From : Best Places® Portland - Top 200 Restaurants

Show some respect the next time you come here for Swedish or banana or simply perfect pancakes. In 1999, the Original Pancake House was designated by the James Beard Foundation as a regional landmark restaurant, a thick-battered legend. The question is whether, when the New York foundation folks came to present the award, they had to wait in line - the way people have been waiting patiently here since it opened in 1955.

This place hums from the time it opens at 7am practically until it closes in midafternoon. The sourdough flapjacks - from wine-spiked cherry to wheat germ to a behemoth apple pancake with a sticky cinnamon glaze - are made from scratch. A good bet is the egg-rich Dutch baby, which arrives looking like a huge, sunken birthday cake, dusted with powdered sugar and served with fresh lemon. Omelets big enough for two (made from a half-dozen eggs) arrive with a short stack.

The billing may mention just the pancakes, but this is a place that knows how to handle eggs. The service is cheerful and efficient; after all, there are people waiting for your table.

$ ; no credit cards; checks OK; breakfast, lunch Wed-Sun; no alcohol; no reservations.

Oregon Store - Original Pancake House

From : The Oregonian-Dining Guide- Friday, April 21, 2000

It's where Portland eats breakfast, as the nearly constant lines attest. Begun in 1953, the Original Pancake House has more than 80 locations around the country. But this is clearly the original, and it feels like Old Portland. Which helps explain why it won a 1999 James Beard America's Regional Classics Award. As if you'll need any further explanations after breakfast here.

Cuisine: Classic flapjacks and waffles.

Atmosphere: Pine-paneled colonial room with display plates on the walls. The room is clamorous with intent diner tucking into big platters of flapjacks as pink-aproned, efficient waitresses keep your coffee cup brimming.

Menu: Fifteen types of pancakes, including buckwheat ($6), sourdough ($6.25), potato ($7.50), wheat germ ($6), silver dollar ($6), Georgia pecan ($6.75). Crepes, too : Danish cherry Kijafa ($6.75), mandarin ($6.75), and fresh fruit ($7). Omelets ($7-$9) are definitely for hungry breakfasters. They're huge, and come with three buttermilk pancakes.

Must-have dishes: Big, airy Dutch baby dusted with powdered sugar and lemon ($7.50). The considerably more dense and cinnamony German apple pancake ($8). The mushroom omelet, smothered in rich sherry sauce. Ham and cheese omelet is a winner, as are strawberry waffles, and cherry Kijafa crepes.

Reason to go: You want breakfast, you want good service, and good food made with the best ingredients, you want excellent coffee, and you want something with syrup poured over it.

Drawbacks: Lines most of the time, but there's usually a spot at the community table.

Hours: Breakfast only: 7 a.m-3 p.m Wed-Sun.

Extras: No alcohol; cash and check only; disables access; parking; no smoking.