YUMMIEST: Place to get pancakes in NYC: Installment 4 (FINAL)

Multi-grain pancakes at Counter

PLACE:Counter

MEAL: Multi-grain Pancakes

PRICE: $10.00

RATING:YY (2 out of 5 hearts!)

Note: I have to admit that I have been pretty diligent about this brunch thing, almost to a fault. I decided to try out the pancakes at counter as my last installment (please let me know if there are any I left out that are worth trying!!) of the yummiest of the month. However, I had an awful lot to drink on Friday night. So I forced myself up after 5 hours of sleep and traveled into the city with friends. I puked on one of said friends and spent most of brunch in the bathroom, hurling. I didn’t really get to enjoy the pancakes until later that day (took them home)… so my review is slightly skewed.

These pancakes sounded pretty appealing on the menu – Multi-grain pancakes blueberry compote and fresh citrus fruit. Though I wasn’t sure how multi-grain would taste, blueberry compote sounded pretty rad.

When the pancakes came out I was interested to see how they would taste. They were very thick and I personally prefer thinner pancakes. The blueberry compote looked great but I didn’t see any citrus, there were bananas & strawberries instead, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing. I know this place is organic & fresh-focused so maybe this is why there was a change.

Anyway, my friend pointed out that the pancakes tasted more like donuts. This is kind of true, they were very fluffy and thick. I was actually pleasantly surprised, even though they were multi-grain pancakes these did not taste grainy like the ones at Curly’s. The blueberry compote was a really nice touch, very tasty and good consistency. All the fruit was fresh and really delicious. Especially the banana slices, they were sliced really thin vertically. However, I encountered the same issue as I have in nearly every pancake I’ve tried in this city: it was dry! If I didn’t smother this baby in tons of maple syrup (which had a strange taste), it would be totally boring.

So who won?!

My personal faves were V-spot and Organic Grill because they were moist & had a great consistency. I would choose the V-Spot over Organic Grill because the service & other brunch options were much better as well.

One other thing to note – if you are looking for a really inventive pancake I would go with Quantum Leap because they always have a great pancake or waffle special such as vanilla pear or banana pecan.

YUMMIEST: Place to get pancakes in NYC: Installment 3

Spelt Berry Pancakes at Caravan of Dreams

PLACE: Caravan of Dreams

MEAL: Spelt Berry Pancakes

PRICE: $10.00

RATING:YYY (3 out of 5 hearts!)

I have been really into Caravan of Dreams lately. Now that they offer smaller plates that are more affordable, I want to go every day. Plus their desserts are usually on point. Anyway. Out of the various menus I have scoured, Caravan of Dreams listed the most seemingly appetizing vegan pancake:

“Two spelt-berry pancakes sandwiched around a grilled banana and garnished with chopped nuts and fresh fruit”. Salivating?

I was really in awe of the presentation of this meal. The pancakes were huge, the fruit had variety and was fresh and I loved the brown of the pancakes complimented by the light circle around the edges. This is how a pancake should look! I also liked that the pancakes were large, round and thin. I’ve noticed that some of the vegan pancakes I’ve tried are thicker which causes them to lose their fluffiness and really messes with the texture. The texture here was great and the blueberries inside of the pancake was a tasty addition. All of the food was fresh & organic even down to the maple syrup, which had a great taste.

The grilled banana in the middle was a really nice touch, though it wasn’t very sweet (it may have been a plantain), it was yummy and added a certain touch to the dish that I haven’t experienced before.

My only complaint, which I’ve repeated a few times already in my pancake quest, was that they were pretty dry. Without the fruit, nuts & syrup on top, the pancakes would taste quite bland and dry.

Overall, I was very pleased with this dish. Considering the price for such a huge, filling plate, I would definitely go back for more!

The only other places I have on my list are Candle 79 and Counter. Are they any other places in the NYC area that you suggest I check out for vegan pancakes? Post in the comments!

YUMMIEST: Place to get pancakes in NYC: Installment 2

Vegan Pancakes at Curly's Vegetarian Lunch

PLACE: Curly’s Vegetarian Lunch
MEAL: Vegan Pancakes
PRICE: $7.95
RATING:Y (1 out of 5 hearts)

I go to Curly’s every so often because it’s in a convenient location (Union Square/East Village) and it has great comfort foods on the menu. However, every time I go the food seems to disappoint. Once again, it under-delivered, this time with their pancakes. Though they had potential – 3 stacked flax and kamut pancakes topped with fresh fruit sounded delicious.

When the food arrived, it did look delicious… however, there was only about 1 strawberry cut up and 2 small pineapple pieces on top of the pancakes. I was expecting more quantity and selection of fruit. In addition, I was not served any soy butter… this had to be requested.

The pancakes themselves were hard to get onto my fork, they kept falling apart into little pieces. They were very dry and grainy. I kind of felt like I was eating mushy bread or something. They were not fluffy at all. They were definitely edible, but given the large selection of vegan pancakes in New York city, and given the price, I would not recommend going here for a fill.

PLACE: The Organic Grill
MEAL: Vegan Wheat-free Blueberry Buckwheat Pancakes
PRICE: $8.00
RATING:YYYY (4 out of 5 hearts!)

The Organic Grill is not completely vegetarian, therefore, this is not a place I would expect to go for a vegan brunch unless I was going with non-vegan friends. However, I was pleasantly surprised with their blueberry pancakes and would love to go back for more!

The pancakes came out looking very appetizing. You could see the blueberries inside of the pancakes and they looked very moist.

These were devoured rather fast. They were soooo yummy! The blueberries were fresh and perfectly melted into the pancakes. The consistency was perfect – moist & fluffy. They weren’t heavy or grainy at all. I think these were buckwheat pancakes which might be the best bet when going for a wheat-free vegan pancake. I also liked that more than just pancakes were served with the plate, they also came with a delicious side of tempeh bacon. Considering this was only 5 cents more than Curly’s, I feel like I got my money’s worth with this dish for sure.

Overall, I was very pleased and if I wanted to go out specifically for pancakes, this is the first place that would come to mind. My only complaint is non-pancake related. My friend’s order was all screwed up, her food was cold and not enjoyable. Plus, the service was kind of poor… boo!

YUMMIEST: Place to get Pancakes in NYC – installment 1

Pecan Banana Pancakes at Quantum Leap

Thanks to all the comments re: The Yummiest of the Month. I will be on the search to find the Yummiest vegan pancakes in NYC! Here is the first installment. If there is any place that you think I should include while searching this month, please post in the comments, thanks!

PLACE: Quantum Leap

MEAL: Banana Pecan Pancakes with tofu scramble & vegan sham

PRICE: $10.50

RATING:YYY (3 out of 5 hearts!)

The plate came out and my mouth began to water. I was served three hefty sized pancakes topped with bananas & pecans. I’ve had banana pancakes before, and it changes the consistency a bit due to the mushiness of the bananas. However, adding pecans to the mix changes the whole thing around. The nice thing about the pancakes were that they were thin so eat bite was awesomely crunch & mushy at the same time.

My only complaint was that they were a tad dry on the outside. I had to soak it in maple syrup to get the sweetness & moistness I was looking for. I know these were buckwheat pancakes specifically so I wonder if using buckwheat vs. whole wheat or mixed grains changes the moistness levels.

What I like about Quantum Leap though, is their level of originality. The pancakes I had this past Saturday was on their specials list. Their brunch specials are different every week and never disappoint. I had pear waffles there once and they were out of this world. They always have a pancake or waffle special, so if you go there and see it, definitely try it! Of course, unless you despise one of the main ingredients.

And though the focus is on the pancakes, it is such a great deal in terms of price because not only is it a specialty pancake, it comes with tofu scramble & sham on the site. Such a huge portion, I had to give up on finishing this meal because it was too much.

PLACE: The V-Spot

MEAL: Whole Wheat Strawberry Pancakes

PRICE: $10.00

RATING: YYYY (4 out of 5 hearts!)

Now these were whole wheat pancakes and they seemed to be much more moist to me and it wasn’t necessary to drown in maple syrup.

The plate came with 3 strawberry pancakes and a side of tempeh bacon. The pancakes were thin, soft and buttery. The strawberries were fresh which made each bite oh so sweet and wonderful. In addition, vegan pancakes tend to be really heavy and filling, but these did not have that effect. They were definitely the fluffiest ones I have had thus far.

Though simple, these pancakes were spot-on. My only problem was that they weren’t topped with strawberries or anything. I really like having fresh fruit on my pancakes. They were only inside the pancakes. I think if we had some of those fresh strawberries on top, I would have given this 5 hearts.