A no-frills pancake counter on the Kill Devil Hills bypass, open early and gone by early afternoon
Stack'em High Pancakes and So Forth sits on South Croatan Highway in Kill Devil Hills, right along the bypass corridor that runs through the heart of the northern Outer Banks beach towns. It's a straightforward, budget-friendly breakfast counter — the name tells you most of what you need to know before you walk in.
The kitchen opens at 7am every day but Wednesday, and closes by 12:30pm — so this is strictly a morning-and-midday stop, not a dinner option. That early-and-done schedule makes it a solid pick for beach mornings when you want to eat before the day gets going, or for a late breakfast on the way south toward Jockey's Ridge. At a $ price point, it's the kind of place that fits into a vacation budget without much thought: pancakes and classic breakfast fare, no long wait for a table.
Location-wise, it's squarely in Kill Devil Hills proper, on the Croatan Highway side rather than the oceanfront Beach Road strip, so plan on driving or a short trip over from wherever you're staying. Call ahead if you're working around the Wednesday closure — with hours capped at half past noon, this isn't a place to show up expecting an all-day menu.
2,809 reviews
a month ago
We didn't realize the restaurant uses a cafeteria-style system where you grab a drink, order at the register, take a number, and find a seat. Even though there were several empty tables, the whole process took a bit too long, and our party wasn't able to sit together. We would have preferred traditional table service over waiting in line. However, the servers were super friendly and the food was plentiful and good.
4 months ago
Worth the wait! Despite what other reviews say, the line system works fine for this restaurant. They have a covered wrap around porch that you wait on to order your food up front like a cafeteria - but then the waitress brings out your food after it’s made fresh! The gyro omelet was a delicious non red meat option, I do wish they had turkey sausage or turkey bacon though. Overall super yummy and they kept our
2 months ago
Stack ’Em High Pancakes is exactly what we expected from a great old-school breakfast spot — friendly service, large portions, great value, and all the classics done right. This year is their 45th anniversary, and it’s easy to see why they’ve been around so long. It has that family-owned feel, with the kind of friendly, attentive service and attention to detail that only comes with a personal touch. Even though there was a line, it moved quickly, and there was plenty of seating. We really enjoyed the pancakes, French toast, grits, corned beef hash, biscuits and gravy, and fresh coffee. Everything had that classic, comforting breakfast feel, and the generous portions definitely left us satisfied. Make sure to look at the entire menu, including the specials on the boards close to the cashier. Highly recommended — we look forward to returning again soon.
2 months ago
We hat a great breakfast joint! Super friendly staff, awesome menu, your coffee or other drink never go empty, they like to keep things cleaned up as you go. The homemade corned beef hash was phenomenal, soooooo much flavor, over easy eggs done perfectly and short stack pancakes were just enough and tasty. Would highly recommend this place for everyone, family groups, couples or single eaters like myself. Been wanting to eat here for years when passing through OBX, finally did and it won't be the last time. Great food, great atmosphere, and great people.
2 months ago
Most of the food was really good. Unfortunately I am a connoisseur of corned beef hash and I was horribly disappointed with the odd flavor of it. I have been eating corned beef hash for at least 47 years and I have NEVER experienced the flavor of the spices in this hash. It was so bad I could only stomach 2 small bites. Everyone in our 4 person party agreed that it was the WORST corned beef hash they haven't ever tasted. So it wasn't just me. My advice to you is stick with the pancakes waffles or french toast and Skip the terrible corned beef hash. It really ruined my breakfast and I should have complained about it but I didn't want the hassle. I will come back someday, but I WILL NOT get the horrible hash. It will be banana pancakes sausage and eggs for me. I love bacon but I don't prefer the thin wimpy bacon that is served here. So I'll be skipping that too. The pancakes, French toast and gyro omelette were amazing and well worth getting.