Oh my! It's not Saturday and yet, here is the Westchester Breakfast Club standing outside the Clinton Street Baking Company waiting for highly coveted table in this 32 seat establishment. But wait, isn't the Clinton Street Baking Company in Manhattan? What is the Westchester Breakfast Club doing in Manhattan? Any why are we willing to stand in the cold for 2 hours to eat, what is quickly becoming a very very late breakfast?
The Waiting crowd
This is why. Thanks to our Presidents, a majority of us had the day off to celebrate Presidents Day. We were missing, Shelley, one of our core members whose company was celebrating in their own special way. But we also gained a couple of guests, Claudine and Jason.
The Clinton Street Baking Company is known for their pancakes. This month it was Pancake month, where from Monday to Friday, besides their usual regular, blueberry and banana walnut pancakes, they also had an additional special flavor. For us, it was Raspberry chocolate chunk pancakes.
How can we say no when delicious pancakes are calling? So, we called this emergency meeting, packed our travel bags and made our way to the Lower East Side to answer the call.
Attendees: Reid, Pat, Jeffrey, Sylvia, Claudine & Jason
Reid
Let's put it this way; yesterday I woke up at 7:00, left my warm house and drove in my cold car for about 20 minutes, only to get in another car to drive for another hour or so, then stood in the sub-freezing weather for around 2 hours, then squeezed myself into a small restaurant just so I could get a breakfast of blueberry pancakes, bacon, and hot chocolate, which I could have gotten at any one of at least a dozen places within fifteen minutes of my house.
And it was absolutely worth it.
I don't know if the breakfast I had at the Clinton Street Baking Company yesterday was the best breakfast I've ever had; that honor probably still belongs to the baked apple pancake at the Original Pancake House on the South Side of Chicago. But I can tell you that if there is a better breakfast food than the sugar cured bacon at CSBC, I have yet to taste it. When it first hits your mouth, the taste is a little off-putting. But I'm pretty sure that's because your brain needs a few fractions of a second to adequately process the sheer volume of awesomeness flowing over your taste buds. As the sugar begins to melt, and the fat particles from the bacon start to dissolve in your mouth, the combination of savory and sweet was indescribable in terms that would be appropriate for a family blog.
Biscuit and Sugar Cured Bacon
The blueberry pancakes were also excellent. I'm normally a fresh blueberry guy, and am disappointed when I see a blueberry compote instead. However, though the berries as the CSBC were clearly cooked in some sort of syrup, they didn't lose their natural consistency, still exploding with flavor when I bit into them. Though I was worried at first when I saw them atop the pancakes, my concerns were allayed when I saw they were liberally baked into the pancakes as well.
Even the biscuit I ordered was good, though not particularly unique. It was served with a slightly tart homemade raspberry jam, which I tried some of, though mostly I needed to use the biscuit as a palate cleanser between the bacon and the pancakes.
To be worth both traveling to and waiting for, a breakfast must be really exceptional. And this breakfast was really exceptional. My only complaint was that my order of bacon was a little bit too much for one person, and as far as I'm concerned, that's no complaint at all. I wouldn't go back every day, but every six months or so; no question about it.
Jeffrey
Clinton Street Baking Company. What can I say? Delicious? Fantastic? Mind-blowing? Let’s start with the negatives I guess.
There were two memorable, yet completely acceptable bad things that happened. First was the two-hour wait we had after putting in our name. Yes, the wait was long, but that’s expected when it comes with excellence. The second was the fact that half the people ordered hot chocolate, which looked delicious with its wide cup and whipped cream topping, and the other half ordered coffee. There must have been a mix up with the order, since the coffee people had to wait and then ask the waiter what happened. It’s an honest mistake in a busy place, so to me, it wasn’t a big issue.
Now, we hit the actual meal. I’ll stick to what I ate since I know other authors are going to have a ball writing about their own meals.
I had the Raspberry Chocolate Chunk Pancakes with raspberry jam and a side of over easy eggs and a biscuit. The pancakes were perfect and made better with the maple butter. Maple butter can only be described as something that can’t be good for you but you just don’t care because it’s that delicious. Another thing that fits the description is the sugar-cured bacon. It’s like sugar dipped bacon that is wonderful.
Raspberry Chocolate Chunk Pancakes
The cost of the meal approached thirty dollars, but come on. It’s not like you’re going to have something this magnificent every day. Not even every month. No, this is a place that one goes maybe once every 6 months, and that makes it special and totally worth it.
Pat
What I Had: Blueberry pancakes, sugar-cured bacon, hot chocolate
What It Cost: ~$25
Worth It: Good Lord, yes
The Rating: 4.5/5
The Details: We waited two hours in freezing cold temperatures. We paid well over $20 bucks for breakfast. With these two conditions, this had better be one hell of good breakfast. Good thing it was. The pancakes were perfect: light, fluffy, crispy on the edges, and served with a generous portion of blueberries and this glorious concoction known as maple butter, which combines (surprise) maple syrup and butter. They appear slightly smaller than pancakes you're used to at diners, but I was still full 7 hours later when I met my friend for dinner, so there's no arguing their size. Amazingly, however, the pancakes were not the star. That title falls to the sugar-cured bacon. At first, it's a peculiar sensation to bite into these glazed strips. That sensation soon fades away, as the sugar melts and combines with the savory bacon, creating a combination that can only be described as spectacular. Be forewarned, one order is probably enough for two or three people. The hot chocolate was fine, served in a deep mug with a generous topping of whipped cream and shaved chocolate. Unfortunately, it wasn't actually hot, and given the two hours we had just stood outside in 25 degree temperatures, that diminished the experience slightly (hence the .5 star deduction).
The Recommendation: By all means go. NOW!
Blueberry Pancakes
Sylvia
I love pancakes. They are the one of the two foods I use to get me through long runs and hard training workouts (the other are cheeseburgers). So, when I heard that Clinton Street Baking Company was having pancake month, I simply had to partake. The restaurant is tiny, so a wait was expected, it being Presidents day and all.
I had the banana walnut pancakes and shared a side of sugar cured bacon and a biscuit with Jeffrey. The pancakes were absolutely wonderful. There were chunks of bananas well placed within the pancake. Not so much that it makes the pancake soggy, but just enough that you get enough, but you wouldn’t even know there were bananas till you cut into the pancake. There were even slices of bananas and walnuts on top that were lightly dusted with some cinnamon sugar. Absolutely delicious.
Banana Walnut Pancakes
As I’ve said before, I’m not a bacon person, but there are only a few places which make me change my mind. This is one place. The sugar cured bacon sweet and savory and oh so worth every calorie.
This place is definitely worth the special trip. If you go, try to get there about a half hour before opening. That way, you maximize your chances of minimizing the wait. Or go in the summer…when it’s much more bearable to wait outside, or you can even get it to go and eat it at the nearest park.
Claudine & Jason
Long over due but the full stomachs from the good eats at The Clinton Street Bakery Company slowed us down. As excited guests of the WBC we checked out the website to see what all the excitement was about. In two words "PANCAKE MONTH"!! We were in and got up on the first official day of Jason's winter break to get the 7am train to the city. We hit grand central and hoped on the subway. Almost there, walking down what seem to be a closed down street we came upon the line for the CSBC. Sneaky repeat guests, in the know, got their party of six in right before ours. Equalled a two hour wait in 25 degree weather. Now where to warm up? Cafe Pedlar, less than 20 yards away looked good.
I got a skim latte and jason hit up a double espresso. Not to shabby of a cafe and great place to warm up during the wait. As we stalked to other patrons for the next two hours we had plenty of time to daydream about the pancakes. Finally getting called to sit down felt like winning the lottery. Great vibe, comfortable seating and even though we were in the direct path to the loo, it didn't feel cramped. Waters on the table immediately and hot chocolate came out promptly. Coffee service required and extra reminder but the waiter seemed sincerely apologetic about neglecting my coffee habit. Jason kicked it off with a blueberry muffin which he thought was excellent. Fresh blueberries, more muffin like than cake and the perfect consistency. I had a bite of the the muffin and agree with his review but think it would have been perfect if they cut it in half, toasted it up and had butter on the side offer. The coffee had good flavor and was replenished often after the original incident. The main event had arrived. I was all about the raspberry chocolate chunk pancakes with a side of scramble eggs and Jason ordered up the banana walnut pancakes and 2 over easy eggs. Now as any frequenter of the All you can Eat Pancake Breakfast at the local firehouse knows, pancakes are all about the batter consistency. If it is off, the pancakes will just be awful no matter how you try to supplement them with fruit or chocolate. CSBC has got it down pat. Light and fluffy but moist enough to hold any combination of fruit, nuts, or chocolate. To top off their perfected pancake craft they give you Maple Butter. Not only does it save space on the table but the butter is already melted so there is no waiting for the butter to melt into your pancake before putting on your syrup. If you wait too long the pancake will get too soggy, not long enough and the syrup just pushes the butter off the pancake into the syrup moat below the stack. Both not good; so big fan of the Maple Butter. The raspberry chocolate combo was good but think it could have been better with a a little bit more raspberry. In the same thought though too much more would have hid the real star, the pancakes. My scrabble eggs were flavorful for eggs but think their secret was cooking them in butter. I personally like my eggs with an oatmeal like consistency but these were a close second. Now on to Jason's banana walnut pancakes. He was also a fan of the texture and consistency of the pancakes and they had the right amount of banana to walnut ratio to make them the best in show for banana walnut pancakes. And he was also a big Maple Butter fan. Even though he didn't order the sugar cured bacon himself Jason was a big fan. i had a small bite as well and it was extremely good. Even though I don't have much to compare it to since I haven't had bacon in over 10 years, this seemed like a bacon masterpiece. Close to a bacon miracle, per Jason. Over all the CSBC was the best breakfast we have ever had and would wait 2hrs again or order take out and eat it across the street on the bench.
After meeting Pat and Jeff at a table in the back, I was informed that they had already ordered a breakfast appetizer: donuts. Wobble calls these "Frats." I'm not sure why, but it doesn't really matter because whatever you call them, they were delicious. Presented on a lovely glass plate were 4 warm, crispy, glazed-to-perfection donuts. I'm not typically a big fan of donuts--I often find them too heavy for my liking--but having been freshly made, Wobble's donuts maintained a lightness that other donuts typically lack. This was a treat, a nice, if sugary way to start our meal.
Up next was the main course. I had an omelette with cheddar cheese and fresh spinach, sides of home fries and fresh fruit, and white toast. The omelette was delicious--wonderfully fluffy, with the cheddar and spinach encased inside. The flavors of the cheddar and spinach blended well together. The homefries were small cubes of potatoes, not too greasy. They were also not especially seasoned, but if you remember my review of The Patio, you'll also remember that underseasoned home fries is not a problem for me. The fruit was a pleasant mix that included some apple slices, red grapes, pineapple, and melon. I wound up wasting my toast--it was perfectly fine, but I simply had no room for it after my one-and-one-third donuts...er, Frats. Plus the butter was little foil packets that were left on the table for too long, making the butter a bit of a mushy mess.
Now, the not so good. It's not that the Bananas Foster (bananas in rich syrupy/whiskey sauce that's burned down wrapped in a crepe) was bad. The crepes were pretty well made, the sauce was good enough, and it was served with a generous proportion of fresh fruit. The problem was that all of the subtlety of the flavors was completely overwhelmed by the bananas. At the end, it just tasted like overripe bananas. I've been to Wobble Cafe before, and I really enjoyed it (the hash browns are wonderful) but this dish was a disappointment.
Migas are my go to meal. If I had to explain it, it’s a pile of egg, chorizo, cheese, and bits of soft and hard tortilla. All of this is served with pickled peppers and your choice of fruit or home fries. I love potatoes, so I always get the home fries. Don’t worry; there is the option for vegetarian migas. I’ve never tried it because, well, meat is delicious. The meal doesn’t look pretty, but it’s delicious. It’s just a pile of goodness.
