For Valentine's Day this year, Danielle and I decided to take a trip to the Brownstone Diner & Pancake Factory, a spot we'd wanted to visit ever since we saw Guy Fieri doing his best "Guy Fieri" impersonation there on his soon-to-be cult classic television program, "Diners, Drive-In's, and Dives."
And while we didn't go in full-on foodie mode, I took a bunch of pictures that are too good to not share with you all. As always, be sure to click each picture to see a higher-resolution version.
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When you first walk in to the Brownstone, you're greeted with their slogan:
A pancake for every palate!
Actually, I made that up. Their slogan is "need pancakes!" which is awful and for some reason, not capitalized properly. But ignoring that, along with their horrific font choice--
--you get to choose from over 30 different types of pancakes. The reality is that there's a gigantic menu at your disposal, full of delicious-sounding items, but honestly, it's all pretty much your typical Jersey Diner fodder.
And let's be honest--you don't go to an establishment that calls itself the "Pancake Factory" and order the Oriental Chicken Salad.
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Danielle and I decided to stick a fork in at least three different items.
To uh, make the drive worth it.
She ordered the Chocolate Peanut Butter Pancakes. The only way I can describe them is thus:
Sexual deviancy in pancake form.
They didn't need syrup or whipped cream or butter or powdered sugar. Frankly, I shouldn't even have photographed them, because something this good should only be witnessed in person. But after this meal, I'm going to hell anyway, so it was an easy choice.
To share, we asked for an order of the German-Style Pancakes. They came stuffed with apple compote and, at least according to the menu, were "thin buttermilks." Now, I've eaten many pancakes in my day. And with all due respect to the fine people running the Pancake Factory, there's no way I would ever classify the Brownstone's German-Style Pancakes as "thin." Regardless, it was a great choice. The compote was delicious, the pancakes were--lighter, maybe--but still flavorful.
I ordered the Country Breakfast Wrap. Full disclosure--I walked into the Brownstone knowing I would order it. It's the menu item that Mr. Fieri got my attention with so many months ago.
See, it's a breakfast wrap, right? It's got your eggs, your cheese, your potato, your sausage. But instead of using a tortilla to wrap it all up, the Brownstone, those sick bastards, they use a pancake.
Yup, a pancake.
Here's another picture. A cross-sample for the non-believers:
I know, I know.
Madness meets brilliance.
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Food-wise, that was about as much as we could fit inside of us.
The coffee was good, as was the service.
The wait was insufferable, and expect to wait to park your car, but you'll forget about both of those minor annoyances once the pancakes hit the table.
I can't say it enough--if you're a breakfast food lover, take the trip to Jersey City and check out the Brownstone Diner & Pancake Factory.
And if you're interested in more glorious, high-resolution shots of pancake sex (and shame on you if you're not), as well as some MacBook Pro unboxing porn, check out the full gallery here:
Pancakes & MacBook Pros (2.14.10)
More soon.
JS
