Boukan – 452 Kingston Rd, Toronto, ON M4L 1V3
Country: Haiti    
Seating: Small inside seating
Must-try dish: Bak Fritay with Rice 
Dinner guests: RyHy & Young Matt
The high: Hanging out with the owner Amir and staff member Patrick, who taught us about Haiti and its cuisine. 
The low: Goat has been hard to source in the pandemic, so they were out sadly. 

The word “boukan” means campfire in English, and dates back to the days of slavery in Haiti when people would use fires to cook food, gather, and dance. Our new friend Amir is the owner of Boukan in the east-end of the city, and he opened with the intention of sharing Haitian and Creole dishes for Torontonians. 

Haiti is located in the Caribbean, and despite sharing an island with the popular tourist country Dominican Republic, Haitians more commonly speak French and Creole, rather than Spanish. The Haitian roots are French and African, which is also reflected in the cuisine. Like the majority of other Caribbean nations, Haiti’s main drinks likely include pungent rum as a base. As for Boukan, there is rum punch on hand if there are any takers! – supplied by @meraki_mix

The specialty is the Fritay Boxes, which can come in individual portions with one protein, rice, and coleslaw, or it can come on a platter for four people. It’s no surprise that we opted for the platter, and although it appeared massive at first sight, we ate it all and we still had room for dessert.  

The Bak Fritay Box is a custom-made platter where the diner can pick the meat of their choice, and it comes served with fried root vegetables, sweet plantains, green plantains, spicy coleslaw (Pikliz), and rice with peas. Since Amir was out of the Tassot Goat, we developed our Fritay with Tassot Beef, Griyo (Pork), and Chicken Legs. As an additional indulgence, we tagged the Red Snapper onto the order. It comes served fried as an entire fish, and rumour is that eating the eyes gives you good luck, so Ryan was quick to volunteer as tribute. 

Each member of our group had a favourite on the platter, so it’s best to go big to be able to taste everything that Boukan has to offer. But the Fritters did stick out – these balls of fried dough are savoury and taste incredible alone or dipped in one of the many sauces provided. A Fritay is a paradise for fried food lovers alike, as for everyone else, consider it a cheat day! 

Last but not least, the Banana Beignets to finish the meal off. These balls of fried dough are coated in cinnamon and served with a chocolate dip or a very boozy rum and milk liquor for dipping. It’s worth saving a bit of room for at least one of these treats, but you’ll most likely not be able to stop yourself there. 

Amir made us feel welcome in his restaurant, almost as though we were guests in his house. We spent the entire dinner chatting and learning about his country and how the cuisine came to be. There’s a community vibe felt the instant you walk through his doors. 

As a former vegetarian, Amir created his menu to be inclusive for eaters who are vegan, vegetarian, and gluten-free, down to all the sauces available. There’s also an initiative on certain weekends that brings in chefs from various Caribbean countries to make recipes from their homelands to serve to guests, essentially a pop-up to feature other local talent. The sense of community is strong at Boukan, and will make you want to go back to continue being a part of it. 

Eat with you soon, 

Mandrea Bike
(Mat & Andrea)