In Short: Chatswood Interchange’s hip District Dining is conveniently located adjacent to Chatswood station. It houses a wide array of food options and many famous Asian food franchises have been known to have setup shop here. One of the latest cafes to have opened up here is Gram Cafe and Pancakes , renowned for its jiggly, wobbly soufflé pancakes.
As you may have noticed, the Coco and Vine team are big fans of Japan, its culture, and of course its food. Their native cuisine spans from the ultra cheap to wallet busting, but what is even more remarkable is when the Japanese take a foreign dish, apply creativity, and take an almost scientific approach to elevate it a few levels. On a recent trip to Japan, I experienced some of the best pizza I have ever tasted and even an Indian-style vegetarian curry that blew my mind. Each of these dishes had smiling Japanese folks in the kitchen rustling up the food. That same approach can be seen in their approach to pancakes.
Soufflé pancakes are a beautiful sight, and Gram Cafe and Pancakes deliver these culinary specimens that are as good as any you will find anywhere. Gram opened their first restaurant in Australia in Chatswood in 2019. You can find their store which is in the District Food precinct of Chatswood, and is perfectly located as you can grab lunch or dinner and then pop in for a sweet finish at Gram.
So, about those triple stacked Premium Soufflé Pancakes. They are cute, and eye -catching. Three pillowy pancakes served with whipped cream, maple syrup, and topped with a disc of butter. They are light, and here’s the thing, I literally was able to finish my stack in a couple of minutes. I love the softness and fluffy texture of the pancake. Whipped cream and butter adds a richness to the dish, and of course, a pancake experience is incomplete without maple syrup! I came, I saw, I ate, and I was impressed with Gram Cafe’s premium soufflé pancake.
Besides pancakes, Gram excels at elevating French Toast too! Most people would associate French Toast with just 2 pieces of white bread, battered with an egg wash and fried with butter to create a golden exterior. But, as with most things Gram, this is no ordinary French Toast. Gram’s Matcha French Toast starts with 2 thick slices of soft, rich brioche bread which is delicious enough on its own. The warm fried bread has a light dusting of icing sugar on top, and is served with a side of slightly bitter Matcha ice cream and Matcha-flavoured crème fraîche. The toast is then topped with sliced strawberries which provide a bit of acidity to help cut through the sweetness. This is next level French Toast, with a Japanese twist. The contrasting flavours work together to balance each other out and made for a fantastic treat.
To wash down the delicious treats the cuteness factor never waned with a Premium Hot Chocolate with cute teddy latte art. It was rich and warming with delicious, almost ganache-like, chocolate flavour coming through. As with the pancakes and French toast, the drinks are of the same high quality. It definitely rounded a great first experience at Gram Cafe and Pancakes.
If you do plan on going to Gram Cafe and Pancakes, take advantage of this time specifically and perhaps choose a weekday to ensure you get your pancakes and seat in a timely manner. I was actually pleasantly surprised that our pancakes were delivered to us within 10 minutes of ordering and throughout our seating, noticed a steady stream of soufflé pancakes streaming towards tables. My recommendation is to choose a weekday afternoon over the weekends for the best experience. Ditch the hotcakes you may get at a drive through franchise, and make the trip to Chatswood to try the premium pancake at Gram, at least once!
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