I occasionally look for restaurants on the internet that I can go to, and one day, I called a whole bunch of restaurants, to ask my usual questions about ingredients. Richmond Station went right onto my “must go to” list. Their online menu made my mouth water!
This restaurant is a dimly lit, cool space at Yonge and Richmond, and they smartly put a sign showing where the entrance is, as it was otherwise a nondescript glass window. I wouldn’t have seen the writing “Richmond Station”, but I definitely saw their illuminated sign that says “restaurant” with their logo.
We had a really great waitress. Good service makes a huge difference at a restaurant, and Richmond Station did such a great job. I really liked how they serve water in glass bottles with their logo on it, like the ones from Libretto.
Since it was just my dad, sister and I, we decided to order the meal like tapas so we could each sample more dishes. We ordered the polenta fries, that came served on a wooden board with two great dipping sauces, a spicy aioli and a marinara sauce and some cilantro. We devoured these quickly. The chips and lox were absolutely stupendous, in fact I used the term “awesmazing” – a mashup of awesome and amazing. The creme fraiche drizzled on top of the lox and pickled onions made this dish complete. Sometimes a simple dish is really the best. Although I don’t like beets, my dad and sister ordered the roasted beets with arugula and goat cheese with a maple vinaigrette. Usually this is served with hazelnuts, which I assume compliments the flavours, but we didn’t get them since she is severely allergic to nuts. I tried the arugula, with a little goat cheese and it was a very good pairing along with that dressing. We also enjoyed the smoked trout that was served on a bed of sauteed kale and soybean hummus with marinated soybeans and a side of antipasto. The hummus wasn’t my favourite, I think it could use some more flavour, but I still had a second and maybe third forkful. The kale was done very well, and I know my kale. The trout was exceptional and was garnished with some chives and was perfect in flavour and texture. Of course I tried their burger with aged cheddar, beet chutney (I put that on the side, as I really do not like beets), rosemary fries, and radish salad on the side. It was excellent, I knew this at first bite! I rank it as 4th best in the city, right below The Harbord Room in first, Marben in second, Simple Bistro in third, and Richmond Station in fourth, but you cannot go wrong with any of them! We also tried the quinoa salad, which sounded a little plain on the menu, but was actually incredible. We all agreed that the homemade hickory sticks on top were an integral part of the dish! I strongly suggest you order this dish!
After dinner was complete, I told our waitress that I really enjoyed my meal, and that I planned on reviewing it, at which point, I was invited into the back and see their own meat fridge (absolutely freezing in there). It’s pretty impressive, but nothing compared to what I once saw at The Healthy Butcher! I also got to see the kitchen, which is also open on the second level of their dining area.
Overall, this restaurant is a place that I intend to go back to, and hope that you enjoy it too.
