Top 5 Halo Halo in Mississauga
Published July 11, 2015 at 4:48 am
One of my all-time favorite summer time frozen treats is a popular Filipino dessert called halo-halo, which consists of a base of fruit preserves and sweet beans that’s layered with shaved ice and topped with evaporated milk and ice cream. It’s served in a tall glass or a bowl and can be eaten like a sundae or mixed together, creating a slushy, creamy mix of ingredients.
American chef, TV personality and one of my favorite food celebrities, Anthony Bourdain, tried halo-halo for the first time on his TV show Parts Unknown at a popular international Filipino fast-food chain called Jollibee. He posted a photo of it on Twitter, calling it “oddly beautiful.” Bourdain’s description of Jollibee’s halo-halo was, “dig deep and you hit delicious stratas of red beans, white beans, chickpeas, cubes of red and green jello, young white coconut, shaved ice, and is that flan? It makes no goddamn sense at all. I love it!”
The Tagalog word halo-halo literally translates to mix-mix and refers to the assortment of ingredients needed to create this refreshing and colourful Filipino treat. Halo-halo can be any combination of the following ingredients (which are usually preserved in syrup) such as macapuno (shredded coconut), red munggo (mung beans), patani (kidney beans), navy beans, garbanzo beans, langka(jackfruit), kaong (sugar palm fruit which can be clear, red or green), nata de coco (jelly-like consistency of fermented coconut water that can be clear, red or green) and gulaman (Filipino jelly made with agar). Other common ingredients include saba (plantain), kamote(sweet potato), pinipig (flattened and toasted young rice), leche flan (cream caramel), ube halaya (purple yam paste), ube sorbetes (purple yam ice cream), and some like to add white sugar for extra sweetness.
Here are the top 5 halo-halo in Mississauga:
Happy Birthday Cakes is located along Erin Mills Parkway just off of Credit Valley Rd. offering Filipino baked goods and snacks and is known for their customized cakes and Filipino desserts. It is the only place that offers a lighter, healthier alternative to the traditional version of halo-halo. Their version is low in sugar (no added sugar) and every ingredient is made from scratch and includes garbanzo beans, sweet potato, jackfruit, plantain, navy beans, crème caramel and toasted rice.
4) B’s Sizzling
B’s Sizzling Kitchen is an independent resto hidden on a commercial side street near Pearson Airport. It truly is a gem of a find that specializes in Filipino fusion cuisine and blends traditional Filipino dishes with North American and Asian flavours. Think California Filipino fusion food truck meets quaint Filipino karaoke bar.
Their version of halo-halo is a fusion of non-traditional ingredients including Rice Krispies (the cereal), mango and vanilla ice cream with preserved shredded coconut, plantains, sugar palm fruit, Filipino jelly and mung beans. It’s topped with a smooth and creamy cream caramel and purple yam paste — both of which are made in-house.
Somthin’ Sweet 4 U has its roots in baking just that – something sweet. It’s a home business that flourished and now has three locations in Mississauga (and one in Brampton), with the newest dine-in restaurant located in the Heartland area. It serves up all your Filipino favorites and then some.
Halo-halo is especially popular in the summer months and people will line up for it at your local Filipino resto’s (and it is well worth the wait). Something Sweet 4 U pre-makes the base of ingredients for the unexpected rush of halo-halo lovers. The ingredients include preserved mung and navy beans, shredded coconut, coconut jelly, crème caramel and purple yam paste (both made in-house). It’s topped with purple yam ice cream.
2) FV Foods
FV Foods Mississauga is one of four locations for the popular Filipino restaurant and another shop of all sorts that specializes in Filipino baked goods and cuisine. It also has a retail section of Filipino food brands and about a dozen seats where you can dine.
FV Foods prepares the toasted young rice and purple yam paste in-house and serves their halo-halo with preserved shredded coconut, jackfruit, sugar palm fruit, coconut jelly, mung and navy beans. It’s topped with a heaping serving of purple yam ice cream.
Quiapo Quiapo is located in the Deer Run Plaza near Creditview and Burnhamthorpe and is the only restaurant in Mississauga that honours Kamayan-style eating (which they’ve coined Boodle Fight). It is a military style of eating where food is presented on top of tables lined with banana leaves and eaten with bare hands — also known as Kamayan-style, which means “with hands.” They also serve other popular Filipino dishes and Cebu-style lechon and Filipino-style breakfast on weekends.
Quiapo Quiapo’s halo-halo is of epic proportions and I just love how the dish is plated in a bowl with the ingredients displayed on top instead of the bottom — it makes it much easier to mix and eat. It includes purple yam paste and toasted rice — both of which are made in-house — preserved navy and mung beans, shredded coconut, sugar palm fruit, jackfruit and Filipino jelly.
Top 5 Filipino Restaurants in Mississauga
If you aren’t familiar with Filipino cuisine, it may be hard to know where to start.
- Quiapo! Quiapo! – PERMANENTLY CLOSED
- Somethin’ Sweet 4U – Latimer
- FV Foods
- Halo Halo World Cafe
- B’s Sizzling Kitchen