We checked out of our hotel hungry and looking for breakfast. Coop opened up Urbanspoon's iPhone app and the only place close to the Interstate still serving breakfast was Ye Olde Pancake Station, so we decided to give it a try. We are both thrilled that we did. The first thing you notice when you sit in the dining room is the down home atmosphere. For me it brought back memories like visiting the old community center lunches with my Grandmother in Woodburn when I was a kid. Everyone friendly and welcoming, people passing plates to the next table over when the server couldn't squeeze between tables to get there. Anytime a restaurant can bring back those kinds of memories and feelings they are doing something right.
To put the size of these pancakes into perspective, those bacon slices were 10 inches long.
Our waitress asked how we found them, because they apparently don't get much out of town traffic, and I broke my normal rule of not letting them know they are going to be reviewed until we leave while we were chatting. She asked questions about how I prefer my bacon and the like, but I heard her asking the same of people around me, so I don't think they did anything different for me than they normally do for their customers.
They advertise "The World's Best Pancake", so I decided to put it to the test. Served with New Hampshire Maple syrup and with a side of extra crispy bacon, I was ready to dig right in. The pancakes were almost too big for the plate, and light and fluffy. Puffing up to better than a 1/2 inch thick with a side of bacon it was plenty to fill in all the corners of this Fat Boy.
One thing I've found is that some places have a hard time getting the center of a thick pancake cooked through without burning the outside. Whoever is manning the griddle here knows what they are doing, as these were perfect. A slight malty flavor was complimented well by the real maple syrup, and I couldn't have asked for better.
As we were leaving Darla Frey, the Pancake Station's owner stopped me to make sure everything was to our satisfaction. It may have been concern over the review, but I think it was more a genuine desire to make sure everyone leaves Ye Olde Pancake Station happy. If you ever roll through Amarillo by Morning, give Ye Olde Pancake Station a visit, they have earned their spot in Fat Boy Heaven.
The "Worlds Best Pancakes" at Ye Olde Pancake Station were light, fluffy, absorbent, and delicious.
After that amazing breakfast we hit a store to pick up some drinks and snacks for the road and headed out for a long drive into Flagstaff, AZ. The previous nights storms were nowhere to be seen, and it was clear sailing except for some long stretches of work zones along the Interstate. We made a couple of stops for gas, the first of which was at a truck stop that had an auto museum you will see pictures from, but otherwise drove all day to make it to the hotel by 9:00 pm. I'll leave you tonight with pictures from the drive. Tomorrow we head to The Grand Canyon and Las Vegas as the Fat Boy Summer Road Trip rolls on towards home.
And we rode into the Arizone sunset and our hotel.