# So, how well DID hotcakes sell?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-how-well-did-hotcakes-sell/679023>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [January 17, 2014, 1:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-how-well-did-hotcakes-sell/679023 "2014-01-17T01:33:37Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 1\
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**Author:** ![SpoilerVirgin](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/4491bb/32.png) [@SpoilerVirgin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SpoilerVirgin)\
**Post date:** [January 17, 2014, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/so-how-well-did-hotcakes-sell/679023/2 "2014-01-17T02:09:10Z")

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According to [The Word Detective](http://www.word-detective.com/2010/01/selling-like-hotcakes/), the phrase dates back to 1839, but there was no one particular hotcake fad that inspired it.

I’ve always imagined it to be less about selling hotcakes from a store or restaurant, and more about a family or ranch cook offering up hotcakes and having everyone immediately come running for them. (As if on a day when scrambled eggs were on the menu, people would be, “O.K., time for breakfast,” but if it was hotcakes breakfast would suddenly be a big deal and everyone would want some.)

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