Cheap Eats Auckland CBD: No.1 Pancakes
Many know well enough that being a student is not easy; balancing lectures and clubs amidst hours of study (or, at least for the diligent) is a challenge without the added factor of money. Although living at home (read: mooching off parents) removes any problems I may have had with extra bills, I still have to consider what $9-a-day bus fares on a 5-day-a-week schedule will do to my wallet and my already frugal mindset. And yet, social requirements, as well as the foodly temptations of the city has me wondering whether I can spare the extra few dollars for a hearty meal.
Thus I present: The Student's Guide to Even Cheaper Eats, as presented by cheapist extraordinaire, yours truly. Aware of the student deals available in the city, I've limited myself to a generous budget of $5 a week as I attempt to satisfy not only my tongue but also my stomach. Any money not spent may be carried on for the next week, and funds not spent by the end of the semester shall nestle happily back into my bank account.
A decent selection is available in the city for under $10, but what, I wondered, could $5 buy? As it turns out, a lot. Prior knowledge and word of mouth totalled several potential places to eat already, not yet including the on-campus eateries that cater to a student's minimal budget, making for a very promising start to my financial, and blogging, year.
This week I begin with a crisp $5 bill and the lucky addition of a 20 cent coin I found upon the ground. My first stop is the No.1 Pancake stand, found on the corner of Wellesley and Lorne. Already a popular destination and made famous by the Metro Cheap Eats list, it proves a popular destination with strong online reviews and a decent queue. At $3-5 a pancake, some coinage can buy a decent meal with change to spare.
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MENU AND ORDER
The menu is pretty limited, but a good selection for such a specialised dish. I ordered a vegetable and cheese pancake, going light on the cheese due to previous experiences with over-saltiness (and an admittedly sensitive tongue), and they happily complied with my request.
PRICE
$4! Incredible! It's a $1 saving!
TIME
The pancake was constructed, cooked, and served in around five minutes, shorter from their usual ten due to a smaller queue, and impressive for made-to-order.
FOOD
The vegetables, as I ate, didn't quite seem as varied as the menu claimed (cabbage, carrots, beans, peas), and though the fillings seemed skimpy it was due to the entire meal being squashed into a flattened package. The pancake itself was quite large and relatively heavy. The fillings are slightly spicy from the curry powder (despite the claim to be mild), but the taste is good, with a better balance of the saltiness from the cheese (possibly from my request. All that, sandwiched within a yeasty, bread-like pancake that was chewy and soft made for a good, decent meal.
FILLING-NESS
It was the sort of meal that made me unsure of how full I was, which likely meant it was a good size without overeating. I became hungry on-and-off for the next couple of hours, but lasted a few hours without the serious need to consume more food.
EXTRA COMMENTS
The pancake itself is delicious, but watching the cooking process made me cry inside. The consistency of the dough prior to cooking makes it prone to sticking onto the hotplate, which means a lot of oil is required to prevent it from sticking. In addition to this is the process of forming the balls itself - I had questioned what good squirting hand sanitiser over plastic gloves would do, especially with the risk of combining chemicals in the ingredients, until I came to the realisation that the pump bottle contained oil to prevent sticking to the gloves. It makes for not so healthy a meal, despite the pancake itself not feeling all that greasy in the mouth. It makes me aware that though it's a fantastic option for lunch, it's not something that one should return to daily.
FINAL RATING
17/23. Lowered for the sheer amount of grease used, and that the taste became quite monotonous, but a good, cheap feed. I would return, perhaps for one of the sweet pancakes.
Thus I present: The Student's Guide to Even Cheaper Eats, as presented by cheapist extraordinaire, yours truly. Aware of the student deals available in the city, I've limited myself to a generous budget of $5 a week as I attempt to satisfy not only my tongue but also my stomach. Any money not spent may be carried on for the next week, and funds not spent by the end of the semester shall nestle happily back into my bank account.
A decent selection is available in the city for under $10, but what, I wondered, could $5 buy? As it turns out, a lot. Prior knowledge and word of mouth totalled several potential places to eat already, not yet including the on-campus eateries that cater to a student's minimal budget, making for a very promising start to my financial, and blogging, year.
No. 1 Pancake
MENU AND ORDER
The menu is pretty limited, but a good selection for such a specialised dish. I ordered a vegetable and cheese pancake, going light on the cheese due to previous experiences with over-saltiness (and an admittedly sensitive tongue), and they happily complied with my request.
 |
| A teeny stall, only a couple of metres deep |
$4! Incredible! It's a $1 saving!
TIME
The pancake was constructed, cooked, and served in around five minutes, shorter from their usual ten due to a smaller queue, and impressive for made-to-order.
FOOD
The vegetables, as I ate, didn't quite seem as varied as the menu claimed (cabbage, carrots, beans, peas), and though the fillings seemed skimpy it was due to the entire meal being squashed into a flattened package. The pancake itself was quite large and relatively heavy. The fillings are slightly spicy from the curry powder (despite the claim to be mild), but the taste is good, with a better balance of the saltiness from the cheese (possibly from my request. All that, sandwiched within a yeasty, bread-like pancake that was chewy and soft made for a good, decent meal.
 |
| It fills up most of the bag |
FILLING-NESS
It was the sort of meal that made me unsure of how full I was, which likely meant it was a good size without overeating. I became hungry on-and-off for the next couple of hours, but lasted a few hours without the serious need to consume more food.
EXTRA COMMENTS
The pancake itself is delicious, but watching the cooking process made me cry inside. The consistency of the dough prior to cooking makes it prone to sticking onto the hotplate, which means a lot of oil is required to prevent it from sticking. In addition to this is the process of forming the balls itself - I had questioned what good squirting hand sanitiser over plastic gloves would do, especially with the risk of combining chemicals in the ingredients, until I came to the realisation that the pump bottle contained oil to prevent sticking to the gloves. It makes for not so healthy a meal, despite the pancake itself not feeling all that greasy in the mouth. It makes me aware that though it's a fantastic option for lunch, it's not something that one should return to daily.
FINAL RATING
17/23. Lowered for the sheer amount of grease used, and that the taste became quite monotonous, but a good, cheap feed. I would return, perhaps for one of the sweet pancakes.
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