Pancake restaurants are profiting from a steady stream of grandparents and their grandchildren while other restaurants are struggling, ABN Amro said in its latest leisure industry report.

Some three-quarters of the turnover of the 339 pancake restaurants in the Netherlands comes from the pockets of grandparents treating their grandchildren, ABN Amro has calculated.

“The population continues to age and that means more grandparents will go to pancake restaurants,” Janneke van der Ham, of pancake restaurant association VEP, told broadcaster NOS.

Just five pancake restaurants went bankrupt in the last eight years, making it the most stable of all food outlets.

Pancakes are also relatively cheap and quick to make so grandparents are less likely to deal with high costs and obstreperous children.

They are also often situated in rural areas and close to walking and cycling routes. “That makes them ideal for families, cyclists and walkers,” ABN Amro said.