What a L’ETO down

Before I start, let me preface this by saying I’ve visited L’ETO in London 3 times. Once in 2018, another in 2020 and finally in 2023, so things may have changed in the years between each visit. This will be a short post detailing the first and last time I visited.

L’ETO is a restaurant chain with over 40 restaurants in over 7 countries. With a unique interior design in every restaurant, it’s easy to forget about the outside noise and just enjoy the food that’s in front of you. My first visit was in 2018, when I first moved to the UK and was introduced to L’ETO by a childhood friend, while the second visit was in 2020 just before the pandemic, and the third was in 2023 with my partner. On all occasions, I was there mainly for the desserts.

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The first visit to L’ETO was at Wardour Street in Soho, London. Before even entering L’ETO, you will notice that they have an open display of their selection of cakes and pastries for passing pedestrians to admire. There’s something about walking in the cold London rain and seeing those delectable desserts in the window that makes you wanna pop in for a drink and just devour all the cakes. The first visit to L’ETO was quite special to me, it was my first month studying and living in the UK, and I met some friends from middle school. L’ETO was the first restaurant I had eaten in London by myself without family, and what do I order? A hibiscus & rose ice cube tea, a chocolate fudge cake, and a cheesecake with berries mmm… The ice cubes are made from the tea, as opposed to regular ice cubes. By doing so, the tea doesn’t get diluted with water and its flavor stays the same. As far as how good it was, it definitely was different from normal sweet tea. I thought the ice cube idea was genius, and it’s kind of like a second drink. As the ice melts, you get to drink it after you finished the tea. The chocolate cake featured 4 layers of cake and frosting, with each layer having a thin layer of jam, and a chocolate ganache to top it off. The cake was incredibly rich, moist and decadent. Meanwhile the cheesecake had a graham cracker base and a very light cheesecake texture to it. Having them one after another may be unorthodox, but I thought that it highlighted the best of both cakes. The service was great, the staff were very friendly and I had a great time at L’eto chatting with friends and enjoying these cakes.

It’s safe to say that after this visit, I definitely wanted to return, as I did later in 2020 and then in 2023. I’ll skip 2020 as I had pretty much the same cakes as before, and in terms of quality, it was about the same. That can’t be said for my visit in 2023…

Now, it might’ve been because it was late, or that it was raining outside so we were miserable... but my experience at L’ETO was not a pleasant one in 2023. We visited the branch on Wardour Street in Soho, London. Let’s talk about the service, it was incredibly rude and disheartening. This was the first time I had brought my partner to L’ETO and I wanted it to make a good impression for them so we could come back again in the future. When we asked how we could order the cakes, they rudely told us to go up to the display and take note of the cakes (or pictures) then show it to a staff member. It was as if it was common knowledge. Unfazed, we ordered a drink and took turns going to the display. When I tried to take a picture of one of the cakes I wanted to order, a staff member rudely shouted at me, saying that I wasn’t supposed to be where I was. I looked at him in confusion before explaining that I was trying to check out the cakes. Again, he rudely stated that I was in a staff only area. I looked around and realized that I was standing at the bussing station. In my defence, there were no markings on the floor telling me I could not stand there. I apologized and explained I just wanted to take a quick picture, but they were adamant. So I moved, literally 2 steps over and he started mumbling under his breath. I couldn’t tell what he was saying as I didn’t speak the language, but one can guess it was a complaint about me. After I took the picture of my selected cake, I went back and ordered.

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This time, I had gone for the red velvet cake. Visually, it looks great. It’s got 5 layers of cake with cream cheese frosting between each layer, a red layer of something at the top and a blackberry at the edge of the cake. Taste wise, it was very dense and underwhelming. Personally, I thought the cream cheese was too much, and the cake’s texture was too varied. The bottom was too dry, the top layer of cake looks moist but actually isn’t. The cream cheese isn’t even between layers so sometimes you may get just a spoonful of cream cheese and some cake. Perhaps it was the red velvet cake that day that wasn’t up to standard, who knows?

Normally this is the part where I tell you how much the bill was for the meal, but unfortunately I can’t remember the first visit as my friend had treated me as a welcome to London gift, and the third trip’s bill was footed by my partner (I swear I pay for food!). So I’ll skip ahead; was it worth it, and would I go again?

I’m torn. On one hand, my first 2 visits were great. However, my latest visit of L’ETO in 2023 has soured my impression. It didn’t help that my latest visit was with my partner on our anniversary, so those impressions are more impactful than the previous visits. I think the cake display is incredible and very inviting. There’s a reason why people queue up outside even when it’s raining to eat at L’ETO. I’m inclined to give the benefit of doubt to the staff members that were rude during my latest visit. I understand that I shouldn’t have stepped into the bussing station, but being rude and shouting at me wasn’t going to do anything apart from giving me a bad impression. Maybe they’ve had a bad day, I’m not sure. I think I would say it’s worth it, but maybe go during the day and not at night. I would try to revisit L’ETO again, but maybe at another branch.

Overall, I’d rate L’ETO a 5/10. A cake display for passing pedestrians is definitely a head turner, but maybe keep your eyes on the road.

A Happy Pancake a day, leaves you wanting some more

If there’s one thing that we all know about Japan and it’s amazing cuisine and culture, is that they absolutely love their sweet stuff. From delicious mochi, to parfaits with fresh fruits and crepes with countless amounts of toppings. But in the recent years, there was a new trend of desserts that have popped up in our social media feeds, called “fuwa fuwa pancakes”. I won’t go too much into how they are made, but they are essentially made using the usual pancake (or hotcakes as they are also called in Japan) batter way, but instead of mixing the eggs together with the batter, they separate the egg yolks and egg whites. By whipping the egg whites separately and then folding them into the batter carefully, you get a soufflé like pancake when cooked properly. They are cooked over a small flame to prevent them from burning, often taking up to 20 minutes to prevent them from deflating.

So of course, when we visited Japan, it was a no brainer to visit a café that not only serves these unique pancakes, but also specializes in them. And that’s when we found A Happy Pancake (幸せのパンケーキ in Japanese) in Ginza, Tokyo. I must first preface this by mentioning that they have several branches in Tokyo, and indeed throughout Japan as well as a couple branches in Hong Kong. Our visit to their Ginza branch was purely coincidental in that we were exploring Ginza and we happened to remember about these pancakes, so we started Googling for the nearest café.

Located between a side street in the busy shopping district of Ginza, A Happy Pancake wasn’t easy to find when navigating through Google Maps. Our navigating led us up and down the small street wondering where it was, only to find out that it wasn’t on the ground floor, it was actually on the 7th floor of a building that wasn’t easily locatable unless you were actively looking out for it. The only clues of the café was a simple sign stand outside the building’s lift lobby. It didn’t help that right beside the lift lobby was another cafe called NOA café, which served waffles!

After locating A Happy Pancake, we discovered that they used an online queue system, so we snapped the QR code on our phones and were given a waiting time of 45-60 minutes. It should be noted that we visited the café at around 4PM on a Monday, so we can only imagine how busy it would be during the weekends or public holidays. Given we had nothing to do around Ginza (it’s an expensive shopping district), we decided to wait outside along with other fellow café patrons. DO NOT WAIT IN THE LOBBY OR GO UP WITHOUT THE QUEUE SYSTEM INFORMING YOU SO. As the building is shared among other businesses (including a hair salon on the 7th floor), we would definitely suggest entering the online queue and then either walk around Ginza or wait outside in the building.

Interior of A Happy Pancake (Source: A Happy Pancake website)

After about 30 minutes, we were alerted by the system to enter the building and head up the 7th floor. There we queued up for another 20-25 minutes before being seated in the cafe itself. Upon entering, you will notice that there is a view of the kitchen from the dining area, only separated by a glass window. At the time of the visit, they were serving a special menu that was Christmas themed. Additionally, according to their website, it seems that each branch has their own special menu unique to their location. Since there were two of us, we ordered two separate desserts. For myself, I had the Rich cheese mousse pancake with berry sauce, while my partner ordered the pancake parfait with deliciously ripe strawberries. Unfortunately, they had ran out of the special menu for the day.

Because each pancake is made to order, the waiting time for your order would take roughly around 20 minutes. That would definitely give you time to head over to the window to watch them create your fluffy soufflé pancakes. Water is also provided free of charge and is self service with paper cups. On our visit there, we found a number of tourists like ourselves as well as a few locals. It was definitely a packed café, but it was still quiet enough that you could have a conversation without having to raise your voice because someone a few tables away was talking loudly. The vibe inside A Happy Pancake, was definitely a happy and cozy one with Instagrammable food being served.

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After 20 minutes of patiently waiting, the stars of the show arrived. The first thing that I did after the server put down the plate (apart from taking a photo), was gently shake the plate to see if the pancake would jiggle. It definitely did. The initial impressions of the pancake were of the presentation and the visuals. The pancakes themselves had a very yellow exterior, which according to the café is due the fermented butter from Hokkaido and Manuka Honey from New Zealand that they use. The berry sauce had a sweet and mildly tangy taste which complemented the whipped butter and cream on top of the pancakes. The butter was very thick and fooled me initially for ice cream because of how it held it’s shape. On the other side of the table, my partner’s order looked much more colorful and albeit slightly messy. The pancakes were hidden beneath 2 scoops of ice cream (vanilla and strawberry) with strawberry sauce, cornflakes, white chocolate shavings and fresh strawberries.

Taste wise, they were pretty underwhelming. While the pancake was fluffy on the outside, I thought that they were quite dense and filling. Because they were all made to order, the pancakes were warm and everything else was placed on top of the pancake, they made the cream and sauce quite warm. On the other hand, my partner’s order tasted miles better than mine. The coldness of the ice cream in contrast to the pancake’s warm embrace were perfect together. Add in the cornflakes for a different texture made the experience even better. The sweetness of the fresh strawberries were also incredible, helping break down some of that richness from the pancakes. In my opinion, I would’ve rather had both the sauce and the cream to be cold in contrast to the pancake, or at least have the pancake sit at room temperature before serving. However, I understand that given the delicate nature of these pancakes, letting them sit would’ve deflated them and ruin the entire dish. In that regard, I would suggest to either order the items with ice cream in it, or order an extra scoop of ice cream with it.

In total, these two orders amounted to about ¥3,160, roughly around S$29 (at the time of posting). So the big question that this post was made to address, was it worth it and would I go again?

For that price, I think it was worth it. The pancakes were filling, the vibes were great in the café and I very much enjoyed my time at A Happy Pancake. I think it is a great place to go if you were visiting for the first time or really want to try soufflé pancakes or if you liked desserts, but I would not go again, unless it was absolutely certain I would get a table without waiting and/or there is a special menu item that I’m very interested in.

Like I mentioned at the start, these pancakes are quite popular on social media and they are beginning to pop up everywhere, not just in Japan. I think it is a great entry to a food blog (calling myself out here) and a great piece to post on Instagram. I would also recommend anyone visiting Japan to try it out if you like desserts, but only if you are willing to wait upwards of 30-45 minutes for a table. There are plenty of other places that offer soufflé pancakes that don’t necessarily require you to wait for that long and they may be similar in price. For example, we found that Hoshino Coffee - a coffee chain similar to Starbucks - also served similar pancakes. If you’re into desserts but not necessarily wanting to try soufflé pancakes, the café right beside the building where A Happy Pancake is in serves waffles, and didn’t have a queue at all.

Overall, I would rate my experience here about a 6.5/10. Definitely enjoyable, and I would bring someone here again, just not anytime soon.