Food Adventures visit the legendary Hasty Tasty Pancake House

Remember back in the day when waitresses used to be “real” waitresses?  When you had a server that made waitressing her career and was a staple at the restaurant for decades?  Well this type of throwback place still exists in Dayton, it is called the Hasty Tasty Pancake House.  This place also reminds us of the good old days because we ordered a ton of food, and the price was still cheap.

“Bunny’s Hasty Tasty Pancake House” has been in business for 59 years.  Located on Linden Ave in Dayton, memorabilia still hangs on the wall from the early days of this restaurant.  The atmosphere felt like 1973, and the booth furniture looks of the same era.  No longer open 24 hours, this establishment has seating of all booths with faux leather that surprisingly did not stick to Ragu’s chubby thighs.

Being lifelong Dayton area residents, it is mind boggling that we had never been to the Hasty Tasty Pancake house before.   Oh, the shame!   We have driven past the neon sign out front a bunch of times.   So we made up for it by going not once, but twice, in a month.  A double Food Adventure!

Our first visit was for the gluttonous reasons (big surprise, huh..).  Hasty Tasty has a Friday night special.  They have an All You Can Eat Fish Fry with 2 sides, for the astounding price of $7.25.  We saw this ad in a paper and it finally convinced us to go try it out.  And guess what, the fish is terrific!  We were blown away by the amount and the taste of the food.  Not what we expected for $7.25.  The cole slaw was great and they served butter pads with the dinner rolls. When is the last time you have seen butter served in pads?  We loved the side of mac n cheese, and Ragu even ordered a side of shrimp for only 99 cents!

But the food was only half the story, as we met a wonderful waitress named Betty.  Betty is an older woman and has been working at the  Hasty Tasty Pancake House for 38 years.  She was a delightful server and her personality and advice reminded us of the time “when waitresses were waitresses.”  She brought out our fish fry plates gleefully, and told us about the rich history of this legendary Dayton diner.

After pictures with the staff and the fish, a completely stuffed Food Adventure Crew, wobbled out of the place on that fateful Friday night, vowing to return for breakfast sometime soon.

After we had a few weeks to digest our meals, we again snuck in for a Saturday morning breakfast at Hasty Tasty.  We were eager to see if our first trip was a fluke.

Our waitress this time was a little younger, but had worked for Hasty Tasty Pancake House for almost 2 decades.   We ordered a pecan waffle with eggs.  The Big Ragu wanted a country fried steak, but Ragu had his eye on pancakes.  This after all is a “pancake house.”  Ragu did the only diplomatic thing.  He ordered the country fried steak, and a side of pancakes.  Additional pancake add ons are only $1.60, so it had to be done.   Our waitress raised an eyebrow when Ragu ordered the pancakes and looked around.  The tone was set.

We waited for our breakfast and observed our surroundings.  It was 9am and the place was packed with interesting clientele from all walks of life.  There were businessmen types, families, bikers, college kids, senior citizens, you name it.  There are many regulars here, and they refer to the place as simply “Bunny’s.”  We noticed some interesting hairstyles and dress, which only made the already throwback atmosphere that much more real.  And then it happened.  Our waitress came over with this huge tray full of plates.  She smiled and gave us eggs and Waffle.  She also plopped down Ragu’s Pancakes, Country Fried Steak, Hashbrowns and Bacon.  She then lowered a mammoth plate of biscuits and gravy.  We said to the waitress “Do other people eat more than this?”  She said “Oh gosh yes, this is nothing, a skinny waitress here could out eat anyone in this restaurant.”  We suddenly felt more at ease.   We then  saw a small crane lower another large tray of food to the couple sitting next to us.  Foodies! Ahhh we were among our peeps!  Our table was completely strewn with food and drinks, and the cost was about 20 bucks total.

Let us tell you, the food was PHENOMENAL! It was the best waffle we had ever eaten, and Ragu said they were the best pancakes he has ever had.

 

We have found the morning mecca, Hasty Tasty is thy name.  Everything was terrific, we are still talking about how good it was.  The bottom line is it that this place is an old, nostalgic greasy spoon, with some incredible food.  No gimmicks, no trinkets for sale, just good meals.  It was a rewarding experience and a perfect example of why we do these FOOD ADVENTURES, because you never know what you will find.  It is no mystery why this diner has been around for 59 years.  If you visit Bunny’s Hasty Tasty Pancake House, we promise, you will walk out full and your wallet will still be semi-full too!

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