"One important question to ask before choosing an item from a breakfast menu is, “Do I want to spend $15 on something I could just as easily make at home?” Japanese souffle pancakes fall into the definitely-order-this-at-a-restaurant category because making them at home requires special equipment (pastry rings) and ingredients one might not ordinarily have on hand (cake flour, half a dozen eggs). At Hanabusa, a Toronto import in the Loop, every souffle pancake is made to order, and since souffle pancakes are what Hanabusa does best, on a busy day, one should be prepared to wait a while. But they’re worth the wait. The Earl Gray and sea salt caramel combo is a lovely combination of sweet and salty, with a slight touch of bitterness from the tea. The pancakes are warm and fluffy, and the custard is just slightly heavier, smooth and cool. The whole plate feels extremely luxurious. If you ate them in bed, you would feel like the world’s most well-cared-for invalid. But eating them out at a cafe isn’t so bad, either." - aimee.levitt
