At Contra; Bite Fuss

The local wave of COVID-19 related news started Thursday night. Numerous live events scheduled for the week-end on my social calendar were canceled. On Saturday morning, at my laundromat, a regular complained that it took her an hour to get through check-out at the grocery store yesterday. I told her that I do my errands right after laundry so I'll be in good shape. How wrong I was. By the time I made it there at 8:00 AM, the aisles were packed with shoppers. Luckily, I was only doing a regular restocking of a few non-perishable items and was able to get out quickly through the self-checkout service. The streets seemed less busy that morning as I finished my to-do list. With a cold, cloudy day and even alternative options scuttled (the list of cancelled plays, dance recitals, and so on grew), I stayed home.

By Sunday morning, with Yoga studios and the YMCA finally shuttered overnight, I decided to take a walk instead. I visited Contra Café, a small shop nestled in the residential neighbourhood at Shaw and Yarmouth. I noticed it during my constitutional last week-end. It was still busy today, but traffic trickled off during my time there. To get through all the digital newspapers, I ordered an Apple Gruyere Scone ($3.09), a Pear Brioche ($3.09) and a Peppermint tea ($2.65). The scone was good: crusty exterior and a soft interior, a slight earthiness from the cheese, but alas not much apple flavour. The brioche was blandly doughy except for the tasty top third which was stuffed with sweet pear chunks; not sure why it wasn't better distributed. The tea packed a refreshing punch and likely came from the Social Tea and Coffee company.

I made my way down Shaw to Little Italy. A small cafe/deli (called Hot Pastrami?) had just replaced a Churros vendor (Pancho's Bakery) near College and Grace. What bad timing to open right now so maybe I can buy lunch to support them. It turned out to be a mixed blessing. Their menu was simple: coffee, pastrami sandwich, salad, and some ice cream dessert at night. I opted for the $12 combo which included the sandwich, coleslaw, pickle, and chips. The first mixed results: the pastrami was great but the coleslaw and pickles were too sour and soggy.

The second mixed results: the Italian owner had some friends visiting. The older one, straight out of central casting, was convinced the current situation was caused by a "China problem" hence the solution was obvious. The younger couple pushed back against his xenophobic views. The woman was peeved because she had relatives under quarantine in Italy. No minds were changed though and it ended in an impasse.

But it was too nice an afternoon for gloomy thoughts about the state of human nature. So I left for home basking in the sunshine and humming a few tunes.

 Update: Turns out after some months that the little Italian deli was christened Papuccino Espresso Bar.