The Original Pancake House (OPH) has closed its restaurant at 5099 Memorial Drive in Stone Mountain. The closure comes on the heels of the shuttering of the brand's restaurant at 2321 Cheshire Bridge Road in Atlanta about three weeks ago.
Property records suggest that the Stone Mountain restaurant first opened in 1973 when it was originally operated as an A&W. It's unclear what year Original Pancake House took over.
The mid-century type building spans 3,355 square feet and sits on .8 acres.
DeKalb County tax records show that an affiliate of a Dunwoody based real estate firm acquired the property for roughly $1.1 million in February 2020. According to an employee at the firm, the group is "exploring redevelopment options."
While the building is not truly "mid-century," it definitely represents a time when restaurant structures were distinctive and fun. It would be unfortunate if, like so many former Burger Chef's and Oogleblook's, among others, it were demolished.
Les Highet and Irma Hueneke opened the first The Original Pancake House in Portland, Oregon in 1953. Over the years, the company developed a devoted fan base, including Portland native James Beard, who called The Original Pancake House one of the "10 Best Restaurants in the Country" in a 1956 magazine article. In 1999, The Original Pancake House in Portland received a James Beard Foundation Award as an "American Classic."
The popular breakfast eatery, known to many for their Dutch Baby entrees, a baked rather than a fried pancake, as well as a variety of pancakes and omelets, The Original Pancake House was comfort food in a casual setting.
A Buckhead location opened in May 2021 at 2964 Peachtree Road, basically across the street from the Buckhead McDonald's, but it quietly closed last summer. Another Original Pancake House previously operated from a freestanding building in the 4300 block of Peachtree Road in Brookhaven, but it closed over a decade ago to make way for TOWN Brookhaven. Original Pancake House also had a restaurant in the 1900 block of Peachtree Road in Brookwood Hills which is today home to a small CVS Pharmacy-anchored strip center. ToNeTo Atlanta readers also recall a location on Johnson Ferry Road in East Cobb.
Following the Cheshire Bridge and Stone Mountain closures, the breakfast chain has two remaining restaurants in Georgia: along Windward Parkway in Alpharetta and one on Hodgson-Memorial Drive in Savannah. According to the Original Pancake House website, there were 130 restaurant franchises across the country, including the Cheshire Bridge unit, as of June 2024. There are also ten units between Japan and South Korea.
Are you sad to see The Original Pancake House close its Stone Mountain location? What is your favorite retro restaurant design? What would you most like to see open in place of The Original Pancake House in Stone Mountain?
Please share your thoughts below.
19 comments:
They closed this restaurant down without any type of notice. They still owe the employees who worked there a final payment. This has caused an amazing amount of struggles and heartship for people who were already struggling. Taylor you should at least pay your employees who gave so much of themselves for your business their final payment that's only fair.
Uh oh, this is OTP! Wonder what comments will be coming….
I guess people are finding alternatives to paying for $15 dollar pancakes and $20 omelets. I visited the alpha location once wounding what the hype was at the time. All I found was mediocre breakfast fare at ridiculously high prices.
Well darn! When the Cheshire Bridge location closed, I thought at least we still have this one & now it’s gone too. How sad.
Hide a 15% service fee and don’t tell the clients is what killed the business.
I guess I need to go to the one on Windward asap! The remaining employees must be concerned!
I love this building, certainly its design and hope it will go up for sale....as I buy my lottery ticket fingers crossed
As a former employee , this hurts . Especially when you work so hard for a business that the owner never gave a crap about . Taylor Mcever you will get your karma for how you screwed everything and everyone over . This restaurant was a gem until you came alone and messed it up completely …. Heartbreaking smh
They should have just raised the menu prices by 15%. Except you would complain about that too. “The food should cost the same as it did in 1981!!”
I’m sure that with Georgia State taking over the college this area in Stone Mountain will be developed in the near future. Not saying that’s a good or bad thing
Alpharetta location off of exit 11 is open. An excellent breakfast experience.
I’ve been a regular customer there since the early 1980s. Remember a time when you could not find a seat- sitting in the hold over room for a table.
Sadly, shifts in ownership apparently signaled the death notice to this fine restaurant. Sad to see how current management threw its employees and loyal customers under the bus.
Hoping a new owner arrives who knows/learns of the value that is now shuddered.
The one on Cheshire bridge closed????!!!!!
Truly sad. We went there for years when there was a nice waiting room often overflowing and the staff was so nice and attentive. The last few times the food was awful, even their famous coffee, and not at all like the wonderful dishes still on the menu.
I enjoyed eating there. Sorry to see it go. I thought it was an excellent alternative to Waffle House and IHOP.
They should have closed it a long time ago. I went to this one thinking it was going to be like the one in Ft. Lauderdale and the food was disgusting. I don’t see how they kept customers coming back.
The location on Winward in Alpharetta is a different franchise owner and at no risk of closing. It is sooo good and worth the trip. Savannah OPH rocks too!! And Charlotte and Columbia and Birmingham for that matter.
My parents opened the Memorial Dr store in 1980 and then Birmingham in 1995. Our family stills owns and operates the Bham store. When we decided to sell several years ago we left behind numerous loyal employees, customers and friends. I hope you guys will be ok. Much love LH
All I can say is the writing on the wall appeared to be getting obvious as each of my visits saw fewer and fewer customers compared to a decade ago when dining room seating had a wait time. The food seemed just as good, but something in my gut was telling me when I ate there in June, it might be my last breakfast there.
Post a Comment