There’s a new pancake food truck in Concord, with banana walnut, maple bourbon bacon and more
27 Pancakes Breakfast & Brunch, which became a sought-after food truck in South Carolina during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic, has found a new home in the greater Charlotte area.
Owner/chef Joy Eggleston-Long and her family recently moved across the state line from Columbia to Concord. She closed the gourmet pancake food truck during their move, and she’s now working to reopen in Charlotte and Concord in September. She looks forward to developing new partnerships with coffee shops around the Queen City.
“We have something really special with this food truck, and we can’t wait to share it with Charlotte,” Eggleston-Long said. “And in case you’re wondering – yes, we really do have 27 flavors of pancakes. They actually taste like the flavors; it’s not just a topping.”
From traditional buttermilk pancakes, served with whipped butter and warm maple syrup, to more savory flavors such as Mexican chicken cakes topped with a slow-cooked pulled chicken, bean and corn Pico and fresh salsa, 27 Pancakes has something for everyone.
Eggleston-Long said the blueberry pancake with a homemade blueberry compote on top is a fan favorite, along with the cinnamon roll pancake topped with cream cheese.
Customers also love the theme pancakes offered throughout the year, such as the corned beef hash pancake in March. October will bring pumpkin spice pancakes, and November’s signature dish will be a sweet potato and apple pancake.
Each pancake is served with a traditional breakfast side of choice.
From hair stylist to pancake creator
Eggleston-Long began her food truck venture in January 2020. She was looking for something unique and discovered only one other pancake food truck within a 600-mile radius. As a retired hair and makeup stylist, Eggleston-Long had no prior experience with food trucks and had never made pancakes from scratch. But that didn’t detour her.
“I’ll be first to admit I couldn’t bake at all. I had always used box mixes,” said Eggleston-Long, who has since taken a one-year culinary course at University of South Carolina. “I got insight from a friend of mine — a cake maker — and once I got the hang of it, the rest was history. I literally came up with my first recipe just two weeks before we opened.”
But just two months after the launch of 27 Pancakes, COVID hit hard. While the pandemic was devastating, Eggleston-Long said she found a blessing amidst all the uncertainty.
“Since no one was going out to eat, neighborhoods started booking food trucks to come into their communities. We gained a lot of fans those first few months and did very well in our first year,” Eggleston-Long said. “People just couldn’t get enough of our homemade pancakes, made entirely from scratch with fresh ingredients.”
After perfecting her pancake recipes and gathering a large following on social media, Eggleston-Long got a wild hair to offer pancake boards, like charcuterie boards but packed with pancakes and fresh fruit. She said the boards took off so quickly that she had to turn down catering jobs to keep up with all the orders.
She also opened an online store to sell pancake batter and jarred blueberry compotes. She said the food truck will continue to be the main draw for now, but online product sales will likely be the long-range future of her business.
‘Best pancakes I have ever had’
Foodies have taken to social media to rave about 27 Pancakes.
“They did not disappoint! We had the cinnamon roll pancakes, blueberry pancakes and sausage. Everything was delicious,” Melissa Scott said in her Facebook review.
“These are the best pancakes I have ever had. Everything is made to order and it’s definitely made with love and care,” according to Sara Miskin’s review, which pointed out the buttermilk, blueberry and cinnamon roll pancakes. “They are extremely friendly and easy to work with! We truly hope they will come and visit our neighborhood in Elgin again soon!!”
Eggleston-Long said she is humbled by all the support in the business’s first two years. She’s looking forward to soon welcoming new customers and is crossing her fingers for the same rave reviews from the Charlotte area.
27 Pancakes Breakfast & Brunch
Location: Food truck coming soon to Charlotte and Concord coffee shops and neighborhoods
Neighborhood: Charlotte, Concord
Instagram: @27pancakes
