Michael's Birthday Dinner

Amber's Photo.

My friend Michael invited me out to his birthday dinner on Friday. I know him through my other friend, Rob. They all work together at Nadurra an eco-friendly, hardwood flooring company near Yorkdale Mall.

Michael had e-mailed me earlier in the week telling me about the dinner. It was going to be at Churrasco Villa, a Portuguese restaurant located on Eglinton, near Mount Pleasant. Only a few blocks from where I live. He said they were going to meet there between 5-6:00 p.m., but he'd get back to me to confirm the exact time.

When Friday rolled around I still hadn't heard back from him. No problem, I thought. I only live about 5 minutes from the restaurant. I didn't think they'd be able to get there that early coming from work and having to worry about traffic and parking. 5:00 p.m. rolled around and still no word.

At 6:00 I sent Michael a text and told him to let me know when they arrived at the restaurant. A short time later he replied saying they arrived at the restaurant at 5:00. Hm. I walked over quickly.

Everyone had already ordered their food sometime between 5:30 and 5:45. When I got there they had just been served. I glanced through the menu, but instead, to be quick, asked for suggestions. Brian said, the fire-grilled chicken was good. So I ordered the double-leg with seasonal vegetables and rice pilaf.

The waiter brought my dinner less than five minutes later (I'm estimating). I believe he put my order in ahead of the queue so I could join the others at my table who were already eating. That was nice of him.

It was good seeing everyone again. I don't go in as often to help at Nadurra. Normally I go in and help with labeling samples at the office. And, sometimes, they ask me to help set up or tear down at trade shows. I think they're trying to cut down on costs now. That's alright. I'd rather have my Fridays off to tell you the truth.

I got the chance to see Sandro again. He left the company a few months to a year after I had first started going in. I thought he was a really nice guy. Brian, Ian and Samantha were also there along with Ian's wife and daughter and Michael's friend, Gary, and Michael's wife, Amber. Sandro brought his young son, Luka (sp?) too.

After dinner Michael, Gary and I hung out a bit longer. We grabbed beverages at the nearby Timmies and headed over to the new Minto condos on Yonge. They have a courtyard with outdoor seating. Since it was nice out we decided to take advantage of that instead of sitting inside.

We hung out there for an hour or so and talked about a variety of things from the condition of Gary's father who is in hospital to Shin Dong-hyuk, the Korean man who escaped notorious Camp 14 in North Korea.

It was nice hanging out with the guys. I'm happy I made it out. Even if they almost forgot about me at the beginning of the night.

Caribbean Bistro

Last Saturday I went to Caribbean Bistro with my friend Gabe for lunch. He was going there with his friend from work, Ron, and invited me along. Ron is from Trinidad and is always on the lookout for authentic Caribbean restaurants.

We met up at around 11:30. The restaurant is in my neck of the woods on the east side of Yonge a few blocks north of Eglinton. Since we arrived relatively early the only other person there was the proprietor, Sheila.

I don't normally eat Caribbean food, so it took me some time to peruse the menu. I have had roti before and decided on a curried beef and potato version. Gabe ordered stewed beef with a side of rice and peas and Ron had the Callaloo and beef with rice. Gabe and I each had a cup of Jamaican Blue Mountain coffee too. It was really good.

The portions were decent and the food was tasty and reasonably priced. Sheila was quite friendly and even took the time to chat a little.

Echo Sushi - $13.99 AYCE Lunch

My friend Ying and I went to Echo Sushi for lunch a little while ago. I had gone there once before with my roommate, Naomi, and her friend Markus. It's an All-You-Can-Eat Japanese restaurant on the west side of Yonge in between Eglinton and Davisville.

My previous favorite place for AYCE sushi was Ajimi (at Yonge and Davisville). They charge $11.99 for lunch. Echo Sushi is a little more expensive at $13.99, but you get a lot more selection. And better stuff too (like rainbow rolls and things like that). Ajimi doesn't even offer dessert at lunch time (and Echo does).

So, while dinner (at $18.99) is great at Ajimi... I'd say pay the $2 more and go to Echo for AYCE sushi at lunchtime.

Water Main Break

Late last week I was walking along the sidewalk on the south side of Eglinton near Yonge when I saw a small fountain of water shooting out from the ground. I thought it was odd, but didn't think too much about it. It wasn't a lot and it just flowed into the sewer on the street.

Well that small leak turned into a torrent by Friday evening. When I returned from hockey early Saturday morning Eglinton east of Yonge was blocked off. The water shooting out of the ground there flowed onto Eglinton and the overflow went south on Yonge past Sudan (the set of traffic lights).

I was a bit concerned that my condo might be affected in some way. But, when I got home my water was still on and I didn't have any other issues. After putting my stinky hockey gear in the washing machine I headed downstairs to take some photos.

By this time the police had blocked all traffic going both east and west on Eglinton between Yonge and Holly. There were a few news vehicles there too. I stayed on the north sidewalk and snapped some photos. No one bothered me there.

I overheard the TTC subway was flooded. The buses had to be diverted down Holly while they looked into fixing the problem. Surprisingly, the street was opened not long after.

I didn't hear anything else regarding the break until Monday when I was doing deliveries up Yonge for Sid. Dr. Soll's office (in the new Minto south tower, a minute or so from my building) was still without power. They had some extension cords hooked up to the hall outlets in the building to supply their computers and other things. But their unit was basically off the grid. Hopefully it didn't take too long for Hydro to restore their electricity.