliss, and
only thing holding this column back was some
you’ve destroyed mine. Live a little. Your prognot-altogether unexpected stomach disorders
following two years of homogeneous stir-fried eny will be proud.
lunches on-campus.
At the Restaurant:
The way this will work is that every two weeks
one of us will choose a local restaurant, the
other person will come as their guest -- providing fresh eyes and impartial gustatory analysis. Our discussion about the food, booze, price,
and overall experience will be immortalized in
this fine student publication, hopefully for your
information and entertainment. On to food
adventure #1!
Venue: Kinton Ramen - 51 Baldwin Street
Cuisine: Ramen, shockingly.
Food:
Luke: Chicken Ramen $9.80 & Kinton Nikuzara (House Pork Platter) $4.80;
Dan: Spicy Garlic Ramen $9.80 & Spicy
Karaage (Like Chicken Nuggets with Barbecue Sauce) $4.80; Shared: House Kimchi $3
LLBO Licensed? Yes - Cocktails, Sake, and
Sapporo on Tap
Luke: Campari Lemonade $6.50
Dan: Sapporo $5.80
The Lead Up:
monday - september 30 - 2013
Dan: Weird, sorry to have missed that. So
Kinton is basically all counter seating, which is
something I’ve grown accustomed to. Luke you
seemed uncomfortable when that guy sat next
to us.
Luke: You’re right. I was uncomfortable with
the seating arrangement. It was disconcerting
to eat food -- in a manner that requires great
dexterity -- while elbow to elbow with my seat
neighbour. In fact, I was hit with spittle and/or
soup as he worked his chopsticks!
The Food:
Dan: You truly are an adventurous sort, hopefully it was soup. Speaking of the soup, it’s
amazing. The noodles are filling and flavourful
and the side dishes are great, and super affordable.
Luke: Agreed. The price is right and garliclovers will certainly rejoice, but for me the
kimchi is far too garlic-B.O. inducing. The
other sides, though, are a revelation! I have
never tasted anything quite like the chicken
karaage: it’s mid-west BBQ meets Japanese
salty/sweet. The pork belly (***note: this
column may reveal a meat-eater bias) was tender
and flavourful. I am very impressed (other than
hearing about your girlfriend lovingly stroking
your hair in a post-TIFF-booze-induced-state).
The food was also well complemented by my
manly drink selection, Campari lemonade. The
super-sour taste cut through the rich and salty
flavours.
Da n: So, f irst
impressions. Lots of
yelling by the staff.
Lots. In Japanese.
Also, the J-Pop on
heavy rotation really
adds to the frenetic
atmosphere.
Lu ke: When I
arrived there was
already a line. This
gave me a few minutes to check out
the Baldwin Village. Nearby is the
Cheer Smoke Shop;
a truly first class
cigar store. Back at
the restaurant I witnessed some sort of
pre-game chant carried out by the staff.
Dan: You’re right
about the garlic.
My ramen bowl was
extreme. Can’t say
I wasn’t warned.
For those who don’t
appreciate this level
of intensity - consider
yourself on notice:
there’s a full scoop of
minced garlic on top
of the noodles. My
beer went perfectly
with the soup and the
sides, though that this
writer does not recommend his particular
level of over-consumption. The noodles are
cooked perfectly and
the pork falls apart
on contact, unlike the
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LUKE’S CHICKEN RAMEN ($9.80)
the obiter dicta