Slowly but surely, I’m reconnecting with my former Toronto friends and/or acquaintances. The other night, for instance, I got together with my long-distance nemesis and occasional script collaborator Tara Yelland for dinner at one of my very favorite restaurants: Buca!
Since Tara was working on a production, we ended up sitting down to dinner at a little after 9:00 p.m. – so late that I’m surprised they weren’t offering breakfast specials. Okay, granted, many people eat at 9:00 p.m. EST…but they’re usually in a different time zone. For her part, Tara (who clearly keeps all sorts of crazy hours) promised that, next time, we would eat earlier so that I could take advantage of the early bird specials.
We perused the menu and Tara informed me that pig’s ears and brains were out. Also pancetta and any of the offal dishes. And all the meat dishes.
I completely forgot she was a vegetarian. No wonder we’ve never gone to dinner before!
In the end, all of the plates we ordered were meatless – and excellent – among them…
This terrific mushroom pizza that Tara liked…except for the mushrooms which she picked off and left on her plate (Come on!!!).
The dinner conversation was our first extended communication that didn’t involve email. Over the course of our two hour discussion, I found her endlessly entertaining – but, in the end, surprisingly enigmatic, like the first 50 minutes of an old episode of Murder She Wrote.
She decided to pass on dessert but I convinced her to have a taste of my tiramisu. Apparently, convinced her too well because she almost polished it off all on her own.
The tiramisu proves as hard to crack as my mysterious dining companion.
Despite the absence of meat, a very tasty meal. And terrific night overall – until, I think, I partially separated my shoulder on the walk back to my place. I’m not sure how she did it, but I do hold Tara responsible.
Ahh. Good see Tara again. I think I was one of the handful that posted on her blog when she had it. It was a comfortable place for me to comment as it wasn’t a high traffic blog and there wasn’t any pre-established “family” that I would have to be accepted into. Definitely a person that lives a very opposite lifestyle than me and I enjoyed reading about her quirky self. You should definitely badger her to restart her blog. 😃
Hi Tara! Looks like it was a great dinner and nice to see you guys could get together for a chat.
Unless you were applying for a position at the Ministry of Funny Walks, how on Earth did you separate your shoulder by walking??
(Waving “Hi” to Tara…)
Joe, why is it all your nemesis (Nemesi? Nemesises?) are vegetarians?
So…Cheese Pizza?
Oh and I’m guessing the shoulder separation was because your nemesis cleverly placed a car mirror or tree branch in a poorly lit area along your walking path so you’d “accidentally” hit it and dislocate your shoulder. Those nemeses are crafty!
Tara!! Another familiar face! ‘Ol Lemure eyes. Will she have a guest part in Dark Matter? I was thinking about the girl that they meet when they go to a planet to help some people. You drew her as a redhead… with big eyes. 😉
Yes Joe, I can see why you would not want her hanging around. AS GOOD AS EVER. Speaking of good I just read this via the web site epictimes (Jerry Doyle). The world’s best whiskey comes from Japan’s oldest malt whisky distillery Yamazaki.
Q: what are Kim’s favorite foods? Is she a Vegan or does she have a taste for more exotic endeavors as yours?
Hi Tara!
I thing the hard Tiramisu was the problem of the separate shoulder. But Gary´s idea of a position in the Ministry of Silly Walks is good for me too.
I’m with Tara on this one. I pick the mushrooms out of anything I find them in. Disgusting things! Admittedly, I usually don’t order things with mushrooms in the name . . . it’s usually a big giveaway that there’s going to be mushrooms in it.
Are you sure it wasn’t the ninjas that Tara sent after you on your walk home that hurt your shoulder as you fought them off?
AH, late nite dining, ahhh, tiramisu,yum, Hi to Tara! pizza does look good. Nice to get together with friends, and hope you got your beauty rest, and that you didn’t disturb the sleeping dogs, coming in at a later hour.
My crystal ball tells me Tara may have some good news under her hat that she’ll be telling you about later. See how awesome Toronto is?
My doctors office made an appointment for me at 5:30 pm, which is so convenient that now I’m worried they’ve become concierge docs that will demand payment in gold ingots. I was able to make the appointment for the same day. They even called at 9 pm to say they’d fill a rush prescription for me.
I’m not sure why I find awesome medical service suspicious.
Thought this was kinda interesting: http://www.torontolife.com/informer/toronto-culture/2014/11/04/pin-calendar-shows-post-apocalyptic-toronto-look-like/
I would have eaten the mushrooms….love them!
This looks really cool Joe, a 4D Evangelion release, with a unique story.
http://www.animenewsnetwork.com/news/2014-11-05/evangelion-gets-1st-4d-project-with-brand-new-story/.80691
This part wow
*The “Evangelion the Real 4D” attraction will run in the Universal Studio Cinema 4D theater, which has seats that move back and forth and from side to side. It also has wind, water (mist), scents, smoke, and other effects for an “immersive 4D” experience.*
The article goes on more about it. It’s Japan only, but boy does it sound fun.
Mmmm, mushroom pizza. Mmm. I just ate, but dagnabbit, I am now hungry again.
I learned decades ago to be very careful when offering a taste of my dessert to a girl. It seldom works out well for the guy doing the offering. 🙂
That mushroom pizza looks good. So does the tiramisu. Hopefully your shoulder issue has resolved by now. Nice to see Tara again.