On 2013-01-30 03:19:58 +0000, Bob Terwilliger said:

> Dave Smith wrote about pancakes and French toast:
>
>> I rarely get either in restaurants. They are almost always a
>> disappointment, and especially disappointing in places that specialize
>> in pancakes.
>
> The absolute worst pancakes, the utter bottom of the barrel, are the
> ones cooked up and served by the U. S. Navy. They've got a magical
> power: When you pour syrup on them, the syrup simply disappears, and
> the pancakes still taste like sawdust.

I once had a girlfriend who, at my pleading, made buckwheat cakes. My
mom had made them and I like them plenty, again with molasses. My
girlfriend's hotcakes did have that curious quality of being amazingly
absorptive and texturally unpleasant.