Fran’s Restaurant

Fran’s Restaurant in St. Lawrence Neighbourhood

Review of Fran’s Restaurant at 33 Yonge Street.

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Fran’s Restaurant Front Street view

Fran’s Restaurant is located where The Shopsy’s restaurant was once located. An image view of the address might bring up old images of The Shopsy’s.

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The Shopsy’s Yonge Street view

The last time I entered The Shopsy’s was during the Northeast Blackout of 2003. During the blackout power was out throughout the parts of Ontario. The next day was Friday, August 15, 2003 and I treated the family to brunch at The Shopsy’s.

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The Shopsy’s Front Street view

Changes

The first change is the area. Many buildings have undergone major renovations or have been torn down to make way for condo towers. Parking space is now scarce which means higher prices for drivers.

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Fran’s Restaurant Front Street view

The biggest change is obviously the change from The Shopsy’s to Fran’s. Since it was a very hot day on August, 04, 2011, we decided to have lunch inside at 12:30 after midday.

Ambiance

Apologies for not bringing a camera. All the photos were taken from the camera phone which lacks a flash. The restaurant is well light inside.

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Fran’s Restaurant inside view

The wait staff were very attractive young women. Many more customers were outside than in. The taking of orders was slow for a lunch time crowd.

The staff wore uniforms and were polite. Most customers inside were senior citizens. The crowd inside did not seem to be in a hurry which probably indicates tourists and not locals.

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Fran’s Restaurant inside view

The tables were wooden-looking, but spotless. The single seats were also wooden. The bench seats were covered with a material that blended with the bright lights.

Service Quality

The seats were dirty probably due to a cleaner wiping food stuffs off the table. It was hard to spot the dirty seats due to the abundant light inside. I noticed the dirt only after moving further along the bench seat.

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Fran’s Restaurant inside view

The waitress had the menus on the table before we arrived. She disappeared and brought as water before taking our drink order. She returned several minutes later and took our food order.

Food Quality

I ordered a cranberry juice for the drink and the full rack baby back ribs for the food. I usually want all my meat well done, but forgot to request it. The ribs were just slightly off what I normally prefer but were good enough.

Unlike most places, the waitress actually let us enjoy the meal in peace. In most places, the waitress will be around in case the food is sub-par, or something extra is needed like salt or another drink. The waitress did not offer a dessert menu at the end.

The drinks and food took slightly longer than normal for a lunch crowd. However both were good and of adequate proportions. The prices were reasonable for the area.

Conclusion

Fran’s Restaurant is located in an ideal area at Yonge and Front. During the summer, tourists can enjoy the patio. The food was good, but the service could have been a little faster.

The waitresses are attractive and appropriately dressed for the summer. The prices are normal for the area. It seems that Fran’s restaurant is targeting tourists.