After moving into a new neighbourhood, my usual MO is to try all well reviewed restaurants nearby. In North York, this was a daunting task. In Richmond Hill, the list of places to try was shorter but more planning was required, especially with Alivia in tow. One of our first stops was 3 Coins Open Kitchen, an all-day breakfast diner on Yonge north of Major Mackenzie.

Atmosphere: 3 Coins was a quintessential diner with lots of primary colours, bar seating and cozy leather booths, mini jukeboxes included. Each booth also had its own coat hook, which was a great touch. The diner had two seating areas and a lot more tables than it appeared from the outside. Most tables were occupied with families and groups of friends. There was one other baby while we were there.

Service: Parking was available behind the restaurant off Arnold Cres, one benefit of the suburbs that I will not tire of. Our server was friendly, brought us over a high chair and even wiped it off for us. So far in my experience dining out with Alivia, this is not a common occurrence and I really appreciated the extra attention. Plates arrived quickly and our coffees were refilled before they were empty.

Food: Stephen ordered the classic 3 eggs special with bacon, home fries and toast while I ordered my usual, eggs benedict with bacon for protein and a side of home fries. We added a side order of breakfast sausages, a plate of 4, that we had trouble finishing. Stephen’s plate was solid and a filling meal for under $10. His over-easy eggs were cooked well with runny yolks and the toast well buttered. The cook on the bacon was a tad crispier than how we fry it at home, but no complaints. I really liked their home made hash, which was well seasoned and crispy.

My eggs benedict had perfectly poached eggs (makes me want to ask what mould they’re using) and a creamy, lemony yellow hollandaise sauce. This was A+ sauce in terms of the smooth texture and rich flavour. Overall our breakfast at 3 Coins Open Kitchen was comforting and homey.

Although we live in North York and Stephen’s parents are in Markham, his childhood dentist is actually in Richmond Hill where his dad used to work. So, whenever one of his appointments rolls around, we find ourselves driving North on Yonge all the way up to Elgin Mills. As is our habit, whenever we find ourselves in a new neighbourhood, we started looking for lunch spots. I mean we were already driving there anyways, might as well fit in a good meal. Amy’s Fish and Chips was the perfect fit. Well priced, well reviewed and Stephen loves fish and chips. After finding this spot, we may not need to find any more.

Stephen and I stopped by Amy’s on a Saturday around 11am. The shop was located in a fairly new strip mall and had just opened last year. We were the first customers of the day and was invited to choose a seat anywhere. There were plenty of tables to eat-in, and take-out was also available. There was only one server (owner? Amy?) working that day and the service was casual but attentive. Once we sat down, she came by with menus and then left us to read through them. After ordering, the plates arrived quickly and while we ate she peeled potatoes. I really liked the comfortable, homey feel.

Both Stephen and I opted for the Cod Lunch Special, which was less than $10 each, and included fish, chips, a scoop of coleslaw and a pop. We added a small gravy on the side for $1, but should’ve gone with the large for $1.75. The fish was fried really well, super light crispy batter on the outside and moist, tender cod on the inside. I really liked the the seasoning of the batter and the texture of the fish. For me the thick cut fries were good, but I prefer mine a bit crispier. I felt the same about the gravy, good but could be a bit more savoury.

Overall lunch at Amy’s Fish and Chips was a great value and very satisfying with great fish and solid chips.

Cluck Clucks was a small shop on The Esplanade that has a menu focused on chicken and waffles, one of my favourite brunch dishes. Their menu included fried chicken alone, served on a waffle or sandwiched between two quarter waffles. I stopped by earlier in July with The Hubby, a fried chicken connoisseur, to try out their version of the brunch staple. We happened to drop by on #NationalFriedChickenDay when Cluck Cluck’s was offering a great $5 walk-in special. This meant the restaurant was crazy hectic with a constant stream of customers. In the busy fray, The Hubby and I managed to grab two bar seats by the window to enjoy our meal.

Disclaimer: All food and drinks reviewed below were provided complimentary. All opinions expressed below are wholly mine.

The quick service restaurant was colourfully decorated with a playful wall mural (flying drumsticks and a waffle), orange walls and bright red seats. In total, there were around 20 seats with one table for large groups and a handful of bar seats facing out into the street. With the large crowd, there was an understandable wait for our made to order, freshly fried chicken. Both The Hubby and I stuck to classic chicken and waffles, ordering the What The Cluck (2 piece chicken on a waffle) and Mother Clucker (3 piece chicken on a jalapeno and cheddar waffle).

For the fried chicken, we both ordered dark meat. I thought the meat was tender and juicy with a light crispy batter. There was no extra oiliness and the fried chicken would definitely satisfy a craving. The batter was well seasoned and golden brown. Each order came with a choice of 5 dipping sauces. We tried the Cluck Sauce and Chipotle Ailole. Both had a bit of a kick with the Cluck Sauce being more tangy. Between the regular waffle and jalapeno and cheddar waffle, I liked the jalapeno and cheddar one more. The combination of spicy jalapeno, soft fluffy batter, touch of cheese and sweet syrup was perfect. Having been under the hot fried chicken (and for some time as we took photos), the waffle did lose it’s crispiness. Personally I like my waffles softer, while The Hubby likes them crispy. The regular waffle was still fluffy and sweet, but my tastebuds always prefer more heat. With 3 pieces of chicken and a full waffle, my side of fries were left pretty much forgotten.

Overall, both The Hubby and I enjoyed our fried chicken at Cluck Clucks and would visit again in the future.

In May of this year my sister in law had her first child, an adorable baby boy. She lives in Minnesota and due to the timing of her pregnancy, her and her husband weren’t able to fly back for my wedding this summer. The Hubby and I couldn’t wait to meet his nephew and planned a weekend trip to visit them over Labour Day weekend. While in town we spent an afternoon at the Minnesota State Fair, a 12 day event and the second largest state fair in the US. The CNE doesn’t even come close in comparison, it would be like comparing an ant to an anthill or a box of strawberries to an entire strawberry field. It was a 15 minute walk just from the parking lot to the fairgrounds. There were streets and streets filled with food vendors, MULTIPLE food buildings, and city blocks filled with rides and attractions.

For me, the main attraction was of course, the food and all the neon signs were overwhelming. Right off the bat, I sank my teeth into a foot long corndog. While The Hubby and I attempted to share the battered treat, my brother in law lined up for a tray of crab fritters, served with spicy mayo. With two deep fried dishes down, we stopped for a beer (and root beer) break. Perfect with beer? Garlic Fries. Not so perfect for any intimate encounters though. These hand cut fries were loaded with buttery minced garlic topping.

After the salty fries, we went back to sweet with deep fried buckeyes on a stick. The stick had four buckeyes, balls of peanut butter fudge dipped in chocolate, that was dipped in funnel cake batter and deep fried. I couldn’t imagine eating a whole one to myself, this was ridiculously sweet. More so than any deep fried chocolate bar I’ve ever had. With everyone reeling from the sugar high, the next snack needed to be salty.

The fried pickles from The Perfect Pickle were the best I’ve ever had. Each disc had a 2-1 batter to pickle ratio, were super crunchy with a burst of sour pickle juice. Dipped in dill sauce, I would eat these all the time. At the bar, at home playing video games, at a baby shower, really, so good. Another fair food that I fell in love with were deep fried cheese curds. I’ve never seen these at the CNE but I hear they are available. These were like mini mozzarella sticks with a lighter batter and more cheesy. Next year, I’ll be on the hunt for them at the CNE.

Our parade of deep fried goodness ended with a bag of mini sugar donuts, similar to how I usually end my CNE visits with a bag of Tiny Toms.

Although CNE marks the last days of summer in Toronto, I always look forward to visiting the fair and eating far too many deep fried goodies. This year was no exception. The Hubby and I met up with two other couples to overload on carbs. Since lines can get long, my strategy is to always go with a small group, find a base then divide and conquer. With smartphones in hand, we each set off to find the most indulgent plate to bring back (every year, we end up with a lot of poutine).

Bacon Nation – Bacon Wrapped Grilled Cheese
#1 plate of the night, a gooey grilled cheese, all wrapped up in a thick bacon weave and fried to crispy heaven. This was decadent, salty and had plenty of melted cheesy goodness. I would recommend sharing this plate as a quarter of one was plenty for all of us.

Poutine Balls
Deep fried balls of mashed potato, covered in gravy and cheese curds. I loved the concept of this dish on paper, in real life the mashed potato was gummy, the center was cool and overall disappointing.

Jake’s Lobster – Garlic Snow Crab Fries
#2 plate of the night, crispy garlic fries covered with shredded snow crab meat, parsley and dill. These fries had a strong garlic flavour with a touch of seafood. The box was a good portion size to split with 2 or 3 people. This was also the healthiest thing we ate all night.

Bouchard’s Poutinery – Cheeseburger Poutine
A classic poutine covered with ground beef, mustard, ketchup and pickles. I get this dish every year and we never finish it. Pictured below was the large box and best shared between 4-6 people.

Coco’s Fried Chicken – Chocolate Fried Chicken, Fried Chicken and Tater Tots
Chocolate flavoured fried chicken, normal fried chicken and tater tots. Each order of fried chicken came with hot sauce, sweet mango sauce and spicy chocolate spread. The sweetness in the batter was mild and interesting but I prefer my fried chicken salty. All the pieces were really meaty but I found the chicken had no flavour. The crispy tater tots dipped in hot sauce were delicious.

Unknown – Mexican Tatertots
Perhaps compared to the other dishes, or because my tastebuds were saturated with salt, I found these tots bland. There was no heat and the guacamole sauce was topped sparingly. Coco’s tater tots also had a much crispier exterior.

Mac and Cheesery – Mac n Cheese
Somehow this was the second lightest dish of the evening. In between bites of bacon and poutine, I was eating forkfuls of mac and cheese to cleanse my palate.