4. Restaurants

The Original Pancake House

7395 Lee Hwy, Falls Church, VA, 22042
  • (703) 698-6292
  • Store is closed

The Original Pancake House Menu

Sorry, We are updating this restaurant menu details.

  • Rachel Z.

    I'm surprised this place, which I always call OHOP because that's how my friend refers to it, doesn't have higher reviews. Admittedly, I basically only visit OHOP when I spend the night at the friend's house, and that's usually because we drank too much for me to get home, but I don't think that my recent boozing affects my tastebuds that much-- and the food is really good. That whipped butter or cream or whatever it is (OK, maybe I go when I'm still a little drunk)? Awesome. Awe. Some. I usually get banana pancakes with chocolate chips because that's my favorite combination, but the menu is actually pretty long and I've never read it all the way through (I am extremely lazy as soon as I set foot in a restaurant. No, but really, could you cut my steak for me?), so I'm sure there's something for absolutely anyone. The service is eh: they're friendly, but empty water glasses abound. Still, every night I spend in Falls Church I know I get to wake up to OHOP, and I kind of love it.

    (4)

  • Grace P.

    This place was great! The pancakes were delicious and the bacon was crispy. Our waitress was very attentive and kept our coffee mugs filled. We had a group of 7 and our wait was not long at all on Saturday morning at 11am. I believe less than 15 mins. We got seated in the back "family" room since we had a big group and it was nice to be able to carry on a conversation since the rest of the restaurant is an open space area. Highly recommend this place. Parking is a bit of an issue especially with the Farmer's Market on Saturdays.

    (5)

  • Esther C.

    Ate a late breakfast on a Saturday and my server was very attentive, the food was good, quick, and perfectly cooked. I got the "Works" - the portions were pretty substantial and I ended up bringing half of it home. The bacon here is thick cut and delicious! I usually want to get pancakes, get them and feel disappointed. It is not the case here.. I actually ate a good portion of it! :) My husband got the french toast and I didn't think there was anything special about it. Stick to the pancakes!

    (4)

  • Christopher W.

    I just ate here after working across the street for months. The eggs were perfectly cooked. The coffee was great. The corned beef has was good. The pancakes were good. Now I am going to have to go back. I really wish I had tried this place earlier. The food was goo the service was excellent. Now if they would only make biscuits and gravy that would be great.

    (5)

  • Harin D.

    Good food-not greasy, made to order. Wait staff, especially our server, Aster, we're awesome!

    (4)

  • Duane S.

    I finally made it to the new location. I like it. It seems to have a little more seating and I was able to be seated immediately. The breakfast offerings are so good. It is a tad bit more expensive than some other breakfast places, but it is worth it. So many varieties of pancakes and waffles. I may be wrong, but I don't think any other place has buckwheat pancakes. They taste so good with sausage and eggs. If you don't have a car, it is not metro accessible, so find someone who does and make your way there.

    (3)

  • Brandi E.

    Love! Love! Love! The only Original Pancake House in VA - and I'm so glad I found it! I was missing the OPH in Charlotte, NC. Fresh jumbo strawberries, freshly made orange juice, and thick bacon strips = what more can a girl ask for? :) I would go during my lunch break (M-F) and there is virtually no wait. I cannot vouch for the weekends.

    (5)

  • Molly T.

    3 stars. Bare bones in a 50's rundown diner sort of way, but the food is delicious. I saw a special on the Food Network that was about pancakes and they mentioned the Original Pancake House. The focus of the OPH segment covered the dutch baby( mammoth of a pancake) and then, I just HAD to go. Oddly enough I got there and I ordered the Apple Pancake, Oven baked with fresh granny smith apples and pure Sinkiang cinnamon glaze. I opted for the "a la mode" version( of course). The Apple Pancake is HUGE. Easily sharable. More of dessert than breakfast, but I'm not complaining. My friend got the dutch baby, a simple, but huge crater- like pancake served with whipped butter, lemon and powdered sugar. It was incredibly simple and "light," but the additions really added flavor. The distinct flavors of the lemon, sugar, butter made each bite something different. I'd recommend this to someone who likes variety, but on the safe side. There was no wait. HOWEVER we waited about 20-25 minutes to get our food. -Our server was a young college aged female. She took our order and didn't see her til we requested a check. The place is a zoo, but it's worth it if you like pancakes and go with a group you like or go by yourself with a book. There were a lot of children, but I felt like the noise level was reasonable for a weekend morning.

    (3)

  • Hannah C.

    If you're looking for somewhere that has good quality delicious pancakes, look no further! TOPH has THE BEST pancakes EVER!!! There is something they put in them that takes the flavor up to the top level for a pancake! To miss the rush on Saturdays or Sundays, go about 1:30 or 2:00 so that you'll have time to eat before they close at 3:00.

    (5)

  • Harry R.

    Great breakfast., good service. Favorites include a massive veggie omelet (but do yourself a favor and swap out the red peppers for spinach, and add some cheese), and the apple cinnamon waffle. The apple cinnamon waffle has an entire granny smith apple julianned, dragged through cinnamon and sugar, and placed atop a large, steaming fresh, Belgian. Worth the trip.

    (4)

  • Karen Y.

    We stopped by OPH on a rainy Saturday morning - the parking lot was packed! Caution: If you don't want to drink toilet water, order a beverage...anyways, on to the food! They have a good selection and they're willing to accommodate your requests (but be careful with the extra charges). You can substitute the buttermilk pancakes for the buckwheat pancakes at no charge. I ordered the western omelette and added mushrooms + sausages. It was pretty good. They were actually really generous with the sausage portions - huge chunks throughout. What I liked about this omelette versus...let's say...IHOP is that the ingredients inside aren't really watery and just covered by a thin coat of eggies - it looked more like a cake. BUT, the omelette overall was pretty dry - perhaps overcooked? My friend and I probably used up nearly a whole bottle of tabasco sauce, yum yum. It was okay until we saw how much more extra they charged for the extra stuff. We also came here for the crepes, which were VERY disappointing. We figured the strawberry crepes were an easy selection - BLAH NO!! It was soggy, bland, had a weird aftertaste, strawberries weren't fresh, and everything seemed to just mix into this goop of nastiness. I think we were expecting those thin tasty crepes with yummy topping/filling - yeah well, if that's what you're expecting, you won't get it here. So overall...it was okay I guess...Filling yes, but I felt it wasn't totally worth the price. I think we can find better.

    (3)

  • Ericka W.

    I am a regular. WAIT TIME: Yep there will be a wait if you go when everyone else is also hungry... LOL. SERVICE: But the service once you find a good server... is fantastic. FOOD: Furthermore even though they are busy the food is usually quick (as it should be considering its a breakfast restaurant) and fresh and made with the best ingredients. I "heart" OPH and only wish that I could find another great breakfast restaurant with the same quality.

    (5)

  • Soup C.

    this place will not earn my $20 bucks ever again! my son who loves food, could careless about their pancakes. kids meal came with BURNED and VERY SALTY bacon, pancakes were tasteless. my french toast tastes like ... nothing. harsh brown had no taste. service was HORRIBLE! she forgot about my son's orange juice, came back and asked, "he only wanted milk, right?" and no silverware for us to eat with. they cleaned up the table faster than you can count 1,2,3. IHOP and Silver Diner, i will never doubt you again!!

    (1)

  • RL C.

    As far as breakfast places go, this place is hard to beat. The service is pretty good, especially in peak hours when they try to get people in and out quickly. Of course eggs are eggs, but they shine in their pancake/french toast/waffle specialty. The cinnamon nut french toast has enough sugar to induce you into a diabetic shock but it's addictive. They have the best bacon I've ever had. The coffee's not really good, but the chai tea is. There are two kinds of breakfast potatoes, make sure to specify whether you want the shredded or the chopped.

    (4)

  • Bro H.

    Ambiance about on par with that of a high school cafeteria, and cold, expensive food. There are approximately 9,000 combinations of eggs, pancakes, meat, and hash browns on the menu. Not a single one of them includes toast. A side of toast is, believe it or not, 2.00. A dollar per slice of bread. You can buy a loaf of bread for 2.00. That was sign number 1 that this place wasn't doing it right. I ordered "the works" figuring that even though it didn't mention toast, that it must be included, because it's called "the works." It was 9.95. It came with: Three pancakes: extremely small, and tasted, I don't know, yeasty, maybe? They weren't particularly good. Hash browns: practically room temperature, and they wouldn't have been special if they were warm. Eggs: they were eggs. Finally, it came with two slices of bacon: honestly, the bacon was fantastic. Despite how good the bacon was, this normal-sized diner meal without toast was not close to being worth 9.95. None of my food was made fresh other than the eggs, because my meal came out in literally 3 minutes, and everything was cold but the eggs. Aside from the food, the service was attentive, but the place was pretty empty, so that's probably why. I expected it to have a diner-y cosy atmosphere, kind of like the Virginia Kitchen in Herndon, which is also in a strip mall, but feels pretty homey. Instead, the place had the atmosphere of a Golden Corral that hadn't been renovated in 30 years. I honestly think you'd do better with a chain place, but if you aren't into that, it's definitely worth driving all the way to Bob and Edith's. This place is not good. Edit: Rating lowered to one star after finding out this is a national chain. There is literally no reason to support this establishment whatsoever.

    (1)

  • S. C.

    Visually, it's more appetizing than the real thing. I had the Dutch Baby pancake. It's more doughy than anything... It's totally uneventful. The crepe was unimpressive ... if you really want a good crepe goto 'Crepe's a Go-Go'

    (2)

  • Alex S.

    Great breakfast, just be prepared to be crammed in between screaming children (I mean tables are like 14 inches away from each other). Good pancakes but you have to deal with crayons flying everywhere. Not a good hangover environment.

    (4)

  • Jennifer Y.

    Went here for the first time with my boyfriend and his parents yesterday. Everyone was uniformly disappointed with the OPH's very standard breakfast fare. BF's mom could barely touch her omelette. My Swedish pancake was hard to cut into pieces and had a stale texture, and my bacon was too fat and not at all crispy. Everything tasted extremely bland. We could have made this sort of simple fair more cheaply and tastier at home, but I'm nursing a sprained ankle, so we decided to give this place a shot. Definitely won't be back. I cannot fathom the high reviews this restaurant seems to be getting.

    (1)

  • Stephanie D.

    I absolutely love this place--I get the chocolate chip pancakes everytime and they're faulous! Even though its often very crowded on the weekends, the wait is never longer than 10 minutes. The service is consistent and the waitresses are pleasant and friendly. Be sure you ask the hostess for a kids menu when you sit down so that you can use the crayons on the table to color and play hangman.

    (4)

  • Tanesha W.

    Usually a friend and I meet quarterly at this establishment to catch up on old times and we enjoy our time catching up, however today was a terrible experience. We arrived and after our wait, we were seated at approximately 10:40am. I ordered the omelet which I was told would take about 15 minutes to prepare which was fine. At approximately 11:30am our server brought us the bill without asking if we wanted any refills or needed any additional items. At 11:40am we were approached by our server and was told we had 5 minutes more to finish as this table was needed. We ordered an additional beverage and begrudgingly she brought it out to us. Before we could even finish the drink a manager came and said he needed us to leave so that other people could sit down. We expressed our disgust and how he would be losing customers and he didn't seem to care. I have never been treated so poorly as a paying customer as I have been today. If this establishment had intended to have a specific eating time, it should be posted and frankly you should only take to go orders. This was completely outrageous to be asked to leave in order to seat other people when we were not even finished our meals completely. That is not the proper way to run a customer service oriented establishment and I hope something is done about this.

    (1)

  • Mary Jo Lisa C.

    There's absolutely nothing bad I can say about this business! I had breakfast there recently during the holidays and the service is pleasant and attentive. Prices are very reasonable given the quality of the food. Make sure to try the pancakes no matter what time of day it is. They are also a charitable business. They provide meals to the homeless on Christmas and ask for volunteers to come and help and or donate. What a great cause!

    (5)

  • Swan S.

    I've been to the OPH about a dozen times so far. Their food and service is consistently great. I really love how extensive the menu is - they have every kind of pancake you can imagine. And coffee is plentiful! I don't think I've ever seen the bottom of my mug. The prices are fair, too. If you plan on going to the OPH on a Sunday morning, BE PREPARED TO WAIT. This place is great and everyone knows it, so don't come in expecting to be seated in less than 20 min. But once you're seated the food comes very quickly. Happy eats!

    (4)

  • Michael H.

    Came for my buddies birthday at his request had never had a crepe until before today. I got the crepe works and everything was cooked to perfection.. amazing breakfast. This is my new favorite breakfast place bad I will come back soon. The waitress was extremely pleasant and helpful.

    (5)

  • Lucy C.

    Food was fantastic. Walked in on a Sunday morning no reservations the host was very prompt on getting us seated. Our waitress was very nice and attentive. Our food came out huge portions will go back for sure.

    (5)

  • Liza K.

    This place puts other pancake houses (international ones) to shame. OHOP (as my friends and I call it) has literally every type of pancake and crepe availabe. I love their waffle benedict and their other breakfast entrees. I've tried only a few of their pancakes (potato, chocolate chip, regular) and they're all delicious. On weekends, its pretty busy until around 12, but the wait is never more than 10-15 minutes. Service is efficent. Random fact: When I come here to eat breakfast with my boyfriend, he always gets 2 scrambled eggs on the side. Everytime that we come, they literally give him half a dozen eggs! What a sice.)

    (5)

  • Ahmed R.

    This place is VERY average. I tried it after buying a Groupon a few months ago. I had the corn beef hash which was nothing like the hash I have tried in other places. It simply tasted like nothing and looked unappealing. I don't think they know what corn beef hash is supposed to be. My wife had the pumpkin pancakes and carrot cake pancakes. I tried each and they were also very average. There is nothing special about this place at all. The service was very slow and annoying. I will not be back here and I would not recommend it.

    (2)

  • Romeo N.

    Wife and I wanted to get some brunch and didn't feel like going to our usual spots. This was the first time we went to this place and we were pretty excited. We were seated almost immediately and then were greeted by a rather "not so happy" server. We ordered western omelette and carrot cake pancakes. In less than 6 minutes we got our food! FRESH!!!! We both loved the ever so thick omelette. How many eggs do they use for these anyway? I had no idea. What I knew was that the omelette was fluffy and perfectly seasoned. I have observed that the fast food joints usually put additional salt to make the food taste good but this place didn't have to do that. It was a perfect blend of perfectly cooked eggs along with the veggies and ham. Excellente! The carrot cake pancakes were tasty too. They serve them with cream cheese icing. What can go wrong with that combination? We had a great experience here and will definitely come back soon!

    (4)

  • Gene K.

    First off, I'm not going to judge anyone else. But there have been a few reviews of people complaining that the portions are small? Ummm, excuse me? Depends on what you get, but if you get something like the Works, or a combo... You get two eggs, a heaping of either home style, (country red skin potatoes,) or sliced hash browns, either sausage links or two thick slabs of Hormel bacon. And two pancakes, or french toast/waffle. I don't get where people complain about the portion sizes... I mean no offense, but unless you're expecting a buffet, that is enough food to maintain your stomach for at least 3-5 hours. I literally cringed when I read some reviews where the portions were small or tiny, and I'm just thinking in my head, 'what the hell did y'all get then?' Anyways, I've been here 4-6 times. I like to think of it as a relatively better version of IHOP, the typical breakfast/brunch place to go where they feed the masses. Their pancakes are always fluffy, and they taste fantastic with or without syrup. The eggs and bacon are always delicious. I ask for my eggs, real, and my bacon extra crispy. The wait time may be 5-10 minutes on a busy weekend, but that applies to a lot of breakfast places. You do have to pay up front, parking is decent and easy to find, although on a weekend morning you're going to have to drive around if you cannot find one. The restaurants closes at 7AM to 3PM, so don't go there assuming its like IHOP, where its 24/7. In conclusion, the food I've gotten has always been hot and never cold. Service varies, although I have gotten slow service, but never officially had to make a complaint or tell the manager. You have a lot of host/servers that are young kids probably in early college or high school, so its understandable that they don't understand certain professional etiquette. I think some people have way TOO many high standards especially after reading some of the reviews. But hey, I guess when you go to eat pancakes, it better be served with a smile and a winning lottery ticket..... (Sarcasm.)

    (5)

  • Nadia A.

    My husband and I thought our breakfast tasted bland and the food had no flavor. We each got eggs, hash browns and pancakes. The only thing that tasted decent was the coffee. The waitress was almost nonexistent. She gave us our pancakes without giving us syrup. We had to wait forever before we could track her down.

    (1)

  • Brenan N.

    It is always a treat to eat here! It's very close to my home, I'm often able to have breakfast here. The staff is, for the most part, extremely friendly and welcoming. In the food is excellent. If you could finish the western omelet, you're doing better than me. And it comes with pancakes too! They could improve on the corned beef hash: Metro 29 Diner, a few miles closer to DC on the same road, does that better; but they are pricier in comparison to TOPH. At least it seems that way to me! TOPH is always clean, sometimes crowded on weekend mornings, and the parking is no problem at all. You cannot do better for a place for a good and filling breakfast.

    (5)

  • Alicia B.

    We have eaten here at least once a week for the last several weeks. Each time the food has been fantastic. I love how much variety of breakfast choices they have. My hubby loves the fact they make freshly squeezed orange juice on site. It is busy so expect to wait to be seated. They have a kids menu and crayons. I was not impressed by the kids waffle (although it's been about a year since we first came here and ordered it) it was a special kids waffle iron and it was super crunchy so have just ordered other things since.

    (5)

  • Rheana T.

    Today was my first time here, upon arrival I was shocked at how busy the place was, again first time here. We were told a 20 minute wait for our party but were seated in around fifteen. Which was well worth the wait, their pancakes were some of the best I ever have had, if not the best. I got the coconut pancakes and added chocolate chips + pecans. I also had tried the chicken crepe and potato pancakes, which were also fantastic. While it is semi-pricier than other breakfast places I believe that it's money well spent as everything was of great quality and flavor. Will definitely dine again.

    (5)

  • Sarah P.

    I visited The Original Pancake House for brunch after hearing a lot of hype about it but was VERY disappointed. When we arrived and gave the hostess our name, we were told the wait would be 10-15 minutes. 30 minutes later I approached the hostess to make sure we hadn't been skipped, and turns out they never even wrote our name down. We were then seated immediately with no apology or explanation for the mistake. This was followed by terrible service in general - long wait for our drinks, side items missing from our meals, the server walked right past our table of empty drink glasses and empty syrup bottle without stopping to check on us, etc. Then when we finally got the check, it wasn't even our check! The food was average at best, and certainly not worth all the frustration. We will NOT be going back.

    (1)

  • Will M.

    The pancakes -- blueberry for me, chocolate chip for my daughter -- were good, but not great. Coffee was the same.

    (4)

  • Serena B.

    This is THE place to go for breakfast in Falls Church- be ready for a wait on the weekends. The pancakes are amazing. I love the variety of choices and when the plate of big, fluffy deliciousness arrives to your table, you know it was the right choice. My favorite flavors are the coconut chocolate chip and the Georgia pecan pancakes. My husband often orders the omelet and it's enough for two meals.

    (5)

  • Mojdeh S.

    How I heard of this place: My in-laws were visiting and wanted to get together for an early morning breakfast with some good friends, who recommended this spot. I thought I recognized the name and the logo from Seattle, and, sure enough, the Original Pancake House is a nationwide chain, with one shopping strip location in Falls Church. Type of cuisine: "The Original Pancake House was founded in Portland, Oregon in 1953 by Les Highet and Erma Hueneke. Drawing upon their many years of experience in the culinary field, and their extensive working knowledge of authentic national and ethnic pancake recipes they were able to offer without compromise this unique and original menu which has gained national acclaim. The Original Pancake House is a second and third generation family business, which takes great pride in maintaining the high standards that make our food so outstanding. We now have over one hundred franchises from coast to coast, which have won local and national acclaim. Our recipes demand only the very finest of ingredients, such as 93 score butter, pure 36% whipping cream, fresh grade AA eggs, hard wheat unbleached flour, and our own recipe sourdough starter. Our batters and sauces are made fresh in each restaurant's kitchen. Our signature items include the Apple Pancake, a single large pancake smothered with sautéed apples and cinnamon sugar baked to perfection. To create a deliciously rich cinnamon sugar glaze. Another signature item is the Dutch Baby, an air filled delight oven baked to golden perfection and served with lemon, whipped butter and powdered sugar to create a mouthwatering blend. Our unique omelets, including the mushroom omelet topped with homemade rich mushroom sherry sauce, are rolled in a skillet and then oven baked to give you a splendidly light, moist delicacy. Our gourmet crepes include the cherry kijafa crepe, a blend of tart cherries and sweet Danish cherry wine. Our continental crepe is rolled with sour cream tempered with orange liqueur and served with our famous tropical syrup, made from a delectable blend of citrus fruits. We often feature the finest fresh fruits of the season. Our signature coffee is specially blended, roasted and ground for The Original Pancake House to complement your meal. It is our constant objective to serve you the finest pancakes available, and to give you pleasant and courteous service. Our menu items are delicious at anytime. Click on the location map to find out more about the Original Pancake House nearest you. Thank you for visiting our website and we look forward to seeing you at the Original Pancake Houses." Ambiance: A strip-mall location, the windows facing the parking lot open up onto an open space with warm colorings and a light amber glow. Booth seating, as well as spots for small and larger parties at tables with chairs separate the waiting area from the back room. Tall ceilings, pastel painted with black-framed, matted modern artwork make up the walls, while the clink and clank of utensils create the ambient sounds. What I ordered: Hot Chocolate ($2.50) to start, with coffees ($2.39 per cup) around the table, we studied the menu diligently before placing our orders. At our table, three of us participated in the Falls Church Restaurant Week Menu, ordering The Works ($9.25) for three buttermilk pancakes, two eggs (any style), two strips of bacon and hash brown potatoes with a complimentary mug of coffee. Feeling nostalgic, I selected the Dutch Baby ($9.95), one of their signature items, served with fresh lemon, whipped butter and powdered sugar. The locals chose the Eggs Michael ($10.95): a toasted English muffin topped with sausage patties, two poached eggs and Hollandaise sauce, sprinkled with Spanish paprika and served with shredded hash browns, and the Eggs Benedict ($10.95): a toasted English muffin topped with Canadian bacon, two poached eggs, and house-made Hollandaise sauce, sprinkled with Spanish paprika and served with shredded hash browns. What I loved: The Dutch Baby. Yum. Why I loved it: Clean space, warm tones, new interior and large portions of delicious food, that's why I loved Original Pancake House! Cost: Low to average ($7.25 - $11.95 per breakfast option)

    (3)

  • Alex B.

    Tasty food, however a bit pricey. Maybe it's where I come from, but I expect a few sides to come with a breakfast dish. Especially at a breakfast restaurant. Recommend the thick-cut bacon, they aren't lying about the thick cut!

    (4)

  • Darius I.

    Best pancakes in the free world. Fluffy and scrumdiddlyumptious to the last crumb. Servers Joe and Trevor work their darn-diddly hardest to make sure the dining experience suits to my specific needs. Addiction is kicking in. Take me to pancake rehab. A+

    (5)

  • Angela P.

    The strawberry crepes, bacon, eggs, and pecan waffles are to die for, but I could tell our server wanted to hurry us up when we were ordering. I don't like being rushed through my order especially if it's my first visit! I also had to keep asking for coffee refills. I would say customer service was a B at best, but the food was phenomenal hence the 5 stars!

    (5)

  • Berto ..

    This is the place to go for breakfast hands down if you live in falls church area. Price is reasonable and there service is good. Wait time on the weekend is a little long but you can a except that from a busy place like this.

    (4)

  • Manh K.

    A friend and I wanted to get some breakfast on a weekday before work. This is not our normal breakfast place, but we decided to try it out. Parking was decent. We got in, and were seated pretty quickly. However, the waitress took forever to come by. We knew what we wanted to order in about 4 minutes, and had to sit there and wait. We even contemplated watching a show on Netflix because of how long it was taking. Not only that this was an issue, this was a weekday. There wasn't even 10 customers there! Finally after we get to order the food, we waited for about half an hour. Still trying to give this place the benefit of the doubt, the food didn't even come together. They were in separate plates. Like what is going on here, I can eat my hashbrowns but then have to wait for my bacon? Ridiculous. The food was decent. I would have to say they it might have been better if they were all brought together. But I couldn't even finish the food. They waitress took forever for drink refills and get our requested ketchup. Getting the check was another adventure, but you can kind of summarize how that went. Overall, the food could have been good, but because of the terrible responsive service, I can not tell. Going on a weekday and there is less than 10 customers... Just ignore this place and run down to Ihop on either way.

    (1)

  • Eric W.

    Sometimes it is hard to write a review and separate the emotional experience for the objective culinary experience. The Original Pancake House is such a place for me. If you are from the part of Pennsylvania I am, you understand the pancake house culture. It is where you go for a late night cup of coffee before you are old enough to drink or the place to get something greasy after church on Sunday. If that is what you like in a pancake house, this is definitely the place to go. It is not super diner like, it is just a old fashioned pancake house. Objectively though, it is pretty mediocre. I tried only the strawberry crapes which were good and the bacon which was average. The did not have ginger ale, which was surprising and disappointing. Basically, it was a perfectly OK place. I would come back if a friend wanted to meet there, but otherwise, I do not think I would.

    (3)

  • Maggie F.

    As my check in's will back up, I love this place and with family visiting (three teenagers 16 to 18) the service was on point, the portions huge, delicious, fresh and filling. We had visited three times this week while the teens stayed with me, and every time all of us belly busting full. Had the dutch baby, which is like a cross over between a light pancake or a very thick crepe. Very good with the lemon and powdered sugar, but if we order again when they next visit, will probably get one with some fruit filling. We had the apple and peach crepes, which use fresh fruit. The whipped cream is fresh and perfectly sweetened. Bacon and respective chocolate chip pancakes were delicious, fluffy and both times the teens couldn't finish entirely. The winner for the teenagers were the breakfast platters with eggs, bacon/Canadian bacon with side of potatoes and pancakes. It might be about $12.00 per plate and extra for endless cups of coffee, but the food is great, portions good, service wonderful...and leftovers. Not often can you say "leftovers" when feeding later aged teenagers, especially two young men who usually have an endless pit of an appetite. Though so far everything has been delicious, I'm still partial to the Spinach Crepe with extra cheese sauce in which I slather or dip my shredded potatoes in. Definitely a fan and expect to remain a regular. *Edit: The orange Juice is fresh squeezed on premise and it's absolutely tasty and has a nice (medium) amount of pulp. So it's not only the pancakes, crepes and waffles they give 'house made' attention to. As to the bacon, the bacon is far more superior than your regular bacon, It's a nice thick meaty cut versus a wimpy version. I didn't notice until my first time going a woman had a lonely slab of bacon on her plate. I thought she didn't want it, only to be asked for a box for this one slice of bacon. My second visit I got a side of bacon..and understood. One reviewer stated pancake houses where he is from in PA is a bit different; he's correct. The teenagers I had visit me are from NE PA and as soon as they stepped in they thought they were too casually attired because the decor is clean, open and modern. I assured them, as did the staff, that casual attire is welcome there. So to them, being from PA, that this is a step up and has better quality food and service than the usual NE PA pancake houses.

    (5)

  • Brian G.

    We went early to beat the crowd. Service was quick and the food was good. Smaller portions than expected, but definitely good breakfast food.

    (4)

  • Roanna O.

    What a letdown. Portions are super tiny unless you are getting something sweet. The service was deplorable. Really, really bad. My over-medium eggs were fully of slimy, uncooked egg whites. Could I get a new one? No. The server was nowhere to be found. When he finally returned, I asked that they remove an egg from my breakfast, and I asked for a glass of milk and peanut butter so I could eat my pancakes. Seven minutes later he returned with the milk and told me no PB. I said you can keep the milk. I was done about three minutes before you got here. Frankly, I was starting to feel ill from thinking about the runny egg I forced down because I was starving. They removed the price of the milk and a cup of coffee to compensate me for the slimy eggs. I said the milk should not even be charged if it takes seven minutes to bring it to the table, and I no longer even want it. Bear in mind, the place was completely dead. The server didn't care, and it showed. We finally asked to see a manager. After several minutes I just wanted to get out of there. He tracked us down by the register and removed my breakfast. I appreciated that, but it is not enough to return. DID NOT ENJOY!!

    (2)

  • Erica S.

    This place serves THE BEST pancakes, and there are so many varieties! I'm a regular diner, and also LOVE the Apple Pancake and their omelettes! My husband and sons love their scrambled eggs because they get them scrambled with cheddar cheese! The home fried potatoes are really good too. You will not be disappointed!

    (5)

  • Kerry C.

    Went there for brunch with my guest from the previous evening. We got carrot cake pancakes and Swedish pancakes. The carrot cake pancakes did not taste like carrot cake, just tasted of cinnamon. The Swedish pancakes were over cooked because the entire pancake was crispy. I've had both types of pancakes at the Bethesda location a few times and this location's preparations were not to our liking. I had to send back the Swedish pancakes because I was not going to eat a plate of crisp. The server told me that was how the Swedish pancakes were supposed to be. I told her the Bethesda location only crisped the edges not the entire pancake, she said she would have it remade. The second plate was much better.

    (2)

  • Karla P.

    Although the food was good and we liked the ambience. It was very disappointing that our breakfast was ruined when the waitress brought my husband the wrong meal. He asked for a steak and eggs and she brought him bacon and eggs. My husband politely said sweety I asked for the steak and eggs and the waitress said no you didn't. I backed him up and said yes he did. Then she was so defensive and she replied well then how come you didn't tell me how you wanted your steak cooked? Well you didn't ask!!! As a server my husband understands that mistakes can be made but you don't challenge and argue with the customer. We were so excited about this place , we thought we found our new family restaurant for the weekends and now we won't be returning ever because we were treated like liars. The reason I give three stars its because the food was decent.

    (3)

  • Victoria L.

    I have been wanting to come here before it moved to this new location. I can say that I could have waited longer. We went around 9 am so it wasn't crowded at all. I ordered the corned beef hash which I was disappointed at because it was like a very thin layer that was a little burnt. The portion wasn't even normal breakfast amount. I ordered potatoes on the side and it needed seasoning, I mean there was no salt or pepper on it. I ordered the bacon pancakes instead of regular pancakes and it was just ok, the bacon was so crispy it felt like I was eating rocks. My fiance ordered the omelette which I really liked...surprise. It was this huge, thick omelette that was consisted of like 20 eggs, filled with bacon, ham and sausage. It could have easily been shared with a table of 4. I thought that was worth the money but definitely not the corned beef hash. I would like to come back and try some pancakes since that's what they are "known for". But my experience was very disappointing, service was nothing special and the food definitely wasn't too memorable. I hope it was just an off morning!

    (2)

  • Robert H.

    I'm disappointed with our experience here today. My wife's scrabble eggs came out underdone and extremely runny :( Then they brought out new egg but they were still runny:( Service- I found it upsetting that I had to ask other employees for refills of coffee, water and condiments. I'm willing to give them a 2nd chance but for my.1st visit they really disappointed us.

    (2)

  • Eomf D.

    I wanted to find a good breakfast place when I moved to N. VA a few years ago and many people recommended this place. I ate at the old place a few times and hated the service. When they moved to their new location I was excited about the possibility of a giving this place another try--especially since it's right around the corner from my house. Unfortunately it didn't pan out. The breakfast is definitely edible. Nothing exciting to write about nor horrible to point out. BUT, the service just ruins my experience every time. It feels like amateurs are running the place. Dishes take forever to come out. When the plates do come out, it's at different times so one person may be done before others have even received their plates. Coffee cups go empty without refills.... Like I said, you will walk out with a full belly of decent food, but the experience ruins it for me every time. This review is based on my experiences there over a 5 year period: new and old location.

    (2)

  • Alicia D.

    They are so wonderful, so accommodating. I had allergies and they made my eggs with olive oil instead. The service was great and friendly. Our server was so kind and helpful. She made us feel very welcome and at home and gave us anything we could ask for. We couldn't have asked for better service and the food was delicious.

    (5)

  • Mike R.

    My experience every time has been good fresh food, friendly service and reasonable prices. I can't ask for more but in addition you get a great selection of the expected items as well as unique offerings.

    (5)

  • P.J S.

    FOOD: 0 Star SERVICE: 1 star AMBIANCE: 1 Star I would not recommend this place. I had better experience at other Original Pancake House. Food is terrible, including the specialty pancakes. The dutch pancake came out soggy and the caramel apple one was so sweet that it left a bitter taste in my mouth. Service was very minimal and was limited to the gum-chewing waitress taking our orders and bringing us food. Decor is similar to what you would expect at IHOP and was not very clean. I would never ever return to this place. I would rather pick up a box of frozen pancakes from the Safeway next door and eat it at home.

    (1)

  • Bonster Y.

    Best. Pancakes. Ever. Fluffy and delicious. Their Apple pancake is also note worthy. They are super busy on the weekends so try to get there before 11am for breakfast or else expect to wait at least 45 minutes.

    (4)

  • David B.

    Lots of breakfast choices. Fast friendly service. Our waitress was very familiar with the menu. We went with buttermilk pancakes and a strawberry crepes very good and filling. This place is usually crowded for a Sunday but as we were leaving they started filling up. We have yet to leave here unsatisfied or hungry.

    (4)

  • Christine H.

    This restaurant is very highly recommended based on it's excellent location, extremely clean and modern decor, very friendly service, and spectacular food made fresh while you wait! I always have an excellent experience here, and there are so many menu items to choose from! They serve mainly breakfast and lunch items, and they are all excellent! Today we tried the Eggs Michael - a house specialty with toasted English muffins topped with sausage patties and poached egg with hollendaise sauce and topped off with sweet paprika, along with shredded hash browns. It was super fantastic! I ordered an omelette, not expecting much more than 'usual'. I chose the "Irish Omelette" which was supposed to have corned beef hash in it. You can imagine my surprise when they brought out my plate - it was grand...beyond grand, and gorgeous! Layered egg, hash, and swiss cheese made this omelette the best I've ever had anywhere! Steaming hot, super fresh, and perfectly seasoned - this was an absolute delight! It also came with a side of pancakes - also, beyond excellent! I don't know how they make these pancakes, but they had a delightful flavor and were amazing in taste and texture! You won't leave here hungry, and if you are looking for an amazing local spot to eat breakfast, I highly recommend you try the Original Pancake House!!!!!

    (5)

  • Janet P.

    The spinach crepe special is creamy, tasty, and the spinach is fresh. Potato pancakes ate very tasty and served with a sweet applesauce and sour cream. Eggs are fresh, bacon, crispy and good. Of course, the pancakes are fluffy and tasty. We skipped the omelettes today due to the 20 minute cook time

    (4)

  • Lavender L.

    I agree w the other reviews..a bit pricey but pretty good! Will only return for a breakfast craving to try the pancakes if I'm in the mood to drop $12 per person..Only had the Michael (poached eggs w sausage on a english muffin drenched in "hollandaise sauce"-tasted like buttered theatre popcorn) w hash browns..okay but for the price (11.25)should have included a pancake! Also had a plain crepe and eggs and bacon..not bad..good service..clean and open w/o annoying music. Thanks groupon!

    (3)

  • Guna H.

    Solid breakfast place to check out with great pancakes and crepes. Their pricing seems a little higher than the typical diner but their portions are so much bigger. We'll share an entree and add a side order of sausage -- it's definitely enough food for the two of us. It's very popular on the weekends, so you may need to wait 20-30 minutes if you hit peak brunch hours.

    (4)

  • Natalia O.

    We had breakfast here while visiting family in the area based entirely on Yelp reviews. Unfortunately, the food was not up to par. Eggs, grits, bacon and hash browns were all bland. Pancakes were OK, but nothing to write home about. Service was decent. We will not return, nor would we recommend it.

    (2)

  • Bob T.

    Better than IHOP not as good as in years past (in Falls Church, Bethesda, or Rockville) and not nearly as good as Walker Brothers, where it all started. Still, pretty good breakfast without driving a long way. I recommend the apple pancake if you can handle the calories (maybe take home half for lunch) and the blueberry pancakes if you can't. (Watery) Maple syrup is available for a few extra dollars. Problem is, "watery" isn't a brand name.

    (4)

  • Janeth C.

    I'm not a pancake type of gal so my go to breakfast item is always the fresh strawberry waffle. It's perfect! Warm waffle with fresh strawberries on top. Whipped cream and strawberry syrup on the side ;) I was in today and my waitress was kind, attentive and funny. She made my boyfriend and I laugh a few times with her sense of humor. Two thumbs up :)

    (4)

  • Steve B.

    We came here on a Saturday for breakfast. Quick 5 min wait for a table. Food was perfect, huge portions at reasonable prices. We will be back soon to try the carrot cake pancakes.

    (5)

  • Scott J.

    Still a good breakfast place. Only bad thing is they dropped the sourdough pancakes from the menu.

    (3)

  • Lily L.

    I called in a carryout order of the Banana-Nutella Crepes this past Sunday, and was pleasantly surprised to hear that it would be ready for pickup within 10 - 15 minutes! I appreciated the fact that my whipped cream was separated into a 2nd container, and that the portion was rather large! The overall friendliness factor left a bit to be desired, though.

    (3)

  • Alexander M.

    My weekend war to find the best breakfast spot for the best dollar continues. I hit up this spot and didn't disappoint. The only problem I had with the restaurant was the small pancakes and my girlfriends oddly tasting omelette. It was a decent omelette, huge portion but weirdly tasting the farther to the middle we got the weirder the taste. The service was still on point and friendly.

    (4)

  • Randy T.

    I have never been disappointed by an Original Pancake House until this location. I don't know if was an off day or not, but I have been to others on several occasions and the food is always 5 star. Here however, the sausage was just terrible and it was doubtful that the orange juice was fresh squeezed even though the machine sits right in the middle of the restaurant. It also lacks the class and elegance of a typical Original Pancake House, as the decor is more like a regular breakfast diner... we should have known what was coming based on that. I'd steer away from here if you are looking for the typical upscale Original Pancake House experience, but if you want a pricey diner with mediocre food, go for it!

    (2)

  • J.J. B.

    Very, very disappointing meal earlier today at The Original Pancake House. Took advantage of a Groupon offer & would not bother again. Myself & a friend ordered orange juice, coffee, gingerbread pancakes, blueberry pancakes & turkey sausage. Only the blueberries pancakes were any good; however, for the price, there should have been more blueberries. The turkey sausage was COLD. The orange juice tasted like it was from one of those frozen orange juice mixes that are from concentrate. The gingerbread pancakes were OK, but were more like regular, plain pancakes (in taste) than gingerbread pancakes. They came with a HUGE side of whipped topping (not sure if this was real whipped cream or not). Speaking of real, both pancakes came with sides of FAKE butter that was actually margarine & tasted disgusting. Again, for the high prices here, REAL butter should be included. Laughingly, you can order REAL maple syrup here (it's an item on the menu) & it's an extra cost!!! (The syrup choices on the table, both regular & sugar-free, were FAKE). If you want to pay a lot & have fake food with questionable ingredients, this is the place for you. Seriously, if I want fake butter & syrup, I'll pay less & hit up IHOP &/or Denny's - at least the prices are lower.

    (1)

  • Alex H.

    Pros: Good food (crepes were amazing) Cons: Expensive for breakfast (even for DC), poor service, and long (but expected) wait Recommendation: strawberry crepes!

    (3)

  • Brenda M.

    I've been coming to The Original Pancake house since I was little and it was located in the city of Falls Church. The food is always really good and filling. Our personal favorite is an off the menu item. Chocolate coconut pancakes! Always busy on the weekends but it really is worth the wait.

    (5)

  • Le L.

    I came here on a saturday morning around 10:30am with the boyfriend. The place was packed and we had to wait for like 10 minute, so it wasn't too bad. The waiting area was really big and spacious so that was a plus. They called my name for a table after 10 minute wait. The service was good and I ordered "the works" but substituted the original buttermilk pancakes with strawberry one. The breakfast was huge and good, the only problem is that the restaurant itself is very small therefore it was so noisy and I couldn't have a nice conversation with my boyfriend. Overall the food quality is good and definitely will come back to try something else.

    (4)

  • Jeimy F.

    2 stars for service. Food was bad. Had steak and eggs had to send it back. Potato tasted like they were cook with really old oil. Steak was pretty bland. The only thing that was good was the bacon. The pancakes and syrup had a strange taste. Will not be returning.

    (2)

  • Hector S.

    I've had a lot of pancakes, waffles and bacon at countless places, especially at IHOP locations nationwide. 1st, the pancake batter at this Original Pancake House is superb! You can actually taste the freshness of the ingredients and the flavor of the batter is far superior to IHOP. If you only had pancakes and bacon at any location of Original Pancake House, you will have experienced pancake and bacon heaven! The slices of bacon are so thick and peppered and tasty! Also, you gotta try the Apple Pancake! Think you've tried apple pancakes before? Think again and try this one! It's not just apples mixed-in with the pancake batter. It's actually like a pancake souffle. The "pancake" comes out like a warm, puff pastry with generous slices of apple laid on top of the rounded hot pastry. Then as the pancake cools, it starts to flatten, but this does not affect the delicious taste in any way. I have never had an apple pancake like this one and I think they should rename it to Supreme Apple Pancake or Apple Pancake Surprise because the understated name really does not convey the awesome-ness of this dish--I kid you not! My next Original Pancake House treat will be to try their Dutch Baby!!

    (5)

  • yeana j.

    I have always loved OHPs. My go-to location used to be in the oc back in Cali, and I was so excited to see one so close to Tysons! My favorites are the simple buttermilk pancakes and omelettes. On my most recent visit, I had the apple pancake and the corned beef hash omelette. Both were delicious and very filling. I do think that the simpler pancakes are better...the apple pancake would be better as an epic dessert option. My hubby and I could only get through half of each, so we took the rest home for later. I love the no-frills service of OHPs, where they let you eat and don't bother you a ton. Fresh squeezed OJ is also great! I will always have a soft spot for OHP!

    (5)

  • Joseph S.

    Good food and really fast service. Egg whites were well cooked.

    (4)

  • Chris K.

    Best bacon ever! As one might, guess, the breakfast isn't too bad either. Always friendly service. There is sometimes a line on the weekends, but it usually goes fairly fast.

    (5)

  • Jason O.

    Great atmosphere, clean and decent service, BUT, the value was terrible! $9 avg price for a waffle or a "premium" pancake, without anything else? Come on. The food was good, don't get me wrong, but it wasn't fantastic. (The eggs being less than warm didn't help either.) Two of came to $40 for essentially a waffle, two eggs, two sausage patties and coffee..????? Not good. Quality was on par with Cracker Barrel (love them) but it was entirely too expensive for what we got. Joe's Diner (Sterling) and Round Hill Diner (aka Tammy's, in Round Hill) are equally as good if not better for at least half the price.

    (2)

  • Sampad D.

    Nice place to have breakfast. Portions are bigger than INOP. When we were there, there was a huge waiting(11 in morning) . We had to wait for around 30 mins to get a table. The pancakes were nice but they have limited pancake sauce (not many variety) . The omlete was huge ( I replaced ham with Chicken) full of veggies and chicken. The price is simillar to IHOP.

    (3)

  • Jerel M.

    This place was alright. It's clean, has it's own parking lot, simple no fuss breakfast place. The good sides to this place are the menu and the ease. The menu is impressive. You can get some creative pancakes here like coconut pancakes. They have other staples like benedicts, french toast, eggs and the like. Excellent for kids. The downsides is that the quality of food just doesn't quite match the place or the menu. The pancakes (and all the other food) kind of seem mass produced and no longer receive the love they deserve. That's why I give it 3 stars. If you want breakfast, go here and you'll get a good meal at reasonable prices and you'll be pleased. But it's not a pancake haven that you may want it to be. Nor does it have any other reach out and grab you type allures. But you might get a different cook on a different day. I would recommend this place, and I would go again, but I wouldn't expect it to do more than just fill me up and send me on my way.

    (3)

  • Rohit K.

    Always the freshest ingredients. This place is SO much better than IHOP.

    (5)

  • Mischita H.

    The place was pretty packed today, I guess that means the food, in general, is good. I'm glad that I called in my order so that we didn't have to wait in a crazy long line. I was in the mood for crepes so I tried the nutella pancakes - not bad..a teeny bit on the oily side but still good enough to eat. Until I find another local crepe place, I guess I'll hang my hat here.

    (3)

  • david b.

    Love it, Friday mornings breakfast. Usually like the senior or two by four. Thank you for the great service Sada!

    (5)

  • Andrew M.

    Yes, the lines are not exactly craymazing, but if you routinely have to wait 30-50min to get a seat, that is probably because the food is worth it? Yep. I really haven't been but maybe 5 times in 8yrs, and my menu choices were limited in scope, but what i've had has been fanfriggintastic! Always get a spinach/swiss omelette. It's like 6 eggs and a pound of spinach/cheese. And it comes with pancakes? I upgrade them to something adventurous (the sweet potato ones are pretty bland) like sourdough (49ers?) or something. Or, if I'm feeling like a hella fatback, I'll order the Dutch Baby too. It will probably come out after everyone has finished, but really, the regular food takes forever too. Dutch Baby is more like a pastry than a breakfast food, truly spectacular and very heavy, so if you order that plus the omelette, you can have a second meal to take home. Oh, bacon is pretty a'ight too. And definitely spring for the real maple syrup. You're gonna be set back about $20 (with coffee and tip), or more, it's been a while, but it's friggin' awesome, and 2 meals for the price of 2? I'd buy THAT for a dollar!

    (5)

  • Jeromy F.

    The fact that this place can charge premium prices for second-rate food and *still* be packed is testament to how much Falls Church needs a place like Arlington's Cassats.

    (2)

  • Renee M.

    I was excited to come, but it was a waste of money and I won't be coming back. Eggs tasted like powder and had way too much cheese in them, hash browns had no flavor, coffee tasted watery, oj didn't taste fresh squeezed, and the food was Luke warm. I'll pass...

    (1)

  • David O.

    I will highlight the good and bad. Good is the waffle and pancakes. My waffle was crisp and perfectly cooked; best waffle in the area. Pancakes were good taste and nice color. Bad was the eggs and hashbrowns. Eggs were ordered over-medium and they were served at least over-hard or more. The hash browns even include 'delicious' in the menu description but they were actually very ordinary, bland, and soaked with too much butter. I appreciate a greasy spoon restaurant's potatoes but I thought this place should be a level above that. The service was fine although I thought seeing the bottom of my empty coffee cup was a disappointment when the place isn't so busy. I would go back if only for a crisp waffle and avoid any other menu item.

    (2)

  • Havar E.

    I ordered the chicken Crepes and i could not even see it under all the gravy. The gravy tasted like caned mushroom soup and of course the Crepes were all soggy. The reason why I give it two stars and not one is because of the freshly squeezed orange juice. It took me 3 times of asking for a to go box before I got one. Not worth $15.35 Never going back here

    (2)

  • Jacob L.

    CLASSIC CREPE is my favorite! They are using some cheap/inexpensive brabd coffee... but it would be better if they use moderate brand coffee.

    (4)

  • K B.

    Horrible customer service. Food entrées are inconsistent and the quality is way down. Our 100% maple syrup that we special ordered was watered down. Yuck. The eggs tasted funny and not cooked thoroughly. Most of wait staff are chatty (among each other), slow in responding, and immature. Two thumbs down.

    (1)

  • Lee B.

    Awful service, big portions. Went today at 730 am, not crowded at all. Immediately sat down, took over ten minutes before waitress appeared to take drink order or food. There were a bunch of empty tables and multiple servers just hanging out ignoring most customers. I ordered sourdough pancakes with links, along with coffee. Out comes silver dollar pancakes with coke. Asked waitress if this was the right table, she mumbled and left never to be seen again. I ate the food, it was good and large portions, but come on, the service is awful. I told the manager that 10 min is a bit long to wait for an order when the place is empty, he just shrugged. We'll, I'm not going back.

    (2)

  • Melanie C.

    Nom Nom Nom! I LOVE this place, but I hate the wait. I'm impatient like that, but I always find that even though they'll tell you its say a 30 min wait, it's maybe 15 mins. The food is amazing. No presentation and nothing "fancy" to look at, but honestly, if the food is good - who cares! Eggs are fluffy, coffee is hot, toast is toasted and it all just kinda tastes like a carnival in my mouth!

    (5)

  • Toni W.

    I experienced the OPH in Edina, MN with a friend and was SO excited to see there was a place here in VA when I got back home. YUCK. What a disappointment. The eggs were greasy, overdone and the place was NOTHING compared to MN location. NOTHING. Food, service or menu variation. If you are ever in MN don't try this location if you live in VA because you will never again return to the Falls Church location.

    (1)

  • Mike B.

    The apple pancake was enormous and really good. It's oven baked and about two inches thick. Don't bother getting an omelette with this one--you won't finish either. Hard to see how the Silver "Diner" survives a mile from this place. One peculiarity is no wireless on the weekends. Apparently the owner wants to turn the tables faster.... Coffee is drinkable with cream and sugar, not really without.

    (4)

  • Mark C.

    Dont get the Irish omelet. On the menu, it looks tempting, but in reality, its really dry. Otherwise, the other dishes are good. FYI, you can upgrade your meal with normal buttermilk pancakes to speciality pancakes (EX: blueberry pancakes) for a small fee of $1.05. Not too bad. Be sure to bring your appetite.

    (4)

  • Joy L.

    Unassuming and no frills, but the food makes it worth the trip! I had the lemon crepes that were just light and airy, and the sweet tartness of the lemon was perfect. My boyfriend had the banana walnut pancakes, which were also super delicious. We also shared sides of eggs and sausage. The food was really spot-on. Service left a little to be desired - I think we got there close to the end of the serving time. It was hard to track down our server at times. Otherwise, no complaints. I guess it didn't bother us too much since the food was so good. I can't wait to return!

    (5)

  • Ling X.

    So many options for pancakes! I really wanted to try the Dutch Baby since it was a specialty, but time did not permit, so I opted for the "senior" and upgraded the pancakes that came with it to one of the fancier versions for a few bucks more. Place was pretty crowded so it's obviously a crowd favorite for brunch. It was good but didn't seem overly special.

    (3)

  • C.G. H.

    I always wanted to try this place - I went this morning and now I am glad I got that out of my system. Food was shockingly expensive, even for the DC metro area. The food was so so, the service really bad. My waitress disappeared for 20 minutes, I had to go in search of a coffee pot to serve myself another cup of coffee. For the kind of money they charge for food it is insulting to be left to fend for yourself when it's time for another cup of coffee or whatever you might need. I wouldn't go out of my way to go here - as a matter of fact, I won't be going back. They need better management and servers.

    (1)

  • Ross M.

    I had been to the other location in the City of Falls Church many times in the past and always remember it being pretty good. Service and food here were pretty bad. FIRST - The hostess sat us down at a table that had money still laying on it from the last customers. We said "Um hey, there is some money right there." And the hostess said "Oh that's for the server". Yeah, no shit it's for the server. I'm telling you because you should probably pick it up and give it to her, not leave it here for me to look at. Poorly trained bimbo, obviously doesn't have any restaurant experience, but she was pretty hot. SECOND - I have no silverware or napkins so I can'y start eating my food. Had to flag down our waitress. Too bad the hostess couldn't help her out, or someone. THIRD - I had a massive explosion after eating 6 pancakes. I've never driven my car so fast in my life. I tried stopping at aMcDonalds bathroom on the way home, but it was out of order! OMG At this point my face is clenched and I am hunched over my steering wheel. I fly home and barely make it to my toilet. Wow. The bacon was large in size, but tasted strange. I probably won't be going back. I hadn't had pancakes in like 2 years, and now I won't have them for another 2 years.

    (2)

  • Vince R.

    Long lines and bad wait. The estimate do wait are ridiculous. I have tried this place twice before and my guess is they always say 20 minutes so you stay. nobody should wait an hour for a pancake. We waited for over one hour on what was originally 20-25. Service ok . Food ok. You can't mess up syrup however it was cold as well. My last time attempting to have a good experience at this location. If you travel hit the one in Alpharetta ga.

    (1)

  • Arzo I.

    Staff is very nice! We were seated right away, no crazy rush. Food was way to greasy, and not greasy as in delish, more on the tasteless bland side. Would not go back here again. Menu was big, but the waitress looked at me crazy when I asked for a egg and cheese sandwich and she told me she could bring me the components but I would need to do it once it got to the table, turnoff. Do no recommend. Sadly, ihop tastes better and has more options Turkey links were good but those are usually purchased frozen, and my gfs veggie white only omelet was gross, and dripping with grease.

    (2)

  • Kentucky M.

    This place is always busy and there is a reason why.... Delicious food... Their waffles and Pancakes are Ohhhh sooo good. They also have freshly squeezed OJ that is the real deal. I have been to other places that say they have freshly squeezed OJ and in fact it is tang with pulp.... Not that fresh...take all visitors who come in here.

    (5)

  • K C.

    This was not what I expected when I went in. The food was not great, neither was staff. I expected some flavor in the chicken crepe but found none - The omlettes did not have salt and was dry - The pancakes were OK, but I have had better. The service was miserable - The waitress comes says she would be back with the syrup and makes us wait for 10 minutes and shows up to take it from another table! Will not be going again.

    (2)

  • M B.

    This place is awesome! I've now been here twice. The second time we got here around 9:15 on a Saturday morning and only had to wait ten minutes for a two people. The options are great, and the food came out fast. It was tasty and the service was good. It just took a while to pay at the host stand.

    (4)

  • Mike J.

    Yeah, they know how to turn out a great, solid breakfast. Great selection, lot of variety, high quality, and good kids meals too. Only complaint would be that portions are way too big, but the underlying problem there may be my lack of self control.

    (4)

  • Richard V.

    The best pancakes and omelets I have ever has. So glad I don't have to wait to make a visit to the left coast to go to one. So nice to have one here in VA.

    (5)

  • Jo M.

    It was just ok. As others have said, quite avg. I actually thought the food itself wasn't as good as ihop while being priced slightly higher. the interior decor is modern since this place is fairly new. service is acceptable. the eggs were bland. the has browns were bland. and it's not the same when i have to salt it after the food's come out. the bacon was rather nice and thick and chewy. the omelette had too much fluff. the coffee was avg at best. the pancake was ok. so anyway. i wouldn't be against going here again but i wouldn't go out of my way to go here.

    (3)

  • Esther C.

    Ate a late breakfast on a Saturday and my server was very attentive, the food was good, quick, and perfectly cooked. I got the "Works" - the portions were pretty substantial and I ended up bringing half of it home. The bacon here is thick cut and delicious! I usually want to get pancakes, get them and feel disappointed. It is not the case here.. I actually ate a good portion of it! :) My husband got the french toast and I didn't think there was anything special about it. Stick to the pancakes!

    (4)

  • Motrya M.

    Last time I reviewed this restaurant I mentioned that the service isn't always the best. The key is to sit in Sunny's section. If you do that, you'll have great service. She's the best!

    (5)

  • Amanda M.

    This place rocks! What's not to love? Crepes? Check. Pancakses? Check. Waffles? Check. Omelettes? Check. The food is absolutely incredible here. I've probably been here about 30+ times in the past 2 years. My favorite is the strawberry crepes with nutella. The crepe is perfectly made and ultra moist with delicious ripe strawberries. They also have fresh pressed orange juice - gotta love that!

    (5)

  • Danielle F.

    I had the gluten-free blueberry pancakes and they were amazing. The gluten free options are great!!!

    (5)

  • Donald P.

    Food here was just your average breakfast food. I'm not a big breakfast food person as I don't believe eggs and toast should cost $10, but I was quite intruigued by their orange juice machine....seriously it's really cool. Check out the picture. The OJ Juicer Machine (1) they load a box of oranges in the hopper on top (2) then the oranges roll down the metal track (3) they get sliced in half, and pressed into those rotating orange ball things (4) the squeezed rinds get discarded on the side (5) the orange juice funnels down the collection pan and down the tube and into the white bucket...that's hopefully been washed out well with soap and water after each use.

    (3)

  • Lottie Y.

    We went there on Sunday morning. Very crowded. A lot of people were waiting for seats when we left. I feel that the food is average though. Nothing very special. Note: They open only till 3pm.

    (3)

  • Korey P.

    The food was absolutely amazing. The only problems were the host and hostesses upfront could be more attentive to the people coming in, the waiters and waitresses should pay attention to who is sitting at their tables, and lastly they need to be more accommodating to their customers who've had gastric surgery. Great food terrible service.

    (2)

  • Naomi M.

    Went to this place almost a month ago with a groupon. My boyfriend and I went on a Friday morning and it wasn't too packed. We had been looking for a homey breakfast place to frequent and we thought this could be the place. We got there and it looked ok (it's in some strip mall). The place is fairly new so it was pretty clean and they gave us a table along the wall. Our server took a while to visit us (even though it wasn't even half packed) and only came to see us when she was taking out orders, or delivering food. At that time of day, there were only older probably retired people, or people with their young kids, so the clientele weren't too bad and it was quiet enough where my boyfriend and I could carry a decent conversation. I ordered the banana walnut pancakes with eggs, bacon, and potatoes, and my boyfriend ordered an omelet (which came with pancakes). My potatoes never came out until I asked for them 10 minutes after my other food came. And when they did come, they were only half cooked. His omelet was nice fluffy and thick, though. And it did taste really good. Would I try this place again? Yes. But next time I'd steer clear of the potatoes.

    (4)

  • T P.

    Went with my family and in-laws - party of 7. My experience was delightful. House was packed but we were seated quickly and our server was nice and very efficient (in contrast to other's experience). The apple pancake was wonderful and is not what people may envision if they haven't had it before. It is this fluffy, warm, pastry with a crispy bottom crust and loads of apples on top and embedded in the dough slandered in cinnamon goodness. We also had great eggs Benedict's, home fries, scrambled eggs, and yummy strawberry and peaches crepes (cook didn't skimp on the fresh strawberries or fresh peaches). This added with gobs of real whipped cream on the side, made our Sunday brunch memorable. Will be coming here again for sure.

    (4)

  • Amy L.

    I was in a panic when I got to the - now I know - previous location to find a BBQ joint. THEN checked Yelp to find new address. Whew! The apple pancake was delicious as usual and worth the wait. The bacon which I usually enjoy was too salty. The service was acceptable but somewhat lackadaisical.

    (4)

  • Thai T.

    in love with the french toast here! 4 stars b/c both of my friends got the benedicts and their poached eggs were a bit over cooked (and I do know, its not easy to make poached eggs, but as a restaurant..). otherwise, very good brunch spot, first come first serve so get there before you're starving b/c there may be a wait (they do open super early, like 7 or 8am i think)!

    (4)

  • Mike M.

    The food isn't bad, but not special. We ordered eggs,hash brown, waffles and a crepe. The eggs were better than the reat. THEY DON'T GIVE ACCESS TO THEIR WIFI ON THE WEEKENDS (as if they paid for it by day lol). Kinda overpriced for breakfast ($35-$40 check, for two people)

    (2)

  • Nick And Cat G.

    Wow, how the great have fallen. I used to go here all the time when the restaurant was located on Rt. 7 in Falls Church and never had a bad expeience. This was one of my favorite places to meet friends for breakfast or brunch. This morning was my first visit to the new location on Lee Highway, and things seemed to have gone down the tubes. First off, the decor is much nicer than in the old location. The building and furniture appear to be very new, and the space is open and airy. There is also plenty of parking. These are pretty much the only positive things this place has going for it. Food was nasty and service awful. My eggs were overcooked, my hash browns were ice cold, and I had no chance to send anything back as the waitress disappeared after she brought the food. I get the sense that there might be some things the kitchen does a pretty good job with, but eggs sunny side up definitely wasn't one of them. I was given exactly one cup of coffee and was never offered a refill. Keep in mind this was one hour after the restaurant had opened and was maybe a bit less than half full. I can't imagine what service would have been like had it actually been busy. The only reason I got a second cup of coffee at all was I got up, and walked back to the kitchen to get it myself. A waitress intercepted me on the way and filled my mug. The poor devil seated next to me was given a menu when he was seated, then left to his own devices for the next twenty minutes. Several times he tried to flag down a waitress to order, but was ignored. Eventually he just gave up and left! When I approached the register to pay for a hideously overpriced meal ($11 for two eggs, an english muffin, two pieces of bacon and some frozen potatoes) the cashier acted surly as I seemed to interrupt her gossip session with the manager. No one bothered to ask me how my food was or to come again, which is fine, because I most likely will not be back. IHOP seems to be working hard on their food, service, and value and beats the pants off of this place. Bob Evans And Cracker Barrel are also way ahead of Original Panacake House in service and value. Even Dennys might be a better option at this point. It's a shame because this used to be a really great place.

    (1)

  • Eric O.

    Got the "two by four" special (four pancakes and two eggs) and was not disappointed. You can substitute any kind of pancakes for the standard buttermilk pancakes the combo comes with for an extra charge so I went with the chocolate chip. The pancakes were fluffy with both chocolate chips baked inside and sprinkled on top, as they should be. Despite the big crowd, we didn't wait at all and the service was prompt. Would definitely come back to try out their other flavors.

    (4)

  • Michelle P.

    Pros: I'm a huge breakfast fan, this place has the most awesome selection of pancakes. The portions are pretty big too, so I'm always stuffed when I leave and I always have leftovers. My favorite is the Dutch Baby, which is one of their specials. It's simple airy oven baked perfection. It does take 20 mins to prepare though, so be patient. Cons: The wifi is extremely slow. Sometimes the service is too. Conclusion: So much better than IHop and whatever other breakfasty places there are. I only wish they had more locations!

    (4)

  • Isabella W.

    Me likey their menu. Me likey breakfast. Me likey that they have options that has both savory and sweet in one dish.* Me likey their portion (not too big) Me no likey: very limited parking lot for such a high traffic restaurant; everybody decides to come eat here when I'm here** causing me to wait 20+ mins for food that I likey. Overall, their food makes me happy and I always enjoy the dishes that I ordered. Never had a bad experience. *: Every time I go to a NYC brunch place... the menu is strictly savory (ie:omelet) dishes or sweet dishes (ie:waffle with fruits). If I want a piece of fruit with my bacon n eggs, I need to order aside. If I want sausage with my pancakes... an order aside. Yes... I'm too lazy to order sides and too tired to pay extra for it. **: People need to stop waking up and come eat here around 11am on weekends. They need to stop copying our unique schedules.

    (4)

  • Rebecca C.

    It's the original pancake house. It's affordable and addictive. Can't go wrong with the french toast or pancakes.

    (4)

  • Desiree R.

    This has become a staple place for me on the weekends. The pancakes are HUGE! I've never had to wait long for a table. Don't let the outside fool you. Great selection of true American diner breakfast options. It is a hidden gem :-)

    (5)

  • Steven H.

    Horrible and slow service. Order was brought out peice meal and had to then send back because portions were cold and other portions were wrong! Ridiculous!

    (1)

  • Emily F.

    I love, love, love this place for breakfast! I typically order the strawberry crepes with a side of nutella, and they are to die for! While the crepes are my favorite item on the menu, the restaurant also has a variety of flavored pancakes and fluffy omelettes. The new location is very bright and clean, and parking seems less congested than at the old place. Prices seem a bit high for breakfast, but the serving sizes are very generous and filling.

    (4)

  • Kyle E.

    Any time we're craving straightforward breakfast food this is the only place that comes to mind. They have a creative menu and nothing I have ordered has ever missed the mark. The Dutch Baby is a solid, unique item on the menu, and the pancakes are made perfectly. The old location used to have miserable lines, but we've never had a problem with the wait at the new location.

    (4)

  • Tucker H.

    This is sort of a neighborhood IHOP, but with better food. It's no Waffle House, but it's one of the better breakfasts I've had in the area. The pancakes are quite good, and my scrambled eggs and ham were tasty. The shredded home fries were much better than IHOP, but there's just something about Waffle House home fries that these couldn't match. All in all a good breakfast bet, but on the weekends be prepared for tight parking and a wait for a table.

    (3)

  • Heather M.

    It's truly terrifying to see the astronomical calorie counts for every item on the menu (I love and hate that they list them). I don't think I saw anything on the menu under 595 calories and most things were well over 1,000 calories. They had some really unique looking flavors of pancakes but after seeing the calorie counts I stuck to the blueberry ones which were under 650 calories. Blueberries didn't taste fresh at all. Next time I'll stick with the plain.

    (3)

  • Nadine F.

    This is one of my top breakfast places. It gets pretty packed on Sundays, but the wait isn't too unreasonable, and the service is fast enough. I'm partial to their sweet breakfasts, pretty much all of them. The apple pancake is my favorite. It's more of an open-faced pie than a pancake, and could easily be shared by three really hungry people, so I rarely have the opportunity to order it. If this place were open late nights, I would easily go for dessert. The Dutch baby is also really good, as are the waffles and french toast. I also appreciate that you get a pot of milk with your coffee rather than the little half and half single serve things, as most diners will do.

    (4)

  • Jack K.

    Very nice establishment, great people...if only the food wasn't inedible. I really wanted to like this place, but the pancakes were awful, just terrible. They tasted two days old.

    (2)

  • Jamie C.

    I love their menu options and will have to return to try other things. It's very noisy in there, so it's just best to expect to eat and not catch up so much amongst more than 2 people. (Sunday brunch time) I had their waffles hollandaise but would probably try something else next time. The sauce was a bit thick. LOVED their hash browns and would look forward to trying out some of their other crepes next time, I had the continental which was filled with sour cream and came with a triple sec syrup which I would happily douse on other things. The sour cream crepe was just too much after the original breakfast I'd ordered.

    (3)

  • Kelli C.

    While the food is often times delicious, the management is horrible. They frequently "forget" our carry-out orders. The servers don't always write down the orders, which means they forget some parts of our orders (or get them wrong). And to top it off, we definitely had a dark hair in our carry-out order (we have light hair, so no chance it was ours). GROSS. We love this food, but we hate the service/management. No more Original Pancake House for us.

    (2)

  • Renita W.

    A pancake house that has terrible buttermilk pancake? Could it be? Yes, the buttermilk and blueberry pancakes were terrible. Not sure if it was the batter or poor cooking techniques, but they were dry and chewy at the same time. It didnt help that this place is expensive--- If you need something to scrath a pancake itch just go to IHOP.

    (2)

  • Michael M.

    The food was good but not great. They should also have better breakfast combos. I love pancakes and I had high expectations for this place. I may give them another shot but IHOP is closer and better than what I had on this visit.

    (3)

  • Laura W.

    My boyfriend and I went about four hours ago for a (albeit very) late breakfast to satisfy my craving for hash and eggs. He started to feel poorly on the way home, I did about a half hour ago -- icky stomach, crampy, etc. It had to have been the amount of grease/oil in the food, something we commented on at the time. I don't know if it's because we were there close to closing (45 minutes or so) or what, but the food was super greasy. My boyfriend literally soaked up a bunch of vegetable oil off my plate with the corner of a napkin. Zero presentation on my food, just a slap of (canned) hash and a couple of eggs tossed on the plate with three pancakes on the side. I'd never been to the old location, but the b/f had and he said the food totally went downhill. The pancakes (while fairly tasty to me) are apparently smaller and thinner than before. His cinnamon apple crepes, something he has enjoyed in the past, were oily as well. Service was so-so as well. The waitress came over while the b/f was away from the table. I told her I wasn't sure what he wanted and she said she'd come back, but then didn't for a good 6 or 7 minutes, despite only having two other tables of customers. The biggest upside of our trip was finding a new vegan place to try just around the corner. Won't be back.

    (2)

  • Diana K.

    I went to this place with high hopes and expectations (and a big appetite!) after eating at the Pancake House in NJ. I was extremely excited, because the one in Fort Lee, NJ serves monstrous portions and everything I've tried on their menu is pleasing to the taste buds. That said, I will say that from the get-go, parking was an issue (which was not a good sign) as it's located in a busy little plaza. My boyfriend and I ended up squeezing into a tiny sliver of a parking spot and walked in, hoping that we'd be seated promptly. There was about a 10 minute wait and then we were led to our table. While following behind our hostess, I peered curiously at at each table's offerings and found that NOTHING looked very appetizing. Hoping that the food would taste better than it looked, I insisted on ordering the same things that I normally ordered from my beloved Pancake House in NJ. We waited about 20-30 minutes for our food and we were famished. When we got our food, I was extremely disappointed because: 1.) portions were nowhere near as generous as the one in NJ 2.) it didn't look very tasty 3.) our waitress wasn't very attentive. We took a few bites and were disappointed. It looked and tasted like something I could have (sloppily) made in the kitchen. I'd probably never go back to the Falls Church location again, though I do plan to remain faithful to the Pancake House in Fort Lee.

    (1)

  • Jason M.

    The Original Pancake House is SOOOOOOOOOOO much better than IHOP. The pancakes have a more flavorful fresher taste. When my friends want to go to IHOP and The Original Pancake House is open I make sure we go here; they never regret it.

    (5)

  • Justin L.

    Nice alternative to IHOP. Nicer, brighter interior. I wasn't blown away by any part of my "Pancakes Works." My partner enjoyed her Belgian Waffle, and almost completely finished it, which is really saying something. So maybe favor the waffle over the pancakes, is what I'm trying to say. I didn't like the parking lot. It confused me, twice. The waiting area could probably house 6 or 8 more tables, possibly making the need for a large waiting area less pressing. The service was friendly, and a tad slow. A touch more expensive than IHOP and the food is about the same. Not a bad option for breakfast, though.

    (3)

  • James H.

    The service we received here was really abysmal. It took our waitress forever to bring our drinks (just water, coffee, and a Diet Coke, nothing special); I never got a refill of my coffee; and our order was very, very delayed - lots of folks who arrived after us were served and left before we did. Our waitress completely disappeared for well over 30 mins. I finally got up to speak to the manager, but when I did, our food finally came. I don't understand why it took so long for us to get our food. Even though I spoke to the manager, he didn't even address our complaint or offer any sort of solution. I won't be coming here again.

    (1)

  • Natalie C.

    I love breakfast and this place was great. My buttermilk pancakes were really good!! We have this place back home and I never tried it out. Guess I will now!!!

    (4)

  • Koichi E.

    OK, so I slept on it before I decided to write a review on this place. My wife had gone there once before on recommendation of a good friend and the Japanese place we actually went for was closed for Sunday lunches so we ended up here. I am not a breakfast person so I wasn't too thrilled and was informed that there were no lunches served on weekends so double bummer. We got seated right away, which was a plus but I counted 5 minutes before we were acknowledged by any servers. Finally, this young lady came and brought out two glasses of water for the four of us. (Rationing?) Very bizarre. We waited for another 5 minutes before she finally came out to take out our orders. I opted for the corned beef hash and eggs with pancakes. My wife had a ham and cheese omelette and my son ordered cherry crepe. Soon, the food came out and I didn't recognize what was on my wife's plate. It resembled a UFO and realized that it was the omelette. Very different. It must have had a half dozen eggs in there! My hash was very acceptable and the eggs were over easy, perfectly done. The pancakes were very good being light, fluffy and perfectly cooked. I had a taste of the omelette though and this is where I think they fail. In that configuration, the eggs are overcooked and it becomes cardboard. When a dish like that becomes that thick, you would have to subject it longer to the heat in order to cook the insides, which makes the outside overly done. A better technique would be to cook the omelette in a larger skillet, making a thinner egg layer and ingredients so it can cook a bit more uniformly without drying out and simply folding it over. Not a fan of using preserved fruits for crepes either. Overall, the pricing is a bit high for the caliber of food which is just above average. As some other Yelpers have noted, just because you serve massive portions, it doesn't make it good. I prefer quality smaller portions, at a more reasonable price.

    (3)

  • cherry h.

    I love their pancakes! From the pumpkins to Dutch pancake! The Only issue is waiting for a table sometime it takes 30-60minutes wait, but its worth it. Service is not great....

    (5)

  • Jake K.

    How I let this staple of my Sunday brunch repitoire escape a review is beyond me. But alas, I have found you and my memory is still fresh so let's get busy. If you plan to go here, you seriously need to get here on a Sat/Sun around 9am. Anything beyond that and you begin to wait in huge throngs of local families, teens who think they're in, like, OMG, college, singles, and other young couples. Give it to about 10 to 10:30 and you also start to smell alcohol rising off of a few folks as some come to get an eggs benedict to take the edge off of last night's bender. The food is not bad - for as many times as I've eaten here, I haven't brought myself to try the Dutch baby. I've had the corned beef and has, cinnamon french toast, and the omelets. Seriously - if you want to get the omelet, watch out. They use 5-6 eggs per omelet and you will not be able to finish it. If you do, you are a raging fat ass. Yeah, I said it. Otherwise, it's just a few steps up from a Waffle House with the fare but catered to a smaller clientele. You also can watch them making fresh squeezed OJ if you're there toward the later times, otherwise, it's just too damn noisy to hear yourself think and concentrate on your food. Oh, and parking is a bitch too. So, if you're into mediocre breakfast, watching other people let their demon spawn run around like an episode of Lord of the Flies, waiting 20-30 minutes for a table, eating like you're in a rock concert hall, and drinking shoddy coffee, then this is your joint.

    (3)

  • Ryan K.

    Good place for breakfast - huge portions with decent service.

    (3)

  • Barry N.

    Have been to the old and new location a few times. Have liked everything I've ordered. Have never had any problems with the service or anything. The only thing I don't like is that it's a little pricey for breakfast foods. But, it's not overpriced for other places like this. There is definitely better parking than at their last location on route 7. Recommended for everyone except people that have crying babies... the restaurant doesn't have a problem with crying babies. I just can't stand trying to eat next to crying babies.

    (4)

  • Tom N.

    Weekday breakfasts are not very busy, including this morning. Last time, I had the pigs in a blanket which had three pancakes - each rolled around a sausage link. The sausages are just like you'd find at any other breakfast diner; the pancakes are fluffy and moist. The flavored pancakes would have been more interesting. Eggs and bacon aren't anything special here, but satisfying if you're craving them. Today, it was the waffle pecan with a sliced banana. The waffle was light and airy on the inside while crispy on the outside. Powdered sugar was all over the place; very yummy with a cup of hot chocolate. The restaurant was pretty empty, so my food came out quickly. You can ask for crayons and coloring paper to occupy yourself in case you have a longer wait; I sadly didn't and eventually became jealous of the toddler at the next table.

    (4)

  • Marianne L.

    Not really sure how to rate OPH. Its OK, not great, but its also not haute cuisine either. I don't think epicurianly I was every meant to be an American. I simply do not subscribe that more so-so food - correction MORE food period - makes for a successful dining experience. OPH is the type of place that is great to stumble into (probably still in your pjs if you need be) and put yourself in a food coma to recover from the night before's indulgences. Its basically a dineresque restaurant serving up hearty platters of breakfast-fare. I've rarely had to wait more than a few minutes for a table (including recently on MLK day) but I've know others that have had quite a wait to get seated. Service has always been good and the waitresses attentive. This is the only OPH I've been to, so can't really comment on the experience at this location vs others. But the food is not to die for. The buttermilk pancakes go down light and fluffy, but then sit like a lead brick in your stomach for hours afterward. They are better than those offered up at comparable establishments (Denny's, IHOP, Silver Diner, etc...). I hail from the land of sugar houses so I naturally opt to have real maple syrup whenever possible. Fair warning - I've found that the real syrup at OPH often smells and tastes funky, not worth the extra cost to get it. A few things do tickle the tastebuds though. The fresh squeezed OJ. Even at the cost, if I didn't fear it would put me into sugar shock, I'd drink it by the gallon. And the Hot Cocoa with real whipped cream - well the cocoa was nothing to cheer about (esp. since there was a large glop of undissolved sugar in the bottom of the cup) but the taste combined with the real whipped cream took me back to a happy time at the little roadside diners we would stop at in NH on the way up to go skiing. I think the prices are a bit high here for the quality. But more irksome, every time I look at the menu I hate that the portions are so freaking huge. My opinion of OPH would increase substantially if they offered smaller portion options on the menu. Perhaps I'm not meant to enjoy dining in America where the trend is often quantity over quality. I'd be more than happy having fewer than 3 crepes, 6 plate-sized pancakes, or an omelet that looks like it took a brigade of chickens to provide the main ingredient. I'm eating for one, for one meal - not dining for the rest of my life before I am castaway on a deserted island. No one is going to look at the OPH menu and go "oh goodie, I can stick to my diet", but I like to sensibly indulge and its not like these items travel well so you can take 1/2 the food home. There are plenty of things I always want to have here. My last visit it was either the lingonberry crepes or mushroom omelet, but as I saw the massive platters of food coming out I ended up opting for the dollar pancakes and still left 1/2 of them on the plate.

    (3)

  • Darryl H.

    I visited OPH at its new location at 7395 M Lee Highway Falls Church, VA, in the Safeway shopping center. The new location is a step down from the previous location, although parking is easier. Inside, you'll find it a little more cramped, with less natural light and less character. I go to OPH a couple of times a year and often walk out disappointed. The food is a bit better than IHOP but breakfast for two for $25+ including tip just seems too high to me for what you're getting.

    (3)

  • Jane Q.

    There really is no other place to get the best breakfast in town. I keep Poking for other places but I know none of the will hold up to the original pancake house.

    (5)

  • David K.

    I was introduced to Original Pancake House in San Diego where it was located in the richest neighborhood in the county. I always linked it to pretentious and expensive in my head. Not to say I didn't enjoy eating there. I had no idea it was a chain until I saw this branch in Falls Church. As soon as I spotted I knew I must return. Post haste. The next weekend I came, and was delighted that I was seated immediately. I believe that, though it is a chain, OPH is a step above your average chain. Certainly better than Waffle House, IHOP or Denny's by a long shot. They obviously specialize in pancakes, and offer a huge variety of options for your pancakes. My personal favorite is their coconut pancakes which rival the versions I've enjoyed in Kailua, Hawaii. The pancakes are enormous. Probably twice as dense and large as the average IHOP pancake. The omelettes are also a delight. They don't come out normal. They are kind of like a bubble of egg filled with whatever you order. It's a very thin wall of egg that looks like its blown up like a balloon. Very weird, but I like it. It makes it seem light and fluffier than usual. For a breakfast if you're in the area, you can't do any better than OPH. It is in an unattractive strip center along Route 7, but don't let that scare you away. Know that you will get a huge portion of above average breakfast food. And then you will have a massive food coma. It will be the makings of a great Saturday.

    (4)

  • Megan H.

    We had a horrible experience at this pancake house. Horrible horrible service. We had to ask for more coffee three times. We had to ask for more water two tunes. We had to ask for extra lemon three times because our waitress forgot the first two times we asked. My apple pancake was so burnt on the bottom that it was black and crispy. Our servers name was Merium and when we went to the restroom she was in there listening to music with coworkers. She only came to our table a total of about three times in over an hour. She had absolutely no interest in us or in doing her job. I Do not recommend this pancake house to anyone. There are other original pancake houses around so do not choose this location.

    (1)

  • Ken R.

    49'er Flap Jacks! Its the one meal that keeps drawing me back! And as a double-triple bonus, OPH's bacon is THE BEST I've ever had. I was wondering if 3 slices would be enough, but its all you need. So thick and meaty, when my girlfriend started cutting a piece with her fork and knife, I told her to pick it up and eat it like it was a chicken leg!

    (4)

  • Bob W.

    What a find! Real maple syrup available. Real whipped cream available. Pancakes are the best in town. Grits are cooked up just right...none of that instant stuff. This particular location is about a year old and is squeaky-clean. Highly recommended.

    (5)

  • Foodie C.

    GREAT FOOD HORRIBLE SERVICE flip a coin and decide if you want to go to this place

    (4)

  • Jen M.

    Back in Chicago, we frequented the famous Walker Brothers Original Pancake House. Whenever we are in the mood for a great breakfast that reminds us of home, we head here to The Original Pancake House in Falls Church. This place is somehow not as *perfect* as it's sister-franchisee in Chicagoland, but it is still an excellent breakfast. Pros -The signature Apple Pancake - huge, sweet, gooey apple goodness that is way too big for one person to finish in one sitting. Honestly, the time I ordered it recently an annoying "Look at me, I think I'm so cute" 20-something sitting next to me made an "OMG THAT IS A DISTURBINGLY BIG GLUTTONOUS MONSTROSITY AND HOW CAN SHE EAT THAT" face (meanwhile I'm half her size even after two kids and could beat her ass with one apple-pancake coated arm tied behind my back. But I digress...) -The famous Dutch Baby - German doughy pancake served with lemon and sugar - also huge and amazing -The omelettes are huge and tasty too if that's more your thing. But I recommend sticking to the pancakes. Cons -Unless you get there around 7am when they open, expect a LONG wait. -The new location is very IHOP-esque in terms of the too-bright and artificial atmosphere. Not very cozy or nice-looking and definitely too cramped. Although the parking situation is better here. -Slow service that tends to be rather confused and unattentive

    (4)

  • Kirk K.

    Those with celiac disease or a gluten allergy will LOVE their gluten free pancakes! The service was friendly, plenty of parking, and the restaurant facilities were clean.

    (5)

  • Terrence M.

    Best bacon in va and the portion sizes are very large so you certainly get your money's worth. Took 2 stars as the service tends to be pretty slow and it seems to take forever to get tables cleaned.

    (3)

  • Lorena G.

    Got to admit, I love Pancakes,,,, So a friend to me here to 'The Original Pancake House' for breakfast to try something new. So I tried the Dutch Baby Pancake (its baked in the oven). It takes about 20-25min to bake. My friend had the Ham & Cheese Omelette... So the plates came, WOW, the Dutch Baby is huge and so was the Omelette. For my pancake you add maple syrup, butter, squeeze fresh lemon drops and powder sugar,,, Doesn't sound good huh, well I didn't want to try it but my friend said I had to. Boy, was I wrong, it was delicious,.,, It was sweet & a lil sour from lemon (but not much). No way can I eat the whole thing. OH, and his omelette was to die for, lots of cheese & ham. The food is great, will go again of course and have the exact same thing. Yes the service is a lil slow, but as long as I have coffee coming, I'm okay. You got to try this place at least once, You do pay $$ for great quality of food. ;0)

    (4)

  • Adrian V.

    I've been to quite a few Original Pancake House location, including ones in Dallas, Texas and Bethesda, Maryland. First, this location's decorum felt very much like an IHOP.. which was disappointing, especially since it was a brand-new location. Also, our waitress was THE WORST -- she was inattentive and forgetful. It was a busy Saturday morning, but this was clearly a systemic issue. I really have no plans to revisit this location.

    (2)

  • Mariam R.

    I'm torn. Of course, I expected a long wait arriving on a Sunday around 12:30. What I didn't expect was the bad service because it's always been friendly and prompt. Our waitress stopped by to collect the tip left by the previous diners, but didn't bother to even take our drink order. She buzzed by a few minutes later to tell she'd be right with us. Another waitress stopped by to take our order and this seemed to do the trick - voila! - our waitress was ready for us. The food is always good. I tried the pumpkin pancakes and they were as yummy as expected. The chunky potatoes weren't so great, so I'll stick with the shredded next time. Is it me or was the former location bigger? Parking is no longer an issue, though.

    (3)

  • Greg S.

    Holy crap, this place has a lot of options. Try not to be overwhelmed at the pancake fiesta that you will experience when you open their menu. Since moving to Falls Church we have started to visit the OPH more and more. Our first time we weren't too impressed but since then, yeah, it's grown on us. My wife and I especially enjoy the healthier options, but I think the OPH's biggest strengths are the depths of its menu. They have gluten-free pancakes (yeah, I didn't know that was possible either), buckwheat pancakes, Swedish crepes, and everything in between. They also have all the usual breakfast suspects beyond pancakes. Skip the hashbrowns but try anything else on the menu. Eggs, bacon, sausage, all are delicious. They will also work hard to keep your mug of coffee full. Apparently this place has been around for a long time but this specific location is relatively new and it shows. We like the clean, bright interior, and the service is usually pretty friendly. We don't have kids yet but I understand bringing them because there are always lots of families here too. To summarize, I feel like if you want a "hearty" breakfast but don't want the calorically dense offerings of IHOP, this is a great place to try. If you're craving IHOP but you like supporting local restaurants and chains, well this is the place to try. See you there, Saturday morning at 9:30?

    (5)

  • Yan W.

    I should have listened to the other yelpers about the Sunday "prime time." I showed up at 10 AM and the wait was about 30 minutes and very orderly. Not bad, but I don't like waiting around for food. The prices were pretty outlandish for just breakfast foods (about 50 bux + tip for a party of 3), but I wanted to give everything on the menu a thorough try. To agree with most yelpers, the pancakes were indeed very amazing. The yeasty dough and the freshness are really top notch. However, everything else is pretty blah. In fact, the overpriced nutella crepes I got were down right horrible. The texture was rubbery and the taste of the crepes were kind of "off." But then again I'm a snob for crepes, since I haven't had anything in the States that compared to those in Paris. The waitress convinced me to take them home, but I really couldn't even eat them. The corned beef hash was also bad, kind of bland, but I still ate them. Even the bacon was really thick and not to my liking. Another bright spot is the waitress that we got. She was super sweet and really knew what we needed before we even needed it. If I do go back, I would probably just get the pancakes to-go and not worry about the wait or prices of the other items on the menu.

    (3)

  • Brittany H.

    This place is a total hole in the wall...however, when I think of YUMMY breakfast food, this is the first place that triggers in my mind. Instant salivation. Cheap...timely service, great variety of pancakes and regular breakfast foods. Try one of my personal favorites, spinach crepe WITH 4 potato pancakes. BEST shredded hash browns ever!! Did I also mention you can get any pancakes short stacked, (if you have a small stomach like me?). OK need i say more? Seriously? Breakfast food is not to be elaborated on. Come check out the food and finish your plate already!

    (4)

  • Renee C.

    New location on Lee Highway gets mixed reviews. Pros: tons of parking, more space inside, less wait time. Cons: Less walkable. Can't walk to farmer's market, etc. Also, interior of new location doesn't have the nice, airy sky-lit feel of the older spot.

    (3)

  • Meghan R.

    I will never go anywhere else for breakfast again. Everything about this place was awesome. Food was delicious- especially the chocolate chip pancakes. It doesn't hurt that they come with fresh whipped cream too. This OHOP is super clean and the staff is friendly.

    (5)

  • Steve C.

    OPH has the best bacon in Arlington! The pancakes melt in your mouth and the orange juice is fresh squeezed. The only reason I'm not giving them 5 stars is because the service can be slow. I'm not sure why they switched to the new location on Lee Hwy, but at least there is better parking now.

    (4)

  • Alycia E.

    They offer sourdough pancakes on their menu. That sold me. You don't see that often on the East coast. They weren't as sour as I would have liked, but I appreciated that they also weren't outlandishly huge. Good thick-cut bacon. Coffee was average. Fresh orange juice. I'll definitely look for a chance to go back and try the buckwheat pancakes or waffles.

    (3)

  • I O.

    Food is great when it comes, but service is SLOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! There's no need to go into details.

    (2)

  • Kira M.

    I was excited to go here for breakfast. I had heard all the hype & read reviews. But this place was mediocre at best. I don't know if it was an off day but I will never return and will not recommend this place to anyone. My eggs were cold & too well done. The buttermilk pancakes that came with my meal tasted weird & the regular syrup had a chemical taste to it, not sure if it was sugar free or what but this was definitely not a pleasant experience & I will not be returning.

    (2)

  • Nathaniel L.

    Two words - enormous omelettes! I really like the food here. The crepes look super good as well. It gets busy on the weekends but it's worth it. For all you Penn Staters this is the closest thing to a Waffle Shop substitute in the DC area. I'm just disapointed there aren't more around. Note: The parking lot is a busy place but you'll get spot sooner or later.

    (4)

  • Hendrik J.

    You'll find plenty of positive reviews for this place, but those people must like to wait in line for breakfast, poor service, and outrageous prices. I like greasy spoons, and this place definitely gets a five-star rating in that area, but I just don't see the appeal of this place. The food is no better than the nearby IHOP, but it costs 50 percent more. My spouse and I had BASIC breakfasts and coffee, and the bill was $25 + tip. This is BREAKFAST we're talking about! And, as others have commented, service is bad, and you have to spend a long time waiting for your coffee to be refilled or to get your bill. Also, sticky floors, sticky everything. Ugh. This is another case where we have people thinking that buying local is worth it, as well as a captive audience. There simply aren't too many sitdown places available in Falls Church/Arlington. Is it better than the nearby IHOP? No...they're both equally bad. Finally, an important word of warning. The strip mall where this restaurant is located is notorious for "predatory towing." You're fine if you park in the lot and eat there, but don't THINK of stepping off the property to go to the library next door. See the video by entering "predatory towing" at YouTube. This has been a longstanding problem.

    (1)

  • Candace C.

    I'm sorry to see this place has gotten a few bad reviews of late, but this is still one of my fav breakfast locales. When I first started visiting this chain 10 years ago, I also thought it was ridiculously expensive, but then I finally figured out how to order--and it made a HUGE difference. Here are a few tips: 1. Meat can come with your starch: Look for "The Works" and "Egg Specialties" sections---even though it says eggs and bacon/sausage/ham--3 pancakes come included in the meal! This is much cheaper than ordering pancakes or french toast and a side of meat...but is easily overlooked if you jump straight to the pancakes. Another tip is that you can upgrade your included buttermilk pancakes to some of the specialty varieties--blueberry, pumpkin, strawberry, etc for a small premium, but still much cheaper than ordering things separately. Almost every time I go, I order the eggs and sausage and upgrade my pancakes to strawberry pancakes. I get two eggs, 4 sausage links, 3 huge pancakes with fresh strawberries, whipped cream and strawberry sauce--all for about $10--YUM. My last tip is about wait times--either get there or before 10 or wait till after 1:30 to avoid ridiculous lines. Edit: And yes, service is in a bit of a hurry and could definitely use some improvement, but all in all, I still like my stacks there and on days when I don't feel like dealing with the service or lines, take out works just fine :) Hopefully this helps a bit!

    (4)

  • Rick A.

    Let's be honest; yes, they have the BEST bacon on the east coast. It is strange how good the bacon is, but is it really worth the rest? The negatives are big: Bad service, long waits, and 25 minute omelettes. Really? I can't say that baking an omelette improves them that much. The positives: Bacon, the Dutch Baby, and acceptable pancakes. Final decission: NO. I would suggest this is the place for you if you love to wait, you love to have VERY bad service, and you love bacon. Otherwise, try another local eatery. You may be suprised. OPH exists on urban lore. The hype is not even close to the truth. Another interesting OPH issue: They recently moved to Lee Highway. The manager reported it was because the parking lot at the old location was not sufficent. Well, let me break this to you, the parking lot at the new location is any better.

    (2)

  • Parthena K.

    The pluses: A great selection of pancakes and great breakfast options. The minuses: extremely cramped and loud I've checked out this place a few different times. They have an unusually large selection of pancakes and breakfast combos, which was a treat. However, while I've always enjoyed their pancakes and found the service to be pretty decent, they attempt to cram so many people into the dining area that you're basically almost sitting on top of the people at the table next to you. (there are no booths) It was a bit difficult to relax when there were other patrons sitting 6 inches away from me and I kept feeling like I would bump them with my elbow if I so much as shifted in my chair. While the quality of the food was better than, say, IHOP, or a generic diner, the seating arrangements were simply uncomfortable for me. If you go to this place, especially on a sunday morning, be prepared to have little to no divide between your table and the ones around you and to eat in a very loud environment. If you don't mind that, then this is a good place to grab breakfast on the weekend.

    (3)

  • Steph L.

    I love IHOP, but sometimes you just want more pancake choices than they offer. What's the next best thing to do other than making them yourself? The Original Pancake House is a good alternative. They have a pretty large selection of different pancakes to choose from, everything from sourdough to wheat germ to apple to Swedish to bacon. I've tried the sourdough and wheat germ ones. The wheat germ pancakes are surprisingly delicious. Not sure how much wheat germ they put in, but the pancakes are yellow in color and fluffy in texture. They have a slight sweet taste and are quite delicious when you take 2 and sandwich one of their special sausage patties in between. The sourdough pancakes are a little dense and the sourdough taste I love in bread just didn't come through. It actually made it kind of weird tasting so I wouldn't get them again. Each order of pancakes will get you 6-8 pancakes, which is a lot. Talk about carb coma. I wish they did a sample platter cuz let's face it, you can only eat so many of them when they all taste the same.

    (3)

  • Brian S.

    There was a huge waiting line when we arrived on a Sunday afternoon, the wait was shorter than expected though. After being seated, our drink order was taken twice and there was some confusion about who was supposed to be waiting our (two seat) table. The pancakes we ordered were well-made, but a bit on the soft side. Both original and buckwheat pancakes tasted good. The hashbrowns were cut large and not very hot. Overall a good meal, but seems to be overpriced.

    (3)

  • Bill H.

    I didn't realize how far we've come in pancake technology until I visited this place. The original pancake was horrible... from the service to the food... I gave them 1 start because Yelp is making me. LOL!

    (1)

  • Anson P.

    Today was great. I woke up at the asscrack of noon. What was the first thing that crossed my mind? Urinating. What was the second thing to cross my mind? Breakfast...er...lunch...uh...food. So I call up my brother and we head to this place for breakfast at 2 pm. I went to high school not too far from here and yet have never eaten here. This place is easily comparable to IHOP and a step up from Denny's. I tried the nutella crepes. I wasn't all that impressed with them, especially considering it was a nut fiesta. There was hardly any nutella in the crepes. Also I asked for bananas and had barely any banana pieces in the crepes. Not cool. You can't hold out on the nutella and bananas. My brother got the standard eggs, hash browns, and pancakes. Nothing special there. We didn't have to wait for a table. The service was good. There was plenty of parking. If IHOP on Route 50 is packed, then this would be a good second choice. And I end this review with the only word that comes to mind: meh.

    (3)

  • Stephanie L.

    GLUTEN FREE PANCAKES. Yes please. I got a half-stack of blueberry and half-stack of pecan. The pecan was only okay (there was a sweet marmalade-type thing included, which was too sweet, but maybe semi-dessert-like for y'all), the blueberry was great. My boyfriend remarked on how "southern" the place felt - very friendly, but simple, service. The decor is no-frills - but I can't take any stars off because the price is right for the great food!

    (5)

  • Ming C.

    I was charged $10.50 instead of $9.40 (price listed on OPH website) for my takeout Nutella crepes order...

    (1)

  • Gina Y.

    Yummy! I'm so excited that if their location had to move, it moved closer to me :-) Now I can walk over for breakfast. Which is probably a good thing, considering I'll need to walk off calories after the HUGE breakfast I like to order. Lots of food for a good price. Go hungry, 'cause you'll leave full enough to last you the entire day. I sometimes can't even finish all that's on my plate. Friendly and efficient service. Sign up for e-mails and you'll get coupons.

    (5)

  • Michael W.

    Great breakfast place. Pancakes light and tasty with over a dozen different choices. Soft scrambled eggs cooked to perfection. Bacon thick and crispy perhaps best I ever had. Coffee very tasty and hot with quick service refills. Looks like the place was recently remodeled - booths and plenty of room. Service was fantastic.

    (5)

  • C Q.

    After trying the OPH, we still prefer IHOP. It was a lot of food. We got The Works with French toast and scrambled eggs, chocolate chip pancakes and Jalapeno Omelet. I loved the chocolate chip pancakes, but thought there was too much chocolate chip on top. The best of The Works was the scrambled eggs. The French Toast was not bad. The hash brown was extremely oily. There was a layer of oil on the plate and the hash brown was dripping with oil. The bacon was hard and overcooked. We didn't care for the Jalapeno Omelet at all. It was weird that they would charge more for cheese in the omelet. We thought the extra charge was for additional cheese on top of the omelet, so we opted not to have the cheese. It turned out, our omelet had no cheese at all. The jalapeno pepper was undercooked. It was not a good omelet. I am glad I tried the OPH because we never did before. Even though the restaurant was cleaner and the staff was more friendly than IHOP, we felt that IHOP (Falls Church store) actually has better food.

    (3)

  • fxvafoodie f.

    better than ihop! (but don't be confused, this is not a fancy-pancy brunch place - it has more of a cafeteria feel) i always get The Works (the original) - which comes with a TON of food (meat, eggs, potatoes, and pancakes) for $10. The Works has since spawned the French Toast Works and the Golden Waffle Works - apparently a great concept is worth 3 similar, yet different, menu items! i recommend getting the shredded potatoes instead of diced - although sometimes the shredded potatoes come out a little under-cooked (too soft) and not as sufficiently crispy as i prefer - but only sometimes, most times they get it right :) they have heinz ketchup which compliments the shredded potatoes very well (none of that funny hunt's business). watch out for the syrup container - it's always way too sticky, even for your standard neighborhood syrup container (or maybe it's just me and my inability to operate a syrup dispenser without getting everything else sticky ...) the wait on the weekends can be quite long and the parking tricky, but as other folks noted, they usually move through the line quickly and the parking follows (you can either circle or grab street parking). they no longer let you split checks on the weekends, so bring cash.

    (4)

  • Eileen O.

    This is like IHOP, but with better tasting food, quicker seating, and much better service. I went on a Sunday morning at about 10, and lobby was completely full - but it only took 15 minutes to be seated. The menu is quite extensive, and there's a lot to choose from.

    (4)

  • Amy H.

    I'm not a huge pancake fan. They're often heavy and uninspired. I love the pancakes here, though. They're light and delicious. I love them with blueberries or strawberries. My husband loves the pecan or bacon ones. I always get their hashbrowns, too. Their coffee is great too and I'm not a big coffee drinker. Definitely try this place.

    (4)

  • Emily E.

    Delicious! I asked for a golden waffle with a side of nutella and it was so delicious

    (4)

  • Leo B.

    This place is phenomenal! I've always driven past by it but never gave it a second thought only because the hours are awful 7-3 pm. So the hours they're open I'm either rushing to work or by the time a get off of work it's already closed. One Sunday morning I decided to take the plunge a visit the place. The place was packed and the wait was at least 20 minutes, but I took this as a good sign that the food would be great. A true greasy spoon diner just like up north (NJ & NY) the portions are HUGE and the service was on cue, and pretty prompt for the amount of people in the place. I order the western omelet with hash browns and my friend order the strawberry pancakes, WOW! The omelet was literally the size of the entire plate, and the pancakes were stacked high and loaded with strawberries and strawberry butter. I think I might have to take a day off during week to avoid the crowds, but I will definitely return. Now, I only gave this place three stars because of their business hours, there's hardly no parking and they get too crowded.

    (3)

  • Kristina D.

    When I lived in Virginia, this was my go-to place for hangover brunch or post-race breakfast. If it's the former, you usually get stuck waiting with the throngs of other hungover folk and families with small children, all reading the Falls Church News-Press. I ran the Army Ten Miler last year with my boyfriend, his brother, and his brother's girlfriend, and after every mile marker I shrieked, "one more mile til pancakes!" Yes, these pancakes motivated me to run ten miles at the buttcrack of dawn. They are that good. Perfectly textured, light, and fluffy, they come out from the kitchen as fresh as a daisy. I only lament the fact we didn't run the race faster. Many folks who finished it faster than 1:40:38 were already there, eating yummy pancakes and sporting their finisher's medals. I also like the shredded hash browns, pigs in a blanket., flapjacks, and crepes. I am dying to try the Dutch Baby!

    (4)

  • Jennifer G.

    I wasn't overly impressed with the Original Pancake House. R and I had brunch here on Valentines Day (it was my idea to take him here because he loves pancakes) and it really didn't turn out the way I hoped it would. First off, the building itself is odd. It's at the end of a strip mall of stores and parking during the busy times is a hassle. **Can someone tell me why people drive in the middle of the lanes in parking lots??** We managed to park along the strip mall and entered the OPH and added our names to the list of people waited to be seated. We were told the wait would only be 5-10 minutes, but I'd say it was maybe 2 minutes, not bad! As we were taken to our table I noticed the wide open dining area with table scattered all over. There's a wall of windows which lets in a nice amount of light (windows are tinted so you aren't blinded on sunny days). Then there's this isolation dining room. It has no windows, fluorescent lighting and tables lining the walls. R and I were "fortunate" enough to be seated at the one table in the center of the room. I felt like I was on display. I kept finding myself staring out into the big bright dining room and wondering what I had done to be seated in the isolation room. It wasn't the way I wanted to start off Valentines Day with R. Fluorescent lighting isn't flattering. There was a little girl that said "Daddy" about 100 times in a row. I wouldn't have gotten to 3 times before my dad would have put an end to that. Our server arrived and she was spunky and friendly. We ordered our drinks and she had them out to us quickly. We placed our order for the sausage and pancakes for R and the eggs and potatoes for me. I also requested a side of bacon since a Yelper mentioned it was awesome. Our waitress mentioned that I could have my potatoes either chunky or shredded. I opted for the chunky ones. She described them as thick cut and fried with onions. Sounds good to me! I was surprised when they arrived though. They had a reddish/orange color to them as if they had been cooked with tomatoes or something. I really don't know what caused this coloring. They were okay, but if we return to OPH I'm getting the shredded hash browns. My eggs were perfectly cooked- sunny side up as I requested. It wasn't until I had begun eating my eggs that I realized what was missing- toast. I love eating my eggs with buttered toast. This is the first breakfast place I've ever been to that didn't include toast! It was weird to me. The bacon was quite tasty, but I had problems with it. Three pieces of bacon (albeit they were big slices) was $3.75. It was good quality bacon, nice and meaty but seriously, not $3.75 good. What made it worse was that I only managed to eat half of it before I wound up with a piece of hair that wasn't mine in my mouth. Gross. I had finished my eggs and potatoes (they came with 3 pancakes which I shared with R) and didn't want more bacon and didn't expect a refund after the amount I ate so I didn't bring this up to the waitress. R enjoyed his sausage and pancakes. The pancakes were good. I think the ones that came with my meal were the wheat ones. I've never had wheat pancakes before and I enjoyed them. R totally tore up his stack of buttermilk pancakes. The sausage wasn't anything to write home about, it was okay though. I don't know if we'll be back to the OPH. Personally I've had better breakfasts elsewhere. Our meal came to $28 which I felt was a little on the high side. The children at the OPH really took away from what I had hoped would be a relaxing and calm breakfast with my Valentine. I normally don't have a problem with kids, but I do when parents don't make sure they behave properly in public. At one point we had a little boy standing in the isolation room staring at us as we ate. The table was sticky when we sat down which is gross. I wasn't fond of the pot of maple syrup left on the table. It seemed like a single serving sort of deal where you would receive one with your meal but one didn't arrive for R so he used the one that had been on the table when we arrived. I had visions of dirty little kid fingers having been dipped into there by the previous diners that prevented me from using it. Unfortunately there's just nothing really convincing me to come back to OPH any time soon.

    (3)

  • Ryan W.

    The Original Pancake House is what it is. Well, except "Original" since it's a chain. Chain status notwithstanding, it still gets an "A-OK" in my book. Pancakes are good, simple and mostly big. It's certainly a much better alternative to IHOP if you're looking for chain-style pancakes. On a recent visit I tried their flapjacks, which are similar in consistency to crepes - very good. Incidentally, we went on a weekday late morning and the place was nearly empty, except for a few octogenarians. Weekends are crazy, but still worth a 15 minute or so wait.

    (3)

  • Trish C.

    Definitely more breakfast choices than IHOP, and the food is great-tasting. The prices, however, are a bit on the high side for me. Wondering if they'll ever offer combinations - I don't recall having seen any on their menu lately - or will customers have to keep ordering a-la-carte? Also, this place gets VERY crowded on the weekends, so come as early as possible if you mind having to wait.

    (3)

  • Diana V.

    We live down the street from OHP, and although you can't find a better breakfast, the service is consistently always crap. If you go with kids, take extra patience with you because they are slow in every which way. Lately we have noticed the food is cold, and I think its because it sits there forever (given the wait) before it actually makes its way to your table. Yes, the pancakes are fabulous and the food is great, but its really frustrating to deal with their idiot waitresses. We have decided its worth going across town to an actual diner for breakfast on the weekends and get better service than deal with this service hassle.

    (2)

  • Ali S.

    FOOD: 5 Stars RESTAURANT: 2 Stars OVERALL: 4 Stars The BF and I went on Sunday for a late breakfast. Got there around 1 so we didn't have a problem getting seated. However, the tables were so close together (and super small!) we felt like they sat us in between two other couples at the same table. Definitely did not like that. Felt a little clostrophobic and the tables made us feel like kids. We could hear their conversations and vice versa. I don't know you! **Sigh* Oh well... we just wanted to eat. He ordered the banana pancakes and I ordered the ham and cheese omelette. We were NOT disappointed! The pancakes were a perfect size and oooohhhh soooo fluffy! The bananas were fresh and perfectly cooked in the pancakes. My omelette was as big as my head and super thick! I was had to take most of it home. My buttermilk pancakes were heaven! The BF bought an order of Strawberry pancakes home for his family. I was so full but wanted to kill their order too! Tons of FRESH cut strawberries on top of perfect buttermilk pancakes! His family loved it! They had so many choices it was hard to really figure out what to eat but I don't think you can go wrong with anything you order. Next time, I think I'm going to need to try the bacon pancakes or pigs in a blanket pancakes! The food is totally worth it if you love breakfast! Can't get these pancakes from any of the chain restaurants around.

    (4)

  • adriana a.

    I like this place. I've eaten here twice and have had the waffle (w/strawberry topping) and the eggs benedict, and silver dollar pancakes. All of which were very good and reheated in the oven surprisingly well, tasted great. I'm not a fan of grits but when my boyfriend ordered them, I tried some and actually liked 'em. They had a good flavor even without the extra butter and cheese he put on top. He only eats grits here. It is mostly a lot of different flavored pancakes which is great. Though, not a big selection if you really like a variety for breakfast. Just a few omelettes to choose from and a few other non-pancake meals. Steak benedict, ham benedict, florentine benedict for example. All three are basically the same thing, just different meat. Not exaclty considered variety. We've gone on the weekend and both times its been very busy, standing room only in the waiting area, but they are pretty quick to seat people. The staff isnt "mean" but they are just to the point. which is fine by me: Bring my drink, take my order, bring my food, check on me, give me my tab. We've waited maybe 20 in to be seated before but never had to wait long for the check or hunt down our waitress. Its not my favorite breakfast place but still worth going to once in a while if you're mainly going for the sweeter side of breakfast. I recommend it.

    (3)

  • Jennifer S.

    Full disclosure: The Original Pancake House is a chain. I couldn't in good consciousness continue with this review until I made this clear since (as all my friends know) I am SO anti-chain. Be prepared to wait in line, but what you're waiting for will delight you. Here's the place to break your "no-carb" rule. Trust me. My personal favorite are the Swedish Pancakes served with lingonberries and whipped butter. These pancakes are lighter and more crepe-like than regular pancakes. For the health nuts they offer items like Wheat Germ pancakes, and if I wasn't so addicted to the Swedish variety, I'd get them (probably with an extra order of syrup). One of "specialties of the House" also looks worth a try - the Apple Pancake, a single large pancake smothered with sauteed apples and cinnamon sugar. The sides are decent - chicken sausage for me. The prices are also palatable. **OPINION PRINCESS HOT TIP** The syrup they serve isn't that high quality stuff tapped from trees in VT. If you want it though, just ask. It isn't advertised anywhere, but they'll give you an individual bottle for a small fee.

    (4)

  • D M.

    Fast cafeteria style food, which is often what you need on a weekend morning. I've been to this location a couple of times, as well as the Rockville location. The ambiance gets zero stars, but you get plenty of pancakes and home fries. I am nitrous for my burnt-on-the-outside, underdone-on-the-inside pancakes, so it's nice to leave the work to a professional. The line to be seated looks long but moves fast. The location sucks - just too far away, even from Alexandria. Better than IHOP (what isn't), but not the same experience as the Adam's Morgan Dinner.

    (3)

  • June J.

    whenever i get a craving for waffles and some eggs. i go to pancake house... their waffle selection is pretty good. i think ive tried all them but my favorite is the pecan waffles with bananas. yum! they have pancakees and omelletes are pretty good too. i think i only tried the "build it your" omelletes. with sausage and extra extra cheese. their service is like any other "diner"- crappy but i mean i dont expect so much. ( who does right) but its alot better than Ihop. its not open 24hourslike the other place and easy to find ( its like hidden, if your not looking for it you probably never saw it.)but still the food taste better.

    (3)

  • Tim S.

    This place came well-recommended from a lot of people; I can't figure out why. The eggs were overcooked, the pancakes were undercooked and had a weird off flavor that I couldn't figure out, and it was expensive for what you get. Their bacon is pretty good, though, and service was competent.

    (2)

  • Mike E.

    Meh. Pancakes.

    (3)

  • Kate B.

    Went here on a whim on the way home from an errand this morning. Buckwheat pancakes! That's the first time I've seen that on a menu in a while and am definitely a fan. The wait was less than 10 minutes despite my visions of standing around that dull strip mall forever (the parking lot and restaurant were packed). Service was quick and friendly. The food was good and there is a lot of selection; your usual fare but a bunch of things you won't find on your average I Hop or Denny's menus. The shredded hash browns were unexpectedly fresh and YUM! I'll definitely be returning to try a baked omelet one of these days.

    (4)

  • Rebecca T.

    The pancakes are awesome--novel flavors and each one I've tried has been delicious. I used to work near this place and have been there at least a dozen times; each time, the food has been great, the service abysmal. The official attitude appears to be: We know our food is good, so if you don't like our service, leave. We have a line out the door, anyway. They finally broke me when I was there with a friend who ordered a combo. The combo was supposed to come with 2 pancakes, but 4 showed up. Later, the waitress came by and pointed out the problem. SHE TOOK THE EXTRA PANCAKES AWAY. She literally scooped them into another plate, right from his half-eaten plate...I guess she threw the pancakes in the trash...I hope she threw them in the trash. She was only doing what her manager told her to do. So, it's not like there was anyone there we could complain to, this ridiculous decision came from the top. None of us have been there since. It's been hard.

    (1)

  • Stephanie N.

    Good breakfast place - I believe its a chain (the first one I ever saw was when I lived in Atl). Meals are HUGE!!!!! They serve the food on platters and an omelette looks like its going to fall off the edge!!! Pancakes are nice and fluffy - but the real treat is that their syrup is to die for. Luckily - they also have it for sale at the register. Its really really ridiculously good tasting. Prices are decent. Service is quick - albeit maybe a little TOO quick. Its kinda hard to catch them if you need anything. Popular place so beware of waits on Sunday mornings.

    (3)

  • James G.

    There's nothing Original about Original Pancake House (comma) the. They do, however, serve excellent breakfasts. I've eaten several of them and would do so more often if they were not somewhat expensive and always crowded on weekends. However, when family comes to town, we always start our days here (it is close to my house). The coffee is good, the portions are filling, and they serve a dish which isn't always served at these places, the Puffed Oven Pancake or "Dutch Baby." MMmmmmm....

    (3)

  • Longgirl H.

    I hate to admit that I have been there twice. I went the second time because I believed the first time must have been an anomaly. There is no way service could be that bad all of the time. Sadly. It is. The first time, I took my mother and we waited in the waiting area for 30 minutes. We were talking so it wasn't too bad really. She lives far away so we were catching up. When we were finally seated and given a menu, it took 45 minutes to get a cup of coffee. I know. We should have left, but people kept saying they would be right with us and there were tons of empty tables and people running around. We thought it was an anomaly. Food was okay. Bill was almost $40 for two breakfasts and two cups of coffee. We did not get any coffee refills. I swore I would not return. Well, my husband really wanted to try it so I went one more time. The waiting area was packed when we arrived. After about 20 minutes we were finally seated and again, we waited forever to get a cup of coffee. I do believe that if you at least give me a coffee, I could sit for a long time reviewing the menu. But, why even give someone a table unless you are ready to give them a drink. Maybe they think we won't leave if we're at a table. My advice - leave. Or avoid it all together. The food is not that good, the prices are very high and the service is unbelievably bad.

    (1)

  • Aaron E.

    Go here. The BEST fluffy, but substantive pancakes for relatively cheap. They put real whipped cream on the pancakes. In the winter they serve pumpkin pancakes. They also serve a decent Kona coffee (although, the % of Kona beans is not listed). Don't get this confused with IHOP. It is not the same thing by a long shot. CONS: The waitresses are usually hateful. I haven't figured out if that is part of the charm of the place, or they really just suck. Just sit down, order your food and enjoy. This place also closes early (I think around 3-4 pm every day). I only gave this place 4 stars becuase of the bad hours and wait staff.

    (4)

  • Farah N.

    This place is ok. Just ok. For a place that says in the name that they originated pancakes, you would expect the batter to have spectacular flavor. Unfortunately, the hype is better than the bite, so to speak. The batter has a chemical taste that distracts from all of the yummy toppings you can get on your flapjacks. The bacon is heavenly - thick cut and crispy. The coffee is really good, but there are more convenient and better priced alternatives for getting a great cuppa joe and bacon. Overall, meh, it's cool, but def not the best.

    (2)

  • Will L.

    It's pancakes, and a lot of them. Variety that is, since the servings aren't quite as ginormous as IHOP and the prices are higher. The food is fine for what it is, and it's a friendly place with a neighbourhood-feel. But with their short opening hours, terrible parking and often long waits, I'm amazed they haven't been bought out by IHOP or Perkins.

    (3)

  • Jillian T.

    They have bacon pancakes. Nuff said. It's in our regular rotation of "too lazy to make breakfast" weekend stops. The wait can often be a pain in the ass, and the children running everywhere makes me twitchy, but the huge variety of pancakes is worth it. I actually think this is the largest variety of pancakes I've ever seen on a menu. WAY better than IHOP or Denny's. Great for nursing a hangover, as long as you manage to avoid the children.

    (3)

  • Melissa E.

    Holy pancakes! I have never in my entire life seen a menu with as many pancake choices as The Original Pancake House. It sure lives up to it's name. Not many other breakfast choices, sure you have your omelets, egg & meat plates and a handful of others, but that's not why you would come to a place called The Original Pancake House. Everything else was just ok...but when I want to go to a reastaurant I'd rather have great food then great anything else.

    (4)

  • Random D.

    I have been there a couple of times -I figured that this warrants some Yelping. Crepes in general are good - however NOT outstanding. If you take the crepes out - then i think there is not much of a difference between OPH and IHOP. They manage the crowd real well on Saturdays and the waiters seem pretty pleasant.

    (3)

  • Rowena E.

    Yumm... Great food, very cheap. I've had the buttermilk pancakes, potato pancakes, nutella crepes and all of them were excellent. My friend ordered the Dutch Baby and the thing was huge. He made a good effort at putting a dent in it, but think about sharing it with someone or make sure to wear bigger pants before ordering it, so you have enough stomach room to work with. originalpancakehouse.com

    (4)

  • Kristen B.

    I was recommended OPH by several people and the line is typically out the door on weekends, but I wasn't overly impressed. The house sausage was very good, not dry, good amount of seasoning. The thick sliced bacon was also very good. However, the pancakes were not up to par. I had the bacon pancakes and also tasted the praline pancakes. The mix-ins were not distributed evenly throughout the batter, but rather plopped in the center which caused the pancake to cook unevenly. I am a fan of big, fluffy pancakes and these are smaller (an order gets you six) and lacking on the fluffy scale. Also, the pancakes had a odd subtle flavor that I think may have came from the griddle or the oil they used. The staff was friendly, attentive, and quick (just what you would expect from a proper diner) I would like to go back and try the Dutch baby or apple pancake.

    (2)

  • Kelly K.

    2 words, people: Nutella Crepes. We went there this morning (they have high chairs...you hear that, Busboys & Poets??!), and we both ordered the nutella crepes, while the couple next to us SPLIT a veggie omelette, made with egg whites, no less. We felt very jabba-esque. But they are so good, and who else has nutella crepes? They aren't cheap either- I think they are $9. Our baby was happy watching all of the other babies. The prices are pretty expensive, esp. for breakfast, but again, where else do you get nutella crepes?

    (3)

  • Kris P.

    This is hands down the best breakfast place in the Falls church area. Reasonably priced, great omelets, pancakes, other interesting breakfast choices, fresh squeezed juice. Fast service, a little crowded on weekends but come on...it's a diner style place. If you want to be treated like a prince or princess, don't go here. In my opinion, it should easily be on your breakfast rotation in the area.

    (5)

  • Amy S.

    Oh my gosh, this restaurant is fabulous! We went on a weekday morning around 10 am, so no wait at all. The bacon was remarkable. The omelet was pretty darn good too. The chocolate pancakes for my son were perfect.

    (5)

  • Chris S.

    Another overrated place that gets much hype and doesn't deliver on customer service/food. Actually, the food is mediocre. I can describe it as a step below eggspectations but with the same crowded lines. The location at Falls Church needs some updating and bresh mints for the servers. My waitress's breath was horrid. The hot air felt like she was giving me uppercuts on my nostrils. She was also rushing my party to get out once we got our food. I hate being rushed because I try to avoid indegestion. As for the food, I tried the sausage, corned beef, original pancakes, chocolate, and pumpkin p-cakes. Pumpkin was the best. The meal was overpriced as they do not give you meat or a piece of fruit as part of the breakfast bundle. So every plate was considered its own priced item. What a bummer, I expected to hand out at least 4 stars for the overhyped, overcrowded breakfast joint on W Broad St.

    (3)

  • Jon T.

    On a whim I decided to grab some food on the way to work. The Pancake house opens at 7am and I figured there wasn't many people there. I was right I was the first one in. After sitting and making a order I saw another couple walk in to enjoy a breakfast as well. 15-20 minutes later I see them getting their food while I sit there empty handed. And its not like I got something that was overly complicated, I mean corn beef hash and eggs?? The funny part is the guy in the other party got the same order as me, but apparently they are more important then me and deserve to their their food first. I don't know if it was a race thing, a "ooh they will tip better they are a couple" thing or what but I got very upset. Anyways I don't think I'll be going back there any time soon. I love their food but the service sucks.

    (1)

  • Rowca R.

    This is by far our family's favorite breakfast place in NoVa. The service is great and meal is always enjoyable. The menu items are well prepared and they set the standard for excellent meals. Eggs are cooked to perfection and the food is served hot. Weekends, especially Sundays after church can be crowded but the staff and kitchen excel. About a year ago they moved from their Falls Church location further away but I gladly followed them...

    (4)

  • Jackie T.

    I dropped by this location because I love everything on the OPH menu. Pancakes, crepes, dutch baby (baked pancake) ... they know how to do the griddle. They have these in the midwest and I would frequent them on Sunday mornings or sometime during lunch. The first thing that turned us off (and the reason this got dinged a star) they need to keep this place cleaner. But the food is just as I recall in my hometown, I'll certainly be back.

    (3)

  • Meg G.

    Zip-pity doodah!!! I enjoyed stopping here for breakfast when I knew I wasn't going to have time for lunch. The food is filling, of course; although, the prices are right up there with the international house, so I guess it's a matter of personal preference. I liked ordering the link sausage & eggs with buttermilk pancakes. Now, before the recession and all the economy woes, adding cheddar to the eggs was not an issue for me. Afterwards, they increased the (already 'iffy') price by at least a quarter and I just think that if I like cheese that much - I will wake up thirty minutes earlier and make my own at home. I have no other qualms about this restaurant, and they got an extra star for customer service!!!

    (4)

  • Morgan H.

    25 minute wait to get a table! Almost not worth it. Ordered an omelet and it was HUGE! It was also so hot the fork burnt my lips! Pancakes come with everything. Very good! Toast was overpriced, but amazing. Waitress was hilarious! Kept our coffee filled and hot!

    (4)

  • Frank W.

    Food 4 stars (get the apple pancake, it serves 2 people) Service 1 star (had to wait to get in and (!) out in order to pay at the front desk) Ambiance 2 stars I am not coming back soon. To much time required to get a pancake.

    (2)

  • Kelly H.

    Very good food.

    (4)

  • Don E.

    Big fan of this place. If you can avoid going on weekends, the lines can be kind of long, but they do a pretty good job of getting people in and out.. The wait staff if always courteous and attentive without being overbearing. As noted on other reviews, parking can be a beast. Look to park out on the side street if you can, I have usually found a spot there. Also, some things are a tad pricey, but they do give you a very good serving size. There are lots of kids there, but since I have one, that is perfectly good for me. Big fan of the Banana Pancakes and Turkey Sausage. If you are in the area, I would definitely recommend.

    (4)

  • Kevin W.

    Decent breakfast joint. It's clean and the service is friendly. Coffee is too expensive, though. No diner in the world should be charging $2.39 for an average cup of coffee. Other than that, the prices are reasonable and the food is good.

    (3)

  • Kristian D.

    The O.J. machine, the O.J. machine, The most perfect contraption that's ever been seen. Just put in your oranges, then drop in a lime, Snap on the switch, and in ten seconds' time, Your O.J. comes out, pulped and sweet as can be. Here it is--time and effort-wise it's practically free Free? Oh me . . . I forgot that they charge you two arms and a knee. --that's about $5 US-- Apart from the amazing orange juicer, and the slightly high prices the place offers what I consider the quintessential breakfast experience, Yummy, Fast, and Cardiac Arrest Assuring. Seriously, you could arrive to the place with the parking lot over-flowing, a line out the door and you're still sitting within 20 minutes. The only thing they turn and burn here are the customers. The servers (don't think I've seen a guy server in the 8 years I've been eating there) are not into chit-chat. They don't want to tell you about their novel/acting classes/personal ambitions and they don't care how the drive down was either. Me, I appreciate this. So, the food, because yummy doesn't really explain a lot. What I like best about it is the consistency. If you like Suasage and Eggs over-easy with a side of shredded hash browns (crunchy) and chocolate chip pancakes--and I do--you'll invariably get warm egg whites with a runny yolk, crispy crunchy buttery hash-browns, and 3 medium sized piping hot pancakes so laden with gooey melting chocolate chips it's almost as if the dough was an after-thought. Now the place is called the original pancake house, so if you expect it to be mostly pancakes, you'd be correct. I think there are roughly 40 different pancake based menu items (after 8 years I don't really use the menu anymore). I don't often order a pancake centered breakfast but I am a huge fan of the Apple Pancake (not really a pancake at all) and the Dutch Baby, which I think of a pseudo breakfast soufflé, but I'm interested in eating the food not making it, so that characterization might be off. Whatever, they are tasty as all get out, and require a lot more effort than flipping an egg. If it's so perfect why only 4 stars? Well, a half-star for the prices, and a 1/2 star for the smaller portion sizes. Now I know they have to make money, and the economy is what it is, but the place used to be perfect and now it's slightly less than perfect.

    (4)

  • Reginald T.

    Woke up this morning with the taste of "pumpkin pancakes" on my tongue. mmmmm!!! My girlfriend did not feel like driving for breakfast and decided to make breakfast. Damn!!! Unfortunately, no ham. It didn't take her to much time to reconsider that the best pancake house in Falls Church was only a 20 min drive away. So off we went. The kewl thing about this place is every time we go their is never a wait. Maybe b/c we go more for brunch than breakfast. I got the eggs, bacon, potatoes and PUMPKIN PANCAKES. Yum!!! Girlfriend got the special lemon crepes and a spinach-cheese wrap. Delicious. Washed down with a nice fresh squeezed OJ. Of course was not the cheapest breakfast but well worth it if you only go from time to time.

    (4)

  • Jessica B.

    I often go on a weekend (but early to beat the rush), but I also would go in the morning when my daughter woke us up at a ridiculous hour! They have a great variety, it is kid friendly and I always ask to sit with Jessica. She is super sweet! I craved this place when I was pregnant and it definitely hit the spot! I tried their lunch for the first time the other week and it is also incredibly good.

    (4)

  • G T.

    Best pancakes in the area!

    (5)

  • Samuel G.

    I knew that there were places that put IHoP and the Front Page weekend brunch to shame. I just didn't think that this would be one of them. I've passed this place up on my travels through Falls Church through the years, but I figured one breakfast place is just like any other, right? WRONG. Since we were running errands and also on the way to visit a sick friend, we knew we HAD to stop somewhere for breakfast, and since we'd never tried the Pancake House and it was close by, what did we have to lose? If it was unremarkable, we'd never have to go back again anyway. The parking lot was pretty full, though we found a space in pretty short order. Ditto for when we got inside, which was MUCH bigger than any IHoP (thank GAWD.) We were going to have a seat in the waiting area when the greeter told us it would be five minutes, but I don't think we even got the chance to sit down before we were called to our table. First off, that MENU. It's as vast and long as IHoP's used to be, but the selections were nowhere near as good as this. I could've taken about an hour to try and decide what I wanted, but my rumbling stomach wouldn't allow it, so I zeroed in on the Dollar Pancakes, with a side order of scrambled 'cacklefruit' and "Famous" sausage patties. The O.J. and coffee were tremendous (I will have to see that orange juice machine the next time we go), and the meal? Scrum-freakindiddly-umptious. The pancakes were twelve bite-sized circles of pure heaven, and the meal was perfect. I didn't feel like I'd swallowed a couch when I was done. I can't wait for our next trip back, and to bring some friends along this time.

    (5)

  • kevin l.

    This place deserves a 5 but I give it a 4 since the new location is much less of a diner than the other one. The pancakes are amazing and one of the best I've ever eaten. I usually do not finish my pancakes but this place is the exception. The corned hash beef is very tasty and I would recommend this to anyone that loves breakfast food. Thumbs up to this place!

    (4)

  • Mere M.

    As gluten free hunter, Pancake house is a place I can count to please me and my other family members. They have buckwheat (which is GF) as well as their own gluten free pancakes. The buckwheat in my opinion are better. It does get REALLY busy, so the post-church going groups I suggest doing call ahead or reservation. If you like your elbow space pancake house may not be for you. During flu season this can be quite off-putting. Other than the close proximity to others PH is a thumbs up on food, parking.

    (4)

  • John A.

    Pancake house is a great! I personally prefer and recommend the omelets which are unusual to say the least. They are fluffffy, and are served open faced. The one negatives is the coffee which is marginal-50s-coffee-house brand.. Lots of families bring their kids here, especially on the weekends, so if you dont like kids then this is not your place.. but you probably wont find a breakfast place without tons of kids on a Saturday morning.. Enjoy!

    (4)

  • Gayle G.

    The thought of a greasy spoon typically makes me sick, but one that serves really, really good pancakes? I am so there. The cakes are so good here because they are made from scratch. If you go first thing in the morning, be prepared for a wait, but it is well worth it. If you like pancakes with "stuff" in them like I do, there are lots to choose from: apple, pecan, bacon, chocolate chip..and the list goes on. It takes a bit longer for those orders to come, but that is due to the made to order system they've got going. The apple is my fave and it is also the specialty of the house. Served with big chunks of apple and cinammon sugar (non of that applesauce-ey puree stuff), it is sweet and so, so good. The bacon here is not fried to a total crisp..there was actually some meat in the strips. For non pancake fans there are a bunch of other options like omelette's and blintzes. Oy!

    (4)

  • Ralph F.

    I've always said that if you're gonna have something that you serve as part of your business's name (e.g.: Five Guys Burgers and Fries), that food better be good, and the pancakes here are amazing. Bacon pancakes? Pancakes with bacon IN them? Yes please.

    (4)

  • Greg M.

    4 star rating is based on food alone. Pancakes are huge, delicious, and come in a wide variety of flavors and toppings. I just tried the Dutch Baby today. Delicious. Omelets are also light, fluffy, and huge. A couple of knocks on this place: 1. terrible parking situation 2. consistently a 20-30 min wait for a table on weekends 3. service is hit or miss (unsurprising for a restaurant that is on a wait for 8 straight hours) 4. prices are just a little bit high 5. lots of kids I'm not saying I wouldn't recommend OPH, but the hassle of the factors above conspire to make it worth visiting only once every couple of months rather than weekly. It's just not hangover friendly!

    (4)

  • Philip D.

    On weekends, this restaurant is like a day care center, filled with ill-behaved young children. The portions are huge which is good for foodies and a wide variety of breakfast choices are offered. If you are looking for a sane, peaceful place for breakfast on Saturday and Sunday, pass on this establishment.

    (1)

  • Nancy T.

    My friend and I ordered the same thing and my portion was easily double the size of his portion. We were baffled. Also, the bacon was way too hard, but that is easily forgiven once you taste the waffles. Oh, they are heavenly and melt in your mouth. Unfortunately, eating breakfast here is like eating at a daycare center. Easily half the tables in this place had multiple infants and/or toddlers, which would be fine if they weren't screaming and shouting and spilling their milk all over the floor. I much prefer the more mature, low-key atmosphere at Amphora for early morning meals. If you have small children, please take them here. You will not be expected to keep them quiet or well-behaved and no one will blink an eye.

    (2)

  • Lulu T.

    It's only OK. I've definitely had better pancakes and omelets. For a place with Pancakes in the name, I expected fluffy and flavorful pancakes. Instead, I found pancakes with a lot of compliments like chocolate, nuts etc. to mask the lack of flavor in their pancakes. The omelets are HUGE, it's literally the size of a dinner plate. Unfortunately, the omelets are hard. I'm more accustomed to fluffy crepe like omelets. I wish there were more breakfast options in the area. Other than Silver Diner and iHop - we are stuck.

    (2)

  • Liz Z.

    i didn't care if i had to drive across the key bridge into NoVa (gasp!) from georgetown to come here for a hearty breakfast. the food & drive made it well worth the trip. order: classic crepes (comes with a silver 3-cup tray of lemon wedges, confectioner's sugar, and butter) with a side of shredded hash browns (alittle on the buttery side) and eggs, over-medium. result: probably 5 extra lbs. on person, but my palate extremely happy and stomach protruding yet full. yes, there is a wait, largely on weekend mornings. but, hint: get there before 8am and maybe the wait won't be so bad. got to be seated immediately when arrived at 7:45 am. SCORE! and if not crepes for you, there's a variety of countless pancake, omelette, breakfast meal choices to scout. just give yourself a few minutes to read the extensive menu. and there's a kids menu for those with families. note: i've been to all THREE locations in the DC metro area, and i've never seen an unhappy (or unruly) kid at a TOPH. trust me. they must put kid-friendly mix into their batter.

    (4)

  • B J.

    We drive by a lot of breakfast places to eat breakfast every week or two at the OPH. Swedish pancakes (as thin as crepes with crispy edges) and turkey sausage is my go-to breakfast. My husband's choices vary and he's always happy. Extremely nice servers and good prices. The new location feels less cramped, lighter, much easier parking. If you go on the weekend, if you don't want to wait, get there super early or have lunch at around 2:00 or later. (They stop serving at 3:00.) The weird: the door opener to my car doesn't work when I park too close to Radio Shack.

    (5)

  • Anh H.

    I've been there a couple of times and have always been happy with the food. Go in the beginning of the day to avoid th lines, which can have you waiting for up to 45 minutes. There's a whole variety of pancake that you can get and it's definitely filling. The Georgia Pecan pancakes are pretty awesome. Service is about the same as most places.

    (4)

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Map

Opening Hours

  • Mon :7:00 am - 3:00pm

Specialities

  • Takes Reservations : No
    Delivery : No
    Take-out : Yes
    Accepts Credit Cards : Yes
    Good For : Breakfast
    Parking : Private Lot
    Bike Parking : Yes
    Wheelchair Accessible : Yes
    Good for Kids : Yes
    Good for Groups : Yes
    Attire : Casual
    Ambience : Casual
    Noise Level : Average
    Alcohol : No
    Outdoor Seating : No
    Wi-Fi : Free
    Has TV : No
    Waiter Service : Yes
    Caters : No

The Original Pancake House

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