Hawaiian influence helps Babystacks stand out
Breakfast places (which usually serve some lunch as well) multiplied exponentially over the past few years, practically the sole restaurant success story to come out of the recession.
The trend continues — and no wonder. Serving comfort foods at moderate prices, they’re great informal spots to get together for brief visits with family and friends, which is about all most of us can hope for in this time-impoverished era. And so we now have five The Cracked Eggs, six Egg Works/The Egg and I and a flock of small groups and independents. And four Babystacks Cafes, among the youngest of the local breakfast groups.
We went to the first Babystacks at 2400 N. Buffalo Drive in March 2011, not long after it opened and back when it was called Babycakes. It was known for its red velvet pancakes — the first in the valley, if memory serves, although by now they’ve become commonplace. During our recent visit to the newest location, in Henderson, we discovered that Babystacks continues to bring a freshness to the breakfast world, in part because of its Hawaiian influence.
As in the Kalua Pig Benedict ($9.75). I love kalua pig, and this version didn’t disappoint. The pork and sauteed cabbage, its traditional accompaniment, had been piled atop a split English muffin. Those were in turn topped with perfectly poached eggs and a lovely silken Hollandaise, lemony and rich. On the side we chose the seasoned potatoes, which were crispy but not remarkable.
And in the tradition of those red velvet pancakes Babystacks offers quite a few creative pancake suggestions, like banana cream pie, orange creamsicle and rocky road. For us it would be the hazelnut pancakes, which sounded a little less sweet than the others but who were we kidding? The short stack of three pancakes ($5.75, or $8.95 for a full stack), suggested by our server, was plenty. The pancakes were just-right fluffy, and they were drizzled with Nutella, topped with scoops of whipped cream dusted with cocoa and scattered with chopped nuts. The combination was especially appreciated by the party at our table who has a pronounced sweet tooth.
On the side we had some link sausage, ($3.25), also unremarkable, but that was just fine.
Service was good, our server on the timid side but pleasant and helpful, the decor simple but cozy.
Mama always said it was important to have a good breakfast, and we have so many possibilities in the valley, that’s easy to do. And Babystacks ranks high among them.
Las Vegas Review-Journal restaurant reviews are done anonymously at Review-Journal expense. E-mail Heidi Knapp Rinella at Hrinella@reviewjournal.com. Find more of her stories at reviewjournal.com and bestoflasvegas.com, and follow @HKRinella on Twitter.