The Pancake Pantry in Nashville…Because “Everybody Loves Pancakes”

After our “Night on the Town” in Nashville, these old Snowbirds were in the mood for a hearty breakfast. And my Google App kept directing me back to one spot. The Pancake Pantry. So off we went…being led by my trusty smartphone GPS voice I call “Stella”. It wasn’t long before “she” led us to the Nashville landmark.

According to the restaurant website here is the information for the parking lot behind the restaurant:

Parking behind the Pancake Pantry is free but you MUST obtain and place a receipt on your dashboard.  You may obtain a receipt from the machine at the entrance to the lot.  Press 1 for 1.5 hours of free parking.

(We were advised that parking laws are strictly enforced in the area.)

It was about 9 a.m. on a weekday and there was a short line inside the restaurant.

I voiced my surprise at the need to wait, and several “locals” began to laugh. They assured me that we were faced with the shortest line they had ever seen there! They told us the line routinely stretches outside the building…and around the corner…and down the block! So we quickly thanked our lucky stars and waited for just a few minutes to be seated.

The Pancake Pantry was humming with activity, and I soon noticed that many of the staff members were older than the servers we find in many restaurants these days. The front cover of the menu soon explained the reason for that difference. It turns out many of the staff members have worked at the restaurant since it opened in 1961!

Up until recently, the Pancake Pantry has been a family owned restaurant run by several generations of the Baldwin family. But the restaurant was recently sold to new owner Crosby Keltner who promises to continue the legacy. And if his smile is any indication of his commitment to his business I think the Pancake Pantry is still in good hands!

That menu was filled with everything under the sun, but who could eat at a place called the Pancake Pantry without eating…pancakes? Not us!

I must tell you those cakes were light as a feather. 

I learned that the flour used to make that famous pancake and waffle batter is specially sourced from the hills of Eastern Tennessee…and the Pancake Pantry makes their own syrups fresh each day from their secret family recipes. (Now THAT is what I call attention to detail!)

My scrambled eggs with ham were delicious as well…and the fresh butter to spread on those cakes was soft and sweet.

The tables are quite close together, so I struck up a conversation with Rachel from New Jersey, the solo diner at the next table. 

She was kind enough to let me snap a photo of HER breakfast.  She ordered a waffle with homemade strawberry topping AND French toast! (FYI…that is a HALF ORDER of French Toast!) Rachel’s “eyes were bigger than her stomach” as my mom used to say…but she did her best to devour both plates of food.

Rachel said the French toast was absolutely positively incredible, and I don’t doubt that for a minute.

We washed down that wonderful breakfast with several cups of delicious coffee and it was time to hit the road once again. And as we left the Pancake Pantry it was plain to see that we HAD been extremely lucky to arrive when we did.

That famous line WAS beginning to form once again.

Because, like the menu says…

“Who doesn’t like pancakes?”