Skinny Pancake a sweet addition
Cool Vermont-based crepery-plus a perfect fit for Albany’s revitalized North Pearl Street
Let me give you the skinny: The latest addition to downtown Albany, The Skinny Pancake, is tying things together nicely on North Pearl Street, on a block where you can order Vietnamese banh mi, vegan burgers or fling an ax, according to your mood.
Now, The Skinny Pancake is delivering us from in-car snacks with an all-day spot on the corner of historic Steuben Place, where the building’s chiseled rock facade has an appealing gingerbread look. Inside it’s mood-boosting Stacks coffee, chill-busting Indian Ladder hot apple cider, and sweet or savory all-day crepes served to ‘90s indie rock. Throw in exposed brick, comfy leather sofas, a selfserve coffee bar, consciencedriven philosophy and chalkboards illustrated with The Egg and a love for all things local, and it feels like Ben & Jerry’s meets the TV coffee lounge from “Friends,” Central Perk.
No surprise this Vermontbased company caught a vibe over the revitalization of downtown Albany and Troy. What’s unexpected is that owner Benjy Adler, who opened the first Skinny Pancake in Burlington in 2007 with his brother Jonny, saw beauty in this North Pearl stretch that’s been running low on curb appeal for years. With Jeff Buell of Redburn Development behind more downtown redevelopment and the
opening of The Kenmore complex and its storefront eateries with upstairs apartments, the arrival of The Skinny Pancake seems to signal good times ahead.
I’m a big crepe fan. I visited the original Burlington Skinny Pancake in 2008, was gutted when we lost Saratoga creperie, Ravenous and had high hopes for an announced French Press creperie planned beside McGeary’s that failed to take off. So, for me, The Skinny Pancake is a welcome option downtown.
Never heard of a frumple? Me either. It’s a pancake swirled in a rosette (like those viral TikTok omelettes) and an inside invention born of a need for a side to go with Noah’s Ark eggs and bacon when customers wanted toast for the eggs. Light, fluffy and dusted with cinnamon confectioner’s sugar, it’s surprisingly good in its simplest form, somehow transformed by the unusual shape.
The rest of the menu is divided along sweet and savory lines: Who can argue with the Sugarshack, a sweet pancake doused in maple syrup and powdered sugar — surely Vermont’s answer to a French sugar-and-lemon classic. But my guest had a sweeter tooth, ogling the Choco Nutty or Choco Monkey, either one slathered in palm oil-free chocolate-hazelnut spread. Make it a Matchmaker with seasonal fruit, or a PB&B (peanut butter and banana). All come with a side of sweet whipped cream.
Earlyish one morning, I housed the Breakfast Monster with cage-free fried egg, wilted spinach, caramelized onions and roasted squash tossed with pesto and oozing Vermont Cabot cheddar. I’d added seasoned seitan — a mighty contribution to an already Herculean thing — but go ahead and further treat yourself like I did: Add a creamy hot chocolate and cinnamon-sugared frumple on the side.
The menu gets a little off track with a burger lacking salt or much flavor, and the purportedly shareable sides have surprisingly small portions. At $11, I’d have hoped for more fries in the poutine and more gooey melted cheese curds, though the Screamin Ridge Farm chicken gravy is on point. Two other sides — chunky roasted beets and sweet potato salad with goat cheese and honey drizzle, and a cold beans and greens salad — were fine, but $5 seems high for small, half-filled bowls. Call me upstate old school, but when I read beans and greens, I’m thinking Italian and hot.
The Apples & Brie wants to play on the savory team in a savory crepe, but an excess of blueberry compote has it batting for the other side. Not to worry, there’s another reason to come back: A Jaffa crepe with orangebourbon marmalade and melted chocolate chips in a chocolate crepe shell.
While this is The Skinny Pancake’s seventh location, it’s the first launched with contactless online ordering, a COVID -19 innovation that’s proven easier to launch from the outset than in existing locations. And while I heard one or two mixed reviews in the opening week, my visits all went like clockwork: Seated, QR menu scanned, orders placed and mugs of London Fog chai tea and hot cider hitting the table rapidly, followed by crepes. So I have no complaints. True, there were a couple of glitches — a forgotten pickle and whipped cream added to hot chocolate when it wasn’t requested — but remedies were immediate. Staff are friendly, the kitchen fast, and managers check in at tables as you’d expect at a finer-dining spot.
Online, you can add or hold toppings, create a dozen allergy alerts ranging from tree nuts to alcohol, choose dairy or plantbased milk, pick flavored syrups and (soon) add CBD oil to your drink. You can even assign items to guests in your party and split the bill. Those who find the many customizable options too much can always step up to the counter to order from staff, where those who order online collect their takeout too. But why bother? With space this comfortable and table service speed bearing no connection to the counter line, park yourself and take your time.
In its opening weeks, I wasn’t sure how deep the local partnerships would run, but they’re using Highland Hollow for beef and pork, Troy-based Halo seitan, Stacks coffee, Indian Ladders apple cider and New York maple syrup even if, natch, it’s Vermont’s King Arthur flour. By the way, vegan and buckwheat crepes are available by request. Having been involved with the Greene County Grey Fox Bluegrass Music Festival for years, they’re in the planning phase for live music and expanded hours once their liquor license arrives. Of course, brunch is a reliable bestseller, where you can expect bloody marys and mimosas; at night, beers and margaritas will rock the indie jam band sound.
It’s clear The Skinny Pancake is all about loving local. During the pandemic, the company partnered with others to form ShiftMeals, providing food and community gardens to combat food insecurity in Vermont. Here, across North Pearl, a mural of overlapping hearts says, “All hearts are connected.” Sounds as if The Skinny Pancake is right at home.