Since 2011, Penny Ann’s Cafe has been serving up hearty breakfast, delicious brunch and mouthwatering lunch items. Home of the “Heavenly Hot Cakes,” the cafe has won numerous awards for its family-friendly atmosphere and delicious food.

The Willey family is originally from New York but brought their East Coast diner vibes to Utah with sisters Penny Ann and Cindy chatting with patrons, brother Warren cooking up the menu as the executive chef and brother Paul serving as CEO to keep daily operations running smooth.

“We’re very family oriented,” Paul said. “Our clientele are people who want to come celebrate birthdays or anniversary, and we have a business crowd as well, coming in for meetings. We want to be that gathering place where people go to celebrate or get together and enjoy a good breakfast.”

Family-owned and operated, Penny Ann’s Cafe just opened its fourth location in Bountiful at 234 S. 500 West as it expands out of Salt Lake County to bring their breakfast and lunch favorites to new customers. The cafe can also be found in Salt Lake City (1810 S. Main St.), Draper (280 E.12300 South) and Taylorsville (1856 W. 5400 South). Each location is open seven days a week from 7 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. 

“Bountiful is a great area but there aren’t a lot of breakfast spots,” Paul said. “We’ve had our sights set on going north and hitting Bountiful first. It’s such a great location.”

For those unfamiliar with Penny Ann’s menu, the Heavenly Hot Cakes are a customer favorite and the restaurant’s claim to fame. Fans of the hot cakes can also purchase the Heavenly Hot Cakes mix to make in the comfort of their own homes. 

Another “can’t miss” menu item is the Pot of Gold, a hearty dish with bacon, ham, sausage, mushrooms, peppers and onions, mixed with potatoes, topped with cheese and eggs and smothered with sausage gravy. 

The breakfast nachos feature tortilla chips (fried in-house), topped with melted cheese, eggs and the restaurant’s incredible homemade pork chili verde. The famous grilled Reuben includes thinly-sliced corned beef, sauerkraut, Swiss cheese and Thousand Island dressing cooked to perfection on marbled rye bread. 

Lunch sandwiches and burgers are served with a choice of Caesar salad, garden salad, French fries, or coleslaw and the fluffy omelets come with home-fried potatoes and choice of toast, French toast or Heavenly Hot Cakes. All menu items are available throughout the day.

“We’ll have people come in early in the morning, they just came off the graveyard shift, and they want a Reuben or a burger at 7:30 in the morning, and they get it,” Paul said. “It’s important that our staff has the evening for their families and it’s great we don’t have to work in the evenings, as well.”

With their focus on quality and service, the Willey family wants their cafe to be a place people want to visit. For more information, go to Pennyannscafe.com.

“We want people feeling like they’re coming into our home,” Paul said. “We drive that home during our monthly server meetings, letting our servers know that we don’t want this to just be a job. We want the guests to feel like it’s not just a typical lunch or breakfast spot. We’re doing a good job in setting us apart but as we grow we want to keep that feeling.”