Thomas Lavers Cannery Deli, Kensington

[julesrules]

Has anyone checked out this new place? I picked up great spinach lasagne yesterday, made with house pasta and ricotta. The preserves are appealing and well-priced, he even has a deposit program where you can get a buck back for returning the mason jars. Things like the $2 (including deposit) single preserved Meyer lemon and $4 onion jam are very appealing to me - the small mason jars are the perfect amount for trying new things, like kimchi jam. I believe I was dealing with the owner and he was very friendly, getting me samples of everything I expressed interest in.

www.blogto.com/grocery/thomas-lavers-...

[h3llbringer]

Agreed, this place is wonderful, especially for vegetarians. They're actually the vegan suppliers for WVRST's sausages.

[helenhelen]

tried the italian sausage the other day. very tasty! possibly the best veg sausage i have ever tried (aside from linda mccartney brand breakfast sausages from the UK which i love.. but they are not available here in canada)

[Notorious P.I.G.]

This place is great! Everything I've tried there has been awesome.

The ginger beer they're serving now is incredible.

[julesrules]

The kimchee jam I picked up was a big hit when I put it out on a cheese plate. I personally liked it with stilton.

[principessa del pisello]

I tried the kimchee jam last week and paired it with an aged cheddar - really delicious. Thanks for the recco!

[MissBingBing]

The two $8 sandwiches I tried won't bring me back. The vegan reuben was meh.

[Toucan67]

Will be back for more kimchi and other preserves, although my vegan reuben was also not too scintillating. Made with care and good intentions but missing a bit of oomph.

[autopi]

vegan reuben? that sounds ... implausible.

[Toucan67]

They have two meat free sandwiches, including a bahn mi.

I decided against the bahn mi because I truly wondered if it would live up to the version at Bahn Mi boys, which was one of the more enjoyable sandwiches I had last year.

The Reuben I wanted to compare to Hogtown Vegan, which despite the meatless meals is a stodge factory. Plan a walk around the block after you eat there.

In hind sight I realize I may have been given a bahn mi by accident. It places a dstant second to the Boys' tofu. Now I have to go back, for fairness sake.

A sandwich is often a glorified snack to me and the enjoyment has to come from the explosion of tastes bursting out of the bread. I'd go back to Lavers to see what it offers with all the preserves they make in house.

[sumashi]

How does Banh Mi Boy's tofu banh mi compare to Rose's in East Chinatown? I've been meaning to try but haven't been to BMB yet. I love Rose's version though.

[MissBingBing]

BMB's is a more contemporary version of Rose's. Different sauces, etc, freshly deep-fried tofu.

[helenhelen]

i personally really enjoyed the vegan reuben. i had it vegetarian though with cheese. thought the sauce was delish.. the fake meat wasn't bad, the fillings were good, as was the bread. will def be back for more!

[helenhelen]

tried the vegan banh mi but banh mi boys and the cheap chinatown banh mi shops are better, and more worth the price (this one is $7.. the pickles were a bit too wet or something and made my bread a bit soggy on the inside.. i couldn't eat it till 30 min after i bought it and found soggy bread)

reuben all the way!

[pinstripeprincess]

haven't tried anything yet, was considering a sandwich but found out that they served their corned beef cold which turned me off. next time i'm by i might see if they'll sell it to me by the lb to try out steamed at home.

[ylsf]

I really want to try it especially after seeing the BlogTO write up. Thanks for starting a thread about it and for your feedback.

[ylsf]

Passed by today and had a vegan bahn mi. It was pretty tasty but compared to Bahn Mi boys, I prefered Bahn Mi Boys. Better value/taste in my opinion. I will be back to try to Roast Beef and buy some of the kimchi and other preserves (I sampled some kimchi and other items they had out for tasting. I also really liked the smoked ketchup. Often I don't like house made ketchups).

I also got a glass of the root beer they make. Really different/interesting. I enjoyed that. He offered me a sample even after I ordered it just to make sure I would like that style so that was nice of him.

I also picked up some ravioli and pasta to try. I will probably make it for lunch tomorrow.

He mentioned they will have a ginger based pop later in the week.

[ylsf]

A follow up . Enjoyed the pasta and ended up picking up more for a family meal this past weekend. I also bought some of the Ginger Beer pop this past weekend and it has a nice kick to it! They don't do their pop like Hey Meatball and others where they just add syrup/flavour to sparkling water. They have it kegged at a brewery and serve it on tap.