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Journalist Sarah Efron explores strip malls and hole-in-the-wall restaurants in search of the city's best ethnic food

Wednesday, April 9, 2014

A new Haitian hotspot hits St. Clair

Haitian food is finally getting some love in Toronto. In the fall, Jen Agg from the Black Hoof opened a much acclaimed Haitian spin-off restaurant, Rhum Corner, with her Haitian hubby Roland Jean. And just a few weeks ago, La Créole, a French Caribbean restaurant, opened up at 810 St. Clair Ave West, between Oakwood and Bathurst. It's a good thing, because since the closing of La Belle Jacmel, there had been no place to find Haitian food in Toronto. 



La Créole serves food from the French Caribbean, including Martinique and Guadeloupe, but as the chef is Haitian, classics from that country dominate the menu. Marinad (shown below) are bits of fried dough, typically sold as a street food in Haiti. Akra malanga are bite-sized fritters made of malanga, a starchy root vegetable. Both are served with tasty but searingly spicy side of shredded vegetables, called pikliz. 


Mains include le toro, a hefty, rich beef stew, and creole chicken, baked and coated with a spicy tomato sauce. Both are served with djon djon rice, made with the elusive djon djon mushroom only found in Haiti. "We get it from Montreal because you can't find it here in Toronto," explains owner Ben Cherette, a Haitian community organizer and event planner. Without a Haitian grocery in the city, La Créole is picking up the slack, and customers can purchase bags of djon djon, as well as sweet cassava, Haitian coffee and Couronne, a gaggingly sweet Haitian soft drink.




In the next few months, Cherette plans to introduce new menu items from other French-speaking Caribbean islands, such as bokit sandwiches, which are also served at Le Ti Colibri in Kensington Market. He also wants to turn La Créole into a live venue. Thursdays you can learn kizomba, a sensual dance with Angolan origins that is popular in Haiti. Fridays and Saturdays will be live music and DJ nights, focused on sultry Caribbean genres like souk, compas and troubodour.  

At the bar, Cherette will be serving cocktails, classic Haitian rums like Barbancourt, and cremas, a dessert-like drink made of coconut cream, cinnamon, anise and rum. "We want to have things you can't get anywhere else and have people feel like they're immersing themselves in the French créole culture," explains Cherette. 

La Créole restaurant is located at 810 St. Clair Ave West; telephone: 416 651 8228.

Hours: La Créole is closed Monday. Tuesday to Thursday open 4:30pm til 10pm; Friday and Saturday 4:30pm til 11pm; Sunday 12pm til 6pm.

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