The Original Pancake House Review

As a long time customer of the pancake house, I wanted to get some food to go one day as I was ill. When I called in, I was informed that they did not do to-go orders because of their lack of a credit card machine and they said "people called in and did not come in to get food a few times so now you have to come in and pay and wait for your food"
My question to you, Pancake House, does it cost that freaking much to make a pancake, that a few left over orders will put you off from offering a to-go service for your customers?

On top of that, the prices are already too high for a piece of bread already......

Abysmal. Long waits, crowded, and a waitress even took a chair away from my 85 year old injured grandmother while we were waiting! We asked how long the wait would be and the employee wouldn't tell us. Terrible service. We had questions about the menu, and the waitress kept leaving, right in the middle of asking her questions! All their pancakes contain eggs. They serve coffee, but have absolutely no nondairy milks. The prices are astronomical and frankly shocking. A small cup of really bad coffee was nearly $4. They only accept cash. I will never go here again.

A great place to have breakfast. There are so many good pancakes to try that you'll want to go again and again. Waits can get a little long on weekends because there is such a small dining room, and their cash only policy van be a bit inconvenient for most, but I recommend eating here wholeheartedly.

Generally good food but a long wait on weekends. Love the omelettes and special pancakes.

This is the "original" Original Pancake House. The one that was opened in 1953 and that all the others followed. The veggie and cedar omlet is the best veggie omlet I've ever had. The "Dutch Baby" and apple pancake are super tasty example of egg pancakes, sometimes referred to as "German pancakes." Lots of tasty pancakes on the menu. They also have excellent bacon. Enjoy. Get here before 9 am or after 1 pm to avoid the lines.

Great food and service. I did suspend my low carb diet for a day.

A bit too busy most of the time but the food is top notch and portioned well. I love the thick bacon slices and the aesthetic is nice.

Good pancakes, many choices but not to many vegetarian options.

Just keep driving down the road (Bannings)(Davidson's) for tastier food, less wait times and better prices. Besides the 5 star prices. Take your hands off my bacon! This place charges you for splitting a side dish of anything!?!?!
$5.25 for 1 Egg get 2 for $5.75. You could drive to Heidi's in Gresham and still walk away with money saved. If you like spending $60+ for two, come to the The Original Pancake house where we don't take credit cards but you can sure use our $3 fee ATM in the waiting room.

Food was okay. They don't have the ability to take credit or debit which is crazy in an age where you can use card readers on phones and tablets.. but there's an ATM. Food and drinks were also pretty expensive.

Good food, but a little spendy. $8 for a side of bacon to go with $11 pancakes. Tight space but service was great.

Pricey but charming, the waitstaff is wonderful and the food is delicious. Or family favorite. Cash only, they have an atm.

Yummy as usual! Pancakes are great, I can not find this quality of Pancakes anywhere else. Waffles are super, I love the thinner waffles that you get here and the great taste! Be aware that they only take cash.

I am gluten free and I have always had a hard time finding a place that has good gluten free pancakes. This place has great gluten free pancakes! They are super buttery and soft and melt in your mouth!

Favorite breakfast place of all time. Will be making this a family tradition. Try it, you won't be sorry!

This place is good. The food is great honestly. The service is ok... I was seriously surprised to get my check with my meal at the same time. Felt like they were saying, "Here get the hell out." Or, "Here because we're not going to bother to come back around if you want something else or extra drink."

Asia, waitress, very efficient and helpful, food plentiful and good!

Small space. Delicious pancakes with an amazing syrup. Bacon was also amazing. Will bring family back there.

This place is great! The pancakes are awesome with lots of options. There's always a line to get in but it's worth it. They only take cash.

Love this place! Great food, huge portions. Definitely gets busy but worth the wait.

Always delicious and just right (or maybe a little bit more) proportions!!!

This place was really expensive. I spent $16 on toast and hash browns with a side of avocado. They charged me $6 for half an avocado!

The hashbrowns and toast were soaked in butter and my girlfriends waffle was paper thin and over sugared.

The whole vibe had racist undertones, with all the waiters being white high school age people while everyone in the kitchen was of color.

They don t take cards and they don t give receipts. This place is trash!

Had coconut pancakes and my son had a waffle. They were excellent

No other pancake house is in the same league as this one. I could come here every day to eat a "dutch baby" and not get sick of it. I find myself craving that particular lemony custard-like flavor at odd times, like right now.. but they're closed on Mondays and Tuesdays! Which is just as well. One should show a little restraint. Just don't forget it's cash only when you do go. And EVERYTHING is worth the price (~$20 per person) and the wait! Love it love it love it. <3

This has gotta be one of the best places to eat in Portland! I have never been able to finish an order of anything by myself and everything is delicious! I usually don't even like "fluffy" pancakes but I cannot get enough of them from this place! The coffee is really good. I'm pretty sure that was real cream too, with little spots of butter forming in it, mmmmm.

The bacon pancakes were pretty good but not great. I would still go back again to try the apple pancakes!

Always great food here. I'd come more frequently if I didn't have to cash out my IRA to pay the bill.

BTW cash and check (check!?!?) only here.

Old school.

Delicious food! Tight space though. They should build an addition so the tables aren't so close together and the wait staff doesn't have to struggle to get around.

when i get a chance to go to breakfast this place is it! there is almost always a line and seats are first come first serve but open 24hours a day and make huge portions of AMAZING food!

Love their pancake ... Get the fluffy baby one....

Great food, great environment excellent service,small dining area!

Great food & service, (Johnna), warm atmosphere. Really enjoy the grapefruit juice & blueberry waffles

So yummy! Lovely staff and delightfully delicious food! Such a great breakfast. :)

I can always expect my breakfast to be perfect every time!

Be careful if you order an omelette they are as BIG as your house!

The pancakes are delightful and refills with hot chocolate.

Must try breakfast! Words do it no justice, just go in and taste for yourself!

Great food. Usually a wait, but worth it! Restaurant is in a converted house, so the noise level can get pretty high. Difficult to have a good conversation.

Tasteless food, expensive, impassive staff! Still not sure how they make their eggs...tasted
too fluffy and artificial. Will not go back there.

SINCE MY HUSBAND AND I HAD NOT BEEN TO THE PANCAKE HOUSE IN QUITE A LONG TIME, WE DECIDED TO GO THERE THE OTHER DAY, AND WERE SHOCKED BY WHAT WE FOUND..............

THOUGH THERE WERE SEVERAL "DISABLED" PARKING SPACES, THERE WAS NO ENTRANCE THAT DID NOT INCLUDE STAIRS. SINCE I AM IN A WHEELCHAIR, I WAS NOT SURE HOW I WAS GOING TO GET INSIDE. SEVERAL EMPLOYEES THEN OFFERED TO WRANGLE ME DOWN THE STEPS TO THE RESTAURANT. I COULDN'T SEEM TO FIGURE A WAY TO GET INSIDE, SO WE DECIDED TO GO ELSEWHERE, WHICH WE DID.

IT MAYBE DOESN'T MATTER IF SOME PATRONS CAN'T GET IN, BUT IT SHOULD. ELIMINATING THE PEOPLE WHO ARE NOT ABLE TO GET IN, ADDS UP TO QUITE A FEW PEOPLE WHO WON'T BE ABLE TO VISIT YOUR RESTAURANT. MORE THE PITY.

Awesome foodie experience! Hostess was super friendly, waitress very knowledgeable of extensive menu. The breakfast/brunch food is delicious. Chef knows how to tempt your palate. Charming decor. A fun experience.

Everything you could ever want from a breakfast place! They even had gluten free pancakes which were awesome. I haven't eaten at a breakfast restaurant since I was diagnosed with celiac, so this was a lovely change of pace.

Huge portion sizes, great customer service, and delicious food!

I have been going to the Original Pancake House since the 1970s. I've found the quality consistently good and the service excellent. The original Original, the one on Barbur Blvd. in Portland, does not take cards, beware. They do have an ATM in the lobby. Or they take checks.

I recommend the Dutch Baby. And the bacon. Lots of bacon. And the cream for the coffee is actually cream and not half and half.

I m a SoCal native so I m real understanding of long waits for good food, no problem. However......... 5 dollars for an egg? Hear me out. I had bacon and 2 eggs for almost 20 dollars. I just near had a stroke when I saw our check. A flat, skinny floppy waffle for 15 dollars. Denny s gives you full plates of HOT food for no more than 10 dollars. I feel like they give oversized portions to justify the price but it s still not reasonable! I thought I was getting punked with these prices waiting for Ashton Kutcher but na. I like my food and splurge on quality meals but not this. I regret not making breakfast at home.

Also, weird environment. All waitresses looked the same. The kitchen were all fellow Hispanics or others of color so no diversity out there. They were very polite don t get me wrong. However customers were very vigilant of my friends and I it was strange.

In all, paying gourmet prices for great value brand food. Unseasoned. NOT worth the hype. Maybe it s the people in the area?? Obviously never tried a roscoes chicken and waffles. Lots of flavor, they wouldn t know about that though.

Really expensive. But really worth it. Great food. Great service.

Went here to eat breakfast with my sister on a Saturday morning. Place was absolutely packed (expected) but they keep the customers moving through so the wait wasn't terrible. Note that they do not take cash but do have an ATM in the lobby. I had the dutch baby and I've been dreaming about it ever since. Fluffy, almost custard-like texture with a light lemony sweetness - treat yourself and get one of these babies.

It is a warm friendly place for breakfast.
It is relatively small and there can be a wait.
The food is delicious.
Getting into the parking lot can be a bit tricky. It's right by a freeway off ramp.

If you show up later in the morning, you'll find a long wait, but it's worth it. This is one of the best breakfast joints in the Portland area. It's also the first and original location for the Original Pancake House chain. Grab a Dutch Baby, you'll thank me.

Old school excellence. CLEAN clean clean. Prompt and friendly service. Great food. Good price.

Update: 12/2/18
Be prepared for them to not seat you if your entire party isn't present. 3 of us were inside, 3 were still parking (literally 3 minutes to park in the lower lot and walk up) and the hostess wouldn't seat us and gave our seats away. If it hasn't been for someone birthday I would have said forget it and left.

We got the wonderful privilege of waiting another 10 minutes, on top of the ten we waited already.

Original review follows:

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When dining at The Original Pancake House be prepared for three things (on average).

1. Waiting to be seated. It is usually easy to get a seat between 7:00 and 8:30 and 12:00 to close, but other times waits can be up to 30 minutes .

2. You need cash or check, they don't take cards of any kind.

3. More food than you were prepared to eat!!!

Seriously. Two people could comfortably share one breakfast and maybe even have leftovers. The portions are no joke, big plus.

The cons for me were..

1. No Eggs Benedict at this location.

2. No biscuits and gravy.

3. The corn beef hash should be passed on, it is grainy and dry. Just doesn't have the savory taste you'd expect.

Atmosphere is nice, staff are friendly... overall, give it a try, make the choice yourself.

Awesome food and huge portions! The Irish omelette is crazy good! Just make sure to know it's cash only, with an ATM on site. Also, no phone-in to go orders.

I've been quite a few times now, never disappointed. This gem was shared with me and now I do the same!

Adorable little restaurant with amazing service and food. I highly recommend the blueberry pancakes.

Just ok. My fries left a puddle of grease on my plate. My friend said her pancake was pretty good though.

Most delicious authentic pancakes ever! Must eat here!

The staff is so amazing. During a time like this it was really refreshing to receive such amazing service. Thank you so much for everything. We will be back again for sure!

Awesome, friendly staff. Great food. Worth the wait.

Seems like high quality food. They don't take cards so I probably won't be back, I'm real bad at carrying cash and I don't want to be unable to pay...

They have a James Beard Award hanging on the wall. Enough said.

Too much. Literally and figuratively. Great service.

Fabulous experience, price, and food. Fresh squeezed orange juice, fresh in-season fruit, really good coffee, and the breakfasts are amazing! You won't go wrong here.

Best breakfast we have ever eaten! Service was amazing!!!

YUM. The pancakes are out of this world. The butter and whipped cream they offer is so delicious! The only downside is that some of their items are very small yet very expensive. The orange juice is about $5 for a toddler sized cup and you can get one egg for $5 too. That's right, ONE egg. I found that funny.
The breakfast "meal" is not a meal at all. It's just a huge plate of ridiculously good pancakes. You won't leave hungry even if that's all you order, but I do recommend you splurge and get a hot coco or even that ridiculous tiny orange juice. The taste is divine.

Why 4 stars? Cash only and fruit flies buzzing our yummy food. Otherwise, been a customer for over 45 years. Top 4 on my list. Dutch baby/German pancake, Apple pancake, 49er flaps and chocolate chip pcakes. Toss the syrup. If you need, go with the honey. 1 hour wait easily can change to 30m.

Kinda pricey, But huge amount of awesome food. Well worth the $!

The food was delicious and the atmosphere was so charming! It's like a little homey oasis in the middle of the city. We had the sharp cheddar and bacon omlette, pancakes, and a dutch baby and we loved all of it!!

If you want pancakes this is a great place to go! Service was mostly great, but they sat us at a table that was very difficult to get in and out of even though the restaurant was mostly empty.

Pretty cool place to eat, pretty decent food also. Just was a little bit on the pricey side.

Good, high cholesterol food. Not typically amenable to changes in menu request, always busy

On my 46 year of going to the BEST breakfast house period.

I'm from Seattle, and our OPH is way better. Better prices, decor, food, service, coffee, location, and parking.

Cozy space and sooo many delicious pancake options! Plus tasty non-pancake breakfasts too

It has wonderful atmosphere. The food, however, had a large chain taste. Not the home style cooking the business reflects. Large portions for sure. Go for the strawberries. They looked delectable.