I love having east end friends. They don’t ask me to travel all the way across the city for dinner on a Friday night. They’re totally into amazing places in, say, Leslieville

So, last night I met my friend Andrea at Skin + Bones. We shared house-cured charcuterie with pickles, dijon, and crostini. We split two specials, the duck breast and the short rib. We drank Pearce Predhomme Chenin Blanc and Meldville Chardonnay, and Cave Spring Pinot Noir, and big glasses of Touriga Nacional and Corvina. Our server treated us to glasses of Jurançon. We laughed a lot and I said something terribly douchey about Tannat. Great dinner.

On the way home I stopped in at Chez Nous for one last glass, a big-ass Marechal Foch amidst a very busy crowded joint. I didn’t stay for a second; I was knackered.