Pancake Cafe was a lackluster experience from start to finish. The visual vibe was akin to a modern brunch spot that serves alcohol. Lightly warm colors with many brown and some black notes. The issue is the music - on-the-floor beats, unironically including "On the Floor" by Jennifer Lopez & Pitbull, played twice during my relatively short visit. The volume wasn't intrusive, but the genre was more appropriate for a bar at 8 p.m., rather than a breakfast/brunch at 8 a.m. For food, I ordered the Pancake sampler (buttermilk, strawberry, blueberry, and chocolate chip) and a side of bacon. It's great I got the sampler, because I understood that, except for chocolate chip, the only difference was the topping. The batter along with the mix-ins (rather, the lack thereof) was exactly the same. That batter was light on the sweetness, which isn't necessarily a bad thing, but heavy on the salt. They were also cooked okay - while I appreciate they weren't overdone or raw inside, they also didn't have the magic of a whisper-thin crisp exterior with a warm and fluffy interior. They felt more commercialized and mass-produced than something made with care and love (disclaimer: not saying they were, only that they felt that way). I also ordered a side of bacon. Thick cut, sure, but still overpriced at $8 a plate for three strips. I've had some phenomenal bacon - but this was just "meh." Skip this and get the Black Forest bacon at Aldi or Trader Joe's instead; you and your wallet will both thank me. Then we come to the service: while vocal fry wasn't used, that was the attitude: not of hostility but of aggressive indifference. The food came out reasonably fast, but otherwise, very inattentive. Check-in was done very late, and no coffee refills were offered. Even the initial pour of coffee had to be done by the host. It seemed the servers were there to socialize amongst themselves, which is fine, except it felt as though the customers were in the way. As for price, this experience cost me $30 after tax, before tip. While not highway robbery, it is a high price that is not justified by anything. Final verdict: Other than the host being friendly and a great team player, I am having trouble finding any virtue. Not the service, vibe, food, or value earn a passing grade. Would recommend?: No. 95% of greasy spoons would offer a better experience. Would return?: Also no. I would rather find and go to a Waffle House, for the entertainment value if nothing else. read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Pancake Sampler - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Yummy and in the heart of Boystown and I enjoyed the chocolate covered bacon. Try the sorry food and the ambience here! read more

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Cool bar down the street from Wrigley Field. We ordered cheese curds that were awesome and tater tots. The service was fantastic even as the bar was filling up as the game ended. Cold beer and tasty food. read more

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Vibe: nothing too special, but it is clean and comfortable Service: great, no complaints! Value: the best deals here are on the pancake dishes rather than egg dishes Veggie omelette with feta and eggs white, fruit, and toast: this was really good! I prefer an omelette where the veggies are mixed into the eggs rather than added at the end, so this hit the spot. read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

It's breakfast, hard to go wrong. Bloody Mary was your run of the mill zing zang tasting mix, good accoutrements though! Eggs Benedict were okay, Canadian bacon was pretty chewy but edible. Service was quick and friendly once you're at the table but expect to wait on a weekend. read more

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Had a really nice time at this very classic breakfast spot! The food was good, nothing outrageous, but simple breakfast done very well. My scrambled eggs were perfectly fluffy, hash browns needed a little salt and pepper but otherwise very good, and the sausage was flavorful. I was impressed by the gluten free pancakes I thought they were soft and fluffy. I was expecting the chocolate chips to be in the batter not just placed on top but that didn't make a huge difference overall. The girls working were very nice and nobody felt rushed even though the restaurant was fairly busy. We had a short wait (~10 minutes) and were directed towards the back so be out of the way but not forced to stand outside in the cold. The restaurant is deceptively larger than it appears when you walk in so don't be discouraged if it looks very crowded. There is a large back dining room area. Would definitely come back again if I was grabbing breakfast in the area! read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Sausage & Eggs - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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Much bigger space than I thought and no wait on a Sunday morning. The pumpkin pancakes were a nice fall treat - just sweet enough with some butter and the melty whipped topping. I enjoyed the meat lovers skillet, but honestly the biscuit was the best part. The potato chunks were a little too big for me and I probably should've gotten the egg over easy instead of over medium so that the dish was a little wetter. read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Meat Lovers Skillet - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

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New version of the pancakes are terrible! Small thin flats that used to be good sized and fluffy. Server confirmed they made a change - for $14 pancakes the new version is unacceptable. read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Blueberry pancakes - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

This place is horrible! The food tasted weird. I got crepes that tasted like they put cloves in the batter. It took forever for the waitress to acknowledge us and take our order. After that, someone else delivered the food. The waitress never checked on us or offered refills on iced tea. In fact, she spent all of her time chatting with her coworkers in the corner with her back to us. Not once we're we asked how everything was, which is probably a good thing because I would have told them. read more

This review is only for their Dinner menu. It is a far cry from their breakfast/brunch options. We decided to stop by as they began to open from 3-10pm for the summer. The staff was nice and the place clean, but the food was subpar. It is an extremely slim menu, so we decided to try the wings, quesadillas, and a burger. The burger was fine but the quesadillas and wings were terrible, lacking flavor and substance. I'll still come for their breakfast but not for dinner. read more

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This review is mixed but before I say anything please know, I definitely recommend this restaurant. This restaurant is so spacious, it has two sides. One side has bar seating and a few smaller tables and the other side has larger, family size tables. The restaurant is clean, welcoming and great music playing. Service is excellent. I interacted with a few employees and they were all nice and helpful. The food is tasty and the portions are huge. My only complaint was my specific meal. My kids had pancakes, sausage, breakfast potatoes and it was seasoned well and delicious. My husband enjoyed his food as well. I had the steak skillet and the corned beef hash. Both were absolutely horrible. I can't even begin to describe the hash. It was dry and hard as a brick. My steak skillet had no flavor at all. The eggs were okay and the biscuits were good. The potatoes were not cooked all the way through and were bland. I think they should use the breakfast potatoes in the skillets because those were delicious. The steak was tough. I will be returning, I just won't be ordering those two things again. read more

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Pancakes were nice and fluffy. A half order with a side of bacon was perfect amount of food. Staff was nice.

Came for the pancakes, stayed for the vibes -- and the hospitality. I had the pleasure of meeting the owner, Kristian (with a K -- don't get it twisted ), and he is genuinely one of the nicest people you'll ever meet. Not only was the food great and the atmosphere welcoming, but Kristian went above and beyond and surprised me with free sushi from his restaurant next door. Who does that?! That level of generosity and kindness is rare and says everything about the kind of person (and business owner) he is. Pancake Café isn't just a place to eat -- it's a place where you feel taken care of. Support this spot, support great people, and definitely come hungry read more

- good location - tiniest glass of milk known to man was $5 - sausage links was 7 DOLLARS and it wasn't even good - so much $$$ - have items on the menu that they don't even sell anymore - server was nice - pride friendly read more

We ordered for delivery and have a few issues. No one is answering the phone and we've called multiple times now. We got a set of Gluten free pancakes & regular pancakes but they didn't mark which ones are gluten free. As someone who doesn't want to end up in pain from eating the wrong food, it's so frustrating guessing which ones are GF. We're also missing a side of fruit. I ordered Chicken sausage & eggs but the sausage looks & tastes like regular sausage. Both my boyfriend & I are trying to call to confirm it's actually chicken before I can continue eating but am getting no answer. read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

This is our go-to breakfast spot! We have been here many times and every dish we have ever tried has been delicious! It is usually pretty busy so there might be a slight wait for a table if you have a larger group. But for a group of 2 we can usually get a table immediately or find a spot to sit at the bar and eat. The staff is always very welcoming and they're very quick to get your order in and get your food out. Eating here in the perfect start to any day! read more

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Love this place. If I'm in the mood for an omelette, it's my go to. The Bloody Mary's are excellent (bring a machete for the garnish). The staff seems to have a bunch of lifers who take customers and details seriously. And even the newer staff is bought into the culture. We have some good choices in the hood, but Pancake Cafe is in the top of the rotation. read more

This place is so good! Love the small cafe vibe. 100 percent recommend the breakfast burrito :)

Too many roaches ...one by our table, another dead in the washroom. Need to close and boom the roaches.

Great breakfast spot! The steak and eggs is amazing. Plus, the avocado toast was so good! They give you a very generous amount of avocado compared to other breakfast spots. The staff were very responsive, polite, and nice. They were all very accommodating to my dairy allergy as well. We will definitely be back!! read more

I just wanted to leave a brief review for one of the best employees, Liz. The last time I came in, she was wonderful--extremely polite and very attentive. I can honestly say the reason I'll be coming back again is to say hello to her, because she was phenomenal. Aside from the excellent service, the food is great as well. read more

I ha better, eggs were Rubin and disgusting. Service was bad. Very slow and rude staff. Washroom was filthy.

We came on a busy Sunday brunch! Wait time for table was reasonable . Food was delicious portions are big. Our server was very attentive came to check few times . She was with positive energy on a busy day her name was Mili. Ambiance was great will be back They have patio as well read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Steak Skillet and waffle - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Second time at Pancake Cafe, first time ordering takeout. A few hostesses greeted me and smiled as I arrived to pickup my food. Everything was delicious and will be a repeat breakfast spot I'll go to. read more

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If you have kids -- don't go here! Seriously. We came in with our 2-year-old and were completely blindsided by how unwelcoming this place turned out to be for families. Despite having a kids menu (which makes it seem like children are welcome), the owner apparently didn't feel the same way. Instead of speaking to us directly, he had one of his Spanish-speaking servers deliver the message -- even though he had been speaking English just fine to our server earlier. It felt like he was avoiding us and trying to pass off an uncomfortable message in the most indirect way possible. We were told -- at the end of our meal -- that our toddler was "too much." If kids aren't actually welcome at your restaurant, that's fine, but be upfront about it. Don't wait until we've ordered, eaten, and paid to let us know we're not wanted. And maybe don't have a kids menu if kids aren't actually part of your "vibe." Extremely disappointed and honestly shocked by the way this was handled. Families: steer clear. There are plenty of places that are more respectful and transparent about their expectations. read more

I stayed the night in the area before a Cubs day game and wanted to go out for breakfast nearby because I wasn't craving hotel food. Pancake Cafe was less than a 10 minute walk from my hotel and it was a nice morning, so I headed there. My order consisted of a bacon and cheese omelette with crispy hash browns and a side of pancakes. Everything I ordered was cooked expertly and tasted fantastic. The omelette had a good amount of bacon and cheese in it, they were able to make the hash browns crispy without burning them, and the pancakes were fluffy and sweet enough where you don't necessarily need syrup. I was surprised to see how large the side of pancakes were and the fact they were two of them. The service was friendly and attentive too. For the money, the food was a great value. The area is well maintained and not too far from Wrigley Field, so I could easily see myself stopping again the next time I go to a day game. read more

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Service was great! Friendly staff. My second time and staff is always very warm and welcoming. Unfortunately the food my first time was just okay, I thought it was overpriced. My second (and probably last) was not good. The skillet I ordered tasted weird, like chemically, the green pepper was bitter. Also don't understand why these breakfast establishments price their pancakes or French toast orders $14-18 and bring you nothing else on the plate!!! Where is the garnish? a couple berries or strawberries, or whip cream (no extra charge) should be the expectation with a $16 slice of bread. Food should taste and look like it's worth the $$ you're paying. read more

Everything I ordered off of the menu here was good. I got the French toast seen in my pictures and it was much better than I was expecting. I was afraid it would be too sweet, but they did a really good job of balancing between being too sweet and not sweet enough. I also really liked the huevos rancheros. It's not the best I've had, but it was still good. The eggs Benedict were amazing. I usually don't like them, but I found myself asking my friend to try larger pieces of her dish. Finally, the music playing was nice and the cafe has a nice vibe to it. read more

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Super great corner slot offering elevated brunch options. Large portions and hot food. Great service too! Enjoyed the eggs, bacon and crispy hashbrowns and my friend loved the eggs Benedict. Will be back! read more

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Place was crowded on a Sunday morning. They gave us a 10 minute wait time and ended up waiting around 30 minutes instead. Seemed like they only had 1 server helping out the whole first potion of the restaurant which took longer. They do have many gluten free friendly option. And food was fresh. read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

Service was great. They helped us decide the best items. Our food was great. Will come back soon! read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Blueberry Pancakes. Southwest Omelette. - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The food was delicious love the bacon. Service was good also. Ambiance was nice too parking wasn't great. You have to pay to park closer read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Scramble eggs soft Canadian hashbrowns and pancakes - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

The half portion of pancakes is the perfect size for craving fixes (highly rec the strawberry or chocolate chip pancakes). Super cozy interior for the holiday season read more

UPDATE: Craved pancakes, decided to give this place another shot and Im so glad I did. These pancakes were so light and fluffy..melt in your mouth...just perfect. Highly recommend getting pancakes here. Im still a hard pass on the egg dishes. read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Spinach and feta omelette that is mostly uncooked spinach. - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

They have amazing pancakes! So fluffy and soft and yet it had a slight crispness to the bottom. The omelette was huge, it was made with four eggs. I would be careful about the side of eggs because each egg costs $3 so probably better to get a dish with eggs. Sundays can be pretty busy so there might be a wait time. read more

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Pancake Cafe is the epitome of home away from home. Everyone here makes you feel welcome! I live down the street and enjoy coming here time after time. Jerry is the best! read more

online ordering doesn't work for coffee. blank stares from workers. do not even have the ingredients they state on the online ordering either. lame read more

Came here with my friends not too long ago because we wanted to go to a brunch place near our friend's house, and it was very good. The ingredients all seemed fresh and everything was flavorful. The menu is quite extensive and includes eggs, breakfast burritos, salads, sandwiches, pancakes, french toast, waffles, and so much more. You can even do a la carte and try a little bit of everything so you can pick and choose the quantity of anything you want instead of needing to have all of the same thing in your meal. This place is better than many other chain restaurants. I ordered the croissant breakfast sandwich with breakfast potatoes instead of hashbrowns, and everything was wonderful. The bacon was crispy, the croissant was fluffy, and the cheese was perfectly melted on the sandwich. I also ordered a mimosa and a coffee. My friends all really enjoyed their meals, as well, and we had a personable waiter who always checked up on us. The only thing was that my friend had a hair in her omelette, but she cut that part off of her food and then just ate the rest. I would love to come here again soon to try something new out of their many options. read more

Pancake Café Wrigleyville | Breakfast, Brunch, & Lunch - Delicious croissant breakfast sandwich with breakfast potatoes - Bars Near Me - Chicago, Illinois

My girlfriend took me here for my birthday breakfast, so of course, I had to order the birthday pancakes! It was mentioned that it was my birthday so they put a candle in my pancakes, sang to me, and gave me a free mimosa - it was all a really nice surprise! The pancakes were light, fluffy and delicious. The avocado toast was also really good but huge - 2 pieces of toast, 2 eggs and hashbrowns. The brewed Coffee was also quite good, which is important to me at a breakfast spot. The service was fantastic and the restaurant itself was very clean and had a great vibe. I highly recommend a visit. read more

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Poshest breakfast restaurant in the area. They just opened in Hoffman Estates where Apple Villa used to be. Menu needs to keep pace with the ambiance of the decor. read more