Things I miss about New York City

1. Free delivery. At any time, day or night, I could get the following delivered to my apartment in NYC: beer, groceries, wine, pizza, hamburgers, Mexican food, Spanish food, fast food, bagels and cream cheese, eggs and bacon, steak, liqour, cigarettes (and I don't even smoke) all for the cost of the order, with little to no delivery charge. What can I get delivered to me in Toronto for that? Pizza. Everything else costs extra or just won't come. The lazy part of me hates that!
2. Celebrity sightings. It's true! Friends and I had a game of who saw the most random celebrity in the strangest spot. I used to bump into or spot famous people all the time and not even be phased. Rode on the subway with childhood idols and TV stars without acknowledging them. In Toronto, people make such a big deal about seeing celebs and are all agog during the film fest. Kind of uncool.
3. A 6 pack of beer for $6. The cost of booze is insane here. You would think this was the country with the long prohibition!
4. Buying beer in the corner store. I'm lucky the beer store is so close to my house, but it would be nice to pop in to any deli and pick up a premium 6 pack (especially one for 6 bucks!)
5. The accents! I love it when someone on TV has a real New York accent, because it's so ballsy, so original, so fun to listen to.
6. The pizza. Of course! It's a cliche because it's true. NY pizza, so thin, so cheesy, and available at all hours. Yum.
7. The bagels! I can't wait to go back in December for a bagel and cream cheese. I'm sure it will seem like such a big meal after so long without. The bagels here can't compare, although I do like Montreal bagels, but that's a different animal entirely.
8. The shopping. Toronto has only 2 department stores (I refuse to count Sears) and only one decent discounter. Saks, Bloomingdales, Century 21, and so much more in NYC. Sigh.
9. No tax on clothes!! OK, you have to go to Jersey for that, but it's still closer than we've got here. Tax free doesn't exist in Ontario.
10. Getting to see good bands that I've heard of on Friday and Saturday nights. Toronto is a good city to hear live music. It's a big enough stop that everyone comes. The problem is, they come on their way from NYC so we get the Monday and Tuesday night shows, after they've played in New York on the weekend. I am getting older, people, and need to go to bed early during the week, but still want to see my bands. This is always a dilemma, because, for me, the weekends were meant for concerts and club shows, not Mondays.

My next post will highlight what I prefer about Toronto, but those are important positives about NYC. Add more in the comments if you'd like

Cafe Taste

Last night we spent some time at Cafe Taste in Parkdale. I had read about it on tasteto and was interested in the wine and cheese bar in our neighborhood.
We liked it immediately upon entry: warm, cozy and relaxed, all the tables looked comfortable. It is a small room, with several tables and a bar area. The menu is a long list of dishes with cheese (YUM!) including salads, cheese plates and cheese fondue. We selected a cabernet franc (Calamus) and a cheese plate and the waiter told us he would choose our cheese based on the wine or wines we ordered.
The wines are ordered in 2 oz samples (for a couple of bucks, a good deal), by the glass, 1/2 liter and bottle. The wine selection included some good Ontario wines, and a few from California, France and the like.
We had a good time. The wine was good, as was the cheese, especially the havarti. We definitely want to go back.