For as long as I can remember living in Richmond Hill, the neon signage of 3 coins open kitchen has been lit. Being a surviving staple in the downtown Richmond Hill core for near 60 years it is as much a part of the town as the heritage homes or the World War monument. It's a reminder of our small town routes, and pangs me with nostalgia when I think about everything it has seen change around it in that time.
It had been some time since my last venture in for a quick fried egg sandwich on the go, and being that I hadn't been in a true open kitchen greasy spoon in ages I decided to venture in.
I'll be frank about this place - it aint pretty. The floors have seen better days and many of the chairs, look dated (then again that is what they're going for). However, I feel like a quick clean up could really make this place pop once again. The aforementioned Neon lights have not been on in ages and the outside white wash finish is getting weather beaten and dirty. BUT don't judge this book by it's cover, like a seasoned veteran this place has character and a story. And I guarantee if you sit still long enough you can hear it.
Alright, enough romantic nostalgia
I entered and was warmly greeted by the cook and lone waitress and was offered any seat I would like. being an open kitchen purist I sat on a bar stool steps away from the cook and a cup of coffee was immediately place in front of me. Had I been a smoker (and had smoking been allowed indoors today) this would have been the perfect time + place to drink said coffee and enjoy said smoke while reading the days news.
I should add that despite the place being busy for 1 server, she was impeccable, she seemed to have an uncanny mental trigger for knowing when my coffee hit half mast and was on me about refills right away. The coffee never even had a chance to cool and I'm sure I had about 5 cups before leaving (still shaking 2 days later).
Perusing the menu I saw many basics and classic fare and a few additions (like egg whites only) for the health conscious (don't be a wiener and order an egg whites at a greasy spoon - that's a cardinal sin...COME ON). I decided on sticking with my breakfast go to and asked for the Eggs Benedict with Pemale bacon instead of ham.
The blessing and the curse of an open kitchen is that you can see how everything is made, and my only criticism was that the hollandaise sauce was heated in the microwave before being added to my dish...tsk tsk. However that being said, the 2 pemale STEAKS that adorned my english muffins, acted as a landing pad for my perfectly cooked eggs and nuked holly-sauce.
Judges: ITS GOOD!
Despite my concerns the meal was tasty, filling, a great value and made quick as can be.
Now despite this semi glowing review, you might be asking: "Well heck Kris, why the 3 star" . Well friend lemme tell you, 3 coin is a greasy spoon and it doesn't pretend be anything more or anything less. It manages your expectations and delivers consistently (more than I can say for some ex girlfriends...hey-yooooo LOL). I kid. But to give this place a 5/4 star would be to set your expectations sky high. In my books its a 3-3.5 BUT an incredibly strong one at that. I challenge you to disagree, in fact I bet you try this place out and struggle to give it anything less than a 4.
Some might call this place a dive.... but it's my local dive.....and I hope it never changes read more