Flapjack's breakfast is worth the hike
LINCOLN, N.H. - The road through town is known as "The Kanc" or Kancamagus Highway, and along it you can find all the sustenance and equipment necessary to participate in the many activities nearby. Nestled in the rugged White Mountain National Forest, outdoorsy types pass through on their way to hike, bike, kayak, and fish all spring and summer. Early risers who want to stop for a hearty breakfast couldn't do better than Flapjack's Pancake House. Just look for all the muddy SUVs and pickups parked in front of an ordinary, gray-shingle house with a red-slat roof, right across from the Lincoln Town Hall.
Inside are the best pancakes in town. Every stack at Flapjack's - short or tall, plain, blueberry, or the day's special - is topped with homemade whipped maple cream butter and served with pure maple syrup. Egg lovers can dig into fluffy Western and bacon pesto omelets. Climbers readying for a hike up Mount Liberty, Lincoln, or Lafayette, might opt for the "Hungry as a Bear" breakfast, which consists of flapjacks or cinnamon-sugar French toast, eggs, bacon, large sausages, and home fries (ask for them brown and crusty). They're hand-sliced red bliss potatoes cooked with fresh herbs and rosemary-infused olive oil.
The menu is full of these little touches. The real maple syrup is from Benton's Sugar Shack in Thornton, and coffee never sits longer than 20 minutes before servers make another pot. Owners Ron and Beth Comeau consider this good business. "If we were making pancakes from scratch, we weren't going to put corn syrup on top of them," says Ron, 60, a retired Massachusetts state police officer. Beth, 49, a Johnson & Wales trained chef, has operated a hot dog truck at the former Foxboro Stadium and churned out award-winning clam chowder. They moved to Lincoln in 1995 looking for a slower-pace lifestyle and a business of their own. They knew the idyllic setting from honeymooning in the area 22 years ago. A moose wandering in a car's path is about all the danger the average Lincoln resident faces.
The year-round resort town was once a bustling logging community and timber was processed at local paper mills. Today the factories are closed and visitors flock to Flume Gorge, Franconia Notch, and spectacular waterfalls. What they won't see anymore is the Old Man of the Mountain, which collapsed five years ago.
With the green, mountainous scenery as their backdrop, the Comeaus set up several restaurants - first, a takeout and sandwich shop, then a fish and chowder house. Now they've settled into this cozy breakfast spot. "Ron's great at spotting trends," says Beth. Not that breakfast is anything new, but rather that everyone is interested, even when the economy is suffering.
After four years, Beth still won't make her pancake recipe larger than three-gallon batches, in order to maintain the quality. Dry ingredients are tossed with eggs, buttermilk, and melted butter early every morning. "We go through 20 to 30 gallons of pancake batter most weekends," she says.
For Ron, greeting customers in the morning and knowing they'll leave well-fed is satisfying, though, he admits, "I've never worked harder in my life." The same is true for Beth, who has been plagued with back and knee problems warranting surgeries. As a chowder cook for years, she says, "Lugging around 50-pound bags of potatoes didn't help."
Now with others squeezed into the small kitchen, Beth does less cooking. "I'm the expediter and toast maker," she announces. Together, they watch stacks of flapjacks flying out the kitchen.
Flapjack's Pancake House, 149 Main St., Lincoln, N.H., 603-745-8226. Open Mon., Thu., Fri. 7:30 a.m.-noon; Sat.-Sun. 7:30 a.m.-2 p.m. Closed Tue.-Wed.
