Dish of the Week

Dallas dish of the week: Japanese-style pancakes at Creek Cafe

Chocolate-banana pancakes topped with chocolate sauce.

Editor's note: Every week, we'll spotlight a culinary treat found around Dallas-Fort Worth — whether it's a new opening, a dish at a restaurant, or a grocery find.

Dish: Japanese-style fluffy banana pancakes, $15
Location:Creek Cafe, Lakewood

Creek Cafe is a tiny mom-and-pop that opened on Gaston Avenue in 2017. They started out doing Japanese food but had a young manager who introduced a weekly Wednesday-night foray into vegan food. Since then, they've incorporated vegan items as a regular part of their menu.

One new dish they've introduced on Sundays is their chocolate banana pancakes, a unique twist on pancakes that's popular in Japan.

Called Japanese souffle pancakes, or "hottokēki," or hotcakes, or simply "fluffy pancakes," they're a delicacy that's halfway between pancake and souffle.

Smaller in circumference than the usual pancake, they stand up to 2 inches tall and jiggle slightly when they're moved.

Part of the thickness is achieved by cooking them in a round mold. The batter is also different from the usual pancake mix; the eggs are separated as you do with a souffle. Some recipes also add mayonnaise.

The result is a super fluffy disc, spongy and softly textured like a souffle.

Creek Cafe's version is vegan, which means no eggs or mayonnaise, and no jiggle. To compensate for the moisture, they add mashed bananas to their batter, which also gives the pancakes a subtle banana flavor.

You get two pancakes to an order, one stacked on the other, then drenched in chocolate sauce.

The texture of the pancakes is more like a muffin than a pancake or a souffle. It seems intriguingly decadent at first, then becomes momentarily overwhelming. There was a lot of chocolate there. But it wasn't a sugar overkill. It was sweet, but not that sweet.

Some nice sugared pecans sprinkled on top provided a valuable contrast to the cake and the chocolate. It might not have been bad to cut the chocolate in half and offer another sauce as an alternative flavor.

For all the bang it delivered, it was still fairly light. You didn't get the feeling of grossness you feel after eating something loaded with butter and sugar.

That said, it's definitely a good dish to split. And most might consider $15 a little steep for pancakes.

vegan reviews

Walkable News

Plano's new mixed-use Assembly Park adds 3 new food concepts

Rendering courtesy of Assembly Park

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A new mixed-use development in east Plano has signed on three new restaurants serving beer, tacos, and coffee. The development is Assembly Park, a project from real estate investment/ development company Triten Real Estate Partners going into the former Plano Market Square Mall at 1717 E. Spring Creek Pkwy., due to open in spring 2025.

Triten has partnered with Blender Brands, a Dallas hospitality group, to open three new concepts:

Assembly Icehouse will introduce a casual, family-friendly dining experience reminiscent of a sports bar. At 4,850 square feet, the icehouse will include a large, full-service bar, more than 20 TVs, and an oversized and covered outdoor patio with dining and lounge seating that offers direct views to the development’s central park, where kids can roam and play freely. Two 15-foot LED screens will also be on display both inside the main dining area and positioned in view from the park on the outdoor patio.

Tacoro will operate as a quick service, pick-up and go Mexican restaurant and taqueria. At 2,000-square-feet, the space will feature an elevated, full-service bar serving blended margaritas and a vast collection of tequila and mezcal. Light seating options will also be included within the space for those wishing to dine in.

Cliff Coffee finds its inspiration from the striking landscapes experienced when exploring America’s southwest region. Locally sourced baked goods and coffee will be available for purchase. With warm tones and textures and soft seating options integrated throughout, this 2,000 square foot coffee shop is intentionally designed to encourage students, workers and guests to relax and stay a while.

Blender Brands consists of business owners Jacob Cox and Danny Wilson, whose previous concepts have included Pharmacy Soda Shop and Select Start. JR Muñoz, owner of Deep Ellum’s neighborhood restaurant Will Call, is also involved.

In a statement, Cox calls Assembly Park a "game changer."

“As members of the local community, we recognized the shortage of nearby opportunities where kids can run free, parents can relax, and groups of friends can gather,” he says.

Muñoz will oversee the development of the culinary concepts for each new restaurant and organize ongoing events.

Plano Market Square Mall is a 300,000-square-foot shopping mall that was built in the 1980s. Triten acquired it in 2021 with the goal to create a walkable mixed-use neighborhood featuring dining and retail, creative office, and urban-style living options with a connection to the outdoors, centered around a freshly planted park and event space. It includes the Annabel at Assembly Park, an apartment community with 304 units that opened in summer 2024.

Triten Real Estate Partners founder Scott Arnoldy says they're "thrilled to partner with a local hospitality group to bring three unique food and beverage concepts to Assembly Park and the east Plano market."

“Jacob and Danny’s vision for these new concepts perfectly align with the original goals we set when developing this property – to create a work, live, play destination, positioned to appeal to a diverse range of community members,” Arnoldy says.

Triten is also redeveloping Work/Shop, the 200,000-square-foot mixed-use site on Belt Line Road in North Dallas.

coffee beer tacos openings