Griddlecakes
Buttermilk Biscuits
French Toast
Short Stack of Chocolate Chip Buttermilk Pancakes
Locally owned and operated, with two locations stretching the Valley from Southeast to Northwest, it was to Griddlecakes North Jones location that I pointed the GPS on Saturday morning after a late Friday night out, and arriving just prior to 9:30am to a packed house it was to charming youthful service that I was greeted, a small two top on the fringe of the kitchen my seat for the next hour of traditional American breakfast fare.
Clearly a popular choice of locals, the space brimming with folks aged seven months to seventy plus years, water was delivered simultaneously with a menu upon seating and deferring on coffee that smelled just a touch overroasted it a brief perusal of the menu that saw three items ordered, the restaurant’s free WiFi keeping me occupied during a twenty minute wait in which I was checked on frequently with water topped off twice.
Not a place to reinvent the wheel, though a few novelties are offered, it was entirely with personal favorites that I decided to test the Griddlecakes’ kitchen and after eschewing the warmed pseudo-syrup in favor of good stuff brought from home my first bites of the restaurant’s French Toast spoke to a classic presentation really no different than that which can be made at home, the bread a store-bought eggy sort with just enough cinnamon and vanilla in the batter to tickle the palate with the center was still just a touch doughy, a longer soak perhaps overlooked by a line-cook facing the weekend morning crush.
Moving next to a short stack of pancakes, billed as ‘large,’ by my young server and topped with a $1.99 surcharge of chocolate chips, suffice it to say that pancakes double the size of those offered at Griddlecakes are offered at no-less than a dozen spots in Las Vegas and although preparation was ‘good enough’ given the $5.99 tab these too were nothing special, the meal’s lone standout a pair of buttermilk biscuits that were undoubtedly house-made given their oblong flattened shape and all the better for it with ample notes of buttermilk still notable after a lacquer of butter and honey, both.
TWO AND A HALF STARS: A competent breakfast kitchen serving up American standards at a fair price, Griddlecakes is a good locals spot for those in the Northwest, and presumably the Southeast, but certainly not a destination – similar fare found at a similar price at not only several other mom n’ pop places, but also in the cafes of several major casino cafes 24-hours a day.
RECOMMENDED: Buttermilk Biscuits.
AVOID: Nothing is particularly ‘bad,’ but neither the French Toast or Pancakes are particularly memorable either.
TIP: Persons looking for a deal are advised to keep an eye on any number of local papers and magazines, a buy-one-get-one-half-off coupon frequently offered without weekend restrictions or need to purchase a beverage (or two.)
WHAT THE STARS MEAN: 5 World Class, 4 Excellent, 3 Good, 2 Fair, 1 Poor