Kerbey Lane Cafe Pancakes: They're What's For Dinner By Dale Rice American-Statesman Restaurant Critic Thursday, November 6, 2003 Occasionally, when I was growing up, my mother served breakfast food for supper: Eggs. Bacon. Sausage. Pancakes. My sidekick on a recent dinner excursion noted that her mother did the same thing. Maybe that's why as I perused the chicken dishes at Kerbey Lane Cafe, my attention kept wandering back to the pancakes. Ditto with the burgers, salads and the enchiladas. They sounded good; pancakes sounded better. If there's one place where Kerbey Lane excels, it's pancakes. Thick, dark brown and the size of a dinner plate, the blueberry pancake (50 cents extra with an omelet) was flavorful, light and cooked completely in the center, traits not often found in large 'cakes. Another advantage of breakfasting at dinner at Kerbey Lane is it offers adult choices to accompany those pancakes, like the omelet ($7.25) that is a takeoff on eggs Benedict. The fluffy eggs enclosed fresh spinach, diced Canadian bacon and hollandaise sauce for a refreshing alternative to standard omelets. For more typical dinner fare, the penne with chipotle cream sauce ($8.75), served with a Caesar salad, featured a bowl of tubular pasta in a zesty sauce topped with grilled slices of portobello mushroom. For dessert, there was a wide selection made in the restaurant's bakery next door. The moist carrot cake ($3.50), iced with a thin layer of traditional cream cheese frosting, was especially nice. The apple pie ($3.25), with a streusel-style, oat-cinnamon topping, had potential, but it had been destroyed by heating in the microwave, which ruined the outside crust. That's my biggest complaint about restaurants serving pie and cobbler: Many of them warm it in a microwave and destroy the flaky texture of the crust in the process. Give diners the option of having it heated, so they at least have the chance to save it. Other than the pie, dinner at the southern branch of Kerbey Lane, a local chain with four locations, was as casual and relaxed as it has been for years. Service at the 24-hour cafe may come with a bit of a slacker attitude, but there's nothing lax about the food. You may contact Dale Rice at drice@statesman.com or 445-3859. | ||||
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