Charles, a musicologist, has closeted himself off from romantic entanglements. He keeps himself occupied with work, casual friendships, food visits from his mother, Helen, and Leonard Bernstein's music. Isabel, a brokenhearted poet, moves into the apartment next door and has only her visiting father, George, for company. After Charles rescues Isabel from a half-hearted attempt at suicide, his loving yet sometimes overbearing mother tries to push the two of them together. The parents themselves finally meet and all fitfully and agreeably navigate a path filled with food, laughter and romance, surprisingly discovering that true love can happen when you least expect it.