Homemade Hollandaise

My family (except for William) loves Eggs Benedict. My pet peeve is ordering it at a restaurant because it's so darned expensive! Why does it cost $5.95 for 2 eggs with toast and bacon, but it costs $11.95 for 2 eggs with an English muffin and some ham? I actually prefer my Eggs Benedict on toast with bacon anyway, so I always order the cheap meal and ask for a side of Hollandaise sauce.... which leads me to my next pet peeve - why do restaurants serve such awful Hollandaise sauce?? It's not hard to make on your own, it tastes a thousand times better, and it takes the same (if not less) time to make as the little packets you whisk into water.

HOLLANDAISE SAUCE

3 egg yolks

1/2 c. butter, cut into small pieces

1 tbsp. lemon juice (fresh, if you have it)

1/4 - /2 c. hot water (optional)

Set up a double boiler over medium heat. Whisk eggs and stir in one piece of butter at a time, mixing well until it melts before adding the next piece of butter. Continue whisking until all the butter has been added. (Don't let the eggs cook.) Add lemon juice. If the sauce separates (which it usually does for me) add some hot water and continue whisking.

(This was our vegetarian version of Eggs Benedict, because I had no bacon - gasp! So in other words, it was just a poached egg on toast with some Hollandaise sauce on top.)

I'd like to know how they came up with the idea to whisk egg yolks over a double boiler, stir in butter, and add some lemon juice. It seems like such an awful idea, and yet it's so deliciously wonderful!