The Pancake House & Grill

I've been here before but it has been a few years before they remodeled.
The food was REALLY good and the steak I had in my omelet was very seasoned and tender.
And you also get large portions of food as well.
The service was decent but it could have been better.
The situation that really made my experience bad was a customer brought in a guy that was less fortunate to get him some food just from paying attention he did suffer from mental health issues.
So while the guy was there they were nice to the man he was paying for the food for, but as soon as the guy left all the staff started talking about him and why did he have to eat in the restaurant and why couldn't take it to go.
They took him from the table he was sitting at and moved him back to the waiting area.
People that came in after him got their food while he still was waiting for his food.
I felt like that was just so wrong.
Just from that I won't be going back again.

Owner response

Good food, nice place, poor service. BLUF: The food is good and not too expensive, the dining area is clean and well organized, but the wait time from order to table was very long and staff were cold and didn't seem interested in interacting or communicating.
Except, they are very interested in the tip you leave. We had breakfast here around 9:30-9:45am, and the place was clean and seemingly inviting and comfortable.
The initial interactions with staff were friendly and we were relatively quickly seated in a not too busy dining area. Ordering drinks and receiving them didn't seem to take too long, but the wait after ordering food (Kid pancake combo, pigs in a blanket, and sausage & fries for my wife with food allergies) was easily 20-25 minutes. During this extended wait, we didn't notice a large amount of to go or delivery orders coming out, and you can see in the images that the place was not very busy.
However, the wait staff never checked in on us or tried to communicate any reason for the long wait.
The only additional interaction after ordering came when they brought the butter out and gave my son a refill on his drink. The food was good, and if not for what happened during the payment transaction, this place may find itself in the 4 Star range for me.
However, the wait staff made my wife feel uncomfortable as she paid (I was in the restroom). The staff held the POS machine in their hand and stood over my wife during the transaction.
On the tip screen, there are three choices between 20%-27% and a "custom" button.
While there may have been no intention to apply pressure to my wife, This kind of transaction is a common tactic used by people/businesses to pressure higher tipping.
And while we can't say for sure that they wanted to be pressuring, there are also signs in/on the business encouraging tipping, and the whole combo feels purposeful. By not being overtly (at least until the payment) malicious, the staff had earned a common 15%-18% for this kind of restaurant and food, but the discomfort of the transaction situation caused my wife to pick the middle option just to get out if the place faster.
This is another reason why I feel the whole transaction was the way it was on purpose. The food is good though, and the facility is clean, but we have no interest in coming back.

Owner response

The Pancake House and Grill 7633 Granby St, Norfolk, VA 23505 In a nice inviting atmosphere signified by the warm lighting, the Pancake House and Grill is always eager to please customers in Norfolk by being one of the best breakfast spots in town. Been in business since 1962, the kind owner of this establishment also serves as a host to this restaurant looking quite pleased with what was being offered.
The Angus Burgers, he indicated, sounded delightful, but my friend swayed me to go with the Texas Special. Complete with an 8 ounce ribeye and served with two eggs, the entree was grilled to order with Montreal seasoning. Every bite of that steak was a bit of a savory joy with balanced seasoning while not being too salty.
The eggs, served over easy, were not too hard or too soft, but were thick enough to pick up with a fork.
Almost perfect! I also paired up that meal with the Peaches & Cream Pancakes.
They were made with an original egg batter recipe with tender peaches and topped with whipped cream. No syrup needed because the peaches already took care of the sweetness along with providing some texture that was easy to bite into with the whipped cream and pancake mixed into a bite which exudes a comforting flavor of pure bliss. Classy atmosphere, well cooked food, and really tasty pancakes, this restaurant can make breakfast meals a fun and a delicious experience.

Owner response