By Amy Rosner By Amy Rosner | March 14, 2024 | Food & Drink, Guides,
Whether you prefer them dripping with maple syrup, smothered in butter, drowning in whipped cream or all of the above, nothing hits the spot quite like the perfect stack of flapjacks. We've rounded up our picks of the best pancakes in NYC so all of your brunch dreams can come true.
See Also: Culinary Mastermind Behind Bubby's Shares Secret Pancake Recipe & More
120 Hudson St. / Website
If you’re just as addicted to pancakes as we are, then you’ve most likely waited 45 minutes for Bubby’s famous flapjacks. Coined for having the best pancakes in all of New York City, Bubby’s James Beard pancakes live up to their reputation and then some. Simple yet in a league of their own, these pillowy clouds of deliciousness must be sent from the spirits above. If you’re feeling fancy, try the pancake flight which comes with three pancakes, caramelized banana, toasted walnuts, blueberry, Nutella, strawberries and whipped cream.
520 Columbus Ave. / Website
An Upper West Side classic since 1981, Good Enough To Eat is the mecca of good ol’ fashioned comfort food. Unsurprisingly, this no-frills American eatery serves some of the best blueberry pancakes in town. If you’re not the blueberry type, the local spot serves melt-in-your-mouth banana walnut pancakes, silver dollar pancakes and Peter Paul pancakes (three cakes with Belgian chocolate topped with toasted coconut). Rest assured, any of these options are not just good, but great enough to eat.
4 Clinton St. / Website
Clinton St. Baking Company is absolute mayhem at 11:00 a.m. on a Sunday morning, and for good reason. Famous for their wraparound lines and pancakes the size of your face, you’ve definitely seen a Clinton St. spread plastered all over your Instagram feed. If you’re able to snag a table here, you must order the pancakes. All pancakes are prepared with hot, melted butter, and diners can add wild Maine blueberries, banana walnuts or chocolate chunks. We don’t discriminate when it comes to carbs, but the chocolate takes your favorite cheat-day meal to a whole new level.
28 8th Ave. / Website
Similar to Good Enough To Eat, La Bonbonniere has mastered the skill of artful simplicity. In a city obsessed with the latest and greatest–the most exclusive social clubs, restaurants and nightclubs–sometimes all you want is your run-of-the-mill diner. Preferably one that specializes in carbs, carbs, and you guessed it, carbs. La Bonbonniere provides just that, with pancakes cooked to absolute perfection. The menu is full of pancake varieties, but all the cool kids know to order the blueberry-chocolate chip combo. Why have one, when you can have both?
90 Calyer St., Brooklyn / Website
If you think you’ve tried the crispiest pancakes in New York City, think again. The raved-about hotcakes at this Brooklyn hot spot are taking crispy to a whole new level. The key to chef Jake Leiber’s cooking is loads and loads of melted clarified butter. The result is a crispy, savory pancake that we can't get enough of. Trust us, this one is well worth the trip to Greenpoint.
88 Essex St. / Website
The pancake offerings at Shopsin’s are so vast, you could practically come here every day for the rest of your life and never order the same thing. Diners have a choice of three griddlecakes from “pancakeland,” ranging from cinnamon, butterscotch chip, pumpkin and even Mac'n Cheese. If you’re feeling even more adventurous, order pancakes stuffed with fried chicken, Oreos and marshmallow fluff crunch, or Nutella and graham crackers.
214 Smith St., Brooklyn / Website
We made a stop at Cafe Luluc on our Brooklyn food tour, and it was one of the best decisions we have ever made. This neighborhood French eatery serves all different kinds of hearty breakfast food, but if you’re not ordering the pancakes, you’re seriously doing something wrong. Prepared with mixed fruits and highly addictive Black Bear maple syrup, these pancakes are a perfect blend of sweet and tangy. Add two sunny-side-up eggs and thick-cut sausage, and you have the best of both worlds.
348 Wythe Ave., Brooklyn / Website
Made with hazelnut maple praline and melted brown butter, these otherworldly pancakes are the cure for, well, just about everything. Diners have an option of choosing from a single, double or triple stack, but we all know there’s only one right answer here. We personally pair our cakes with bacon or breakfast sausage, because you might as well go all in!
Photography by: Aleksandr_Vorobev / iStock