Eat & Drink
Caplansky's food truck
Caplansky's Deli has officially joining the ranks of gourmet food gone mobile. On Thursday, the neighborhood favourite launched a much-anticipated Food Truck, hitting up the Beaches Jazz Festival for its debut night.
While at the Jazz Festival Friday, I stopped by the truck, nicknamed "Thundering Thelma" (after owner Zane Caplansky's Nana) to check it out.
To start off the meal, my friend and I split a Pickle on a Stick ($2). Yeah, that's exactly what it sounds like. I'm a recent pickle convert - and was eager to try a kosher deli pickle. We ordered our entire meal, were given a number, and stepped aside for a few minutes to wait for our food. The pickle came out first - and not only was it giant, it was also deliciously juicy.
Caplansky's truck had a consistent stream of customers, but little to no line, so our sandwiches came out before we had even finished the pickle. I ordered the traditional smoked meat sandwich ($10, and a favourite) and my friend Mike ordered the BBQ Brisket on a Bun (also $10).
Now, I'm not usually a fan of brisket - but I of course had to at least try it. It was really juicy and saucy (perhaps a little too saucy, in my opinion - but Mike disagreed). The sauce tasted both sweet and tangy, and was a nice complement to the perfectly cooked and seasoned brisket.
The smoked meat sandwich came with the right amount of meat (not too much, but not skimping) and was exactly the one-of-a-kind smoky flavour I've come to expect out of the sandwich in-store. My only complaint is the mustard pump squirts out WAY too fast, essentially drowning my poor sandwich. Luckily there were some plastic forks nearby to help with that situation - I'll be sure to press very slowly next time.
To top off our meal, we shared a bag of Maple and Beef-Bacon donuts (which were actually donut holes). How can you resist that combination? We chose to get 6 ($5), but you can also order 3 ($3), or 12 ($9).
After my first bite, I have to admit I was disappointed. The inside of the donut itself was slightly dry and plain tasting, and the maple glaze over top was lacking a little something, though I couldn't put my finger on it. There was no sign of the beef bacon. After eating three, however, we discovered the problem: all the beef bacon bits had fallen to the bottom of the bag. Once we realized this, and scooped them back onto the donut my opinion changed drastically: they were absolutely delicious. The sweet, sticky maple glaze soaked the bacon bits, providing the perfect compliment to the salty flavour of the beef bacon, and with the extra glaze the donuts no longer seemed dry.
The only thing we didn't try were the fries and coleslaw, but judging by the quality of the rest of the food I imagine it would be similar to the ones found in the Deli.
Thundering Thelma, who has her own Twitter page with updated location information, will be at the Toronto Waterfront Night Market today (Sunday).
Discussion
38 Comments
Sort By Oldest First / Newest First
Subscribe
It is time for all the haters of Caplanskys to bugger off!!
Marc Bernstein.
Caplansky's makes a good sandwich, but it's tough to dish out $10 for a simple meat/bread sandwich, especially from a food truck. Food truck eats should be affordable and simple to chow down, and the only thing this truck has going for it is the simple portion.
If it seems like too much it probably is.
$2 pickles = gouging.
big deal! if you don't want one, don't buy one.
Duckdown, find a new alias and try to be nice for once!
Or open your own place and let us critique you.
Good for Caplansky for giving this a go.
In the deli we charge $8 for a 7oz. sandwich. That's $9.04 with tax. The regular truck price is $7 per sandwich because of the lower costs in operating a truck. Take a look: http://www.torontolife.com/daily/daily-dish/opening-daily-dish/2011/07/22/introducing-thundering-thelma/attachment/caplansky-truck/
I want to thank everyone who stopped by. The hundreds of people who bought sandwiches overwhelmingly liked the food and I loved the way our team came together and managed the service efficiently.
Given all the hoops we have to jump through, bringing great street food to Toronto isn't easy but its something I believe in passionately. We're on a steep learning curve and I appreciate all the feedback.
I can't wait to try the truck, and really, a bucket of fries will cost you $6.00 I don't think a sandwich made with such authenticity is expensive at $10.00
2) $10 for a good deli sandwich is not that unreasonable, plus who wants the change in their pocket. if only it tasted as good as it did when they were cooking out of the monarch tavern, then it would have been well worth the $10.
-aa
Search on Toronto Star's website for more info as Cory Mintz (sp?) did an article recently about the business aspect of things.
Or take a look at Chowhound on the "food truck festival" thread..
That anyone can try and defend the "authenticity" or "slow food" aspect of this truck makes me gag.
I waited a long time for this truck and was sorely disappointed by the result.
Don't even get me started on how far before the horse Zane put his cart. Most shrewd businessmen would have all their ducks in a row before BLASTING the world with PR and hype. Two months of delays and excuses predated this monstrosity.
The worst part: he spent weeks and months talking about this being the "first truck of its kind in the city," completely disregarding all of the other trucks with high-quality food being passed out their windows for quite some time.
To think that there are only going to be more trucks and trailers with his mug splashed across the side (tacky self-absorption much?) makes me throw up in my mouth a little.
Jason
Personally,I prefer my smoked meat sandwiches fatty-the fries are a perfect complement to a great smoked meat or hot tongue sandwich. To the haters of Zane on Chowhound,like the total putz from Brampton, "Duckdown" or "Bill Clinton" AKA "Hooter Inspector": Duckdown you are not merely an idiot,but an anti-semite,a bloody asshole!! Then there's "Googs" another Chowhound snob and anti-semite: eat roasted owl in arsenic with poison oak and French Fried worms in Glatt Kosher Black Flag!! Next,the esteemed "Embee" another overrated chowhound snob-go eat pan fried roasted bengal tiger in mandrake roots with Glatt Kosher Owl feathers and bittersweet chocolate flavored Canada Moonseed!!! Next,and an Academy Award for super-Schmuck and overstuffed idiot from Chowhound-the anti-semite Vinnie Vindamangi!! This clod and wise ass should dine on smoked lion's tail,smothered in marzapan flavored bumblebee venom with ant-eater's knish!!!!
What a foul,super-pretencious,hostile bunch of lousy fucking anti-semitic Chowhound Toronto pricks and bitches!!
I have enjoyed eating Zane's fantastic deli sandwiches,fries,coleslaw,desserts,since my first time there!
I have a great love for an old fashioned deli in Toronto=Zane is bringing back for me and my family memories of the Noshery,the original Shopsys, the Switzers on College,etc.
In addition,other favorite restaurants of mine are Yitzes,United Bakers Dairy,St.Urbain Bagels, What a Bagel,Ponzios in Cherry Hill,New Jersey,Chez Piggy and Pan Chancho in Kingston,Beauty in Montreal,to name a few. To the asshole poster "djorge on August 6: Up Yours!!!
to the poster named FTWK: Bugger off you insect!!
To "Deliguy" or "Toronto Guy": typical snobs and boorish anti-semites-two hostile Toronto schmucks!! My menu for all of you Chowhound Farts who have such hate for Zane & his fantastic deli: first of all,you assholes keep crossing the line-this isn't constructive critical opinions,you're a foul damned bunch of haters and despicable bigots!!!
So,for my favorite Chowhound assholes who keep on attacking Zane and his extraordinary deli: #1=Duckdown,the oaf from Brampton and the Boychick from Bugville,Vinnie Vindamangi: Marc Bernstein's menu: "Chez Gopher" located in Brampton and The North Pole!!: Soup of the day: Glatt Kosher roasted parrot with eagle schmaltz!!! Served with rancid raccoon shit and garlic-flavored moose piss!!! Salad: pokeweed,ragweed,goldenrod and ergot flavored with mink tails and poison hemlock dressing!!!
Sorbet: (Fatal) Napanee Swamp Water and baneberries in Monkshood with butterfly weeds!!
Dinner: sandwich of the day, served on moldy skunk cabbage bread: roasted rare lion steak,served with French Fried tulips in a garlic & Pepe Le Pew broth with Bugs Bunny!!
and roasted Kingstonian coyote,smothered in oil of olay and served with grape nuts and southern fried black henbane in moth ball sauce!! Dessert: 500 Budgie on a stick pie,with Oleander ice cream and fox flavored dingo & TNT for that old blown up feeling!! Our Dingos are stuffed with bat droppings and wombat legs!! Finally, to Duckdown and Vinnie Vindamangi: I piss on you both!
Yours truly, Robert Stroud.
Seriously Robert/Marc, where do you come up with this garbage?
You are certifiably insane
I'd been a regular since Zane was at the Monarch but only been back once since then.
Fair does, I sent Zane a text after apologizing for not leaving a tip and that I would be more than happy to come back with $10 just for the bloke in the kitchen. I did not tell him the whole story but wouldn't be surprised if he heard from one of the decent staff that was working that night. Maybe I will pay a visit this weekend. been a while since I had a good smoked meat sandwich. If she's still there I leave unless Zane is there - and go to the Monarch for a pint grabbing a meat plate at Ghazale first.