CLT Eats – A Charlotte Restaurant Review

Every once in a while nothing else will satisfy better than scrambled eggs, omlette or quiche. Breakfast for lunch or dinner can be had at several places but most of the places that specialize in it are scarier than Kato Kaelin. The Original Pancake House is a chain which immediately makes me a skeptic. Employees at chains aren’t invested emotionally from the top down. They just want a check usually. That statement seems to still be fairly true here but all is not lost.

I visited the South Park location for lunch the other day. I have to say, if they were trying to capture the essence of a truck stop diner and drop it in the middle of South Park, mission accomplished! This isn’t a fancy place. It’s basic tables and booths in a fairly plain setting. The staff genuinely looks like the were air-lifted in from Route 2 that very morning. They all have that “diner” flair about them. I expected our waitress to yell “Kiss My Grits” to the chef at any moment. This would be endearing if there was a single poor soul that actually looked like they wanted to be there. This isn’t the case though.

The menu is almost entirely limited to breakfast items and it’s very broad. You won’t likely have trouble finding something of interest but you may struggle pairing down your options. I ordered the quiche of the day. The quiche of the day happens to always be ham and cheese. Not my favorite but decent. Usually it’s so loaded down with ham and cheese that when they cut the slice out that it’s like gutting a yak or something, with ham and cheese spilling out on both sides and all semblance of a wedge shape almost completely disappears. Depending on your preference this is either a good thing or a bad one. For me it’s not preferable. I like a little egg in my quiche please. I still like it but it seems like they’ve taken the more-is-better concept to an extreme. Today the quiche was unusually cohesive and had a little egg involved. Due to this I enjoyed it better than I usually do. It also came with a side of diced fruit that was very fresh and plentiful for a small side dish. A friend of mine ordered French toast that looked pretty darn good and he raved about.

In general I like the breakfast at the Original Pancake House but I do wish they’d reel in the more-is-better concept a little. Most of the items I order there would be a lot better to me if they wouldn’t be so liberal with some of the ingredients.

Service is usually passable and occasionally annoying. Today wasn’t too bad and is typical of most of my visits. My sweet tea never stayed dry long but it did take a little while to order although that as partially our fault so I won’t grouse about that too much.

If you’re in the mood for some over-the-top breakfast food served with a forced smile then you’ll love OPH.

Pros

• Good Food
• Passable Service

Cons

• Unhappy Staff

Rating: Recommended