I WAS mulling over what to do with my two girls on their school inset day, and my day off, when what should appear in my inbox: ‘The Botanist’s famous hanging pancake kebab is back for Shrove Tuesday after a two-year hiatus’. That’s settled then!
Handily, the pancake kebab is back for a three-day run either side of Shrove Tuesday, so into Farnham we rolled on Monday – starting with a run around Farnham Park in an attempt to offset at least some of my parenting guilt at the impending sugar onslaught.
The Botanist’s famed savoury hanging kebabs are served all year round. If you’re not already familiar, think a kebab of chicken, lamb koftas, pork belly or halloumi hanging over a bowl of chips, above which is another smaller bowl with a hole in the bottom in which you pour a sauce to run down over the kebab into the chips below.
Gloriously innovative fare – especially when paired with a few samples of The Botanist’s excellent beer selection.
But offering a sweet twist on its trademark kebabs, the cocktail bar – which has a restaurant in The Borough, Farnham – has for three days only created three mouth-watering combinations to satisfy your crepe cravings. Miniature pancakes are hung from skewers with a choice of three different toppings they’ll be stacked up with.
Each one is served with a pot of sauce made specially to drizzle down the kebab – but this time it’s hot chocolate sauce or a lemon drizzle, with ice cream, brownies, strawberries, marshmallows and even candy floss waiting below.
The pancakes – which are of the fluffy Dutch poffertjes variety – became a viral sensation the last time they hit The Botanist menu, and my two girls were flippin’ excited too when they saw what awaited them.
In double quick time, there was chocolate and lemon sauce everywhere – on the kids, in the bowl, on the table. But despite the mess, it was terrific fun, and certainly kept the kids occupied as they tried to navigate the swinging pancake monstrosity in front of them.
A double thumbs up from both four and seven year old.
But if you want to get your hands on one, you better be quick – the sweet treats will only be available until Wednesday, March 2, priced at £6.95.
Book a table here.