quick, economical and "ethnic" lunches on a Sunday, within a 15 minute walk of Jarvis and Wellesley?

[phoenikia]

Taking a course at the National Ballet School, and I'm not sure where to grab a bite afterwards. Overwhelmed by shawarma joints I'm not familiar with, not impressed by my last visit to Ginger, and turned off by my last meal at Ritz.

Which shawarma places are the best right now, north of College and south of Bloor? Today, I had a somewhat disappointing chicken shawarma in a pita($4.95) at Falafel House (760 Yonge, just south of Bloor), which was didn't taste nearly as good as the chicken shawarma I ordered there maybe 6 months ago. Very generous with the amount of chicken in the pita, but the chicken was underseasoned and dry.

I was craving butter chicken (even mediocre butter chicken), but Kathmandu is closed on Sundays.

Anything else you'd recommend? Where would you go?

[Hondapendragon]

Mehran, near Church and Gerrard, is a tiny little Bangladeshi-owned Indian restaurant. I really enjoy thier chicken biryani, spinach curry, and naan. Definately open on Sundays.

[phoenikia]

sounds great- thanks Hondapendragon. Hadn't head about Mehran until you posted this!

[food face]

I second Mehran. Although, I haven't gotten a chance to eat much of their food, I had a samosa there that was the best I've had. It was soft warm and super fresh. I look forward to trying some of your other favorites Hondapendragon!

[Chachama]

Someone already mentioned it but Ghazale on Wellesley is fresh, lots of selection, and is cheap. My daughter goes to NBS so I'm also trolling the area for good and inexpensive restos.

[fickle]

Not sure if Mr Jerk is open for lunch on Sundays but they make a fantastic jerk pork on coco bun with oxtail gravy that's super yummy. On Wellesley, east of Sherbourne on the south side.

[phoenikia]

Sounds great, fickle. Added to my list- if they aren't open on Sunday, I'll check it out another time.

[cinnamon girl]

Mr Jerk is good (across from Food Basics) but I can't remember if there are a lot of places to sit? I've only done take out. I'm with Food face on giving Ginger another shot. Maybe try again ordering something else? The vermicelli with grilled meat (of your choice) and a spring roll is always good. Their wonton soup is kind of a VietChine hybrid. The dumplings are filled generously with shrimp and little else. . . comes in a large bowl of broth w/ bok choy etc. And of course there are the usual phos which I enjoy but purists might take issue with.

[food face]

I too find the won ton soup generous with both lovely dumplings as well as good rich broth. Their tom yum is great as well. Creamy and tangy. It's excellent with the addition of their won tons. Also, their smoothies rival the juice bar's accross the street. They are made with fresh fruit crushed ice and syrup that is not too sweet. Ask them to put in fresh lime juice too. They are very inexpensive too boot. I always try to tip ginger staff at this location, they are so sweet and hardworking and don't seem to get properly acknowledged judging by the amount of people that by-pass the tip jar. Hounders,I realize it's not high end vietnamese so spare me the "it's better at______ spiel" Love this Ginger location. Love it.

[phoenikia]

thanks for the recs at Ginger, food face & cinnamon girl. Maybe I have ordered badly in the past.

Also thanks for the Mr. Jerk rec, cinnamon girl.

[cinnamon girl]

Good point. Actually at all the Ginger locations I'd wager those people are undertipped. While you order yourself at the cash and pay, they DO deliver your food to you. At the Church & Wellesley location they bring you your cutlery too. Hmmmm going to have to tom yum now. I didn't realize you could get it with their good dumplings!

[pinstripeprincess]

if you were willing to go south of gerrard by a tiny distance then i would have suggested doner kebab house (east side of yonge across from red & white). great house made hot sauce. if you need more meat (and when i'm sharing i opt for this) then a couple bucks more will have you doubled up.

otherwise tokyo grill right around wellesley and yonge (west side) though i'm not exactly sure they're open sunday, i can't see why they wouldn't be.

[phoenikia]

Thanks pinstripeprincess- haven't tried doner kebab house, or tokyo grill before. Have added them to my list.

[deabot]

I second Doner Kebab House-my coworkers and I eat here at least once a week, it's that good and filling!

[phoenikia]

Ok, will have to give Doner Kebab House a try- I was tempted to go in this Sunday. I walked past while I was on my way to meet a friend for lunch in another neighbourhood, and I didn't want to ruin my appetite. Murphy's Law- my plans fell through an hour later, and I ended up with a mediocre sandwich in another part of town.

Hopefully, I'll get a chance to try Doner Kebab House this Sunday!

[food face]

:Phoenikia. I work in the area and feel your plight. So let me see if I can help out in any way.
Ghazale's on Wellesley just east of Church St. makes super cheap and fresh middle eastern salads as well as great samosas. I get half rice and lentils with half taboule and it's like $2.50 or something crazy like that. The Ginger Vietnamese is always satisfying and has light and healthy options. It's better than the Yonge and Bloor location and definately nicer inside. Not sure which location you were'nt impressed with? Their fresh rolls are great with a side of their coconut sauce. They are $1.75 each. I don't remember the name but the sushi place just south of Wellesely and Yonge (its got a modern atmosphere and is a double store front) has incredibly fresh sushi grade tempura salmon avocado rolls for around $5! Above all, try the shawarma or burger at Yummi's Middle eastern sandwich spot around 2-3 blocks north of Wellesley on the west side of Yonge. I have been a long time advocate of their garlic dill sauce. Yummi's has a red sign. Good luck to you.

[focioncroci]

I second Yummi's for their shawarma. The garlic dill sauce is amazing!

[phoenikia]

thanks for your recs, food face and focionroci. Never tried the garlic dill sauce at Yummi's before- I don't remember that they ever added that garlic dill sauce to to my shawarma a the Yonge and Eg location.

[TorontoJo]

Is Wellesley and Parliament too far for you? If not, you could go to Raashna for South Indian and Sri Lankan food. I like the dosas (though I am by far an expert on them) and the string hoppers. Avoid the beef dishes -- the beef I had last tough was so tough as to be almost inedible.

[TorontoJo]

BTW, I have no idea whether Raashna is open for lunch on Sunday and a quick search didn't turn up a web site. Sorry!

[vorpal]

The website is:
http://www.rashnaa.com

And it looks like they are open for lunch on Sunday. I definitely second this recommendation!

[phoenikia]

Thanks TorontoJo and vorpal,
thanks for letting me know they are open Sunday- have been meaning to try Rashnaa for years now...

[ctl98]

Red and White is a very good shawarma/falafel place. Yummy BBQ has cheap, good Korean food. Not Just Noodle on Wellesley and Yonge has competent Chinese food. There's a crepe place on Church and Wellesley that used to get good reviews. Haven't been there though.

[phoenikia]

Thanks for your recs. What specific dishes does Not Just Noodle do well?

What do you like to order at Yummy BBQ?

[vorpal]

In the same neighbourhood, Tokyo Grill (west side of Yonge just north of Wellesley) offers excellent home-style Japanese food (i.e. not much sushi - you can't go wrong with their tonkatsu curry, their croquettes, etc). Their wasabi ice cream is an amazing end-of-meal treat, too!

Edit: not sure if it's open Sunday for lunch. I should read more carefully before I reply! I think it may be, but I'm not certain.

[phoenikia]

thanks vorpal!

[ChalkBoy]

Crepe It Up.

Avoid: Veda.

[phoenikia]

thanks! Will give Crepe It Up a try, sometime soon.