Nikki's Cafe (R.I.P.)

This morning while viewing my Facebook news feed, an article by the Daily Press immediately caught my eye. The article stated that today would be the last day that Nikki's Cafe would be open for business (here's the article). Nikki's Cafe had been in business since 1983, any business that lasts that long deserves praise for their efforts. If you lived in Apple Valley, or any part of the HD for that matter, you most likely visited Nikki's at least once for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. When you find out that a place that's been around for over 20 years is shutting down, it feels like a piece of your hometown has died. I felt that it was only fitting for my Wife and I to pay Nikki's our respects and visit them for one last meal.

Every time that I went to Nikki's I usually ordered the Triple Nikki, the Triple Nikki is a simple turkey club sandwich with added avocado at request (I always added avocado). There's really not much that's special about this sandwich, it tastes great, but there's nothing that separates it from the crowd other than the fact that it will be the same sandwich every time you visit. The Triple Nikki has tasted the same ever since I first ordered it when I was 12 years old, the bread is the same toasted white loaf, the bacon is always crunchy, the turkey is always juicy, and the lettuce/tomato is always fresh. While there might not be much glam or glitter to this sandwich, I at least knew it would taste good and be served the same way EVERY TIME that I ordered it.
My Wife went ahead and ordered the cheese omelet with hash browns, the omelet was decent and the hash browns were properly cooked. This meal also offers nothing out of the ordinary other than the fact that it's cooked properly and is well seasoned. The breakfast at Nikki's is usually pretty good and never changed over the years, it's pretty hard to find a place nowadays that doesn't change with the trends.

While Nikki's might not have offered over the top food, the food was consistently decent and never tasted bad. I always knew that if I went to Nikki's I would not get burnt food, overly greasy food, or food that came out of a microwave. The down home country kitchen decor and knick knacks for sale at the front register was always extremely inviting. The food was always at a great price, and the portions were always big. Our meal today was just under $20 for 2 large plates of food.

The environment during our final meal at Nikki's was something I will never forget, in the background we were able to hear people talking about their first visits to Nikki's, parents telling their kids about how they used to eat here every sunday, and families reminiscing about previous visits together.

Over the years I can remember Nikki's being somewhere my parents and I would come for dinner if we were in the area, as I got older it eventually became a place where friends and I would gather in the morning to soften the blow from the previous night's hangover, towards the end it was still a place where my parents would sometimes take my Wife and I for dinner. With Nikki's leaving, it feels like a piece of the HD is leaving. Although we can't fight the uncontrollable, all we can do is hope the best for the owner and wish them the best of luck in their future endeavors and thank them for running a great restaurant since 1983.