Where To Get Your Pancake Fix
Photography: The Wolseley
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Where To Get Your Pancake Fix

Smothered in maple syrup or piled high with fresh berries, pancakes should be a mainstay on any good brunch menu. And as Shrove Tuesday fast approaches, here are the best places to get your fix…
Photography: The Wolseley

Ask For Janice

With its stripped back interior and laid-back atmosphere, Ask For Janice is the sort of place you can spend all day. Food here is made from local, fresh produce and served in interesting ways. If you’ve come for the pancakes there are two kinds on offer – choose between bacon with maple syrup and pecans or blueberries with Dorset Dairy yoghurt. Both are delicious and come beautifully presented.  And, if you really do end up spending all day here, make sure you head down to the basement bar in the evening where you’ll find countless bottles of local gin.

50-52 Long Lane, Farringdon, London, EC1A 9EJ

Visit AskForJanice.co.uk

Riding House Café

With its stylish interior and mouth-wateringly good menu, the Riding House Café is one of the best places in London to visit for brunch. As well as the sublime buttermilk pancakes (served with either berries, vanilla clotted cream and maple syrup or triple-smoked streaky bacon and maple syrup), you’ll find shakshuka, quinoa and coconut porridge, burgerdict (eggs benedict with a dry-aged beef patty and crispy bacon) and kedgeree on the breakfast menu. There’s also an impressive array of smoothies and juices to help you start the day with a bang.

43-51 Great Titchfield Street, Fitzrovia, London, W1W 7PQ

Visit RidingHouse.cafe

The Ivy Chelsea Garden

The Ivy Chelsea Garden is a feast for the eyes. With lots of luscious foliage, gorgeous antique mirrors, bronzed wall lights and parquet floors, it feels as though it’s been designed solely with Instagram in mind. But put your phone down – you’ll need all the time you’ve got to ponder over the extensive foodie offerings. Brunch here is a serious affair and the pancakes do not disappoint. Served with strawberries, raspberries and blackberries with Greek yoghurt, lemon balm and warm strawberry sauce, they’re so good you’ll almost forget about your surroundings when you tuck in.

195-197 King’s Road, London, SW3 5EQ

 Visit TheIvyChelseaGarden.com

Ask For Janice
Ask For Janice
The Ivy
The Ivy
The Delaunay
The Delaunay

Aqua Shard

If you like your pancakes served with a good view, this is the place for you. With a glamorous setting and an unrivalled outlook across London, brunch at these dizzy heights is a three-course delight – with starters, mains and desserts keeping you full until dinner. Beautifully fluffy and served with fresh berries, treacle-cured streaky bacon, vanilla crème fraiche and a drizzling of maple syrup, the pancakes are not to be missed – just make sure you leave enough room for the rest of your meal!

Level 31, The Shard, 31 St Thomas Street, London, SE1 9RY

Visit AquaShard.co.uk

Half Cup

Just a short walk from King’s Cross station, this cool coffeehouse is the perfect place to meet friends for brunch. It’s bright and stylish inside with large colourful murals adorning the walls. The new menu includes mouth-wateringly good sweetcorn pancakes with feta, chives, bacon, chilli sauce and a fried egg, as well as plenty more crowd-pleasers. Feeling bold? Pair your pancakes with one of the speciality hot drinks on offer which include beetroot or turmeric lattes or an activated charcoal option.

100-102 Judd Street, London, WC1H 9NT

Visit HalfCup.co.uk

The Wolseley

With its high ceilings, impressive marble floor and beautiful furnishings, you don’t need us to tell you that The Wolseley is something of an institution in London. This buzzy, old-world brassiere was built in the 1920s and breakfast here is one of life’s little luxuries that should be experienced. The menu boasts a delicious assortment of options – from egg white frittata with harissa spiced tomatoes to grilled kipper with mustard butter – but it’s the pancakes that are the real star of the show. Unbelievably light and fluffy, they’re piled up high and served with bacon or berries with a decadent flourish. They almost look too good to eat, but we guarantee you won’t be able to resist.

160 Piccadilly, London, W1J 9EB

Visit TheWolseley.com

The Wolseley
The Wolseley
Bellanger
Bellanger
The Delaunay
The Delaunay

Granger and Co, Notting Hill

You know somewhere is worth the hype if people are queueing around the corner to get in – and that’s the certainly the case with Granger and Co in Notting Hill. Beautiful, chic and extremely popular, the Australian-inspired restaurant should definitely be on your list of breakfast spots to visit. While the healthy fruit and grain options would earn a nod of approval from local nutritionists, it’s really got to be all about the ricotta hotcakes. Served with banana and honeycomb butter, these moreish bites are definitely worth the wait.

175 Westbourne Grove, London, W11 2SB

Visit GrangerAndCo.com

Hemsley + Hemsley

Looking for wheat-free pancakes? At Hemsley + Hemsley, you’ll find just that. Set up by health food gurus Jasmine and Melissa Hemsley, the café in Selfridges is a homage to the wholesome, nourishing food that the pair have become synonymous with, and all the dishes on the menu are nutrient-rich and gluten-free. The thick and fluffy pancakes are made with coconut flour and served with maple butter, mint and blueberries. Add some crispy bacon on top for an extra treat.

400 Oxford Street, Marylebone, London, W1A 1AB

Visit HemsleyAndHemsley.com

Bellanger

For brunch with a French twist, head over to the Bellanger in Islington. With the art nouveau décor, booth seating and polished wood panelling, there’s an irresistible Parisian-café ambiance which provides a charming backdrop to your meal. As well as buttermilk pancakes (served with either maple syrup, bacon and syrup or blueberries and compote), a ham and gruyere crepe is also on the menu here.

9 Islington Green, London, N1 2XH

Visit Bellanger.co.uk

The Farm Girl
The Farm Girl
Where The Pancakes Are
Where The Pancakes Are
Granger And Co
Granger And Co

Where The Pancakes Are

Pancake lovers rejoice – we’ve found your mecca! At this chic little gem, you’ll be greeted with a menu that includes every topping imaginable, plus the option of a vegan, dairy-free and wheat-free batter, and a large selection of coffees and cocktails. Try the banana, praline and basil marshmallow combo if you’re in the mood for something sweet or opt for poached eggs with asparagus and smoked salmon or smashed avocado if it’s something savoury you’re craving. You can also order a ‘Dutch Baby’ – a Yorkshire pudding look-a-like which is oven-baked and served with delights such as apples, blueberries and almond flakes, or goats’ cheese, cheddar, parmesan crisps, rosemary and thyme.

Arch 35a, 85a Southwark Bridge Road, London, SE1 0NQ

Visit WhereThePancakesAre.com

Farm Girl, Chelsea

With an interior as gorgeous as this and dishes that are as Instagrammable as they come, you’d be forgiven for thinking that style prevails over substance at Farm Girl. But you’d be wrong. The thoughtful menu offers something for everyone, and the berry pancakes are one of the biggest crowd pleasers. Made with buckwheat flour, they come with amber maple syrup, candied pistachios and coconut shavings and are simply divine. If Chelsea isn’t your stomping ground, Farm Girl also has branches in Soho and Notting Hill.

9 Park Walk, London, SW10 0AJ

Visit TheFarmGirl.co.uk

The Delaunay


Sitting on the corner of Aldwych and Drury Lane, this restaurant radiates elegance, making breakfast here feel like a lavish treat. With green leather seating, dark wood, granite flooring and brass fixtures, it captures the atmosphere of a grand European café with aplomb. The brunch menu is rich and varied (a New York hot dog sits alongside a native blue lobster roll) but we’d direct you to the delicious fluffy buttermilk pancakes. Served with either maple syrup, bacon and maple syrup or blueberries and creme fraiche.

55 Aldwych, London, WC2B 4BB

Visit TheDelaunay.com

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