(playful music)
- So many of you wrote in about this next spot,
saying things like, "It's out of this world,"
"fabulous," and you couldn't ask for a better place.
With praise like that, we had to check out
Mary's Morning Mix Up in Brookfield.
She serves creative kid-friendly eats,
and it's near the zoo, so families can make a day out of it.
(playful music)
You may have the most kid-friendly place
in the whole episode.
There are more kids in here than there are in a school.
- I love my kids.
I love putting a smile on their faces.
They all come in and they see me,
"Miss Mary,
"Miss Mary!"
- Comin' out guys. (bright music)
- When we walk in,
Mary always says that she's happy to see us.
- I like it because they have delicious food.
- She has lots of decorations.
- She's very whimsical.
- I like coloring.
- You can color!
And you did a heck of a job, look at that!
All in the lines.
- So I always want it to be fun, healthy, creative,
and just different.
And that's a lot of my customers.
Even the adults, they always come in
'cause they know I don't stick to the same old boring menu.
I always do a special board,
to have different things.
(playful music)
Today we're making the sunshine pancake.
- I've already heard all about it.
I barely made it in the door before three kids
stopped me to tell me about the pancake
with the happy face.
How much happiness does it bring you to see all of the joy
on all of the kids' faces here?
- Tremendous happiness.
I get to do what I love every single day.
- Do you like eating here?
I bet when you come you probably don't eat the eggs though.
No, Chicago's best pancakes, you get them here?
(playful music)
All right, pancakes. - Pancakes.
- There's a lot of secrets in here.
- Right.
- None of which you would share with us.
- Correct, sorry.
- That's okay!
Step one, water? - Water.
- All of it? - All of it.
- Okay!
How am I doing?
- [Mary] Very good.
- You know you can answer honestly.
- We gotta, no, we gotta.
(laughter)
We have to try to get the lumps out,
but you can't over beat it.
All righty, we're good.
- We're good.
(bright country music)
All right, about how long on this side?
- Until you see a lot of bubbles.
- A lot of bubbles.
- [Mary] We're almost there.
- But I am at the ready.
I'm taking my role very seriously.
When this food is for children,
you do not screw it up, okay.
There is nothing worse than an unhappy kid.
- They will tell you.
- I think I'm gonna throw up.
- No you're not.
You're gonna eat your food.
- [Boy] It's yucky.
(bright country music)
- [Marley] Oh it's stuck, it's sticking.
Is that okay?
- [Mary] It's really stuck there, hold on.
- [Marley] No, no, it's a failure!
- We've gotta redo it.
- No we don't, we got it.
Oh we did it.
- We'll make that the eyes and the smiley face.
We'll camouflage it.
- I screwed up a pancake!
I'm done, I quit.
Elliott, welcome.
It's your show.
(Mary laughs)
(playful music)
Yeah!
- All the way around.
- All the way around, okay, perfectly?
- Oh, no no no no.
- Oh, I already screwed it up!
- Sorry.
- You put an end in there.
You didn't tell me not to use the ends.
Come on, Mary.
I've already embarrassed myself enough here.
- They've gotta be touching, 'cause if they don't,
the kids will know that.
- The kids get upset if they're not touching?
- Yes, they've gotta be touching.
- The things you learn.
- [Mary] It can't go over the plate, it's too big.
- You can't go over the plate?
There's so many tips.
This one's too big.
And now it must smile.
Eyeballs, is it a banana first?
- Yes. - Two bananas, okay.
Children are gonna love that one, right?
Press them in now?
- Press them in now
so they don't roll when you pick up the plate.
- And ta dah?
- Ta dah!
- The fruits of our labor.
It's so pretty!
(bright music)
Do you start on the outside and go in
or start in the center?
- Some kids say they like to eat the eyeballs first
'cause then the pancake can't see what you're doing.
- Oh that's very thoughtful of them,
sort of in a weird cannibalistic way.
(playful music)
I got a really good bite, a nice syrupy bite.
Now I'm dying to know what the secret is.
- [Mary] Can't tell you.
- This pancake tastes so close to cake.
- Yes.
- And you feel less sinful
because you have a whole day's serving of fruit
in front of you.
- That's right.
- Why did you decide on Brookfield
for your dream restaurant?
- Once I found the location
and then I found out it was close to the zoo.
Kids, they're gonna go to the zoo, they stop in here.
And I'm doing what I love everyday.
- And you make kids happy, you make parents happy.
- That's right.
- And parents pay the bill and pick where the kids eat.
That's a brilliant business plan.
Well cheers to that, and your super cute happy mugs.
- [Mary] Thank you.
- And your happy t-shirts and for making us happy today.
- Thank you for coming.