Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Restaurants Waffold: endorsed by Elvis?
Posted by Cliff Bostock @cliffbostock on Wed, Sep 5, 2012 at 10:30 AM
- Cliff Bostock's iPhone
- Cajun chicken at Waffold
The nostalgia comes in the form of a food fad from long ago. I remember that when my parents returned from the 1964 New York World's Fair, my mother raved a good bit about the so-called Belgian waffles served there, piled with whipped cream and strawberries.
I say "so-called" because the large waffles never existed in Belgium, even though they were a riff on a traditional recipe there. And, despite popular belief, the neo-Belgian waffles were actually around before the '64 event. For proof, consult the '63 film "It Happened at the World's Fair," set in that year's fair in Seattle. It includes a scene in which Elvis feeds a Belgian waffle to a kid.
Still, it's certainly true that it was the '64 World's Fair that turned them into a fad. You couldn't go anywhere culinary without seeing an image of them.
Waffold, opened by Justin Lim, who founded Yoforia about five years ago, exploits another dawning waffle fad: waffle sandwiches. They're a growing food-truck favorite around the country and even Jack in the Box recently began serving a waffle sandwich for breakfast.
Lim's menu says he's making Belgian waffles. I don't know his recipe, but they are slightly crispy, big circles that he folds over a variety of contents, sweet or savory for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. Think waffles impersonating pita pocket sandwiches. Wayne and I each tried two. I got the cajun fried chicken — a breast moistened with some kind of chili spiked with maple syrup and covered with cole slaw. I paid $1 extra for a jar of maple syrup to sweeten the dish even more. It sounds weird, but the sweet and spicy flavors work together, as do the crispy textures of the waffle and the chicken.
Wayne ordered the lox and cream cheese with sliced cucumbers. He didn't miss the bagel. We both also ordered dessert waffles—Nutella and bananas with whipped cream for him. I got the "crème brûlée," fairly close to the original Belgian waffle. It had a layer of vanilla custard with sliced strawberries and raspberries. The menu said it also included caramelized sugar — presumably to further impersonate crème brûlée — but I didn't run into it.
The only real miss was an order of waffle fries. They were tepid, chewy and absent of crispness. Don't bother.
If authenticity is a big deal, Waffold does offer two waffles that are favorites in Belgium: the Brussels waffle and the Liege. These are topped with sweet ingredients and are a bit cheaper than the sandwich-style ones. I didn't try either, but I'll be back. I have a feeling these things are addictive.
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