Your pancake prayers have been answered!

By Madushka Balasuriya 

Pancakes – Everyone’s familiar with them, everyone’s had them growing up, and, for many, they’re a reminder of a simpler time, but quite frankly we simply don’t have them nearly as often as we’d like. That’s what new home-baking business, Caker St., is looking to fix. 

Run by Anjalie Karunathilake out of her home in Nawala, Caker St. offers a variety of sweet and savoury fluffy pancakes, though it is at the moment purely a delivery-only service. 

Now the operative word here is fluffy, as many Sri Lankans are likely more familiar with the pancake’s thinner cousin, the crepe – which is also incidentally referred to as a pancake in many parts of the world, including Sri Lanka. 

But to avoid any confusion Caker St. offers only the fluffy variant and boy are they delicious. According to Anjalie, her inspiration for starting up a dedicated pancake service was down to the simple fact that she couldn’t get her fix of pancakes anywhere else.

“My husband and I love pancakes, but every time we wanted pancakes it ended up not being available. There used to be a restaurant which used to have all-day pancakes but they discontinued that, and so I just started making it at home. And eventually I kind of mastered the fluff part of it,” she tells Daily FT.

“I wanted to do this because no one else was doing it. And really it was because on Saturday mornings I wanted pancakes.”

But it’s not just pancakes that she makes, she also does customised cakes, hence the unique name for the business.

“I know it doesn’t say much about pancakes but I’m a baker as well, I do customised cakes also. I don’t take constant orders of that, but I’ve been doing that for about three years now,” she explains.

“I also like puns and wordplay. If you’re into Sherlock Holmes and stuff, that’s what this is. It’s a play on Baker Street. And if you actually write it, it’s Caker’s Treat, which is what the logo looks like as well.”

While the menu isn’t expansive by any means, they do offer a couple of unique flavours which are sure to perk up the ol’ taste-buds. Daily FT recently popped on down for a visit and tried out a few of the fast movers, and we can’t say we were disappointed.

Kaya

So what better place to start than with the most intriguing of the lot? Kaya is a flavour those with Malaysian, Indonesian or Singaporean roots will be fairly familiar with, and is essentially a sweet creamy coconut spread. Its standout characteristic however is undoubtedly its lime green colour – but don’t let that put you off.

The conservative side of me wants to say this is an acquired taste, but it really isn’t. It is truly spectacular from the get-go, with its rich texture, and sweet coconut milk-heavy flavour the perfect accompaniment to the light, fluffy pancakes. And if that isn’t enough, the dish is served with a generous portioned of roasted spicy peanuts. Just, yum. 

Banana Panipol

Does this really even need an introduction? Panipol is the quintessential accompaniment to Sri Lankan pancakes, while bananas are as well-known a pancake topping as you’re likely to find. Together the pairing goes better than expected. Imagine banana fritters but in pancake form.

Pineapple Caramel

Now this one is strictly for those with a serious sweet tooth. While the homemade caramel sauce is pure distilled decadence, it’s the stewed pineapple that really hits the spot with its acidity offering refreshing balance to the dish. There is also a pineapple sauce that’s provided if you want to really go the extra mile in terms of sweetness.

Kochchi Pigs in a Blanket

Caker St. offers two savoury variants, and they’re both quite similar. Essentially it’s a pancake-centric take on the classic pigs in a blanket, or sausage roll. With options of either pork or chicken sausages, each order comes with two sausages each wrapped in a grid-style pancake. It’s really something you can just pick up and eat.

We tried the pork sausage which was infused with kochchi, and suffice to say we loved it. While the sausage itself held few surprises – though fair warning, the kochchi packs a punch – the pancake batter is what truly stole the show. 

While the batter for the sweet pancakes was understandably on the sweeter side, for the savoury stuff, instead of simpler foregoing sweetness, it was clear that Anjalie had put in a few other spices and ingredients into the mix to give it that delicious bit of extra oomph.

Verdict

Aside from the options mentioned above, Caker St. also serves Strawberry/Maple Syrup, Strawberry/Chocolate, Jaffa Cakes (marmalade and chocolate), and plain versions. Each ranges between Rs. 450-600, which is pretty decent value considering you get three pretty fluffy pancakes with the sweet toppings, and two with the savoury servings. It’s also important to note that Caker St. is still fairly new to the scene, so Anjalie definitely has more tricks up her sleeve. She explained how it’s possible to get even fluffier pancakes by whisking in egg whites separately, but that do that in larger batches is something she’s still working on.

She’s also looking at bringing in sugar free and vegan options in the future.

“We already have gluten free option, but it’s a little difficult to do sugar free or vegan. That is a problem because to make them fluffy is a little tricky. I don’t want to sell it till I’ve perfected it.” And it’s that attitude that makes us confident of Caker St.’s staying power in the Colombo food scene. You can get your fix of all-day pancakes by looking up Caker St. on Uber Eats. You can also visit them on Facebook by searching for ‘Caker St.’ or on Instagram @cakerstreat.

Pix by Lasantha Kumara