Otherwise pancakes are often kinda meh, and I apparently don't like maple syrup enough for it to redeem all pancakes.
French toast is tasty but I haven't perfected or found a great recipe. Waffles requires yet another kitchen appliance which just isn't happening right now. Which means it all depends on the restaurant.
Aren't buttermilk and kefir basically the same thing? Now I haven't had american buttermilk so I can't really give my opinion on the matter, but I've heard something or the other about them being the same thing.
They're pretty similar; kefir, buttermilk, and yogurt are all kinda the same thing. In the US what you get at the grocery store is probably going to be standardized around different textures and flavors though. And in the case of yogurt, 50 percent sugar and added random flavors.