Ten Great Hot Drinks in Toronto

September 26, 2008

10 Hot Drinks Toronto I'll admit it, these chilly mornings have me thinking about where I put my "layers". Anything thickly woven that was once attached to a sheep.

Our teeny tiny summer is officially over, and as hard we try to avoid eye-contact, we can all feel Fall sitting there, staring at us. And the best defence is a good... hot beverage. Nothing says "I'm not scared of you, cold!" like an unbelievably creamy warm drink (though usually when I'm backtalking the cold, it's less PG-rated).

This year I'm mixing it up with my autumnal beverages, looking for some of Toronto's more differenter options -- beyond lattes.

Overnight frost? Forecasting 11 degrees? Whatever, this teh tarik is delicious.

Pictured above: Menu @ The Smith (left), Deep Immune @ Fresh (top right), Matcha Latte @ Tealish (bottom right). Photograph of teh tarik courtesy of Patrick Smith. Photograph of Bombay Bhel courtesy of Jerry Koh.

Teh Tarik (Restoran Malaysia)

Literally translating as "pulled tea", the enjoyment of Malaysian teh tarik is partly in the preparation. A strong black sweetened milky tea is poured from height back and forth between two containers. Done to mix and froth the drink, it also cools it down to an ideal drinking temperature. Restoran Malaysia makes the perfect cup. More...

Cà phê sữa nóng (Phở Hưng)

It's a bad idea to drink sweetened Vietnamese coffee before needing to sit quietly somewhere. That's what peppermint tea is for. But if what you need is to run around in circles, or chatter like a chipmunk on crank, this is the drink for you. It's prepared by perching a small metal filter on your glass, dripping strong coffee over the condensed milk in your cup. Which you then get to stir up, turning it from black to a luscious sugary brown. More...

Bicerin (SOMA)

Bicerin laughs in the face of mochaccinos. Named after the Piedmontese word for a "small glass", Bicerin (pronounced "bee-chair-een") is a deadly combination of drinking chocolate, espresso and milk. SOMA kicks the milk part up a notch by topping it off with whipped cream (version above is prepared without whipping cream). More...

Po Cha - Tibetan Butter Tea (Little Tibet Restaurant)

I'm not going to lie to you. Drinking po cha is like drinking hot salted butter. But in a good way. Go on the coldest day of the winter, and feel the insulating layer of flub grow with each sip. It'll warm you up from the inside out, and maybe kind of make you want to rub toast on yourself. More...

Ovalatte (Ella's Uncle)

Just the word Ovaltine makes me feel about 5 years old, and conjures up my Nanna's kitchen. Mash Ovaltine together with a latte (enter the Ovalatte), and the grownup who needs a caffeine hit finds peace with the inner grandchild. Ella's Uncle also prepares Ovaltine "straight up!". More...

Matcha Latte (Tealish)

You have the run of the shelves at Tealish; they will brew any of their teas into something hot you can take away. But it's all about their matcha lattes. Matcha (a finely ground vibrantly green tea) is sweet with grassy notes. Matcha prepared badly is terrible, but Tealish knows what they're doing. Leaves you feeling invigorated in a slow-burn way. More...

Ethiopian Coffee (Addis Ababa)

Doro wot and injera are scrumptious, but they're really a means to the Ethiopian coffee ceremony. Roasting beans are wafted at your table, and then the jebena (clay coffee pot) arrives, with a tray of small china cups, and a heady incense. Definitely opt-in for sugar. Enough will be left in the jebena for refills, but when it starts to look less like a liquid and more like a solid, you've gone too far (or just far enough). More...

Masala Chai (Bombay Bhel)

"Chai tea latte" is advertised on every sidewalk chalkboard in Toronto. Getting good masala chai, that's harder. Chai just means tea, maybe implying milky tea, so "chai tea latte" is like saying "milky tea tea with milk". The full-on spiced version, masala chai, is heaven, with strong flavours of ginger and cardamom. Find it at Bombay Bhel. More...

Deep Immune (Fresh)

After all the sugar and caffeine on this list, you might want something to bolster your immune system, and calm the twitches. See the restorative hot beverages at Fresh. Deep Immune looks (really) foul, but made of apple, dates, banana, ginger, lemon and chywanprash (an ayurvedic paste of 49 plants, fruits, herbs and minerals), it's actually quite lush. More...

Apple Chai Tea (The Smith)

The Smith on Shaw is a good starting point to ease out of the regular latte rut. Owner Elana Ginsberg takes her well-prepared lattes and adds shots of Italian syrups to create pumpkin spice, peppermint or peanut butter variations, as well as Apple Chai Tea. Apple Chai Tea is made with pre-mixed chai, but in this case it's not about the authenticity, it's about sipping on a piece of apple pie. More...

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