Best Pancakes in London

They are the sort you make at home — thicker than crepes, eggy and no buttermilk. You get just the one, but it is enormous enough to be satisfying without a distended stomach. We went for a sweet pancake and chose our own topping: banana, maple syrup and cinnamon. The smell is divine. We also like the way the bananas clearly went in the pan first, batter filling around them, so the undersides were slightly charred and caramelised.

Pancakes at Drunch, Mayfair

If you want your pancakes with a side of Instagram likes, Drunch is the place for you. Situated just a 30-second walk from the madness of Oxford Street (with a second branch near Regent's Park), the pretty, upmarket cafe specialises in brunch, and serves up some of the best pancakes we've had in London.

Thick, Scotch-style pancakes of impressive circumference are stacked up on your plate. You could opt for the banana and dulce de leche topping, but for our money, it's ricotta and berries every time. Very generous quantities of seasonal berries are beautifully presented, and perfectly complemented by the ricotta, topped off with icing sugar and just the right amount of syrup to keep sweet-toothed brunchers happy.

Pancakes at The Breakfast Club

They serve white flour buttermilk pancakes with bacon so crisp you could snap it in half, and on our visit they left us with the maple syrup bottle. (We can't guarantee that would happen at busier times.) For the ultimate comfort food combo, get a hot chocolate with mini marshmallows. Healthy types (we use the term 'healthy' very loosely here) can opt for berry pancakes instead.

Pancakes at Christopher's, Covent Garden

If you're the sort of person for whom brunch = pancakes, get yourself down to Christopher's in Covent Garden. Of a weekend, their build-your-own pancake option keeps even the pickiest of pancake lovers in check. Buttermilk, blueberry buttermilk or buckwheat form the base of a dish that can be further laden with treats like maple-cured bacon, Nutella, matcha green tea, honeycomb, coconut sorbet and blueberry compote. It's a giddy experience which is slightly at odds with the upmarket surrounds, but any qualms about responsible food intake soon disappear when you order an additional brownie and bourbon milkshake.