Sometimes OK is just…OK. Other times OK means good. Which is the category that A-OK Foods falls into. Owned by the same three men who own Yours Truly on Ossington (Aleem Jamal-Kabani, Dan Hawkins, and Matt Cherkas), A-OK Foods was inspired by the popular snack menu at Yours Truly.  The latter now focuses solely on tasting menus and the popular snacks made their way into their own space on Queen Street West. The casual restaurant sits above a convenience store — and to be honest, the first time I walked by the sign, I thought A-OK was actually the convenience store. I couldn’t figure out why anyone would want to eat ramen in there.

The menu is small, but packed with flavour. The standard shoyu ramen ($10.50) is a warm bowl of house-made ramen noodles in a chicken broth served with thin slices of pork neck cooked sous vide then grilled.  Duck fat, yuzu juice, and smoked fish powder add richness to the bowl of noodles, along with a deep fried nori chip with sesame seeds and half of a soy seasoned egg. Despite all the ramen shops popping up all over the city, A-OK sets itself apart by proudly making their own noodles and their own tare sauce (soy sauce flavouring). The menu has hints of Japanese, Korean, Chinese and Mexican flavours.

The chino wings ($9.50) are one of the most popular items on the snack menu. Prepared dry with togarashi salt (a chili pepper salt), Sichuan salt, scallions, arbol chilies and served with a chili vinaigrette, they are addictive.

On my next visit I vow to try the new soft shell crab roll ($16), which is served up like a banh mi sandwich (and unlike the name, not served as a sushi roll). A full soft shell crab is deep fried and stuffed into French bread with carrots, daikon pickles, sriracha mayo, salted chili, cucumbers and coriander. Served with the crab’s crispy claws poking out — it’s more than just an OK sandwich.

Follow A-OK Foods on Twitter: @AOKfoods

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