I came to Elena's Kitchen & Catering because I kept seeing it all over TikTok, especially the kid…read morepancake artist palettes. Honestly, consider this my de-influencing review.
Just a heads up if you're planning to visit for the first time: the location is kind of hidden in a strip of warehouse/office buildings, so I actually drove past it at first. Once you walk in, there are two different sections. The left side is a sit-down café and the right side is more of a cafeteria-style area with pastries, drinks, and some of the viral items I've seen online. We ate on the café side, so my review is based on that experience.
I was SO excited for my kids to try the pancake artist palettes. They serve mini pancakes on a paint palette tray, with colorful flavored syrups in the paint wells and a little paintbrush so kids can "paint" their pancakes before eating them. It looked adorable and like such a fun experience.
Unfortunately, both of my kids absolutely hated them. They each took a bite and refused to eat any more, which is unusual because they both love pancakes. I tried the different syrup flavors myself, and while they're technically edible, I honestly thought they tasted pretty bad. The concept is cute, but the actual taste was not good in our opinion, and it ended up being a waste of money for us.
The service also wasn't great. The girl at the register had a very "meh" attitude and didn't seem particularly friendly or welcoming and no one welcome you when you are there either .
For my autistic son I ordered a plain burger because he won't eat it if it has sauce on it. When it came out, it wasn't plain. I let them know, and instead of having them remake it, I asked if they could just give me an extra bun since he could still eat the burger itself. They did bring extra buns, which I appreciated.
I also ordered a mango chia bowl, and it took 40 minutes to come out. Forty minutes for a chia bowl is kind of crazy. I had actually gotten up and was waiting in line to ask for a refund when I noticed the girl at the register say something to the waitress, and suddenly my chia bowl appeared. It honestly felt like it had been forgotten about until I went up to the counter.
As for my food, I ordered a croissant sandwich. It was okay,nothing special, but not terrible either.
In total, I spent about $67. My younger kids didn't eat their food, my oldest son's order was wrong, my croissant was average, and I waited 40 minutes for a chia bowl. I drove quite a distance because I saw this place trending online, and unfortunately it did not live up to the hype for me.
Maybe it's a better spot for adults, or maybe I just caught them on an off day. Either way, this was a one-and-done visit for my family, and I won't be returning.