VANSCOY, Sask. – The first batch of the coffee row regulars arrives
within seconds of each other at 7:12 a.m., minutes after the Robin’s
Nest restaurant opens.
The teasing begins as Robin Odnokon pours coffee at table number nine.
Another day has begun in this small town restaurant in central
Saskatchewan.
“Relic,” as his coffee mates call Darwin Stadnek, says he has been
coming to the café two or three times a day since it opened in June
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1996. He praises the food and the menu, and says Robin and Quinten
Odnokon are “pretty good people.”
Just then Quinten appears from the kitchen waving a long knife at
coffee row in a mock threat about what they are saying. Everyone laughs.
Holding down the southwestern corner of the table, Doug Androsoff
pronounces the reasons they are here: “We solve all the problems of the
world and then come back at 10 to start over again because no one
listens to us.”
Robin said making customers comfortable is a big part of their business.
“You get to know the customers, hear their life stories and tell some
of yours.”
The Odnokons say they and their staff of five are like a family,
working together with no bickering, even during the busy moments. This
summer, three of the part-time staff are graduating from high school
and many of the customers gave them cards.
It could blow a big hole in Robin’s Nest as three fledglings leave.
But there are many young people in the rural area looking for jobs, so
the Odnokons will not likely have trouble getting a new batch. Training
is important and the Odnokons set the tone with a friendliness that
brings people back. That doesn’t mean slapstick humour overwhelms their
professionalism. To Quinten, who has worked across Saskatchewan in food
service for 20 years, details and quality are important.
It starts at the tables. The 10 in the restaurant are generous in size,
covered in red cloth topped with clear plastic. The 44 chairs are
substantial, made for lounging. The individual containers of real cream
are stacked in miniature wash tubs and the napkins are large, heavy
paper that at first glance resembles linen.
“Maybe it costs three cents to have the real cream or half a cent to
have these serviettes,” Quinten said. “But people appreciate it.”
People also appreciate the extra effort the Odnokons make. They keep
their leased space beside the Tempo gas station on Highway 7 clean and
bright with lots of windows, antiques and flags from various countries,
including Norwegian for Robin’s heritage and Ukrainian for Quinten’s.
Smoking is allowed, but a good ventilation system and high ceilings
prevent a blue haze. For Remembrance Day week, they clear out the
dessert cabinet and put in war souvenirs, have a local veteran come in
for a talk and hold two minutes
of silence.
At Christmas, they invite regulars to an after-hours party, including a
gift exchange. They help organize an annual food-tasting event, a Taste
of the RM, and have done fundraisers including one last year for a
family whose home burned. Quinten helps a local farmer with seeding and
harvest. They also offer a catering service that has been booked in
nearby Pike Lake, but also 60 kilometres away in Outlook.
That is all on top of a business that opens at 7 a.m. every day and
5:30 a.m. on Fridays to accommodate a group of potash miners who want
breakfast before their shift starts. Doors close at 9 p.m. in summer
and 8 p.m. in winter.
One of the Odnokons is always at the restaurant, although both take
breaks to get in a rest. Robin laughs that even cleaning house is a
break from the restaurant.
“It’s more than a business, it’s our life,” Quinten said.
“If you have a minute and they want to tell you something, then you
should give them the time of day. City people are impatient.
“When you ask them how they are, they say, ‘busy.’ I try to find other
words. There’s got to be more to life than working and paying bills.”
But Quinten also recognizes flaws in rural people, whom he says are too
conservative. It will take creativity and courage to foster rural
revitalization, he said. Peoples’ attitudes count more than any
government action.
The Odnokons are taking a risk by trying out a new menu this month to
celebrate their six years in business. Quinten says people eat more for
their health these days, dining on salad and seafood rather than large
steaks. But you can’t stray too far from the majority, who want meat
and potatoes. The menu also notes their local suppliers of salad
greens, veget-ables, baked goods, meat and dairy products.
Each has a different memorable day in the restaurant. For Robin, it
came six weeks after they opened. A fair troupe was driving by and the
first semi-truck drivers tried their food and radioed back to the
others how good it was.
“It was packed for three hours. I cooked pretty much every single thing
on the menu that day. My confidence level went way up because I proved
to myself I could do it.”
For Quinten, his best day came two years ago when an American rock band
on tour stopped by and tasted his meat borscht. They loved it and told
him he would be a hit in New York if he opened a soup shop there. The
10-person group left carrying a bucket of the borscht with them.
Quinten says eventually he and Robin want to start a family and that
will cause a staffing crisis, since they couldn’t afford to hire the
staff to replace Robin. Quinten praises his wife for agreeing to his
dream of owning his own restaurant, which they started six months after
their marriage.
For now, it’s enough to be “information central” and a second home to
many.
