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Original Pancake House, a closer look
Aloha!
1/10/10 - Before Boots 'n Kimo's. Before Cream Pot. Before Cafe Kaila, Bogart's, even Koa Pancake House, there was... the Original Pancake House. Though considered a bit old-school today, as compared to the newer generation above, this chain of restaurants that began in Portland, Oregon, in 1953, was very much a trailblazer in its day, with its innovative pancakes, super-light omelets, crepes, house-made corned beef hash, and other original creations, a few of which you'll be hard-pressed to see anywhere else.
There are two locations on the island, one on Dillingham and Waiakamilo in Kalihi (same shopping center as McDonald's), and the other, on Kapiolani, in that long, grayish-brown building also housing Gyu-Kaku and Shabu Shabu House, right across from the Honolulu Design Center. Here's a shot of the building, but remember that free, validated parking is accessed from behind the building, on Hopaka St., with its entrance right across from popular Side St. Inn.
Now, I've heard that the Kalihi location is not quite up-to-par with the Kapiolani restaurant, but having never been there, I can't say for sure. All I know is that Kumi and I, as well as mom, all love the Kapiolani store, and if mom can be persuaded away from a ham and mushroom omelet anywhere other than Zippy's, that's a big achievement, believe me! Of all the great spots we've been to for breakfast, here or anywhere else in the world, this is the only place where I've actually heard her say the omelets were better! Now, whether that's saying a whole lot or nothing at all, is anyone's guess, as when it comes to cuisine, mom is definitely a creature of habit, continually shunning adventure for safety, seizing onto all things familiar like a Master Lock without a combination.
Nevertheless, if you ever choose to check it out, here's a few tips to make it easier for ya:
Once inside the building, depending on where you park your car, you'll either follow a larger path leading to the Kapiolani St. sidewalk, as pictured above, or enter through a single door near the Ewa side of the lot and on-through this alley-way:
Inside the restaurant itself, the service is great, with several waitresses around, all of whom will rotate filling coffees or taking orders from anyone, instead of each being relegated to a single section. Outside of one soft-spoken, always smiling, muumuu-wearing Oriental woman, there's a couple of sistah's here that speak loud and large, which could possibly be misconstrued as rude to the uninitiated. However, c'mon now - don't think that way, as it's all just the typical local style, as in - no shame, brah, and no ack, kay?
The dining area is one large, rectangular-shaped room, with an outdoor over-flow that I've never seen used yet. Nothing fancy, but quaint and pleasant, in an old-school way. It's just a comfy, mellow spot to enjoy a nice breakfast, is all. There's hardly anyone in just yet, but we arrived at just after the opening bell of 6am, when it was still completely dark outside. Come at a more decent hour, especially on weekends, and you just may be waiting outside to eat, believe me:
Being the Pancake House, I guess we should start with pancakes, ey? These carb-loaded stacks come in all shapes, sizes, and varieties, whether they be potato, buckwheat, or sourdough; whether they come in silver-dollar sizes or hanging over the sides of your plate; whether filled with bits of coconut, pineapple, or even bacon!
The plate shown next is but a side order of the buttermilk variety, a short stack of three that automatically comes with every omelet or egg dish. When it comes to pancakes, mom always insists that they should carry, in and of themselves, their own flavor, instead of relying solely on butter and syrups to make a statement. I guess that's why she likes it here, as they do incorporate a bit of a salty, slightly sweet aspect to them. Me, it doesn't much matter, as I always use a good drizzle of maple syrup - what matters more to me is texture, and in this regard, the Original Pancake House pushes the right buttons. I'd say they walk the line between the newer varieties that are firmer and slightly spongy and the older ilk, which are a bit more crumbly and slightly doughier.
And it's always good when they come in combination with eggs or omelets, instead of having to order them separately for a higher price, yes?
There are a couple of pancakes here, however, if you can call them pancakes, that really take the cake. One of these specialties, a Dutch baby, takes about twenty minutes to prepare, while their oven-baked apple pancake takes a whopping 30-40 minutes! Forget to bring your newspaper, lap-top, or homework, and you may wanna call these particular orders in before-hand!
I've tried the first before, a puffy sheet of butter-soaked, powdered sugar-topped pastry, which was delicious and very much different from anything I've ever had before. There's a possibility of it being construed as a bit too simple, especially after a full twenty minutes of anxious anticipation, as it's pretty much just a single sheet of baked batter, accentuated by a fruit jam, powdered sugar, and whipped butter. However, don't underestimate the powerful taste of this almost dessert-like breakfast pie, which is in some areas thin as paper and other areas thicker than the fattest parts of a Boston Pizza crust (only much, much lighter, still!) - the mixture of sweetness, rich butter, and cloud-like batter make this dish a winner!
The baked apple pancake is much more substantial in volume, a single-large pancake packed with apples and cinnamon-sugar, baked to a golden-brown. Both shots are courtesy of the Original Pancake House website:
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Left: Dutch Baby;
Right: Baked apple pancake. |
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But my all-time favorite pancake here has to be the 49er flapjacks! Super-thin cakes short-stacked upon eachother, they carry a delicious, crispy edge, a slightly chewy center, and, quite naturally, a proportionately higher degree of browned crust over insides, which is what makes this dish extra-special for me. It's one of the few pancakes around where I don't even need syrup, just a tiny bit of buttah!
They're not quite as thin as crepes, but more like cardboard-level-thickness, with enough substance to hold its own. A must-try here at the Original Pancake House.
But before moving-on to their omelets, let me just say that I do have a small problem with newer-style construction processes. I mean, newer breakfast houses often utilize eggs that resemble a thick tortilla-like shell, wrapped around which ever toppings you so prefer. Fine and all, but it just seems that they are so thick, contain so much body, get so firm, that it's almost un-natural, and, to me, lose some of that natural egg taste and texture, the kind you grew up with, you know? In modern versions, it's almost like two separate entities - fillings and egg - and the twain shall not necessarily have to meet. I kinda like the two molding into eachother as one dish. No, not into some solid block where you combine everything like a frittata, with no separation whatsoever between an outside or inside, but at least into something providing some degree of togetherness and cohesion.
The omelets here at the Original Pancake House contain the two aspects just mentioned - a bit of togetherness and a more natural, eggy taste and texture. These eggs are still whipped, though, as they are much lighter than those produced from a normal beating, but whipped only to a certain degree. A perfect degree, I might add, making their eggs unbeatably light and fluffy, yet still fall-apart soft, silky, and slightly running, as normal, perfectly-cooked eggs are. It's the thick, firm, spongy textures so often seen in modern versions that I don't particularly care for. These here? Aaai like 'em.
Check out this ham and mushroom omelet, featuring... all the above.
How 'bout a veggie omelet with side order of ham:
Or a bacon/spinach/cheese omelet:
Love 'em all! Don't see any bacon in the shot immediately preceeding, but they were in there, somewhere. Though the hash browns are patties and not of the country-style, fresh-made variety, they were still very good, coming in wide, thin patties with crispy-browned edges.
My order, and the last item featured on this page, was a strawberry waffle:
No, they weren't fresh, but frozen strawberries, and not house-made, but straight-from-the-can whipped cream, but the large, poofy waffle itself was delicious. Like their pancakes, it carried its own taste with it, keeping my dreadful habit of excessive use of maple syrup in check. The circle of sweetened breakfast bread was thick, crisped nicely and firm on the outsides, and very light on the insides.
I dunno, the combination of it all here at the Original Pancake House on Kapiolani is just very appealing to me. You won't find an across-the-board use of fresh, house-made ingredients, necessarily, as in newer, trendier places, but what you will find are old-time, tried-and-true recipes, all in a very laid-back and casual atmosphere. Nothing completely and totally special, perhaps, but as most older, more sentimental restaurants and eateries are, they are somehow, someway - very satisfying and full of grandmother-like charm.
Here's one last shot before departing:
And with that...
Take care, and Aloha till next time!
Aku
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