While looking for a breakfast place in Rockland County, I checked out Pancakes Plus in Nanuet.

It was New Year's Day and it sounded promising. I called at 8:15 a.m. and a friendly voice verified that, yes, they were open. My breakfast buddy, Mela, was in a good mood and willing to take the trip with me over the bridge from Westchester County. 

Arriving in a roundabout way—thank goodness I have a GPS; my son gave it to me after I kept getting lost in Long Island where he lives—we found Pancakes Plus. 

From the front, it looks like it is a temporary location because of the sign above the door located in a sort of business-area parking lot. Inside though, the place was bursting with customers, mostly large groups of families at 9:45 a.m. on a Sunday morning. 

I picked a table in the back, as usual, so I can photograph my breakfast without causing too much attention. Our waiter, Rudy DeLeon, of Spring Valley, was extremely polite, efficient, patient and cheerful—so much that we wanted to pack him up and take him home!    

The coffee was good, but strong, so be prepared. Our order was a spinach, tomato and feta cheese omelet with white and wheat toast and home fries. We ordered crispy bacon on the side and thought we would try pancakes—naturally. A short stack of walnut pancakes was the choice that morning. 

First off, all of the portions were very generous. Thank goodness we ordered the short stack, which was 2 pancakes, because they were huge. Literally, we could only eat half of one pancake each. The buttermilk taste with chopped walnuts made for a cooked to perfection, delicious pancake. Real butter was served in tiny cups. It looked like someone shops smart by buying large butter chunks and cuts them down to these little squares for economical reasons. Fine by me, as long as it is real butter. 

The syrup was on the table in ketchup squeeze bottles, smart again, probably not to waste any. On the way out Mela saw a sign that said they serve "house syrup." What is this mystery house syrup? Mela and I both agreed from the taste, it wasn't the sugary syrup or pure maple syrup, but possibly a combo of the two. 

The toast was good, maybe because Rudy told us that they get the bread from the Rockland Bakery. I love that bakery's semolina bread and buy it every time I am in the area. The bacon was cooked to perfection; it snapped just they way we like it. Our only disappointment was the home fries. The top crunchy part was fine, but underneath, the potatoes were too soft and mushy, almost like mashed potatoes. 

Pancakes Plus really is a plus at $33.97, without the tip, for their hospitality, generous portions, good taste and a great waiter like Rudy.

Just one note: After we came out of Pancakes Plus, we realized we were right next to the Rockland Bakery. So, if you know how to get to the bakery, you can get to Pancakes Plus—it is around the corner!

Pancakes Plus
5 Seeger Dr.
Nanuet
845-624-4424

Mariann Raftery, creator of Somebody's Mom blog, cooks up comfort food recipes for families here at home, as well as sending homemade cookie care packages to our American soldiers overseas. Somebody's Mom Cooking videos at  http://www.youtube.com, search "Thesomebodysmom".